At long last, I found a prelude that suits me perfectly. A 5spd base model that is CHEAP! I was wondering what you guys thought of this deal?

specs
98 base model 5spd
127k
silver
salvaged (from front end accident w/ airbags blown)
^--- this one worried me, but everything lines up perfectly with even gaps between fender, hood and bumper.

there are no airbags in the car, and he gave his HID's to someone else.

Maintenance was done recently, axles replaced, and included with the car is an intake (CAI i believe), MSD ignition (which isn't neccessary for near stock if i read enough of this board correctly) and some extra stuff he has left from his garage.

I've read and read about the minor fixes that it needs and it looks simple enough to hook up headlights, but i'm really concerned about DIY airbags since i'll probably need those if I were ever to get into an accident. what do you guys think?
and is there anything particular to look for besides checking fluids and listening for noises and smoke?

My math:
3500 (lude)
1-200$ (headlights)
1-200$ (driverside/pass airbags)

comes out like 3900$ w/o labor which sounds good to me.
w/ labor probably 2-3hours at around 75$ an hour so brings total up like 200bucks

I want some opinions on this deal, to me it seems like a steal at 1500-2000$ off
and imput on which route i should go for airbags

my flame suits on, so flame away if you must.

oh and this will be the first car going into my name so its really MY first car, and since its manual I can't testdrive it.. So I decided to ask someone to testdrive for me taking it up to vtec (zomg a noob spelled it right) in 2nd,3rd and 4th, if the seller will let maybe 5th gear too just to make sure theres absolutely no grind.

Thanks for reading the long post and for the replies, I just want to be sure

 

Personally, I would be a extra cautious about a savaged vehicle. depending on what state your in and your insurance company, the insurance wont pay to repair the vehicle since its salvaged title.

If you are still going to get the car, i would ask the seller for the repair info from the shop to see what was "done" to the car. I have personally seen body shops take a completely destroyed car and make it "look" like new but that doesn't mean I would want it.

 

he has receipts for repairs, he told me the damage didn't get past the radiator and there was no frame damage, but i'll triple check when we meet to make sure.

and as far as insurance goes, i don't really need that much insurance for this car since it is a salvage.. if it gets damaged beyond its worth its probably going to the scrapyard. mainly need insurance to protect pedestrians out there and other people on the road and myself of course, everything except the car lol

 

I would offer less than $3500 for the car.

 

how often do preludes in running condition with nothing wrong except title and milage going up a bit go for 4k? he wanted 4500 and i already worked down 1k which i thought was fair.

 

big risk, big rewards

Watch out...

 

Salvaged title = OWNED

Hope you plan on keeping that car forever, because it will be VERY hard to resell.

 

i do plan on keeping it for a very long time, and in the event i do sell it, ill sell it for a very modest price since i'll already have had my fun with it. i mean 4k for a 5thgen prelude beats the classiness of an integra imO


and really what should i look out for?

 

3,500 isn't that bad for salvage (theft or minor collision, but both air bags deploy?...check to see any frame damage, if so...reconsider).

I just pick up my silver 98 base, 70k, clean title two weeks ago, but add another 5k on top of that

 

check the body panels on the inside of the trunk and engine bay, look for any wrinkling and stress marks, look for body fill and welding work that shouldnt be there...have the frame checked by a mechanic and make sure you dont just see the car and get tunnel visioned, theres always another car but one bad decision can stick with you forever. Number one rule of buying used cars, your buying someone elses problems, its just a matter of how much time and effort you want to put into fix them.

 

A carfax report may clue you in some more about the car as well. The price doesn't seem that bad to me though as long as the work was done properly.

It seems to me though that it would take more than radiator support damage to total a car out.

 

yea the price isnt bad, but it will suck if the car was in a roll over or something and the roof is compromised and will not support the mandated 200% of the cars weight. Im pretty sure you want that strength, otherwise your head is going to get smashed out of your *** in the event of a roll over..check the a,b,c pillars for welding repairs especially.

 

and here are the pictures.

he assured me that the front bumper lines up perfectly, and the reason its a wee bit off is because it was held with a ziptie for a week (when he took the pic) ill take a really close look 2m.

so what do you think now of the car? imo this is a really clean silver lude

 

its missing the splash shields

 

if you don't buy it i might

 

update, i bought it for 3500...
heres the grocery list for friday:
driver/pass airbags/srs module
fix glove compartment (falls out all the way down cuz airbag blew up i guess?)
get new emblems! car looks naked without the H's
theres a vacuum leak somewhere (idle jumps 1k to 1500 at stops)
reconnect power steering (still hooked up but needs a belt)
reconnect AC
splash guards
headlights


goodnews:
engine/trans runs fine
there was frame damage! (its good news because frame was cut and another was put in to be welded in. it was done w/ the level to ensure that it drives straight.
interior in good condition
exterior has only 1 noticable scratch (rest of paint is good)
it has an injen intake ( can this cause a vacuum leak?)
im not sure, but it seems like there were foglights hooked up.. theres a red wire that branches off the other headlight wires and appears to be perfectly in place to be hooked up. and there was ONE foglight in the trunk... im not even sure it fits but it appears to.
MSD ignition included (found the installation paper in trunk next to spare)
theres a stiff clutch in there (im learning manual.. so this will be fun/hard)

 

engine bay shot !

close up of the leak, its from the hose all the way on the left. its a bad pic but its best i could do in the dark

on the left side of the head, the hose connected is leaking oil? i noticed a leak from the general area yesterday, and i felt around there with my hand and felt oil on the tube. its a very modest leak, about 1drop every couple of seconds at idle. should i make like a giant Q-tip and swab out the oil?

and for the vacuum leak, one of the lines had a crack on the rubber casing so i used electrical tape to seal it up.. i cant start the car right now since there are babies sleeping. but could this one line cause my bouncy idle?

 

looks worth it to me