Old car, old owner, low mileage.

[Thulsa Doom]

My son (level headed, sports kid with NO mechanical aptitude) will be driving soon.
A friend recently told me that her and her siblings will soon be selling their mother's car. It is a 1992 Mazda with 31,500 miles on it, located 1/2 way across the country in N. Texas. The car is in the garage with a dead battery as the mother cannot drive anymore. The mother has alzheimers. The father died a couple of years ago. The children are waiting until she has to go into a nursing home before selling it as it was her pride and joy and she would notice it missing and cause a ruckus. I can sure sympathize with that.
The fly and drive doesn't bother me as it would be a fun adventure with my boy.
The question is whether you all think it's a good idea to buy this particular car. I'm sure I'll get a fair price, that's not the issue. The issue is whether a modern-ish car (FI, ABS etc.) that's been pampered, serviced and used little, then parked for at least a year, maybe more, can be expected to adjust to normal use without self distructing or nickel and diming us to death.
You can see why it's tempting to buy a creampuff - looks like new, low miler when for the same money locally I'd get a 1/2 used up, clapped out 200,000+ mile, rusty beater. Since this car would be for my son to use through HS and college I don't want unreliable junk if I can help it.
I would expect to change the oil and timing belt (+water pump, coolant etc.) because it's an interference engine before driving it home.
The reason for my doubts is that we once bought my MIL's very low mileage (14K) '99 Pontiac Grand Am GT when she got cancer and stopped driving, and I drove it up to New England from Florida. Approx. 1 month later I had to replace the entire fuel system from the tank forward. Its lack of use supposedly caused rust and pitting and the new normal use stirred it all up. That car was new enough to fix and my wife drove it for 5 years after but I don't want to relive that costly nightmare again especially with a 20 year old Mazda. I presume the Mazda is not the mechanical POS that the '99 Pontiac was, but resale of a broken 20 year old Mazda is nothing. Once bitten, twice shy.
So what would you do?

[Oss]

pass on it

maybe consider a 97 or newer for the safety advancements in the airbags brakes and traction control

got my daughter a 97 saturn 2 door 8 yrs ago it is still running used by my youngest in college

ymmv

[FLAVALK]

Depends on how long it's actually been sitting but I think I'd pass. There's nothing much worse for a vehicle than to let it sit. All kinds of grimlins will crawl in there. Seals rot, gas turns to adhesive, tires dry rot, rust seeps in...on and on.

[Black Dog]

I inherited my mother’s 1991 Honda Civic, when she passed, about two years ago.  The car had been sitting for almost a year and a half.  My dad kept a maintaince charger (from me) on the battery, stable was added to the fuel, and the oil had been changed, prior to the layup.

I replaced the tires, put on a new muffler, added a stereo, and did a plugs/wires tune up when I got it.  66K when I took ownership, 82K now...  No issues at all, since then.

In '91, they had the 'passive restraint' system...  The automatic seat belts, that will about take yer head off, if yer not careful  , but other than that, it was a bare bones car (Honda's DX).  As others have said, it lacks ABS, Air Bags, and some sort of stability control, but is runs like a Swiss watch, and gets 38 - 44 mpg, depending on the drive.  I'm guessing an older Mazda will get good mileage too...

The car you are looking at is old enough to work on yourself, and it would be an inexpensive way for your boy to learn the basics of auto maintaince, if you were willing to teach him.

Maybe someone living near where your future car is parked would be willing to give it the 'once over'.  Sounds good, but you should check out the way it's been stored, before you make the trip.

My $.02  

Black Dog

[f6john]

    Depending on price I would not be afraid of the car. It would be a lot easier decision if it was across town instead of across the country.

[R J]

Worked at a Mazda dealership a few years back.

Only problem that ever came through the door was a worthless belt tensioner.

Replacement cost and parts out the door was $480 +.    Other than that, they ran like scalded dogs.

Myself, I wouldn't be afraid of it, but, I've turned wrenches for over 65 years.

[Hoser]

Old car, low miles, sat for five years, after my mom quit driving.  Took half a day to get it running good enough to get 100 miles home, a week later running like a new one.  Still running fine, 10 years later.  Don't be afraid of sitting a year, unless it's outside.  Hoser  

[cookiedough]

sounds like it only has been sitting 3-4 years is all, not like 5 or more years.  If you can get it for under a grand, what do you have to lose, not much.  We have a 1986 caprice classic brougham 305 V8 that was my dad's with 165,000 miles and I would drive it as a daily driver since dealer will only give me 50 bucks and is worth 750 bucks or so with good tires on it.  Mom does not want to sell it though like your Mazda since it was Dad's and he died 3 1/2 years ago.  I could pass it onto my son to drive 5 years from now, but am sure by then it might nickle and dime me to death.  For a grand or less and if nearby not across the country, I would consider it as long as you don't have to stick another grand or so in it to get it to run decent.

