FOUND: '89 Firebird w/bent frame $750...
#1
Junior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: Southeast, Tennessee USA
Posts: 75
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
FOUND: '89 Firebird w/bent frame $750...
The car has been hit in the passenger fender. I have only talked to owner on the phone, I have not seen the car. He said it could be driven home. Could anyone give me a "ballpark" figure on what it might cost me to have the frame straightened??
The car has a 305 with TPI, auto, T-tops, red paint, about 150K.
Is $750 a good deal? Also, the car has not been started in over a year.
The car has a 305 with TPI, auto, T-tops, red paint, about 150K.
Is $750 a good deal? Also, the car has not been started in over a year.
#2
Bent frame? let it go. Or use it for parts. These cars are not hard to find cheap. We paid $500 for ours, In sig. good drivetrain, AC, and not too bad in and out but not great either.
#3
Supreme Member
iTrader: (1)
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: Savannah, GA
Posts: 2,361
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like
on
1 Post
Car: 1997 Jeep Wrangler
Engine: 4.0L
Transmission: 5 speed
Axle/Gears: 8.8 rear, 4.56 gears, 4:1 transfer
3rd gens don't have frames, they are uni-body construction. Let the car go and keep looking.......
#4
Supreme Member
iTrader: (6)
I agree. A car with 150K miles and a bent (sub)frame is no deal for $750. By the time you replace the damaged sheetmetal & suspension & pay a shop to straighten out the subframe (and paint the car), you'll have at least $2000 in it and you'll still have a 305 with 150K.
#5
Supreme Member
iTrader: (1)
Join Date: Aug 1999
Location: Rowlett, TX
Posts: 2,842
Likes: 0
Received 6 Likes
on
6 Posts
Car: 1988 GTA
Engine: 5.0 TPI
Transmission: T5
Axle/Gears: 9 Bolt, 3.45
I would offer 500 for it and part it out. Is it a WS6 or 1LE or anything? If not, the only thing that would really even be worth parting out would be the engine, which would need a rebuild anyway.
#6
TGO Supporter
i very much agree, let it go and wait for a nice solid f-body car (chassis wise with no body damage) with like a blown tranny or engine, that would be a better way to go...
#7
Junior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: Southeast, Tennessee USA
Posts: 75
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Well, I called the guy back so I could go take a look at the car and write down some RPO codes, BUT he said his grandfather bought an '85 Firebird that day and wants to use the '89 for parts. He did say that his grandfather was not going to use the engine so I'm going to check RPO codes to find out which engine it has and depending on that, I may buy it for a rebuild to put into my '86 Camaro. Also, I might buy his '89 rear spoiler and put it on mine. I saw a pic here on Third Gen of a camaro with a spoiler like that and it looks good. Thanks for the replies.
Trending Topics
#8
Supreme Member
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Elk Grove Village, IL
Posts: 2,967
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Car: 1989 TransAm GTA
Engine: One sweet modified 355 TPI.
Transmission: The kind that shifts....
Hey, sounds like your in the same boat as I am. Only I'm a little better off car wise.
I just bought a 89 GTA for $1,000. The body is perfect, with only a small dent in the driver side front quarter panel. Seems like someone opened a door right into it.
The car has two problems. Blown head gasket, and a electrical short somewhere that drains the battery. Other than that its in good shape. I'm going to do the heads myself. With the help of my dad and uncle though. All though I understand the theory's behind how a car works and why somethings are done the way they are, I lack the actual experience to do it. But both my father and uncle have torn down engines before. The only real experience I have with engines is with my dads Boat. Its a 1960 Correctcraft Atom skier. Basically it was a low buck ski boat. Has a wooden frame with a mahogany deck. For power it has a single side draft carb. 250c.i.d AMC Big Block with 138hp. Yes, its a 250. I know its a weird size, but thats what it is. Its a older engine so I understand how that works. Its more like a 8cyl lawn mower engine than anything else.
I also suspect that it has a aftermarket exhaust on it. Because no stock firebird I've heard is as loud as this one is. Not even my uncle's babied Formula 350. Its a 88' Formula and it has only 19,000 miles on it. He's also the original owner. He loves that car. I rode in it as a kid. Gotta love it.
