Any tips on what to look out for?

[Dion]

Hi all, new to the group first post. Just after any information on what to look out for when buying an FC ute. I have a potential one to look at tomorrow and was just after some tips and tricks on things to look out for. Thanks in advance for all your help. Hopefully a soon to be FC owner Dion

[mcl1959]

Welcome to the forum.
Look out for rust in the...
Front floors
Sill panels and lower rear quarters
Rear floor pan under the tray
Around the petrol tank
Subframe legs
Subframe Under the radiator
Panels beside the spare wheel door
There may also be rust in the guards, doors, tailgate and spare wheel door but this is of less importance because they are easily replaced.
If you can metal fabricate and weld then the rust can be overcome gradually at low cost, but if you are paying someone to repair rust it is very expensive.
If the ute is in reasonably good order then the other thing you should look for is that it is complete. Missing parts can be hard to find and/or expensive.
Ken

[fe350chev]

Hope you find something good Dion. If you can, try not rush into anything. Are you looking for something as a longer term project or something that you can drive with minimal work for roadworthiness? Some of the biggest expenses, if you don't have any bodywork skills is the actual chromework and trims etc. So think about that as well. I have found that if you are reasonably good mechanically, you can repair these old cars fairly cheaply, so if you can't weld or don't have access to a friend or family member who can, then I would be paying extra attention to the bottom of the A pillar and subframe near where it attaches to the main body because it becomes a lot of work once you need to take the front off cos everything is usually stuck, including seized bolts. Do you have an idea of a budget? If you are a complete novice it might be an idea to see if someone can come with you from a local club. Here's some areas on mine that particular attention should be paid to underneath.

The bottom of the A pillar and front square box cross member. Often about level with front seat on both sides is where floors go and pay attention to the sills like in my old pics.

 

[hsv-001]

Just remember there is a lot more rust than is at first visible .Haydn

[fe350chev]

Hahaha hahaha. Hahahahahahahaha. That's all I can say! Just ask any blaster hey Haydn

[hsv-001]

While inspecting a FC station wagon which was for sale on the side walk , the owner came up and said ," the only rust in it is what you can see." I was under the car looking up at the remnants of the floor and sills .I couldn't stop laughing for most of the drive home . Haydn

[fe350chev]

Mmmm

[Dion]

Cheers for the tips all, here is what I have been looking at http://carsales.mobi/cars/details/?R=24991848
I know a person at the yard and the service guy told her there is a fair bit of rust on the chassis that is not repairable. Does anyone on here know this car?

[mcl1959]

It "looks" like an OK car but may have been given a spray can resto.
Check the places that I have mentioned very carefully to identify "covering up" if you can.
An experienced person with FE FC would be helpful. Rust in sills for example can be repaired temporarily by knocking it in and covering with filler. This will rust through again in a year and be costly. You need to check behind the inner sill for signs of rust especially at the front and rear ( A and C pillars) an experienced person will also be able to tell if the sills have been replaced with new ones as part of the restoration.
But on the other hand, the car does not have to be entirely rust free for you to consider buying it.
Even if the car has some rust in the chassis, it is not unrepairable. It just costs money as I have said.
But $20000 outlay followed by more money for repairs can be offputting.
For $20000 I would be expecting a pretty good car.
If some rust were found it could be used as leverage.
Hope this is of some assistance.
Ken

[fe350chev]

For 20K, I would want the paint to be more even than what I can see there and the rust would not want to be near where any of the front crossmember abd sills meet at the A pillar. Those pick above are before an after so anything is repairable but if you start taking the subframe off for repair, then it's not usually a quick smooth process. In my honest opinion, for 20k, I would want pics or a history of receipts. If there's no history of structural repairs and if it presents with recent paint that's been put on it in the last 10 years, then I would steer clear. Sorry but I'm just being honest. Cos if it did have sound repairs done, then usually that history flows down.

[KFH]

The over riders on the front bumper are missing.  For that price I would expect the vehicle to be complete and in very good condition.

Keith

[Dion]

Thanks again to all, have picked up things I would have never seen or thought of. Will look into a lot more before considering. Again thanks for all you help. Dion

[fe350chev]

It's really just the price point and how much u can do yourself. Paying somebody to do the body structural repairs is where the $$$ add up. There's three on gumtree, all been restored or whatever. 16 to 22k is at the upper end. A lot of us think they are worth more really but the market doesn't right now. This one is 20k. If you can't tick off all these being good then it might give you something to go by.