02 wrx with 68,000 for $7800?

**Tmeyers** · 09-13-2012 06:16 PM

Hi, I'm a newbie with subarus and kind of a newbie to fast cars in general, with some technical knowledge. I found an'02 wrx that had a spun bearing, sat for 4 years in parents garage and when the guy got the money had it rebuild at a subie shop in Santa clarita. He started at $9k and I got him down to $7800. I had it inspected at a Subaru dealership and these were the results:
-Horn inop
-Fuel door inop( just really hard to get open)
-Reverse lights inop(due to a bad switch which he has a brand new one he's giving me)
-no cat converters (which he said he passed smog with the current setup twice, high flow cat apparently installed)
-trans fluid needs replaced
-some bolts on undercarriage rusty
-needs new air filter
-needs new cooling system hoses(they looked pretty new though)
-low coolant reservoir and poor condition of fluids
-clutch fluid in poor condition
-needs 2 new tires
-needs at least front end alignment
-throwing code p1591 neutral position switch(which is apparently due to the switch that makes the reverse lights work

He had it rebuild about a year ago, at which time he passed smog, as well as this year. His reason for selling is he has to move to Washington state because his girlfriend got a new job and he has 3 cars to move, so he decided to sell one.
It was fixed by Yimi Sport Tuning in Santa clarita.
So I'm wondering if you guys think that this is a really good deal, or a scam that I'm going to regret. Also, he is former army and I'm a marine so he says he wants to give me a good deal for that reason

**Tmeyers** · 09-13-2012 06:18 PM

Also, everything the seller told me about the car:

Pros: car only has 68,000 miles, engine rebuild, engine bay and new clutch have less than 7000 miles on them, tires, brakes and rotors have less than 7000miles, car was worked on by a subaru performance shop in Santa Clarita, a few after market parts vf34 turbo, Sti pink fuel injectors and was tuned by the same shop , Upgraded hood scoop to aggressive STI one, after market exhaust, blow off valve and suspension . Was told the car could run low 13's have never been on a track so i do not know, also was told with just a few more upgrades could easily go into the 12's if the drag strip is your thing For me it was just a nice car to drive around town. The interior of the car looks pretty good no major issues here and i don't smoke. has a turbo timer. mechanically speaking the car is pretty much brand new and is going to run for a very long time which is the most important thing when buying a car. You wont find another car this cheap that is so brand new inside the engine bay. Also the tags were just paid in August so you will have about a year on that.

Cons: Car is about 11 years old so it will have a few dings and cosmetic issues that i was still working on. Has one small dent on rear hardly see it because the black of the car hides it so well, a dent on the driver side fender that can easily be pulled out no big deal, Some how some paint came off the bump one time at a car wash, not matching headlights, when i got new tires last year one of the center caps broke off the rims purely cosmetic and can be replaced from center caps direct or a number of other rim places, the dome light needs to be replaced inside the car pretty easy and cheap, the review mirror fell off due to extreme heat here. Nothing to big or really expensive cosmetic wise everything can be bought for cheap and easily fixed or reaplced by someone. The only major issue is the power steering pump needs to be replaced which was next on my list. I have got quotes from several places and it ranges from $350-400 for parts and labor.

And a list of parts from the shop that did the work:
-complete Subaru master gasket kit-$275
-oem oil cooler for 2.0-$235
-oem '08+ sti 11mm oil pump-140
-Subaru 2.0l oil pan-$65
-gates timing belt kit-$335
-exedy Subaru oem replacement clutch-$275
-exedy flywheel-$100
-energizer max battery-$102
-grimmspeed EBCS-$120
-custom Open Source tune-$450
-labor-$2495

And has anybody used this shop before or heard and goods/bads about them?

**SD_GR** · 09-13-2012 06:31 PM

In what state and how would you register this car? A CA civilian resident would have problems getting a smog cert.

**Tmeyers** · 09-13-2012 06:43 PM

Originally Posted by SD_GR

In what state and how would you register this car? A CA civilian resident would have problems getting a smog cert.

He passed smog with it this year and last year and claims its the same exact setup. I honestly don't know what a carted downpipe looks like, and he claims it's an aftermarket pipe, do you think there's any way the dealer could have mistaken it for a non carted pipe?

**Tmeyers** · 09-13-2012 06:45 PM

Sorry, *catted* not carted

**SD_GR** · 09-13-2012 07:01 PM

It is the sellers responsibility to smog the car. Claims aren't useful; smog certificates issued recently enough to remain valid are. A tech that doesn't know what (s)he's looking at or for might pass the car with a cat, but don't make that your problem. Don't buy without a cert.

The car has had a hard life. See the how to buy threads in the purchasing forum. The shop is well known however.

**Tmeyers** · 09-13-2012 07:22 PM

He has the certificate and it won't need to be smogged for another 2 years. And I actually just read some threads about the shop just a little bit ago, I'm going to call the shop and see if they know of any issues with the car that he may have left out, if they would remember. The seller actually seems like a very straight forward guy honestly.

**mon3yboi** · 09-13-2012 07:26 PM

It just seems like a whole lot more work to get it back in good shape and in all honesty by the time you get everything fixed, the cost might be the same as getting one that was in much better shape to start with.

**Tmeyers** · 09-13-2012 07:38 PM

Well I figured the only things that need taken care of right away would be replacing the fluids, which the trans an clutch service at the dealership is $75 each, the alignment, and the power steering which I could do myself. And honestly I don't think it's that bad driving it without the p/s.

**SD_GR** · 09-13-2012 07:42 PM

You will need four, not two new tyres. Power steering can be a pain if it's the pump. Think it through cautiously.

**Tmeyers** · 09-13-2012 07:51 PM

Okay, why would I need to replace all 4?

**SD_GR** · 09-13-2012 08:07 PM

It is AWD and the circumference of any wheel must be very close to any other. Unless two are new, in which case you could get two more of the same type or maybe shave two of the same type, you will need four identical, same size, same type even if only two are shot right now.