http://www.ebay.com/itm/151252226797?forcerRptr=true&item=151252226797&viewitem=&sspagename=ADME:X:RTQ:MOTORS:1123
above is the link to the posting.
i texted charles and asked about the mileage. he said 111,000. he sent the pink slip (title) over a week after the car arrived and that's when i realized he'd lied to me about the mileage.
he seemed nice on the phone in discussing the car. but i asked repeatedly what i'd need to do to the car right away - what a mechanic would tell me needed to be done and he said nothing. i had to replace the tires, the carburetor, the fuel lines, hook up the electrical, fix the power steering, replace headliner, repair transmission. would've been nice if he'd mentioned a few of these issues with the car.
I feel really bad that your experience didn't go well. Maybe I can help you feel better about all of this.
I just saw a video on your car. It is a sweet assz car. I can tell you it sure does look to be all SE. The doors shut nice, the panels all line up, it is not rusty underneath, the rims look great even if the tires were worn. Cosmetically, I see having the window moldings painted black. The inside appeared to be driver condition and looked alright.
Despite whatever paperwork you saw. There is no way that car has 211,000 miles on it. These cars were lucky to make it to 90,000 miles let alone 200,000 miles. So if the odometer says 11,000 miles then I'd say 111,000 miles would be realistic.
The great news for you is, You can ask anyone here and they will tell you that you got a lot of car for $8,800.00. I applaud you on the deal you got. First things first, you got a 1978 Trans Am, add the fact that it's not rusted out, the paint still looks good and the interior is driver condition, and most importantly it's a Gold Special Edition. It's worth some money.
Now lets address your complaints.
Headliner-- They are all doomed to fall. Lets face it, a lot of us guys wait forever to do something about it so it's understandable that he may not have thought it was a big deal and since the roof is only 8" wide between the ttops, it can't droop that much anyhow.
Tires-- I hate to say it but some people love to drive on what I call bald snake skin tires. If there's a pattern to be seen then a lot of people will say they are still good. It's all in an opinion. This is what makes buying other peoples cars difficult. We all have our own opinion of what's acceptable. It's hard to see in the video how bad they are as they look good in the video. Video tends to hide a lot.
Brakes and Suspension- luckily isn't expensive to do on these cars and Charles buy and sell cars. These are not his personal cars. I know he doesn't have a lift and he's not restoring these things. It's a lesson we all learned when we bought our first cars like you did.
Smelly car- If it's your exhaust that's stinking the car could be running lean and may need the carb rebuilt. This is normal. Plus these old cars stink more than todays cars due to the lack of modern emission controls.
Cut wires-- Well, unfortunately it's a given to have cut wires. It's a miracle when we find a car that hasn't ben mangled and cut up.
Welcome to the world of owning a 36 year old collectible. Make sure you visit the forums regularly as this is where you will get all the information to keep your new Bird on the road.
I'm posting the video here so people can see what you have. I feel you did a great job getting this car. If you fix up the things listed you will see people say your car would be worth high teens if not $20k's
http://youtu.be/IPU4zAebxn4
