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Ritchy · 05-05-11, 04:51 PM

head gasket is one of those things that can just happen, believe its more age related than mileage, look at the colour of the coolant and make sure its clean, if its dirty then get him to take a chunk off the price and stick it aside, id say the head gasket is far less of an issue on the k series than the timing belts are on the v6, if that lates guy is near you he could probably even come out and do it in your works car park id imagine not a very hard job.
mk2 is obviosly when the cutbacks started really hitting back, so look for things like the fuel tank, make sure there is no deep rust on it, would expect a certain amount of surface rust though, and the filler neck, pull the cap off and make sure it isnt rusty where the seal goes, this is because they dont have the splash guard...probably not as much of an issue down south as up here, make sure all the electrics work, the mk2 has an scu, which tbh isnt a common thing on the zs to go more on the zr, to every 20 zr's there maybe only one zs because where it sits, but still make sure the hazards, heated rear screen, front fogs are working
door handles probably know as the same with all zs's can be brittle so go round pull them all make sure they arent hanging off
heater resistor make sure setting 1 and 2 are working on the blowers(unless it has climate control)
look at the condition of the radiator, make sure the bottom isnt corroded espiecially where the fan bolts on, theyre at that age now where they can be a bit rotton
exhaust heat shield, they ususally break at the bottom bolt, not a major issue and they dont tend to rattle but its another thing to knock him down on
make sure all the windows go up and down nicely(your checking the regulators)
ull the boot carpet up make sure the spare wheel well is dry, saloon can be prone to water leaks, usually the seams next to the light, or through the bumper clips, again not a big issue to fix but another knock down in price
front exhaust flexi is very short on the mk2's so the outer sheith is prone to splitting, doesnt usually blow but again another knock down, also look at the backbox next to the wheel look for corrosion

thats just a list of things tbh they arent that bad just giving you things to check, i think theyre great cars for the money and theres very little that i work on that i would replace my car with given the choice

05-05-11, 04:51 PM	#19
Ritchy technically an expertish Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Clydebank, Glasgow Posts: 7,902	head gasket is one of those things that can just happen, believe its more age related than mileage, look at the colour of the coolant and make sure its clean, if its dirty then get him to take a chunk off the price and stick it aside, id say the head gasket is far less of an issue on the k series than the timing belts are on the v6, if that lates guy is near you he could probably even come out and do it in your works car park id imagine not a very hard job. mk2 is obviosly when the cutbacks started really hitting back, so look for things like the fuel tank, make sure there is no deep rust on it, would expect a certain amount of surface rust though, and the filler neck, pull the cap off and make sure it isnt rusty where the seal goes, this is because they dont have the splash guard...probably not as much of an issue down south as up here, make sure all the electrics work, the mk2 has an scu, which tbh isnt a common thing on the zs to go more on the zr, to every 20 zr's there maybe only one zs because where it sits, but still make sure the hazards, heated rear screen, front fogs are working door handles probably know as the same with all zs's can be brittle so go round pull them all make sure they arent hanging off heater resistor make sure setting 1 and 2 are working on the blowers(unless it has climate control) look at the condition of the radiator, make sure the bottom isnt corroded espiecially where the fan bolts on, theyre at that age now where they can be a bit rotton exhaust heat shield, they ususally break at the bottom bolt, not a major issue and they dont tend to rattle but its another thing to knock him down on make sure all the windows go up and down nicely(your checking the regulators) ull the boot carpet up make sure the spare wheel well is dry, saloon can be prone to water leaks, usually the seams next to the light, or through the bumper clips, again not a big issue to fix but another knock down in price front exhaust flexi is very short on the mk2's so the outer sheith is prone to splitting, doesnt usually blow but again another knock down, also look at the backbox next to the wheel look for corrosion thats just a list of things tbh they arent that bad just giving you things to check, i think theyre great cars for the money and theres very little that i work on that i would replace my car with given the choice __________________ ------------------------------ ------------------------------ __________________ Top Gear Transmissions Glasgow