You guys seem to answer these types of questions all of the time but here is another... I am looking to buy my first TJ and the one at hand is a '99 Sahara with some added parts. I am not particularly familiar with these parts and was wondering if anyone had insight into the quality of them. The Wrangler looks very clean but I want to make sure it is not just a polished turd. The CarFax shows 7 previous owners, one accident early in its life (~15K miles - very little info) and a paint color change. The current ODO is 154,000 and asking price is $10,900. Here are some of the pictures:
Buying First TJ: Another Should I Buy Thread
- Thread starter WranglerTike
- Start date
The frame photos could use some better lighting. I see some light rust and paint flaking around the transfer case skid plate area of the frame.
I can also see someone has spray painted the frame, which is a common dealer tactic to hide what otherwise might look very bad to a potential buyer.
That being said, I suspect there's a lot of surface rust on that frame that needs to be dealt with under the paint. However, 7 previous owners, an accident (what was the accident, has the frame been checked?) is kind of a red flag.
However (again), the paint job looks good, and it appears they did under the hood as well, which means it was likely a very expensive paint job.
I think that all things considered, that price is fair.
I can also see someone has spray painted the frame, which is a common dealer tactic to hide what otherwise might look very bad to a potential buyer.
That being said, I suspect there's a lot of surface rust on that frame that needs to be dealt with under the paint. However, 7 previous owners, an accident (what was the accident, has the frame been checked?) is kind of a red flag.
However (again), the paint job looks good, and it appears they did under the hood as well, which means it was likely a very expensive paint job.
I think that all things considered, that price is fair.
I'm a little leary of the apparent rust also but it could be "skin deep". Crawl under and look it over very carefully with a good flashlight. You're looking for crunchy and scaly places under the paint, especially around holes. I'd take nice sharp quarter and do some test scrapes on the paint in some inconspicuous places of the frame that look iffy (don't let them see you do that). A quarter is easy to hide in your hand and, if you want, you can even use it openly to tap on the frame to 1) see if it sounds soft and "rusty" and 2) make the sales guy think your being totally innocent with your shiny piece of metal 
. Note: do this at the risk of being sent packing. You can also take a hard plastic-handled screwdriver to bang around (handle side ).
While under there, peer into the larger holes in the frame with your light to look for rust inside. The box frames on the TJ's do most of their rusting from the inside. Stick a finger in and feel around for scaly bits. If you have access to a borescope, that would be a fine time to use it. Check the body panels near the bottom (kick panels) on the underside as well. You might want to take some higher quality pics to look at later or post up for "further review".
In the 5th pic, the apparent crunchies around the oblong hole in the frame gives me some pause (right-click the pic and save it to your computer...you can then open it in a photo viewer [Windows always has one] and zoom in a bit [usually Ctrl key + mouse scroll]).
If the dealership is willing to let you take it for a test drive alone (rare), you can do this out of site of the dealer but keep track of your time; it's easy to get lost when looking a vehicle over. Save the inspection of the interior and engine for when your at the dealer's. While on that test drive, alone or not, listen intently for any odd noises like transmission whine.
I agree with Chris, the paint job looks really nice.
Assuming those are 17" JK Moab wheels, I'd estimate that it has 30" to 33" tires (and they likely all matched the spare until recently) so I'd say it has a 2.5" to 3" entry-level spring lift. The OME shocks would also support this assumption. To check, you can measure the springs (not including the rubber isolators) then subtract 12" from the front measurement and 8" from the rear to get the amount of lift installed. Judging from the 5th pick, I'd say it probably does not have an SYE...really hard to see with the lighting...certainly a look of the back of the transfer case would give the answer. But, if the lift is 3" or less, your probably fine without an SYE.
The snorkel makes me a bit nervous but probably 90% of the people that put those on do it purely for looks so it may have never seen any kind of deep water, which can be really bad for an automatic tranny, especially if the snorkel was the only thing they did to make it "deep water worthy". At least it has the OE air box
Engine-side, take your flashlight and peer through the oil filler hole to look for any sludge (the dealer would certainly have changed the oil so there's likely nothing much to see looking it that...but do anyway). Listen carefully to the engine for any rattling or grinding noises.
My general impression is that it's probably a good deal. Just do your due diligence, especially when looking for rust, that's the real killer.
Oh, does the dealership offer a 7-day (or any day) return policy if you change your mind? If so, you can do all the checking you want at home if it seems to pass muster at the dealer and you decide to buy...just be sure to do it.
Look for YouTube vids on buying a used car; lots of good ideas there (and some bad ones).
Best of luck, hope it's a good one!
. Note: do this at the risk of being sent packing. You can also take a hard plastic-handled screwdriver to bang around (handle side ).While under there, peer into the larger holes in the frame with your light to look for rust inside. The box frames on the TJ's do most of their rusting from the inside. Stick a finger in and feel around for scaly bits. If you have access to a borescope, that would be a fine time to use it. Check the body panels near the bottom (kick panels) on the underside as well. You might want to take some higher quality pics to look at later or post up for "further review".
In the 5th pic, the apparent crunchies around the oblong hole in the frame gives me some pause (right-click the pic and save it to your computer...you can then open it in a photo viewer [Windows always has one] and zoom in a bit [usually Ctrl key + mouse scroll]).
If the dealership is willing to let you take it for a test drive alone (rare), you can do this out of site of the dealer but keep track of your time; it's easy to get lost when looking a vehicle over. Save the inspection of the interior and engine for when your at the dealer's. While on that test drive, alone or not, listen intently for any odd noises like transmission whine.
I agree with Chris, the paint job looks really nice.
Assuming those are 17" JK Moab wheels, I'd estimate that it has 30" to 33" tires (and they likely all matched the spare until recently) so I'd say it has a 2.5" to 3" entry-level spring lift. The OME shocks would also support this assumption. To check, you can measure the springs (not including the rubber isolators) then subtract 12" from the front measurement and 8" from the rear to get the amount of lift installed. Judging from the 5th pick, I'd say it probably does not have an SYE...really hard to see with the lighting...certainly a look of the back of the transfer case would give the answer. But, if the lift is 3" or less, your probably fine without an SYE.
The snorkel makes me a bit nervous but probably 90% of the people that put those on do it purely for looks so it may have never seen any kind of deep water, which can be really bad for an automatic tranny, especially if the snorkel was the only thing they did to make it "deep water worthy". At least it has the OE air box
Engine-side, take your flashlight and peer through the oil filler hole to look for any sludge (the dealer would certainly have changed the oil so there's likely nothing much to see looking it that...but do anyway). Listen carefully to the engine for any rattling or grinding noises.
My general impression is that it's probably a good deal. Just do your due diligence, especially when looking for rust, that's the real killer.
Oh, does the dealership offer a 7-day (or any day) return policy if you change your mind? If so, you can do all the checking you want at home if it seems to pass muster at the dealer and you decide to buy...just be sure to do it.
Look for YouTube vids on buying a used car; lots of good ideas there (and some bad ones).
Best of luck, hope it's a good one!
