Who's up for a 4.8is challenge?!

[timmyc]

Went and looked at a 2006 yesterday that was on CL for a long time. Price started at $10,000 then ended at $4,000. I had to go see what was up.

They stated in the post that it has some interior needs and some electrical issues related to the mirrors and windows (no big deal, right?) and that it just needs some overall TLC. 85,000 miles!

Ordered the CarFax and it checks out fine. 5 owners? Small rear ender. Not a ton of service records, but, it's only got 85k. Took the hour and a half drive with cash in hand to check this thing out. What a shame. This poor X sat out in the Sedona, AZ sun for god knows how long. Headlights were clouded, door panels were peeling from the frame, bumper repair on the rear was shot and it had some type of early paint protection film on the mirrors and only several spots on the front bumper that was cracked and peeling. Both of the side view mirrors were almost blackened. It looked pretty bad. Surprisingly, the factory Black Sapphire paint looked really good. Okay, that's minor. Plenty of donor cars out there for that stuff.

Popped the hood.I don't remember them telling me that it came with tenants. Pack rats. F@*k. No engine or valve cover shrouds and a lot of stuff from the pack rats. Okay, okay. I have dealt with the rats before. After looking pretty well throughout the engine bay, I didn't really see any damage other than the hood liner was chewed up and the insulation on the firewall was chewed up. Weird. If it were a Ford, it would be going to the junk yard. They LOVE Ford's. Was dripping power steering fluid (ATF).

It was running when I showed up and I wish it would have looked as good as it sounded. That 4.8! That was a bit odd but he told me it won't charge. Sounds like alternator is toast and I didn't dare take it for a drive. Probably a good thing, Tires were ready to crumble. Surprised they held air. Anyway, it was up to temp and I blipped the throttle to see if we had a VSS issue. Nope. Damn.

All doors opened and windows worked except for left rear which was in the door. Even the pano roof worked. Black interior. Seats were super nice and heated front and rear. Small thread de-lam on front seat but that's it. No floor mats. No spare tire. Trifecta on the dash. No lights present on self level suspension. Sat okay. Probably on the springs? Ran it through the gears. No clunks or moans.

Probably not the challenge you were thinking when you read the title? I was told that it would either be sold as is or donated for a tax write-off. If that is the case, it WILL end up in the junk yard. So who is up for a challenge?!

PM me for more details if you are at all interested. It is not listed for sale anymore. I'm guessing this thing could be bought for way less than $4000. I would do it, but I don't have a garage. Sucks for me.

[StephenVA]

Desert rat mobile home....

[Nolimite39]

Go away evil temptress!

[PropellerHead]

Originally Posted by Nolimite39

Go away evil temptress!

[Aleman]

Intriguing, but the rats probably ate more wiring than you can see. Walk away.

[timmyc]

I know, damn it. I should stop thinking about it, but, damn. You guys who drive them know what I mean.

I have another bimmer freak friend who may go check it out. We are talking about bringing ramps so we can pull the splash guard and see if there are wire shavings laying on that thing. We will also be able to poke around a lot better to look for damage. And I will be bringing the Foxwell. Like an idiot I forgot it when I first looked at it. Doh!

Again, I know this thing is going to end up in the junk yard. It has the potential to be back on the road and it should be. I'll keep ya's posted.

[Nolimite39]

If it were a 4.6 I ight try to beat the guy down then part it and build the 4.6 for my E39. Buuuut since we just sold our hose and I'm being downsized to a standard 2 car garage from a 1.5 deep three car this one really isn't in the start for me.

[X5only]

It would be a shame if that 4.8 were junked. Doesn't smoke, drives fine, trans sounds good, body looks fine ... I think it was neglected for a short while rather than its entire life or for a long time. It may be a jewel in disguise just needing an enthusiast to know about it. Certainly a salvageable vehicle pending further diagnosis. Hopefully an enthusiast grabs it soon.

[timmyc]

I did it. I walked away. Couldn't talk my buddy into going to check it out, either. Hate to say it, but that thing is headed to the crusher. Someone will score a decent motor, hopefully. Damn shame....