Out of state buy, value & what to look out for.

[Josh B]

I'm thinking you maybe should listen to Angie. The odds I could expect at this point are less than 50/50 it paying off, and most likely closer, or less than 10 :/

One fact being other people have looked it over and walked. Dealers included, and most importantly, for if a dealer has walked, an ordinary shopper should take note.

Given the great distance and other factors involved I would have to suggest sitting back and saving money and keeping your eyes open closer to home, where you might stand a chance at being the first one there, which in itself is an Immense advantage

 

[MISWFL]

just me speaking..... i am guessing the truck is in a town? and the town has a parts store.... so why would you need to spend money on parts that might be fine for a drive home? look the truck over where it sits... then figure out if you need to invest in a set of wires when the ones on it will get you home? flying with tools? i wouldn't fathom that adventure... when a cheap set of sockets will be picked up at any store for 20.00 ... if needed at all. i would go there check over the truck, make sure it is road worthy, buy a spare coolant jug of 50/50, a couple pints of 10/30 oil, maybe a fan belt, and call it an adventure.

i guess it depends on how long the truck has sat and how much love it needs where it sits currently. and this will only be known when you turn the key in it.

cheers and have fun with the shopping adventure


i can't resist not posting this.... your story reminded me of this 4 part story i watched a while back.... cheers

It's close to a big city, so there's plenty of parts stores around. I usually buy all new tune up parts for any new vehicle and do a compression test, so I know where I'm at with it. I'm not planning to fly with parts and tools, I was planning to order from Rockauto and have the parts sent to the seller and buy a cheap set of tools when I arrive. I do have a funny story of flying with tools post 9/11, that I'll post sometime.

What worries me is it's a flip vehicle, has been for sale awhile and apparantly has been worked on by someone who sounds like they don't know what they're doing. It does run and drive, but who knows how well.

Normally I'd never consider something like this, but it's very hard to find anything, and all prices are crazy. I'm also out of my element in the South. I'm used to west coast car culture. Decent 80s vehicles just aren't a thing out here I guess. $3000+ for a high mileage project pickup is out of my budget. I looked a similar one in Florida and it was really bad, with less mileage. I guess I'm a bit spoiled being used to having tons of cheap decent old projects cars available.

I'll check out the video when I get a chance. When I was 20 I bought an air cooled VW with a tired engine out of town, and bought a nice wrecking yard engine and swapped it out in the parking lot on the trip back. I love poking around wrecking yards just for fun. I saw a fresh looking motor and decided to take a chance.

 

[Angie]

sounds like you have answered your own questions. till you turn the key in it you have no idea what you are going to get. Now just comes down to if you will buy the plane ticket to check it out.

cheers and good luck

 

[Billy Cranston]

my experience buying a ranger sight unseen 1500 miles away was illuminating. Dude said his mechanic looked it over and claimed there were no problems that would prevent me from making the drive.

When I got there he had lied about the state of it and omitted other failings. It had a failed hub assembly that made it unfit for the road. so... Take anything the seller has said about the roadworthiness of the vehicle with a grain of salt!

I was similarly prepared for the worst so I was able to get home but mine is 10 yrs newer than yours is!

 

[Ranger850]

I'm also out of my element in the South. I'm used to west coast car culture. Decent 80s vehicles just aren't a thing out here I guess. $3000+ for a high mileage project pickup is out of my budget. I looked a similar one in Florida and it was really bad, with less mileage. I guess I'm a bit spoiled being used to having tons of cheap decent old projects cars available.

I've never been out west and I'm not sure if I'm a member of the "culture" here, but you are right. There are no decent 80's vehicles. Most of them need a crap ton of work or have been garage kept and not worth it in today's used car market. IF you do get one, the junk yards don't have 30 year old cars anymore and if they do, they've been picked to the bones. I often see decent Rangers on FBMarket, but if they run, they're asking $2,500 - $3,000. They days of buying a $1,000 beater seem to be over.

 

[MISWFL]

sounds like you have answered your own questions. till you turn the key in it you have no idea what you are going to get. Now just comes down to if you will buy the plane ticket to check it out.

cheers and good luck

I'm planning to get 2 one way tickets, with the return trip reusable or whatever it's called where you can use it another time, so I'd have an out if the truck is too bad.

I'm confident with my mechanical skills, just not what the idiosyncrasies of those trucks are. If it was an A-1 chassis VW, I'd know to bring an ignition switch ( electrical part ), ignition module, alternator brush holder/voltage regulator unit, Warm up regulator, good injectors with new O rings and the puller tool, 3mm long allen wrench, shift bushing kit, clutch cable with the arm mounting clips, driver door handle, etc as that's the very common issues with those cars.

 

[Ranger850]

Maybe @RonD can help you figure out the most common failures to look for. He's some kind of GURU or something.

