Seeking Advice on Possible Purchase

I am considering purchasing a 2002 Trans Am WS6 from a local dealership. It has 80,000 miles and an automatic transmission, I was just wondering what sort of things I should look for on it. They are selling it for $12,900; it books at about $17,000 through NADA. I don't think they realize that it is a WS6. That is my other question, how do I know it is a true WS6? It has the badge on the back of the car and has the ram air hood. It also has leather seats and t-tops. It seemed to run very nice and be well taken care of based on the test drive. I just want to be sure about this car before I go ahead and buy it, any advice is welcome. Thank you.

Look for the RPO code on the door sticker. WS6 code is near the WS9 code, but dont be fooled by that code, the ws9 is on all T\as (if you didnt already know that). Check the history of course and look under the hood look for anything that seems amiss, I know you took it for a test drive but just to be sure let the engine run and look under the hood and under the car to see if theres any leaks or what not. Oh and just look for a reason to get the price down like tire tread, brakes look rusty, nickel and dime them! Good luck!

Ok, thanks, so the ram-air hood doesn't guarantee that it is a WS6? Also, how reliable are these cars? 80,000 miles is quite a bit, how many people are out there with over 100K still running strong?

Nope, the door code tells you everything that SHOULD be on the car. If you take the time to decode them you will find out some interesting stuff. Mine has the hood too but of course is not a Ws6.

These cars are very reliable when they are taken care of, but occasionally there are stories of ppl buying "lemon" cars or cars that have been very poorly maintained and beaten. Mine just turned over 116K and had 112 when i got it back in May. So far other than just the usual maintenance theres no real problems. I had mine tuned and the odd thing there was someone had tried to use a mail order tune and the graph was almost flat. So luckily i had that done within a few weeks, that made the car run a hell of a lot better.
Since your buying it from a dealer they should have fixed everything that is obvious, depends if its a big reputable dealer or a small potentially slimy dealer. 80K is pretty much NOTHING on these cars, its personal preference i believe theres lots of people that have their original engines almost all the way to 200K. Just dont go to the track everyday and redline the car everywhere and you should be fine for a long long time.

Good to hear...the dealer is a big reputable dealer, the car is in immaculate condition. $12,900 is a STEAL right? I just want to make sure I really am getting a good deal on this car. I'll keep you guys posted if I decide to go ahead with it. Also, what kind of times are the auto transmissions running in the 1/4 mile. Are they about .5 sec slower than the 6spd?

Dunno about that, gonna have to wait for some track guys to tell you that, not to mention since u KBBed it, it DOES sound like a good deal. Wish i had that much money to spend on my T\a lol. Best to wait for someone who knows about good deals.

make sure the windows are going up and down just right its common for them to go out.

Alright so I went and looked at the car again tonight after work and the sticker on the inside of the door does say WS6 along with a TON of other labels. So is it safe to say it is a WS6? The windows rolled up and down alright, they seemed slow compared to my Envoy, but they did work. Any other advice? I think I might sign papers on it tomorrow.

2002 Ws6 80K A4 for 12K.... sounds pretty sweet to me, Now you just need to go to the sticky for your ASC #... or you could actually have him do that tonight, i think he just needs your VIN and that would absolutely prove its an authentic WS6 though that door code is proof enough. All i can say is did you request a carfax to check on any potential problems in the past? (accidents, major mechanical work etc) Other than that good luck and post some pics IF you do get it tmm.

sounds like a good price as long as everything is mech. fine

well i'm taking it to a mechanic today on my lunch break to get looked over. If it checks out OK, I'm gonna go ahead and get it, I'll post pics if and when it happens. Thanks guys for all the advice.