moparmat2000
Well-Known Member
this is some advice i offered a friend who was looking to buy a 70 cuda sight unseen except pix. the car doesnt look like a roach in the pix, but we have all seen some nasty ones look good in pix. this advice is applicable to any older mopar any of us are looking to buy. he passed on the car which might have been a good thing since he wasnt able to look at it in person. Below is a copy of my letter to him. I would give this advice to anybody else. mechanical work most of us can do, but body and structural work can really stop a project if you dont know how to do it.
read my letter to Dan below, tell me what you think. i dont think i left anything out
matt
That sucks dan, but be patient, another one will pop up in probably better condition for you to buy. Since the 70 barracudas are now pushing 43 years old take your time examining them before you buy. Framerails, crossmembers, and floor pans may not be sexy like the rest of the car as they do the basic mundane job of tying it all together. Sure rusted ones can be repaired or replaced. However the costs of repairing or replacing these parts just to keep the car structurally sound can get very expensive quickly.
I know how to do this stuff, but am a tin bender/welder by trade/hobby so for me my work on my stuff only costs me a little money, and a whole lot of time. If your in the rust belt pay special attention to the framerails when looking, also look closely at the rear torsion bar mounts in the crossmember. Water likes to lay in these areas. Take a magnet with you to look for filler in the usual rust prone ares of the rear quarter panels, and back edges of the front fenders.
Take a screwdriver with you and ask the seller if you can remove the door sill plates and lift up the carpet to look at the floor pans. These rust from the inside of the car from windshield leaks and soggy carpet padding. if they wont let you examine the floor pans in this way, they probably have something to hide.
Check around the lower corners of the rear window for rust thru as water typically lies in these areas. Lift up the trunk mat if it has one and look at the trunk floor. Look upwards at the dutchman panel from inside the trunk. This is the panel that goes between the trunklid and rear window. Look for rust streaks consistent with a leaking rear window.. Also on E body mopars check the windshield cowl areas for lots of leaves, mulch and dirt from these areas not ever being cleaned out. This will cause rust holes which will allow water leaks under your dash and onto the floor. Also use the screwdriver to chip and poke at suspected rust thru areas in the floors , cowl and framerail areas.
Look for shoddy bodywork, and misaligned body panels, also look at the inner fenders for wrinkles where they shouldent be indicating a previous wreck that was repaired, Fatigue cracking in the upper A arm mounting areas and shock mount areas under the hood will indicate corroding and failing front framerails. Check for severe rust issues to the drivers side inner fender under the battery. The battery trays are pretty inexpensive, but the inner fenders are welded in and costly to replace.
I would never recommend buying any older car like that sight unseen unless it was fully restored by a reputable restorer fairly recently. Everybody out there trying to sell a classic car likes to talk up the good points of what they got, its human nature. But its a buyer beware world out there, i just dont want to see you get taken.
My 67 barracuda is a piece of ****. I know this, and examined the car very well before i bought it. Knowing the price for a restored one is $12K to $20K i payed $1K for a rebuilder special that i know is going to be put together right since im putting it together myself. This car had very little rust as it was a west texas car its whole life, but had structural issues with the floorpan and crossmember being cut thru with a torch by a previous owner. I had a good donor car , a 1974 dart 4 door with a solid floor and good crossmember that i welded in.
This car is slowly transforming into a nice car for me to drive, but i knew what i was getting into. It would suck if you bought something that looked nice, but had hidden structural issues. Take your time looking at these cars, and dont fall in love, look at all the things that need fixing in dollars and cents costs. If its mostly minor in nature that can be fixed by you great, just watch out for stuff you cant fix that you will have to pay somebody to do.
Good luck on your barracuda search, im sure you will find a good one.
Matt
read my letter to Dan below, tell me what you think. i dont think i left anything out
matt
That sucks dan, but be patient, another one will pop up in probably better condition for you to buy. Since the 70 barracudas are now pushing 43 years old take your time examining them before you buy. Framerails, crossmembers, and floor pans may not be sexy like the rest of the car as they do the basic mundane job of tying it all together. Sure rusted ones can be repaired or replaced. However the costs of repairing or replacing these parts just to keep the car structurally sound can get very expensive quickly.
I know how to do this stuff, but am a tin bender/welder by trade/hobby so for me my work on my stuff only costs me a little money, and a whole lot of time. If your in the rust belt pay special attention to the framerails when looking, also look closely at the rear torsion bar mounts in the crossmember. Water likes to lay in these areas. Take a magnet with you to look for filler in the usual rust prone ares of the rear quarter panels, and back edges of the front fenders.
Take a screwdriver with you and ask the seller if you can remove the door sill plates and lift up the carpet to look at the floor pans. These rust from the inside of the car from windshield leaks and soggy carpet padding. if they wont let you examine the floor pans in this way, they probably have something to hide.
Check around the lower corners of the rear window for rust thru as water typically lies in these areas. Lift up the trunk mat if it has one and look at the trunk floor. Look upwards at the dutchman panel from inside the trunk. This is the panel that goes between the trunklid and rear window. Look for rust streaks consistent with a leaking rear window.. Also on E body mopars check the windshield cowl areas for lots of leaves, mulch and dirt from these areas not ever being cleaned out. This will cause rust holes which will allow water leaks under your dash and onto the floor. Also use the screwdriver to chip and poke at suspected rust thru areas in the floors , cowl and framerail areas.
Look for shoddy bodywork, and misaligned body panels, also look at the inner fenders for wrinkles where they shouldent be indicating a previous wreck that was repaired, Fatigue cracking in the upper A arm mounting areas and shock mount areas under the hood will indicate corroding and failing front framerails. Check for severe rust issues to the drivers side inner fender under the battery. The battery trays are pretty inexpensive, but the inner fenders are welded in and costly to replace.
I would never recommend buying any older car like that sight unseen unless it was fully restored by a reputable restorer fairly recently. Everybody out there trying to sell a classic car likes to talk up the good points of what they got, its human nature. But its a buyer beware world out there, i just dont want to see you get taken.
My 67 barracuda is a piece of ****. I know this, and examined the car very well before i bought it. Knowing the price for a restored one is $12K to $20K i payed $1K for a rebuilder special that i know is going to be put together right since im putting it together myself. This car had very little rust as it was a west texas car its whole life, but had structural issues with the floorpan and crossmember being cut thru with a torch by a previous owner. I had a good donor car , a 1974 dart 4 door with a solid floor and good crossmember that i welded in.
This car is slowly transforming into a nice car for me to drive, but i knew what i was getting into. It would suck if you bought something that looked nice, but had hidden structural issues. Take your time looking at these cars, and dont fall in love, look at all the things that need fixing in dollars and cents costs. If its mostly minor in nature that can be fixed by you great, just watch out for stuff you cant fix that you will have to pay somebody to do.
Good luck on your barracuda search, im sure you will find a good one.
Matt
