Bought a beautiful 2001 STS last weekend. Pearl white metallic with all the power goodies. Moon roof, heated seats, Bose stereo with 6 disk changer, etc. Can't think of an option it doesn't have. The body is nearly perfect. Not a single door ding and the interior is pretty good considering the age. Drove the car with the knowledge it had some transmission issues. It was on the weekend so taking it to a mechanic was not possible but I figured for $900 it might be worth the risk. Well..... maybe not. My mechanic looked it over and tells me he cant with good conscious recommend that I move forward with the repairs. He was of the opinion that these models are a piece of junk and that it would just be a money pit. Wife is super bummed as it would have been her car.
My dilemma now is to sell it as a mechanics special or try to part it out. I live in a suburban neighborhood so I cant just put it in the yard while I sell parts off of it. I suppose I could put it in the garage but....
I would really like to get my money back out of it which now is about $1,200 with tax and license and the cost to buy a new battery and have the mechanic take a look. So here's my question. Which way is the best? Is there a sufficient market for parting it out or is it better to sell whole? The junk yard offered $400 sight unseen but the wheels alone are worth that much. Would really like to get some feedback here to see what you think. If I could fix it for 3 to 4 grand I would but I'm not a mechanic so I'm at their mercy and who knows how much it would actually cost. Surely more than book. Mechanic wasn't confident that the repairs would even be enough as there are just so many issues with these cars. He said that the Northstar engines are junk as are the transmissions that go with them.
So tell me what you think. Part it out or sell it whole?
My dilemma now is to sell it as a mechanics special or try to part it out. I live in a suburban neighborhood so I cant just put it in the yard while I sell parts off of it. I suppose I could put it in the garage but....
I would really like to get my money back out of it which now is about $1,200 with tax and license and the cost to buy a new battery and have the mechanic take a look. So here's my question. Which way is the best? Is there a sufficient market for parting it out or is it better to sell whole? The junk yard offered $400 sight unseen but the wheels alone are worth that much. Would really like to get some feedback here to see what you think. If I could fix it for 3 to 4 grand I would but I'm not a mechanic so I'm at their mercy and who knows how much it would actually cost. Surely more than book. Mechanic wasn't confident that the repairs would even be enough as there are just so many issues with these cars. He said that the Northstar engines are junk as are the transmissions that go with them.
So tell me what you think. Part it out or sell it whole?