should I buy this 240 wagon?

It's is a 1990 240 Wagon with 5-speed manual, 189,000 miles on it, with a
$2,500 price tag. I talked to the mechanic who works on it and he said it's
a nice, well maintained car as far as he knows. It has a relatively new
clutch, the timing belt was replaced at 156k m, etc. The owner tells me its
got several problems. The a/c is dead, has been dead for years, and he's
never gotten a repair estimate. The heated seats don't work; wipers work
only on high or intermitant; heat works only on high. He also said the
exhaust will need to be replaced soon. And that one time recently there
seemed to be some kind of problem with the thermostat; but maybe not;
anyway, the engine was getting hot, and he would, if I liked, put in a new
thermostat. Also, he has replaced the front vinyl seats with fabric ones.
I would take it to my mechanic to have it looked at, but the car isn't
registered at the moment and the owner doesn't want me driving it out the 40
miles I'd have to go.
So, that's the car. What do you think? Too iffy?
I've driven it around his block several times and it seems fine to me.
But what do I know?

 

I am BY FAR no expert on 240's. The only time we have had one was from when
I was 0 till I was like 2 or 3. But I know electrical, and most of your
problems are just fairly simple (most likely) electrical fixes, but they
might be awkward to get at. The heated seats - check for fuses, check for
broken wires, check for burnt out heater coils. For the wipers, its most
likely either a contactor problem in the switch, or the wiring on the switch
has fallen off, the unit will have to be disassembled one weekend and
inspected. The heater only working on high... are you talking about the fan?
This could be connections on the fan switch, or the resistors that slow the
fan down. If the heat only comes on when the slider is full open, then I
think there is a vacuum problem (I know nothing of HVAC, but I believe it is
all vacuum controlled). May as well get a new thermostat if he is offering.
As for the A/C it will be expensive, and 240 A/Cs aren't that good as far as
I have heard, if you are in the snow belt, live without it.

Also, for all the electrical problems I mentioned, check the other end of
the circuit too (the wiring harness where everything plugs in)... I would
only buy this car if I wanted to spend a few weekends doing some work on it,
get a book on this car if you do get it.

 

Sounds like all pretty simple stuff to fix yourself if you're into that,
also sounds like a pretty good deal on a relatively desirable car, very few
that new had 5 speeds, particularly wagons.

 

Check the steering rack for leaks or balkiness in turning. Plan on
spending another $1k on the car, and if you really like it - and don't need
A/C or something dead reliable for long trips - offer $1500. If they want
much more than that, ask for a written 30 day drivetrain warranty.


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http://www.albany.net/~mjc1/index.html

 

i know they won't take 1500, since they started off at 3200 and i got em
down to 2500. anyway, all, thanks for the thoughts. maybe i'll just get
it. i live in RI, so the a/c isn't all that much of a big deal anyway.

 

Did you check on ebay?