What to look for/at when considering an 81?

[Mistro]

All, I'm going to look at "My new 81 Avanti II" on Wednesday. It has 80,000 miles and is represented by the owner who is an Avanti Club member to be in excellent shape. But what should I be looking for/at?  I expect to get to my mechanic to look at the mechanicals. There may be an issue with the sunroof but outside of that what to evaluate? Thanks in advance for any input.

[WayneC]

I assume "none yet" means this will be your first Avanti.

I can't claim to be any sort of expert in inspecting an Avanti, but certainly there are some items that can be very expensive to remedy on any car, and it will depend on just how nice you require your Avanti to be...

the "hog troughs" are unique to Avanti... (long metal boxes beneath the rocker panels that support the body and adapt it to the Stude Lark frame used by Avanti's) the drains around the sunroof empty into the troughs, as does water that gets past the side window weather seals; the drain holes on the troughs tend to clog, and if the hog troughs are badly rusted, they will be very expensive to replace (minimum of $4k, likely much more if you don't do most of the work yourself). This item is probably the #1 Avanti deal-killer. 

check (wherever you can) inside fiberglass panels (wheel well areas, nose panels) for old damage; broken inner fender panels around the battery is common. Look at door alignment/fit and make sure door hinges are solid. 

Avanti sunroofs are notorious for de-laminating where they meet the body... not an expensive fix if you can do it yourself, but tedious work. There are write-ups about this repair on the net.

if it needs a repaint, prep for that may well uncover body damage that will need to be addressed (a recent thread on a corvette forum says quality paint jobs now run well upwards of $8k to $10k for single-stage epoxy paint to $20k+ for a show-quality job, depending on labor required to right all wrongs; automotive paint is extremely expensive); if its a "20-footer" and you're happy with that quality level, then no issue.

chrome plating is also very expensive (and pristine/new bumpers are prohibitively expensive), so bumpers and bumper guards need to be evaluated, along with light housings.

if the interior is not up to your standards, a whole new interior costs $$$$, probably $10k and up for a leather interior, and even more if you entirely replace the Avanti front seats.

A/C interior parts can be a PITA to R&R in order to make repairs

check every electrical item to ensure it works (all gauges, heater, A/C, power side windows, exterior/interior lights, turn signals, wipers, cruise, radio, antenna, tilt wheel, etc)

DO have your mechanic check the driveline visually and by driving the car (engine, transmission, differential, brakes, steering, springs, shocks, and use a lift to inspect the frame for any bad areas of rust corrosion or signs of a possible cover-up with undercoating, and for fiberglass damage on the underside); the kingpin suspension used in the front is a mystery to all but old mechanics, so hopefully he can check it for excess play.

Take it through a car wash and then inspect closely to see if water gets into the interior through the sunroof, or the windscreen seals, or wiper posts, or window seals; does it drain out of the doors or can you hear water sloshing inside them when you open/close them.

Obviously we all have different standards of what we want in a used car, just make sure the level of this one meets your standard.

Any car can be restored, but it's generally much cheaper to buy one that meets your standards than to buy one that doesn't and then try to bring it up to your standards.

Oh, and one last item: check for cracks in the frame in the area around the motor mounts.

Edited June 9, 2018 by WayneC
added another item to check

[Mistro]

WayneC, Water sloshing in the doors after a car wash, thanks I had not considered that! Avanti sunroofs are notorious for de-laminating where they meet the body... not an expensive fix if you can do it yourself, but tedious work. - Does this make them inoperable, or what? Thanks. Mike

[wwundt]

Delamination tends to occur first on the back edge of the sunroof.  This does not necessarily make the sunroof inoperable, but the sag allows air to flow into the cabin.  Noise, cold blasts in winter...but worse...water pouring into the headliner and draining into the floor behind the back seat when it rains.  If you pull the gas tank, you will find that water pools under the tank as well and starts it rusting out.  When reattaching the frame of the sunroof to the body is a good time to replace the sunroof weatherseal and inspecting the drains as well.

