New guy looking for RT4WD.

ideaofnorthideaofnorth Band Wagon
in New User Introductions
Hello everyone,

Been lurking here for awhile but on the hunt for an RT4WD. I might have a line on one up here. What do you think would be a good price for auto, 135k, some rust on a back panel? Haven't had a chance to look at it yet, but wanted to get an idea. I don't have access to the marketplace forum, and otherwise just seen a few random things online. Any help would be great, thanks!

Comments

  • maihesmaihes Wagonist
    1300 would be to high. for rust its not the best. as for miles its good but with a wagon u basically are hunting for a shell being that a motor swap is maby 400bux.
  • ideaofnorthideaofnorth Band Wagon
    That's kind of what I was thinking. Thanks!
  • maihesmaihes Wagonist
    nooo prob. good luck!
  • The_HeadThe_Head familEE
    In a 2WD wagon your statement is correct about just looking for a shell. It's more complicated for an RT4WD, unless you just want to gut the whole drivetrain and degrade it to 2wd.
  • maihesmaihes Wagonist
    ah yea i could see that bein right being that the rtawd engines would be harder to come by being that i can just swap with what ever i want in mine. what would u sugest for him on pricing then?
  • The_HeadThe_Head familEE
    You just don't have the options that a 2wd wagon owner has. There is a thread here: What engines can I swap in and keep 4WD? You should take a look at it. Oh and I see you are looking at an auto wagon, so that complicates things even more.

    For a price recommendation, I would need to see a few pics. 135K is kind of low mileage for a RT4WD, imho. Mine has 100,000 more miles on it.
  • ideaofnorthideaofnorth Band Wagon
    Ok, I checked out the car today and it seems mostly good to me. There is a fair amount of rust on the left rear wheel well. Looks like someone tried to do a little work on it at some point, you can see grinding marks under the paint. There's also a small dent on the front right fender, and the paint on the hood is pretty worn. Maybe the clear coat. The front of hood also has spots of rust showing through.

    The front seats have seat covers, the drivers is pretty worn underneath, split with the foam exposed. The rear doors seem to be a little tricky to open as well. And the drivers side window sticks when rolling back up.

    Does that all seem like fixable stuff, body wise? The engine feels great, wasn't near a freeway but got it up around 60-65 on some rural routes and the car felt pretty good. I did hear some rattling from the rear, maybe the trunk not latching tight enough?

    Uploading some photos. I'm also going to take it to my mechanic next week to get it checked out. Thanks for all the help!
  • bunnytorontobunnytoronto Band Wagon
    Hi there, Before you commit to the car, have a shop put it up on a hoist so you or he can examine the frame. Since there has been some rust on the exterior, you should check underneath as well. There could even be holes in the floor. This was the advice I was given when deciding whether or not to keep driving my 1988 wagon. Since it had been undercoated a number of times over the years, I'm okay to keep it. Good luck.
  • ideaofnorthideaofnorth Band Wagon
    ok, after test driving the original car, which was an automatic and had the rust issues i mentioned earlier, i noticed there was another rt4wd not far from me. same color but lower miles and manual! went to check it out today and ended up buying it on the spot. 103k, interior is spotless. maybe 3 tiny spots of rust behind each rear wheel, but otherwise in amazing shape. it's getting dark here, but i took one photo. more later this week. thanks again for the help!
  • The_HeadThe_Head familEE
    Much better. How much did you get it for?
  • ideaofnorthideaofnorth Band Wagon
    $2500. So clean though. I'll post some photos later. Even the cross members (is that what they're called?), rockers, etc. All in very clean shape. Upholstery looks new.
  • ideaofnorthideaofnorth Band Wagon
    Here's a couple of quick photos I took this morning.
  • maihesmaihes Wagonist
    damn that is crisp. kudos. enjoy your new whip!
  • WagShapedProjectileWagShapedProjectile New Wagonist
    Awesome, another brown wago!! May I have your seats?
  • RiskEverythingRiskEverything Wagonist
    Sooo jealous! I can't find a decent wagon around here, let alone two RT4WD to chose from! I'll probably drive half-way across the country to pick one up and the interior still won't be as nice as that.