 

[MISWFL]

I've never been out west and I'm not sure if I'm a member of the "culture" here, but you are right. There are no decent 80's vehicles. Most of them need a crap ton of work or have been garage kept and not worth it in today's used car market. IF you do get one, the junk yards don't have 30 year old cars anymore and if they do, they've been picked to the bones. I often see decent Rangers on FBMarket, but if they run, they're asking $2,500 - $3,000. They days of buying a $1,000 beater seem to be over.

California is/was ( I moved away 9 years ago ) almost a paradise for old car lovers. Cheap decent and mostly rust free project cars all over the place and self service wrecking yards full of nice cars to pull parts from. CARB and the politicians have/are destroying it by their SMOG testing nonsense. They actually require old cars to test cleaner than they did when new.

I'd be into it around $2000 for this one, which is fair as it looks decent, if the major mechanicals are OK and the body isn't too rusty.

 

[ekrampitzjr]

Look in the rear wheelwells past the wheels at the frame in front of and behind the rear wheels. If the frame is rusty, walk away. You would be shocked at some of the things I saw when I was trying to find a Ranger two years ago.

If you can slide under the rear of the truck, check the frame crossmembers and bottom of the bed for rust.

Just because it's near Florida doesn't mean it wasn't exposed to road salt in the winter. It also doesn't mean it didn't spend years up north in the Rust Belt.

If the truck was undercoated and you can tell it's old undercoating that needs to be renewed, that's actually good. New undercoating might be trying to cover up serious rust.

 

[Ranger850]

One thing about the southern trucks that have been sitting for awhile is tall grass. If it sits in tall grass for more than 2-3 years, the lower portion of the body panels can rust out. The dew from the grass and the grass brushing up against it in the wind can do more damage than you would think.

IF you get going and need help in the Lower Alabama/Dothan area or North Florida/Tallahassee area, I'll do what I can to get you some help. anything south of I-10 and east of I-75, I'm useless. We have a few FL members here and I'm sure most of them would also be willing to help, IF needed.

 

[MISWFL]

I thought about it for awhile and decided that I'd be happier with something else. I'm now looking for a 620 or 720 King Cab. I might look for a Ranger down the road. Here's the link for the one I was thinking about getting:

https://bham.craigslist.org/cto/d/pinson-1983-ford-ranger-read-entire/7566835675.html

It looks like it's got potential for a cheap one.

 

[Josh B]

I hope you do well with it. There's so many ways a deal can go south, and it seems as time goes by the odds in an honest guy's favor goes south with it.
I like to get there before the crowd, and the dealers. A dealer is looking for something to flip, and make a living at it, so if the dealer has walked you should think twice also.
It is certainly best to know what you're looking for when inspecting a potential vehicle purchase, most especially a used one.

Good luck

 

[Blmpkn]

I hope you do well with it. There's so many ways a deal can go south, and it seems as time goes by the odds in an honest guy's favor goes south with it.
I like to get there before the crowd, and the dealers. A dealer is looking for something to flip, and make a living at it, so if the dealer has walked you should think twice also.
It is certainly best to know what you're looking for when inspecting a potential vehicle purchase, most especially a used one.

Good luck

I doubt an actual dealer went to look at that truck. There probably aren't many people period who went to look at that truck lol. It's 40 years old, has rust, a quarter million miles, and what sounds to be a thrashed interior. No dealer wants that on their lot, and nobody's considering that for a daily driver.... it's an enthusiasts rig at this point, and most enthusiasts would probably prefer a 4x4 over a 2wd... limiting its market further.

 

[Josh B]

Maybe it was a junk dealer. Either way it is easy to underestimate dealers
I actually didn't study the ad, but many people are acting dealers whether they claim the title or not.

The fact still remains, getting there first is a key ingredient when shopping for a used vehicle. which still applies whether you got there ahead of a licensed dealer, or someone looking for scrap metal or parts.

It even goes well beyond that, knowing how to inspect one will be the next important factor needed when considering buying one.

Did the seller have it warmed up and ready for you to inspect? That's a near invitation to walk away.
I do not want anyone "showing" me a vehicle, at least no more than "here's the key and it's behind that shed". My first step will be to check the oil and radiator. a good look underneath, looking for loose wires, oil leaks, cracks or broken pieces, yellow crayon scrap yard numbers, etc etc, it goes on and on, one must know something about looking one over if they hope to be successful in buying used.

Getting there early and hopefully 1st is merely "step one"

 

[MISWFL]

No idea if any dealer was involved or not. I do know he has been trying to sell it since Nov and it's a flip truck. He also doesn't know how to work on cars from what was said. I think the truck had potential, for me, at the asking price, as I specifically DO NOT want both: 4WD & a V6, like most and I want a manual transmission. I also want a long bed.

For cheap ( $1000 range ) vehicles you have to overlook a lot of little things, unless you're the lucky type to find perfect low mile old cars for $500 or free. I've never been that lucky and prefer a mechanically sound vehicle that's not perfect looking over a nice looking one that's expensive to buy and still needs a full rebuild.