I've seen a few people in this forum ask for things to look for in terms of condition when shopping to buy. In particular, I mean that I can look for exterior rust , dents, condition of the interior and the gauges, etc. But I plan to take any one that looks pretty good to a mechanic to get it checked out under the hood and anything I might have missed.

I'd like to know what should I make sure he looks for (so i'm not going in to the mechanic's shop "blind" per se). That way when he's done I can say "did you look at this, this, and this"- know what I mean?

Your help would be greatly appreciated. If whatever helpful info could be left as a topic at the top of the page for all newbies to look at, it would be extremely helpful. I noticed some responses in other posts that said "this has been answered several times, so I won't cover it all here", but if it's in 23 different posts, can anyone point me to which ones?

Thanks very much, Deb :D

Look everywhere. If it doesn't look right it probably is not. What year are you looking at? Does it run well, or badly. Does it stop? Leak, or burn oil? Transmission slip on an automatic, or clutch not work well when shifting? Problems electrically? Visible, and invisible rust( under, behind, through) metal surfaces?

In my opinion the less you look, the more you'll wish you had. Take a look at my pictures in the third generation album. They might give you some ideas on what not to buy. Also I've posted pictures of an abused Elky that was abandoned in a neighborhood not far from my house. Owning a classic shouldn't mean driving a hunk of rust somebody else con'd you into.

Deb, If you want to search the forums for previous info, go to the forums page, look at the top of the page, you will see "SEARCH". Click on this & another window will pop up asking for "key words". Type in words that pertain to what you are looking for, such as "body mounts," or "door hinges", The search engine will then pull up all posts that mentioned those terms. This will help keep the board from becoming innundated with repetative queries. I use it often & especially before I ask a question. Jon

...I use it often & especially before I ask a question.
Jon, you are a shining example for all to follow.

Before I bought my 87, I spent about 2-3 hours with it up on jackstands over two separate days inspecting the underside. Not to mention the hours spent looking under the hood and inside the interior. Your diligence will be worth it. Caveat Emptor.