Worth it?

[Grey Vw]

That's not worth it. Cheap paint job is not an excuse to look bad, if the paint defects can be seen in pictures it is much worse in person.

[Prafeston]

Found another local one for sale. Need more advice. Gonna take a look at it tomorrow.

1993 Festiva 5speed 230k miles $1200obo

High miles, but from the pics it appears to be in decent shape...except for some tears in the seats. Also I don't know much more about it. The ad just talks about how much you'll save on gas. Not sure if it has AC...if anything has been replaced etc.

Here are the pics.

[Prafeston]

Could really use some input on this blue one before I take a look at it tomorrow. Thanks.

[Festiva_Fred]

Looks like a damn clean one for a missouri car! I'd definitely check it out! If it is rust free or close like it appears in the pics, and is mechanically solid it's worth that price IMO.

[link5186]

Body-wise, that's a looker. Need a shot of the passenger exterior before jumping all over it. Look close, the adhesive on the back section of exterior trim appears to be coming up, but no apparent rust on the driver's side is a bonus. It's worth a look.

Sent from the bathroom via crapatalk.

[Prafeston]

Yeah, was a bit skeptical of the "No photo of the passenger side" thing. Some people posting cars for sale just don't think of that stuff. Or are to lazy. I've been texting the owner. Will meet up tomorrow and give it a good look over. Probably take some additional photos and see if it's as nice as it appears. Anything in particular I should be aware of/take a close look at...especially with it being such a high mileage car!?

[Festiva_Fred]

Check for rust around the rear suspension beam mounts, crossmember, typical rust out areas, high mileage isn't a big concern on festivas, they'll go on and on!

[Prafeston]

Thanks for the tips Fred.

I did notice it lacks a rear wiper so might be a low optioned car. Looks like there used to be a letter next to the Festiva badge on the hatch that signified the trim level, but I can't tell what it was..

[Festiva_Fred]

That would be a base model L, from the pics it looks like it doesn't have rear defrost either. A lot of the L's were pretty basic with no options on them, but all the wiring is there if you want to upgrade later, such as power mirrors, hatch w/wiper and defrost.

[Prafeston]

Are the chances bad that it has AC? And I guess I'd have to purchase a whole new Hatch with the wiper and defrost?

[link5186]

A/c, 50/50 shot at best. Honestly I rarely see A/c in any festies. I usually assume no a/c unless it's mentioned.

The stock hatch can be fitted with defrost glass fairly easily, just swap glass, fish the wire to it and install a switch. Rear wiper can be installed, but requires drilling on the L hatch. Or you can swap any year hatch with all the goodies already on it.

Sent from the bathroom via crapatalk.

[Prafeston]

Well I'll be checking out/test driving a Festiva for the first time in about an hour.

[Prafeston]

Well, it wasn't quite as good as we had all thought. Was some rust showing in front of the rear wheel wells and there were a few small dents on most panels. Drivers seat is horrible. E-brake doesn't work. Brakes need work...could barely stop the thing on the test drive. It did run pretty nice through the gears. Seemed to idle really low. I kept thinking surely it was going to die, but it never did. Also the floors all looked good. Was fun to drive. Makes me think I might be on the right track wanting to get a Festiva. Also when I was pulling it back into the drive way after the test drive it sprung a leak from one of the hoses off the T connector right between the radiator and engine. Was like a pin hole, but I'm pretty sure it emptied the coolant. I went ahead and passed on it. I told him I was going to offer about 900 if it all checked out, but after the issues I came across I was gonna pass.

Here are some more pics I took.


Dent/Rust on drivers door.


There was no padding on the left side of the seat...felt like I was falling out of it...had to try and sit toward the right of the seat.


Drivers side rear lower


Passenger side rear upper


Passenger side rear lower


Busted passenger headlight


Hose that sprung a leak. The curved one in the center of the pic. Looked like it just cracked through right were the clamp holds it down. Wasn't so much leaking as it was high pressure spraying out the tiny hole.

[Prafeston]

Well the search continues. Awaiting some more pics for this Festiva in STL, but it sounds like it's a daily driver with a slight leak. Comes with spare motor. Asking $1150

http://stlouis.craigslist.org/cto/3152037173.html

I've been texted him and he said the AC is there, but he's never used it and assumes it doesn't work. No rear defrost. "runs perfect could daily drive as is, but would slightly smoke from the leaking oil onto the exhaust." Also, "I have next to no info on the extra motor other than it was from a festiva and has plenty of good parts on it, it came w/car and I didn't need it ever."

Doesn't sound like too bad a deal..depending on what kind of shape the body and interior are in. How hard would it be to fix the leak? I'd be scared to swap in another engine I'm not even sure ever ran. Plus if I was gonna swap I might as well upgrade!

[BigElCat]

You're definitely doing the right thing....looking for a Festiva! They rule.

I agree with you skipping the ones we've seen on this thread so far. The prices have been too high.

The one here in Paola (on CL) has apparently been sold. I know they had standing offers of $1800.00, but it was completely rust free with good paint.

The next one on your list doesn't look like an $1100 car to me.

The 1st one (the black one) is the best deal so far. It looks like he has Aspire springs and struts on back. If the motor is fresh and the under side isn't rusted, it would be worth $1500.00