I just bought a 89 GTA for $1,000. The body is perfect, with only a small dent in the driver side front quarter panel. Seems like someone opened a door right into it.
The car has two problems. Blown head gasket, and a electrical short somewhere that drains the battery. Other than that its in good shape. I'm going to do the heads myself. With the help of my dad and uncle though. All though I understand the theory's behind how a car works and why somethings are done the way they are, I lack the actual experience to do it. But both my father and uncle have torn down engines before. The only real experience I have with engines is with my dads Boat. Its a 1960 Correctcraft Atom skier. Basically it was a low buck ski boat. Has a wooden frame with a mahogany deck. For power it has a single side draft carb. 250c.i.d AMC Big Block with 138hp. Yes, its a 250. I know its a weird size, but thats what it is. Its a older engine so I understand how that works. Its more like a 8cyl lawn mower engine than anything else.
I also suspect that it has a aftermarket exhaust on it. Because no stock firebird I've heard is as loud as this one is. Not even my uncle's babied Formula 350. Its a 88' Formula and it has only 19,000 miles on it. He's also the original owner. He loves that car. I rode in it as a kid. Gotta love it.
#9
Look a little harder if you're willing to spend $750 on a car with a bent frame then I would say you'd be willing to pay $1000 for a decent runner which is what I found. 85 TA, T-Tops, 5Spd, 5.0 Performance Suspension(whatever that is, not WS6 so F* it) and then 2 weeks later my room mate found a 84 TA, T-tops, 5Spd, 5.0, 4 Wheel discs for $800, both were and still run today and clean enough to show around town, the only drawback 2 letters 1 number: LG4. Good Luck
#10
Supreme Member
Join Date: Mar 2000
Location: Central NJ, USA
Posts: 13,414
Likes: 0
Received 6 Likes
on
6 Posts
Car: 1986 Firebird
Engine: 2.8 V6
Transmission: 700R4
Well, first, you'd want to make sure the frame is bent, and the guy isn't just guessing. It could just be a bent up fender at the top of the front subframe. Also depends on how bad the frame rail would be bent! The repair I would do would cut out the damaged section and weld a new (or junkyard!) section in. But, if the whole frame is dented in, and the strut tower has moved, that's a lot of welding & alignment.
Now if the rest of the body is in perfect shape, and the interior is immaculately clean, it might be worth buying. But somehow I doubt it...
Fruity one, you could either replace that front fender (not called a front 1/4 panel), or you could try your hand at banging it out, you can find a body hammer for about $15 and a "general purpose dolly" (looks like a 5" piece of a railroad rail) for $7.
Now if the rest of the body is in perfect shape, and the interior is immaculately clean, it might be worth buying. But somehow I doubt it...
Fruity one, you could either replace that front fender (not called a front 1/4 panel), or you could try your hand at banging it out, you can find a body hammer for about $15 and a "general purpose dolly" (looks like a 5" piece of a railroad rail) for $7.
#11
Supreme Member
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Elk Grove Village, IL
Posts: 2,967
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Car: 1989 TransAm GTA
Engine: One sweet modified 355 TPI.
Transmission: The kind that shifts....
Damn, your right. I did call it a quarter panel. Opps. I sometimes screw it up. As a kid I didn't have much to work on as far as cars went. I build computers and sold them to family, but nothing to do with cars. No one in my family had an interest in working on them.
But I do, and I'm old enough and have enough money that I can afford to feed this pig weekly. Ought to be fun though. Going from a 88hp, 2300lb car to a 235hp, 3,500lb car. I'm bored, and if I have money maybe I'll have the head on my escort ported and polished cause it has almost no power at all. Heck, a 5hp gain would be noticible on that car.
But I do, and I'm old enough and have enough money that I can afford to feed this pig weekly. Ought to be fun though. Going from a 88hp, 2300lb car to a 235hp, 3,500lb car. I'm bored, and if I have money maybe I'll have the head on my escort ported and polished cause it has almost no power at all. Heck, a 5hp gain would be noticible on that car.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
1992 Trans Am
History / Originality
27
05-10-2023 07:19 PM