Looking for help buying a syncro (pics)

[POKTROKT]

Found this syncro for sale here (ontario, canada) and i've been in contact with the owner, he wants $2500 CA for it and I would like to know if this is a decent deal and if the van is salvageable.

Dont know the mileage but apparently the engine runs strong
The interior is pretty beat but i think with a bit of help it could look decent
The undercarriage looks a bit rusty, have a look at the pics below and comment.

Thanks in advance.

[syncroandy]

That's a lot of rust, looks like its been stood for years. I think the cost of getting it back to good working order would be so much you'd be much better waiting for a decent running van to come along. Walk away..

[jed the spread]

I dont think i have ever seen one that rusty underneath before

jed

[toomanytoys]

But how much is a better van in Canada???

Would be quite a bit of effort to dissmantle and clean it up... replacing anything thats beyond use... but not insurmountable.. just dont expect to do it for $500............ would be handy if you own/work at a sand blasting and powder coating co...

If you dont have a lot more cash and the skills to work on the vehicle then its prob the wrong one for you...

[KarlT]

Does Canada salt the roads?
How much is the red one next to it?

[Aidan]

offer him £2k it's probably worth that, there not exactly common there are they, rusts not that bad, as long as the transmission works and it drives ok see what it says to you

[John Potter]

2500 Canadian dollars is about 1350 of our quaint old UK pounds sterling. 2000 dollars would be about 1100 quid and you dont get much Syncro for that in the UK.......

[axeman]

if it comes with the canadian MOT (goverment yearly inspection) for that sort of money i would buy it, drive it, and then start to spend money on it. or you could do that and keep your eyes open for anouther van that requires less work. and have a load of spare parts from this one.

good luck neil

[POKTROKT]

Yeah, roads get salted here, the condition of this van is pretty standard for cars this vintage.

2500 Canadian dollars is about 1350 of our quaint old UK pounds sterling. 2000 dollars would be about 1100 quid and you dont get much Syncro for that in the UK.......

That was going to be my next point, I would probably offer about 2Gs.

if it comes with the canadian MOT (goverment yearly inspection) for that sort of money i would buy it, drive it, and then start to spend money on it. or you could do that and keep your eyes open for another van that requires less work. and have a load of spare parts from this one.

good luck neil

I like the way you think unfortunately it is definitely not coming with our “safety" certificate which you only need to do while registering a vehicle, no yearly inspections here yet.

I do my own repairs and would do most of the work on the van.

I have a 91 Passat estate that I swapped a 1.9TD into and a 77 Golf that is in the process of being put back on the road and most likely sold in favour of a van.

I'm new to the van scene as I don't have or ever have had a van but I'm sure it isn't much different than owning any other older vw plus I have some contacts for new parts, auto dismantlers, etc.

This particular van would need a lot of work and money, both of which are scarce right now.

Funny enough as rare as these things are I actually found another one for $1700, it was for sale a few months back and I walked away from it but it is up for sale again. The undercarriage is in much better shape, the body is about the same, the interior is worse and it does not have a drive shaft, also it is missing the awd dash plate where the diff lock knob would be which is a little suspicious.

[POKTROKT]

the post for the brown van is gone, i'll call the owner today and let you guys know if it is sold.

Here is syncro number 2, no badges, it may be a conversion.

[toomanytoys]

well.. the transmission is the biggest problem... any nasty noise or inoperable components/missing parts then means things are not right and poss broken... thats gonna cost...
I'd be tempted to try both, find out whats wrong with each and then make silly offers with cash... buy em both and pick the best from each... make one good van, then clean the other/parts up a bit and try and flog em south of the border.... Well its a thought...

[SYNCRO NUT]

Hi its nice to see a van thats in a worse state than mine theres hope for my van yet

[axeman]

if it is not going to come with the MOT thingy that you have over there, what do you need to do to get it? and could you get it with out spending to much on the van?

i would take the van for a test drive, get a feel for it look in the wikki there is a section about buying a syncro, at least the owner has not gone to any effort to hide the rust and to be honest it only looks like surfase rust, i have seen beetles, splitys and bay in the UK with much more tin worm.

just make sure that there are noo strainge things (sounds included) from the gear boxes etc

neil

[syncropaddy]

How long did that van stay in the sea? I'd walk away from that one ........

[toomanytoys]

I've seen worse Aircooled...