Found a dirt cheap LS what's wrong?

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stangdriver13

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So first time posting on this forum. I found a very cheap (~$1000) LS project for sale on craigslist…I know scam potential but hear me out. I already talked to the guy on the phone…he doesn't want to work on the car and is looking to unload it. He says he has the title in his possession. There are known problems with the car…first of all a tree fell threw the front windshield which shattered it. He claims he removed the rest of windshield so he didn't glass spread throughout his garage but never fixed the windshield…ok lame excuse but whatever no windshield. Next he provides a disclaimer in the ad that the car "smokes like hell from the tailpipe when running". I asked him about it and he claims it smells like burning oil…ok vcg? or at worst needs a new engine? What else…it has a dent in front driver side bumper and quarter panel. not terrible but def notable in the pictures. So my question is what besides a blown head gasket or vcg can cause an LS to smoke so bad? He claims that the car does not knock and could be driven as is if the windshield were replaced. I'm looking for LS experts to know what else to look for…I'm planning on checking out the car tomorrow then making a decision on whether to buy it or not.
 
stangdriver13 said:
So first time posting on this forum. I found a very cheap (~$1000) LS project for sale on craigslist…I know scam potential but hear me out. I already talked to the guy on the phone…he doesn't want to work on the car and is looking to unload it. He says he has the title in his possession. There are known problems with the car…first of all a tree fell threw the front windshield which shattered it. He claims he removed the rest of windshield so he didn't glass spread throughout his garage but never fixed the windshield…ok lame excuse but whatever no windshield. Next he provides a disclaimer in the ad that the car "smokes like hell from the tailpipe when running". I asked him about it and he claims it smells like burning oil…ok vcg? or at worst needs a new engine? What else…it has a dent in front driver side bumper and quarter panel. not terrible but def notable in the pictures. So my question is what besides a blown head gasket or vcg can cause an LS to smoke so bad? He claims that the car does not knock and could be driven as is if the windshield were replaced. I'm looking for LS experts to know what else to look for…I'm planning on checking out the car tomorrow then making a decision on whether to buy it or not.
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There's about 12 LSs near me for under $1000. Not really dirt cheap for junk.
 
for the money you're gonna spend getting a rough $1k LS back into goo shape. you're probably just better off spending that amount and getting a much better car to begin with.
 
A tree fell on it, it's all dented up and it smokes worse then grandma does ... NEXT!!!
 
You could buy a decent running one for less than you'll spend on buying and fixing that one, at least by the accounts of members here.
 
Sounds like a nice parts car. A daily driver, not so much. If a tree hit it hard enough to break the windshield, I would have to wonder if the pillars weren't damaged. If that's the case you could find a mint condition, low mileage LS for what the repairs would cost.
 
At this point, count on doing about $2000 in deferred maintenance on just about any LS you buy. In this case, it'll probably be at least twice that. That $1000 LS is probably going to cost you at least $5000.
 
I couldn't run away from it fast enough.
 
Guy lowered his price again on craigslist....now asking $650 guess he really wants to get rid of it. I agree with most of you though...I figured 2k needed to get the car in good DD shape and minimal $750 to make it even driveable.
 
At 650 bucks, it would be worth picking up just to part out. You could go 100 bucks for headlights, 50 for tail lights, 400 for wheels, ect. If he's that desperate to unload it, might get it for less than 500 if you have the cash and can haul it right away.
 
the biggest problem with rehabbing an LS these days is that parts are getting really hard to come by and a lot of the one that can be had, are now all crazy expensive...


honestly if you want to spend less than a couple thousand for a car to drive, I would look at a honda, toyota, or chevy (and probably not in that order...)
 
$650 I'd buy it for a parts car (if it were anywhere near me that is...)
 
Put it this way, if you're trying to save money, the LS is the wrong way to do it. You're basically maintaining a Jaguar S-Type. Nothing is cheap on this chassis. Everything is aluminum, everything you might not think is aluminum IS aluminum. Sure it's reliable as heck if you take good care of it, but given your scenario, god knows what happened in the area for a tree to fall onto the car, cause that nasty dent on the fender, not allowing air to hold in the tires, and the huge amount of smoke. But I do spot an LSE bumper, that could make up a good chunk of your purchase for the car. Sell off the doors, some interior components, some exterior components, and scrap it, and you've made money already!
 
Don't be so quick to think parting out an LS is all that profitable!
time = money
 
Whatever's left can go to the salvage, might get 500 bucks out of the carcass depending on how much is sold off.
 
Agree with all of the above. I just picked up my 2000 LS with 120k for $1800 out in California and it really had nothing super wrong with it. Even with that, I still spent $900 on things before I made the 3000 mile drive home (coils, transmission solenoids, and little maintenance stuff). Now it is time to see how these do in the snow, I brought it here as my winter beater (I like a classy beater :), it replaces my 1998 Audi A6 which is also very expensive to maintain).
 
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