    Do you have any plans to mod the car or are you going to enjoy it in stock configuration?
  • jdmitrswappedjdmitrswapped New Wagonist
    Holy smokes man that one you picked up is amazing condition! I hope i get so lucky.
  • ideaofnorthideaofnorth Band Wagon
    thanks! i couldn't believe how clean it was either. someone else called me about another rt4wd up here, so i've got a line on two of them if anyone is interested. have to come to maine though.

    i'll probably keep it stock for the most part, especially since it's in such good condition.

    one bummer is that on the drive here i started having trouble shifting into 1st, and also got stuck in reverse once. i'm having my mechanic check it out, hope it's an easy fix like a cable adjustment or some grease or something. weird, it shifted smooth when i test drove it. that's always the way i guess.
  • bassplayer5504bassplayer5504 Band Wagon
    Hope I can find one that clean! Haven't really found any period in my area. Great buy and enjoy!
  • olsonskiolsonski Wagonist
    Dang, where do you live? That wagon interior is tits!
  • ideaofnorthideaofnorth Band Wagon
    up in maine. i got the wagon in mass. though. the first one i test drove was a nice automatic rt. holler if anyone's in new england and wants to check that one out.
  • olsonskiolsonski Wagonist
    Wow, hella clean for maine, do you guys use salt or sand in the winter? Low miles too! I would say that is an excellent find!!!!
  • ideaofnorthideaofnorth Band Wagon
    we do use salt & sand up here, but it's pretty clean. got it on a lift and looks like someone took a digger at some point, but mostly ok. the original owner must have washed it a lot.

    so... i'm still having clutch issues. the guy i bought it from said the clutch was less than 2 years old but i'm having trouble shifting into first at stops. my mechanic thinks it needs a new clutch ($1000!), i'm pushing them to check the "base plate". we'll see. trans fluid changed to 10w30 as honda recommends, also flushed so it's not that.

    also, we noticed that the viscous coupling box is getting really, really hot. drove for 20 minutes, and after sitting for 20-30 minutes it was still hot to the touch. is that normal? the guy looking at it thought it might indicate transmission issues? everything feels fine on the road other than the clutch issue.

    thanks again!
  • WagonmiesterWagonmiester Band Wagon
    Datz Niceeeeeeeee
  • RiskEverythingRiskEverything Wagonist
    You should confirm that your car is not operating in RWD only. Put it on a lift, start the engine and put it in gear.

    Might want to find another mechanic... $1,000 for a clutch change is a rip off.
  • CharbCharb Administrator
    RiskEverything wrote:

    Might want to find another mechanic... $1,000 for a clutch change is a rip off.

    Obviously you've never tried to change a clutch in an RT lol

    The people I bought my car from, put a new clutch in it right before I bought it. It cost them $800.

    Some thing are just better to pay to have done, and save the headache. I'd do the clutch myself, but I'm experienced. I would highly recomend NOT trying to do this yourself if you're an amateur. A lit harder than doing a FWD clutch swap.
  • unlimited02unlimited02 Senior Wagonist
    did u check ur clutch pedal to see if it's broken...?
  • ideaofnorthideaofnorth Band Wagon
    so, my mechanic took the car out again for a test drive, and they think it's shifting fine. i also took it to the dealer for a 2nd opinion, and they flushed the transmission and test drove, also thought it seemed fine.

    so, the car does mostly shifts nicely, it's just when going from neutral to first at a red light, it sometimes wont go into first. i just figured out that if i then try putting it in reverse for a split second, it grinds a little, and then will go into first. does that sound like the clutch base plate issue? i'm considering a 3rd opinion. refuse to believe i'm imagining it.
  • ideaofnorthideaofnorth Band Wagon
    Followup on the wagon. Ended up being a clutch, drives great now. I also replaced the rims with Maxxims, so I have 4 original stock (white) with covers for sale if anyone's interested. Write me at peapodrecordings [at] gmail.com.

    Next might be looking into performance upgrades. Anywhere basic to start? The engine does use a fair amount of oil, any ideas about that? No leaks that I can see, but I run about a .5 quart per fillup.

    Also recommends for roof rack if anyone's found one that works well?

    Thanks again for the awesome info!
    ron
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