[mfg]

It's really too bad about the leaky, sagging moonroof problem that plagues many 'RQB' type Avantis. (It certainly seems moonroofs were a popular option on these cars!)

No doubt the moonroof issue , over the years, has really hurt the condition (and value) of otherwise really nice Avantis!

On my own '83 Avanti 'everyday driver' I got so darn fed up with water leaks that I filled in the moonroof opening with a sheet of 1/16" fiberglass, smoothed over the area, painted it, and forgot a moonroof was ever up there!!!

 

[M&M]

On 6/8/2018 at 8:50 PM, Mistro said:

All, I'm going to look at "My new 81 Avanti II" on Wednesday. It has 80,000 miles and is represented by the owner who is an Avanti Club member to be in excellent shape. But what should I be looking for/at?  I expect to get to my mechanic to look at the mechanicals. There may be an issue with the sunroof but outside of that what to evaluate? Thanks in advance for any input.

Edited January 6, 2019 by M&M

[mfg]

Being fiberglass, Avanti bodies always seem to look pretty good, however if I were in the market for another Avanti I'd look at it real close for prior collision damage....Sight down both sides of the car looking for bulges or 'kinks' in the body that are not present on the other side.

Straight, vertical 'lines' under the paint may indicate parts of the body have been pieced together...and not very well!.....Inspecting the underside of all four fenders can also sometimes reveal previous damage......BEWARE OF A FRESH UNDERCOATING JOB!!!!!

The other thing to look for is rot in the frame or hog troughs.....Surface rust is OK, but the flat metal on the bottom of the frame rails 'spreading' away from the upper sections.....or holes in the frame behind the rear axle, or rot holes in the troughs, would indicate an expensive frame rework to make things right.

Also, it's VERY EXPENSIVE to redo an Avanti's interior, so if the interior is worn out in the car your considering, figure that into the price.

Of course, a tired engine, transmission, or rear axle would also need to be determined before making an offer.........HAPPY HUNTING!!!!.....Ed

 

[Cbitz233]

On 1/5/2019 at 11:08 AM, mfg said:

It's really too bad about the leaky, sagging moonroof problem that plagues many 'RQB' type Avantis. (It certainly seems moonroofs were a popular option on these cars!)

No doubt the moonroof issue , over the years, has really hurt the condition (and value) of otherwise really nice Avantis!

On my own '83 Avanti 'everyday driver' I got so darn fed up with water leaks that I filled in the moonroof opening with a sheet of 1/16" fiberglass, smoothed over the area, painted it, and forgot a moonroof was ever up there!!!

 

May be a stupid question... But i considered doing this too (once I learn more body work at my new job i just started) how hard was it to get the sunroof out?

[mfg]

20 hours ago, Cbitz233 said:

May be a stupid question... But i considered doing this too (once I learn more body work at my new job i just started) how hard was it to get the sunroof out?

It's quite easy to remove the moonroof glass panel itself.....The moonroof 'tray' and the control mechanism requires dropping both front and rear headliners and the roll bar cover.

However...I didn't do any of that!...In the spirit of "Maybe I'll bring this Avanti back to stock condition some day", I simply lowered the sunroof glass without moving it to the rear, disconnected the electrics, and then sealed over the glass with painters tape. (to protect it)

I then trimmed a piece of 1/16" virgin fiberglass sheet to the size of the moonroof opening, ground the paint back around the opening to raw fiberglass going about 4" out from the opening,  set the new fiberglass panel in on top of the moonroof glass, and then came the fiberglass/body filler work. (and painting, of course!)

All-in-all quite a bit of work, but for an Avanti which is used during all weather conditions, as my '83 is,..... a good modification. (In my opinion!)

PS.....I made up a new 'hardboard' headliner for the area forward of the roll bar cover, and dyed it the interior color. (saddle tan)

[Avanti83]

Nothing wrong with leaving it but it could be a source rattles. Here's the info on it if you need it.

http://www.studebaker-info.org/Tech/lampman_moonroof.html