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Potential new GS owner, asking price and timing belt questions

2K views 12 replies 7 participants last post by  Steve_06_Ark 
#1 ·
Hey guys, I just found the forum last night and the amount of info here is amazing for someone like me who doesn’t know about cars.

I am in a rough spot financially and a student of mine is helping arrange a purchase of a 2009 Eclipse GS. It is manual transmission and I drove it for about 10 miles and no red flags were going off, at least obvious ones to someone like me who is interested in but knows very little about cars except for repairs I’ve learned how to do in the past.

Apparently the seller was going to ask around $5000 for it but considering that I’m in a rough spot with an old car that will cost more to fix than it’s worth, he is willing to sell it for $2800 and let me pay installments with half of the price as a down payment. I was wondering first if this is a good price for a GS with about 72k miles on it, since googling around I am seeing prices all over the place. My initial concern was that the car hasn’t been driven for a while since the owner got a new car and then went to Italy, where he is now, for a fairly long time for work. What follows will also affect the asking price and if it’s a good deal, which is regarding the timing belt.

I didn’t even know what a timing belt was 24 hours ago but after reading a whole lot here, I am now seeing this as a potential issue given the age of the car. I wrote to ask and he never had replaced it, and he asked the previous owner who is a friend and she didn’t either. We don’t know about the owner before that, the original owner, so before 2013 it is a mystery but considering the age of the car then and the mileage I’m guessing nothing was done with it that early on (and I’m assuming there’s no way to check either)

After reading the posts here I am concerned. The mileage seems ok but the age doesn’t, since I read that it should have been replaced in 2016 or 2017. My questions are these. 1) is the car safe to drive for a short time until it gets replaced. I have been without a car for three weeks and am a single dad. I’ve made it work somehow with random rides to the store and Uber but I really need to get back on the road. 2) how long should I expect to not have the car while the work is being done (relating to 1, is it ok to drive while waiting for whoever I find to do the work to order parts) and 3) how much should I expect this to cost. I am good at following directions but I don’t know if that’s enough to do such important work myself so I’d be paying for the labor.

And after all of that, is the asking price still ok after factoring in the timing belt (assuming it needs it here). I am thinking, if the asking price is low, to just ask if I can take money out of the first payment to apply to the belt replacement. I was going to pay half up front and I can’t afford that and hundreds of dollars of work because money is absolutely critical right now, the worst I’ve ever had it.

Last, if you have any other suggestions dealing with a car in this situation or advice, I’d appreciate that too. I know that the GS doesn’t seem to be regarded as well as the GT and all that but it will be a commute car for me, the nicest car I’ve had and seemingly the nicest car I could get for 2800 bucks. I just need a reliable ride because I’m a musician and need to get to gigs and teaching, as well as get my daughter around.

Thanks for any advice and your time.


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#2 ·
If it looks and drives well, that is a very good price in my area. You are on borrowed time with the timing belt. Get it changed ASAP. If it snaps you will be into thousands for the repair ( belt plus cylinder head) if you can’t do it yourself. The timing belt at a shop would probably be 800 plus or minus and only takes a day. Do the water pump at the same time.

I have an 06 GS with 120k on it and it been nothing but reliable and easy to work on if you are mechanically inclined at all and willing to learn.

Best of luck!
 
#3 ·
Hello, deal seems OK to me seeing that no flags were raised upon a test drive. The 2009+ started a new belt that needs replaced every 100k miles. Previous 4g's are only 70k.Driving style, climate, a series of conditions can add to whether it might last longer or shorter. Better to get done early, should it snap while driving easily a +1k fix for damaged parts. The kits are about 175$ (average) for two belts 3 pulleys plus water pump and install takes from one to four hours. I found a shop at 65$/hour and it took 3 hours for $190. Most shops are around $100/hour.
 
#4 ·
With the timing belt kit, might as well get a new water pump AND thermostat installed while you’re at it

Timing belt kit should come with at least the belt and tensioner, but extra pulleys to replace are good too

Might also want to look at buying a harmonic balance belt to put in there too while you’re at it
 
#5 ·
Thanks a lot for the info guys. I am going to look into doing the work myself... Honestly I don’t know if I’m up to the challenge but my uncle knows about cars (does all the work on my cousin’s car despite having a corporate job) and has the tools. I’d feel bad asking for help because we don’t talk often, but if he lets me come over to use the tools then I might be able to swing the price of the parts. With the cost of the car I just don’t see where I’m getting another $800+ dollars to pay a shop to do it. I’d have the money in a few months probably (my car broke down just as I was about to pursue some gigs, so the timing was awful financially) but from the sound of it this timing belt replacement is urgent and can’t wait. I am watching and reading everything I can to learn about the engine and how I’d go about doing this, which makes me think - if you all have any recommendations for resources I’d appreciate it if possible. I do find cars interesting, so it would be cool to do the work and learn all about it. Just daunting considering how important the part is.

