ive ran into someone who is selling a 79 camaro great condition just needs paint was wondering what kinda bads and goods are about these cars like do they have alot of probs or are they great cars if someone could please help me out so i dont buy a hunk of junk

 

I bought my 79 6 years ago and other than the items I have had to replace from normal wear and tear nothing has really gone wrong.I would check the trunk of the car for rust, and also the rear frame areas of the car, take it out for a drive and try to feel for any unussual feelings in the steering, other that that just check it out real closely for body panels out of alignment maybye it has been wrecked at some time,broken suspension springs,and try all the accesories.If everything works and seems good to you make him an offer if you really want the car.I hope this helps you out.

 

ill do that the only thing ive have seen wrong is the interior and pant but i have a 94 dodge in great condition and we are going to trade if everything adds up but he owns a body shop so the deal is he has to paint it before we trade but thanx for the advice i will look at that i hope none of what you said is wrong are the interiors hard to get?

 

The main things is, what kind of drivetrain are you getting with it? What rear does it have, how many spring plys, what is the gear ratio? Make sure it doesnt sit unusally low in the rear (sign of broken springs) check for broken springs. Check to see what kind of transmission it has, just automatic doesnt do it. see if its a TH-350 or a TH-400 or a 700-R4 or an A4LD, close ratio manual 4-speed? manual 3 speed, 5 speed, std. 4-speed?
What kind of motor, what heads are on it, is the cam changed? get numbers off it, is it numbers mathching?
visuals can be deciving and so can people, get numbers.
Check for rust, look..
Under the car, floor boards, under carpet if possible.
under battery and inner fender wells.
radiator support.
Rear valvance panel, the metal rail under the rear bumper.
inner rear fender wells, right in front of the rear tire and right behind it.
check for body putty. or have him replace anything that is fiberglassed and bondo'd to heck and back.
Behind rear seat.
in trunk.
trunk lid.
below rear window.
inner corners of doors.

check to see how saggy the doors are getting, make sure you dont have to replace the door pin hinges any time soon, its a pain but doable.
check the weatherstripping.

Prettymuch if its not rusted out really bad. make sure its fixable, if it has so much rust everywhere that you wont be able to have it fixed, all its gonna do is rot out from underneith you and you'll lose the whole thing.

try the seats, see if they move back and forth.

test drive a lot, diff areas, get the car nice and hot and see if it uses oil or smokes or knocks, misses, slips shifts, steers funny, has rough riding suspention, bottoms out. etc...

Keep your eyes open, its easy to get blinded by the want for the car and pass over stuff that would make you not want it.

Goodluck.

 

it has t tops to so i should make sure those dont let water in right? i heard thats hard to fix i had a bad experience with 2 formula's a 88 350 tune port and a 89 350 they both had messed up bodies nothing noticable till a lil later the computers went out and they also missed so im kinda scared to get an older car like that my friend says that most older cars were only ment for there time and dont like to live this long so im hoping if i get this car it wont be a big mistake i have copied all that you have said down but if all of this is in good condition or okay condition is it still a b**** in the end will alot of parts have to be changed it is all stock and i dont want to have to put more than 3 g into it so what im really asking is this car a money pit or will i be able to keep up with it?

 

When I bought my 79, I soon found out that my windshield leaks after a hard rain also I found out that my trunk was rusted out and someone riveted metal over it and my floorpans have a few little holes. i'm going to get some fiberglass screen and adhesive to fix that though. My starter was bad,and the brakes were SHOT. OH yeah-be prepared to spend your paycheck on gas!!!
Good luck!!!