Quote:
Originally Posted by Othen
I notice from the MoT history that its last test was in 2006, and then it failed needed considerable welding to repair rust. This must have been fixed - and it will be a trivial matter to make sure it has been. I don't know anything about these cars, is there anything more I should look out for?
Alan
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The high cost repairs on an 1800 are the body sheet metal repairs. The 1800 has a bit of a reputation as sections of rust held together with steel. If the body repair has been properly addressed then most other issues can be addressed at a reasonable cost.
Be aware that an original 1800ES will be equipped with a D jetronic electronic fuel injection system. There is nothing wrong with that, the system works well. However, the number of shops that have the knowledge to diagnose and fix an ailing D jet system are limited. If the owner can't diagnose and repair themselves, they may want to do a little searching around ahead of time to determine if there are accessible shops that can do the work for them should they need the service.
If a true bare metal respray and panel repair project was carried out it would be common for photographs to be taken during the restoration process as evidence. Ask for any photo documentation of the restoration process to satisfy yourself that proper repairs were carried out. If there are no photos, then I would do a little Google searching to make up a list of the many common 1800 rust spots. Then, armed with that list, a magnet (to detect bondo patches) and something pokey to test the soundness of metal do your own inspection. Or, make the purchase conditional on a pre purchase inspection by a specialist knowledgeable in the 1800.
If the last MoT was 2006, does that mean that the car has not been road worthy since 2006? Is the car currently driveable and registrable? If you can't test drive it, that would be deal breaker for unless the seller priced it appropriately.