Need help. Might buy - 1999 Hugger Orange SS - Bad rear end

[kickflippin1]

I just found this car for sale. Here is the description:

"im selling a 1999 camaro ss it has 96,000 miles a 350 and a 6 speed transmission, the car is hugger orange i am told chevy only made a limited number of these. it has a tan leather interior which is in great condition the body is perfect with no rust or dents. it is a real ss, i have the window sticker, the car is fully loaded, it has new brakes and tires, the exhaust is good, it has original five bar chrome wheels, the car runs and drives and shifts perfect. if you have any interest in the car or questions email me and i will get back to you a.s.a.p thank you."

The title of the sale ad says "bad rear end" in it. There are no pictures in the ad. He is only asking $5k for the car, and I'm not sure if that's a good price for this car with the bad rear end. I understand this particular car is a pretty low production run? Like, less than 300 with M6?

I'm not sure what else to look for or what to ask about as this would be my first F-body purchase ever. Is it expensive to do a rear end on this car? Should I offer less than $5k? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Also, if this is in the wrong section, I am sorry, and please move.

Thanks.

[jfl330]

Depends on if you can do the work yourself or not. Typically a bad rear end means the pinion seal went, it leaked its fluid, ran the bearings dry and they need to be replaced. Exact situation I bought my SS/LE in last year. I paid ~ $ 100 for parts and bought a 12 ton press for $ 110 and the job was done. Rear end is fine. A shop would probably charge ~ $ 700 - 1000 to do the job, if the gears are good and only bearings and seal need to be done.

Ask him what is wrong with the rear. What kind of sound does it make if it drives, then post up.

Jon

[pajeff02]

Stock 10 bolts are just prone to failure, with or without fluid. Take a good hard look at the car before committing. The fact that he referred to it as having a "350" concerns me a little. Check this thread out on what you need to be looking at: http://www.ls1.com/forums/f6/guide-buying-fbody-118628/

[kickflippin1]

Stock 10 bolts are just prone to failure, with or without fluid. Take a good hard look at the car before committing. The fact that he referred to it as having a "350" concerns me a little. Check this thread out on what you need to be looking at: http://www.ls1.com/forums/f6/guide-buying-fbody-118628/

I noticed that as well. May I ask why it concerns you? Maybe that he doesn't know more about other parts of the vehicle?

[KMdef9]

I would study the link Jeff gave you then go rake a look at it.

Check the RPO codes.
Start it, shift it through all the gears and even get underneath it and see the driveshaft move when he (or someone) lets off the clutch. This will verify that the motor, clutch and transmission are operating.
Check the wheel wells for rubber.
Turn the steering wheel back and forth to check the power steering.
Push the brakes down, see how far the pedal goes down before you get good resistance.
Push every button, LOL.

Where's it being sold at? (City)

If you want, PM me the ad and if I have time ill go take a look at it.

If you spend 4k on the car and 3k on a new rear, and everything else us in good working order, I think that's a good deal.

[konigandy6]

Stock 10 bolts are just prone to failure, with or without fluid. Take a good hard look at the car before committing. The fact that he referred to it as having a "350" concerns me a little. Check this thread out on what you need to be looking at: http://www.ls1.com/forums/f6/guide-buying-fbody-118628/

I was gonna say exactly this... It sounds like he knows very little about his own car.

[Smittro]

LS1's are 346's..

LT1 is a glorified 350 sbc..

I'd start looking for a 12-bolt or a 9"..

A stock 3800-II with a lousy 200hp crank can break a 10-bolt..

IMHO just not worth fixing or repairing a 10-bolt that could break again easily.

[kickflippin1]

Thanks for the input everyone, but the posting was flagged for removal and I never emailed the person initially, so I'm sure I won't be picking this one up.

[1MileCrash]

i was gonna say...not sure about how low the production numbers were...but looks like it doesn't really matter any longer. over 1400 hugger orange camaro's in 1999 but no way to break it down much further than that (ie...saying that only 250 were hugger orange, manual, ss)