Thread: Getting a new GP

So as some of you may know, I had a $500 97 Grand Prix. It had a bunch of problems and due to my negligence in fixing the water pump it overheated. It's probably going to cost more than it's worth to fix, so I'm selling it. I'm now in the market for a new car (Budget is about $3,000) and found this on Craigslist.

1999 Pontiac Grand Prix GT---Excellent Condition

My dad test drove it today (I'm at work right now) and says it's in great condition. Apparently everything works and it looks really nice. It's a 99 GT 3.4 L for $3,000. 85,000 miles. Is that a good deal? It's by far the nicest car I've found so far on Craigslist that doesn't have problems. I'm going by tomorrow to get a better look at it and buy it if I like it.

I've had a 97 Grand Prix GT 3.8 with a ton of problems, so I know what to look for, but does anyone have any tips on things I should check? My dad did notice a sound when turning the A/C on, so I don't know if that's a belt or the compressor or what. I'm seeing it tomorrow morning, so any advice or tips before I see it and buy it would be very appreciated.

You're right, it's a 3.8.

Should I hold off and try to find a GTP instead? I've been looking on Craigslist and only found one GTP for $4,000 from a dealer. It looks nice but in the "Dealership" nice way, I have a feeling it was probably in a wreck and rebuilt. The other GTP I found was also rebuilt.

Cars seem to be pretty expensive here in Vegas. For $3,000 the best I've found is a 02 Camry, 02 Galant, and 02 Spectra. The Spectra was horrible, the Galant I've heard has problems and is extremely slow, and the Camry was sold already.

I've found a few older sports cars like a Camaro for that price, but I need something that I know won't fall apart. Reliability is most important, second is performance/asthetics. It looks like this GP is about $300-$400 below KBB. I haven't found anything better, but if you guys think I can do better I'll wait.

Well I bought it. Saw the car and it's beautiful. Spent about a half hour looking at it and couldn't find any mechanical problems. Engine sounds good, transmission works perfectly, no leaks after running at operating temp. The only thing I noticed was (My dad noticed this too when he looked at it) a sound coming from somewhere around the serpentine belt. I think it's probably just the belt, it looks a little worn, so I'll probably replace it. It could be one of the pulleys since my dad said he noticed it stopped when he turned the A/C on, but I didn't notice any sound stopping after turning the A/C on. Don't know, but I'm leaning more toward the belt. If the belt breaks while I drive it will it cause any damage? I wouldn't think so, but just want to make sure. They're only about $20 right? I'll pick one up tomorrow.

If I find out it's the compressor or that there's anything expensive I need to change I'll take it from my 97 before I sell it, but besides what I think is the serpentine belt, there's not any problems with it, besides the volume knob on the radio acts up. For some reason when you turn it the volume goes up then back down. It's not a problem though since I can just control it from the steering wheel.

Paint job looks like new, engine bay looks good (Not dealership shampood good, but genuinely well maintained). No leaks or cracks, suspension's good. And it looks sexy, a huge step up from my 97. I'd still like to keep my 97 if I can fix it, but I don't want to pour any more money into it if there's a chance it won't fix the problem, and I can't seem to find anyway to know 100% if my head is warped short of paying a mechanic which I refuse to do.

If the belt goes while you're driving... you lose your water pump, power steering, power and pretty much everything... They typically start to look like they're cracking before they break altogether.

As for the car, sounds good to me. If you ever want to go down the performance road do a top swap and go from there.

Thanks for the suggestion but too late.

I'm not too concerned about performance at the moment. As long as I know I have the option of doing a top swap eventually, I'm content with a lower performance but well-kept GT. Better than the 4 cyclinder Kia Spectra I almost bought. I'm currently in the process of trying to buy a house, so the thousand dollars is better spent elsewhere right now. Also even if I had a GTP I'd be too paranoid to drive it hard until I paid it off completely. Too afraid of ruining the transmission. But as soon as I pay off that 3 grand (Hopefully in a year) top swap will probably be the first thing I do.

And since I missed it early, congrats on the new ride!

Originally Posted by Liquifire

take off the belt and inspect the pulleys...easy enough...So we need pics of this car and mileage, year, etc. The link no longer works

in the OP: 99 GT, 85K, white coupe (not in OP). Looked pretty clean from what i remember when i looked at the link when it was still up.

Don't know if these links work, but: