The new car almost

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So my wife had about had enough looking at private party cars for 4000-5000 with 120,000 + miles on them one did had 108,000 but had been in an accident.
This car was 9995 I talked them down to 6,000 which I realize isn't a awesome deal for a 11yr old car but it's one owner and very clean and very low miles!!
What do you guys think? The bumper is the only flaw what's a good way to fix the discoloration?
Also should I concerned with the timing belt? I told them in the deal I wanted the timing belt done they said we will work out the details on it but were willing to discuss it. We were approved but they are wanting to get better numbers so he will have it done tomorrow. We put 3,000 down and I'm going to pay for about 6 months and then pay it off.
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Isn't the 2.4 non-interference? At that mileage drive it a few years before worrying about the belt.
 
Don't you have a couple kids to haul around?

My wife is in a chevy HHR, the same premise. Decent for car seat loading.
 
49k miles and you're worried about the timing belt? I just changed the original timing belt in my Camry last month at 186k miles.
 
Originally Posted By: Nick1994
49k miles and you're worried about the timing belt? I just changed the original timing belt in my Camry last month at 186k miles.


Ok so tell that to the pt cruiser owners who had belts snap at 65-75k and 5-6 years. You're comparison is not appropriate
 
Could be worse - could be one of the Chevrolaewoo engines that snap timing belts or break plastic t-belt tensioner pulleys religiously at 40K
 
The 2.4 is an interference engine, but I've seen more than one survive a broken belt.

Timing belt changes on this car are a futher mucker! The 2.4 is a solid engine and the car isn't too bad. Keep an eye on the vertical lower control arm bushings. The tend to tear away from the shell. Also make sure that the ground wire from the body to the strut is intact (one on each side).
 
For a cheap car, it's hard to beat the PT Cruiser

We got ours for $15,000 with 4000 miles on it. That's four thousand miles. Practically new!

From the interior pics, yours is a 2005 or earlier. Belt's pushing up on 10 years. Might be a good idea to change it just as a precautionary measure. You can see if you have a cam seal leaking that might contaminate the belt with engine oil.

Parts are readily availiable and affordable. Someone willing to do the job at a reasonable price is not. I'm not going to lie; it's a big hassle.

My belt still looked good at 8 years and 90,000 miles. It still got changed though. Just as a precautionary measure.

I don't know about the bumpers. My PT has painted bumpers. There's the "As seen on TV" Wipe New product. But it's like $20.00 for 1.5 oz. Meguiars Back to Black works pretty good but it doesn't last terribly long. The detailer at the lot I used to work for used Mop N Glo on base model Cavalier bumpers. I don't know how long it will last but they were black and shiny
 
I like the silver metalflake on your instrument bezel and passenger airbag cover better than mine:

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mine looks like bionic snakeskin or something.
 
If I were buying it, I'd change the belt, tensioner, etc. Things get old and brittle. No sense in destroying the engine to save a couple hundred bucks.
 
Funny that the car dealer let me take it home before sigming on the dotted line. I put it in my garage and checked everything. I pulled the belt cover back and the timing belt is a gates belt! Is gates oem?
 
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I don't know who made it but mine had Mopar printed on it. No Gates, Bando, Dayco or any other manufacturer. My engine is not exactly the same as yours but I am pretty sure the timing belt is the same part.

Maybe it has already been changed.
 
Originally Posted By: crazyoildude
that is not an interference engine in that pt


I thought it was valve to valve contact ?instead of piston to valve contact.
 
Originally Posted By: ram_man
Funny that the car dealer let me take it home before sigming on the dotted line. I put it in my garage and checked everything. I pulled the belt cover back and the timing belt is a gates belt! Is gates oem?


Look for a date code on the belt. The OE belt on my Dakota 2.5 might have been Mitsubishi of all makers. Beware a "yo-yo" deal where they haul you in in a couple weeks because your financing "fell through" and they want a higher interest rate. Since you haven't signed everything yet, hit up your local credit union for a 2nd opinion on your car loan.
 
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