hey guys, im looking at getting a 87 zuki samurai, 6 inch lift, new 31's, new rims, body is in good cond., the guy tore the carpet out cause he was gonna rhino line it but never got around to it, it has 175,000 miles, engine runs good, it felt good when i drove it, it smokes a bit when you first start it up but it goes away, probably a valve leak, the soft top has a big tear in the back, probably needs to be replaced, the drivers side door doesnt open from the outside, the clutch... creaks... (best way i can describe it) i imagine it just needs a little oil or something, the clutch was replaced 1 1/2 ago.

he's asking $2,000 OBO

i was thinking of offering him $1500, do you think this is too much/too little?

this would be my daily driver, and also my first car, i am a good driver, im not gonna roll the thing or anything... well.... not on the road anyways ;)

what do you guys think? and how far should i expect the engine to go? and is it easy to rebuild or replace if and when it does?

thanks,
Sean

I personally wouldn't let anyone under the age of 20 and at least three wrecks (not there fault) under there belt drive mine. Theres just no room for mistakes when it comes to geting into a wreck with these things. I am a little leary driving mine myself and I'm a Professional Firefighter and a Reserve Sheriff deputy. Puting my father hat aside - it sounds like a "ok" deal. I would do a compression check or just plan on rebuilding it ($500), new top - ($200 on ebay). If you could get it down to around 1100- 1300 I think you would be getting into the "good deal" range. Go to auto trader.com and do a search in your neck of the woods. I think the prices really change with regards to were you are. Good luck. Jason

Originally posted by J.Rickey
I personally wouldn't let anyone under the age of 20 and at least three wrecks (not there fault) under there belt drive mine. Theres just no room for mistakes when it comes to geting into a wreck with these things. I am a little leary driving mine myself and I'm a Professional Firefighter and a Reserve Sheriff deputy. Puting my father hat aside - it sounds like a "ok" deal. I would do a compression check or just plan on rebuilding it ($500), new top - ($200 on ebay). If you could get it down to around 1100- 1300 I think you would be getting into the "good deal" range. Go to auto trader.com and do a search in your neck of the woods. I think the prices really change with regards to were you are. Good luck. Jason

well, as you may know, teenagers are invincible, and theres no way anyone can tell me otherwise ;)


seriously though, thanks for the feedback.

i dont know if i could get him down to the 1100 - 1300 range because they are pretty expensive around here, this is the cheapest one i've ever seen for sale in this area.

thats a good idea, just to rebuild it... and it sure beats buying a new car when this one croaks :D

well the big problem with this one is getting insurance, state farm (which is who my mom is with) doesnt allow modified vehicles... so we couldnt go through them, and my mom gets good deals with them, im not sure exactly what we're gonna do...

but i assure you, if i get one, you'll know ;)

The reason they had to put a clutch in it was that the gearing is not right for 31" tires (especially in Colorado). If you persue this vehicle, I would recommend taking it to a 4x4 shop so they can check out the lift's fabrication quality. There are several things that can be 'skipped' on a budget that could come back to bite you as a daily-driver.

Also that creaking sound is most likely the clutch cable going bad.

If it were me, I would be inclined to pass & look for a fuel-injected model for your altitude:) Besides, a stocker may be better for you to cut your teeth on, & you can lift it yourself & learn....

Originally posted by SnowCloud



well the big problem with this one is getting insurance, state farm (which is who my mom is with) doesnt allow modified vehicles... so we couldnt go through them, and my mom gets good deals with them, im not sure exactly what we're gonna do...

but i assure you, if i get one, you'll know ;)


ive got state farm, and mine modified to hell and back! cant get full coverage though, but who would want it on a sammy, for what you would pay in premiums, you could buy another

!!!!!!:flipoff2: :flipoff2: