Thinkning about buying

rush6432

Registered User
Well i found a 1992 tbird sc thats in great condition on the inside, like almost perfect and damn near close on the outside also, but it has 102k, and im a little weary about buying a car with mileage that high. The current owner said that the previous owner before him babied the car to death and changed the oil every 2500 miles, but i dunno if i should trust that. Anyone got any suggestions here on maybe what i should do??? Im looking at barowing the car for a day to take it in to a shop and have the engine checked over to make sure its good and that im not buying a lemon here, but is there any info that might make the 102k miles sit better with me maybe??? i would hate to just pass it by because it has 102k but everything else is good.
 
I bought my '92 last year with 91K miles on it and now its getting close to 100K. So far no real major problems other than a leaky radiator, which I could have probably puttied up but decided to replace and save the trouble of a bigger leak. If the oil was truly changed every 2500 miles and it was babied than your head gaskets should be ok. Either way around 100K miles this car needs some things changed and/or replaced, like spark plugs, supercharger fluid, etc.

And remember you are buying a 10yr old car, so any car this old will have to have regular maintenance to keep it running well. Just maybe a little more care with an SC compared to a normal tbird, but the benifits are there!
 
102 k miles?....

I bought my SC with 106,000 miles from second owner, and he had all maintenance records from a local dealership so i at least knew it was serviced reguarly. No record of head gaskets being done, but i've seen lots of posts in here in the other SC forums from guys with SC's that have gone over 200k on original head gaskets, so i wouldnt worry too much about that. I'm not gonna do any performance mods though (except exhaust) with the stock head gaskets (just my 2 cents worth) and you should change the coolant right away and at least every 2 years to reduce electrolysis in the cooling system (a major contributor to headgasket failure on any car with aluminum heads and cast iron block) anyway my '90 SC is at 125,000 miles now with NO real problems, just a few little ones that any car would have. so if it's in good shape 100,000 is no big deal really....Have fun!
 
Well I bought a 1990 SC automatic with 163,000 miles on it. I drove it till 183,000 when I blew the original head gaskets. The gaskets had the ford logo's on them.

On the other hand my 1992 SC blew the head gaskets with 93k miles on it, and I bought the car right after they were changed.

It all depends when they are gonna go I don't think anyone can judge it. Dan Holleran of Florida has over 200k miles on his SC on original head gaskets. He uses I believe Bars Stop Leak eveytime he changes his coolant. What that stuff will do is fill small holes in your cooling system. If the metal ring on the head gasket starts to burn through, this stuff will fill it back in a little bit. So I believe on a higher mileage SC if you do a coolant change add some stop leak. I don't recommend a high pressure flush like from one of those oil change places... My friend bought an SC and the head gaskets must have had a small leak, cuz when the pressure flushed his engine all hell broke loose. Now we have it torn apart right now.

If you can turn a wrench, operate a torque wrench, have a garage and tools (air compressors help), then when your head gaskets blow its not hard to change them. Just time consuming to get all the accessories off and stuff. My advice is LABEL EVERY BOLT and put them in a bag with similar bolts. That way when you put it back together you know what goes where. Other than that head gasket change is easy.
 
also

You could also find out if those are highway miles or not. that always sits just a little better with me rather than if theyre city with stop and go, brake and gas. I would DEFINITELY take it to a shop to check it over. It's a perfect idea. I would probably never buy a used car from someone without it being checked over. If they wont let you take it, then walk (but im sure they would) it's well worth the money to have a car checked, even if it's a couple hundred for a complete check, it's totally worth it. and take it to a mechanic that you know and trust if youve got one, do not go to one that he (or she) suggests. Good luck!
-Damon
 
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