I'm looking to get a new car to replace my current one. 2001 Honda accord. Transmission is going out and it has other issues, and it's just not worth investing in anymore in my opinion. So I was looking around and I found something on Facebook marketplace: a 1999 Buick park avenue ultra with a 3800 supercharged V6 with 110k miles on the clock. The seller claims that it's been garage kept and is asking $6000 for it. I'd get a pre purchase inspection done of course, but is it even worth going to take a look at it? Is it worth the money?
Seeing as how you'd be starting out with a car that's 25 years old, how much longer do you really expect to get out of it? (For something this old it helps if you can do your own repair work.)
For what it's worth, Kelley Blue Book (kbb.com) pegs the private party value of that car in good condition at about $2000-$2700.
Not for a daily driver. On that I agree with @chucktobias.
if you found one in pristine condition, it would have a lot of upside potential. Those late 90’s luxury cruisers are collectible in a Hoovie’s Garage kind of way. But if it’s just in acceptable condition, it might be a while before it’s worth anything.
Welcome new member!
I'm not looking to see if it's valuable. I just wanted to know if it's something that's gonna be reliable with routine maintenance. I know the 3800 is known to be a really good engine, so I just wanted to know all around if it would be a good daily driver to use. Also thank you!
I just wanted to know if it's something that's gonna be reliable with routine maintenance.
Scotty has stated many times in his videos that while the 3800 is an excellent engine the transmissions in those cars are weak in comparison. The supercharger will not only put additional stress on the engine it will be harder on the transmission than a normally-aspirated model, and of course the supercharger itself is something else that can break.
Expecting a 25-year-old vehicle to be reliable for any length of time with only routine maintenance and maybe a few minor repairs is a real crap shoot. If the car died the day after you bought it the thing still would be considered to have been reliable and long-lasting overall, having provided a quarter-century of service.
The price on this one seems way too high unless there are stacks of 100 dollar bills hidden in it somewhere.