Is the water pump and thermostat as urgent? I know it’s probably easier to do it all at once and would be a good idea but will it destroy the engine like a failed timing belt? I hate to gamble but I am trying to prioritize, at least for the remainder of the summer into the fall when I’ll start having some regular income again, even though it will still be tough it will be better than these months.


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#8 ·
Basisme is ABSOLUTELY CORRECT! I'll add that you may also end up having to pay for broken valves too if it pops on you! It could end up costing more than you've paid for the car, to fix or replace the engine! You should have it checked by a trusted mechanic anyway! If the mechanic says it's a good used car, TAKE CARE OF THE TIMING BELT RIGHT THEN!
 
#9 ·
I'll be honest. I've worked on a bunch of engines, and it's certainly not uncommon to see overdue timing belts. However, I've also run into it where a belt is just hanging on by a thread when it wasn't due yet, so it's hard to say that yes, it will be safe.

What I can say is that honestly, it'll probably last. I had a 2004 Outlander engine on the original belt with 140k miles. That's the 6 year, 60,000 mile belt, not the 9 year 100,000 belt that was used in 09+. The belt was rough, but I'd have still driven on it for a month if I had to.

You won't likely find a car in that price range that's going to be as reliable as a 4 cylinder manual eclipse, and if absolutely needed, take the gamble. But if you can skip going out for dinner, or buy the cheaper store brand product for a while to save the money, do the belt.

If the belt does snap, don't worry about a head rebuild. Get yourself a junkyard head and have someone swap that. It will be cheaper and less shop time (likely a $800 savings) than a head rebuild.

So while not safe, and I wouldn't comfortably give it as good advice, I won't say it's doom and the end of the world.
 
#10 ·
I agree with Sabertooth, that's a pretty good price for the mileage on one of our cars. I'd visually inspect the belt (try to look at the whole length, you can use your phone to see back underneath of it) and if it doesn't appear frayed or cracked, you're "probably" going to be safe driving it until you can afford the replacement. Interference motors like ours will definitely bend pistons if it throws the belt, but realize that all manufacturers build in a good 10-15% buffer on their recommended changed time/mileage and what they actually expect the part to fail. So even though the 60k rule is a good one to follow (especially if you spent 25k on the car new) I've had cars make it to 120k before throwing a belt.
That doesn't mean don't worry about getting it replaced, because these guys are right, it should have already been replaced; however, if it's not got cracking or fraying it's a risk I would certainly take. Also, listen for squealing when the car starts, since that could indicate a bad bearing in the pulley, which if that seizes up can also throw a belt (although sometimes that noise is a power steering pulley or A/C pulley, so not always a super concerning noise).
Heck, that car has 30k less miles than mine and I wouldn't take less than $5000 for my car. I would jump at it myself.
 
#12 ·
I agree with Sabertooth, that's a pretty good price for the mileage on one of our cars. I'd visually inspect the belt (try to look at the whole length, you can use your phone to see back underneath of it) and if it doesn't appear frayed or cracked, you're "probably" going to be safe driving it until you can afford the replacement. Interference motors like ours will definitely bend pistons if it throws the belt, but realize that all manufacturers build in a good 10-15% buffer on their recommended changed time/mileage and what they actually expect the part to fail. So even though the 60k rule is a good one to follow (especially if you spent 25k on the car new) I've had cars make it to 120k before throwing a belt.

That doesn't mean don't worry about getting it replaced, because these guys are right, it should have already been replaced; however, if it's not got cracking or fraying it's a risk I would certainly take. Also, listen for squealing when the car starts, since that could indicate a bad bearing in the pulley, which if that seizes up can also throw a belt (although sometimes that noise is a power steering pulley or A/C pulley, so not always a super concerning noise).

Heck, that car has 30k less miles than mine and I wouldn't take less than $5000 for my car. I would jump at it myself.


Thanks for the help everyone, and thank you Steve for that detailed info. I will give it a visual inspection tomorrow - I’m officially now the owner of this car. I love it! I didn’t mention before but the front end needs a bit of work. I need to find out if I can fit back in the plastic grille because it is sitting too far back. Nothing is loose but it’s not fitting like it should. Probably not the best photo to show the front but I took this when I got home - it was almost dark by that point but I wanted to get a photo of it the same day I brought it home. I haven’t ever had a car that feels so nice and that feels like it fits me (if that makes sense) so I’m very happy, and looking forward to learning about it so that I can get in there and work on it myself.




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#11 ·
You bend valves. Or super soft rods potentially, but not that I've heard of. Pistons, you end up with markings in them that potentially turn into fractures from heat and knock. I had one set of pistons I worked on that ate 3 heads. I sanded out the divots from the valves with a Dremel, and the pistons were fine for 20psi of boost again without issues.
 
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