[miishmiish]

Same dealership that I borrowed the '96 Fleetwood from. The Fleetwood was still there, but it's been sold to a retired Lawyer in Missouri. He already has a '94 and a '95, loves black, and shouldn't be at all disappointed in this one. I'm glad to know it's going to a good home.

Anyway, the '98 DeVille was a nice car, green with a kind of gray interior. I liked the way it drove better than the Fleetwood. Steering was more responsive, acceleration was more instantaneous, but not quite as torque-y if you know what I mean. I liked the car.

It didn't feel at all like a FWD car! Magnasteer is nice. Very light touch.

One of the grandkids spilled kool-aid on the floor in the back. This didn't look like a stain that would come out, either. Then we popped the trunk and I saw the mat. It was even worse. This carpet needed to be replaced altogether, and at least one new floor mat was needed.

Then just out of curiosity I lifted the little trap door to check out the spare tire. THE JACK WAS RUSTY! The wheel of the space saver was rusty, too. I felt around, and there was one hell of a lot of moisture back there--almost like a sponge. There was some mold, mildew or something growing on the carpet, pretty thick, too. This car had been wet for a long, long time.

The salesman just about crapped on himself. He obviously didn't know, and was embarrassed about it, too.

Now, whoever knows about this, HOW CAN THIS HAPPEN? Are these cars prone to trunk leaks? Is it more likely that the water came from the top or the bottom? Any ideas?

Maybe it has a salvaged title for flood damage. Check it out. I bought my caddy with a flood damage history and I heard the car stayed wet for a long time after. If that is the case, which it probably is, don't buy the car. I have had nothing but problems (computer problems) with my deville and I regret the day I bought it.

 

[miishmiish]

Thanks for all the suggestions and replies, ONE AND ALL!

El Dobro is probably right, but it's scary how much of this points to a possible accident.

I saw another '98 DeVille Saturday. It was silver, but had absolutely HORRIBLE paint on the rear panels. The car had probably been keyed--"BUT IT HAS A CLEAR CARFAX!"

I told the salesman that I had backed into a lawnmower once, doing over $700 worth of paint damage--no body work. It never showed up on CARFAX.

CARFAX is a nice thing to have, but there's no substitute for inspecting the car yourself. I think I've ruled out buying anything on the Internet unless it's new or under warranty.

Even if it was in an accident, at least it was hit from behind and has a good paint job; base your offer convinced that it was in an accident. The car is pretty nice.