[NCGhostrider]

Had a 91 mazda 626 that was bought new.  Sold it to a friend at 200k, and he drove it another 30k before selling it to someone else.  They were bullet proof, just the stupid seat belt tensioner as mentioned above.

Any vehicle that sets is not good, but if it has been driven some, and the price is right, I would consider it.  Dump some fuel conditioner in the tank and go.  Keep in mind that some those vehicles do not like ethanol at any levels. 

I inherited a 94 Ford ranger from my aunt in 2006.  It had 27k on it.  I put tires on it, and a fuel pump in the tank.   She had serviced it regularly up til the last year.  It made it to 150k before my oldest abused it to the point of non-recovery.

Go with your gut feeling, if it is somewhere that it can be checked out by someone, before you fly in, I would do so.

Craig
NcGhostrider
99 I/S

[Robdawg13]

My daughter's first car was a 1995 Pontiac Grand Prix that had a similar story.  Old lady that owned it got to old to drive and it sat for a couple of years.  Put new tires and a battery in it and she drove it for 3 or 4 years.  We sold it to a gal my wife worked with and she drove it another couple of years before selling it to another co-worker that is still driving it.  Been a good car for 3 owners now, and we got a good deal on it and were able to pass the savings on and help someone else down the road, so I wouldn't hesitate on a car that has sat for awhile based on my experience. 

[PharmBoy]

North Texas is dry country with no salt on the roads in the winter, so I wouldn't be afraid of rust of any kind.  I wouldn't expect anything worse than a new battery with oil and filter change.  Might have to prime it to get it started, but with new clean gas, it should be fine.  Kids have a great time in an old car.  I drove my uncle's 1949 Plymouth 4-door for years.  I think that it had 8-9K on it when I got it...Jim

[The Anvil]

Depends on how long it's actually been sitting but I think I'd pass. There's nothing much worse for a vehicle than to let it sit. All kinds of grimlins will crawl in there. Seals rot, gas turns to adhesive, tires dry rot, rust seeps in...on and on.

I agree, I would pass. Were it local I'd consider it but who knows what could happen on a cross-country drive. You drop a G on it and 300 miles into the return trip it suffers a fuel system problem and quits. Not my idea of fun.

And while the dryness of the desert is good for metal it's not so good for rubber and plastic.

And don't forget critters... http://articles.latimes.com/2011/mar/03/business/la-fi-mazda-spider-20110304

[Thulsa Doom]

There's no way I could get it for a grand. I couldn't insult her with a price like that. Remember this thing is in supposedly (physically) perfect condition sitting in her mothers garage with low mileage. Book value is just over $3,000, though I would imagine she would offer a friend discount of some kind. Figure another $1,200 to bring it home (airfare x 2 + fuel/tolls, meals and at least 1 night in hotel) + the initial cost to have timing belt changed and a new battery installed before I even get on an airplane = at least $2,000 more than its 'as is' selling price. Not sure whether that's fair considering the 2 or 3 day 'vacation' with my boy fetching it home is a seperate expense.
Or
Approx. $800 to have it shipped to my door. A lot less cool than the father/son cross country drive he'd never forget.

[f6john]

    If I thought I would need to spend $2k on it up front I would pass. I bought a 99 Corvette last year that had 49k miles on it and I had to fly to OKC and look it over then drive it back 800 miles. If I had felt that it would need even $1k in mechanical up grades I would have passed. 10k miles later I have only needed oil changes and a new set of rubber. Anybody you know out there that could put a battery on it drive it some and take some good pics would go a long way in my mind.

[Paxton]

I would not be afraid of it. But $1.8 - $2K is fair. Mind you, you have to get her serviced before you start your road trip.
You're also assuming the risks of the unknowns.  ???

Ask them how much would they want for it. If they say $1200, don't feel poorly. Take it.
If they say $3500, you'd say, "thank you, I let my friend know..."

BEFORE DRIVING IT HOME: - WALMART AUTO FULL SERVICE is good.
Fill the tank w/-premium gas. Add a bottle of Lukas gas treatment. Check Cat-converter... they get plugged.
Replace the "remote" near the tank Fuel Filter.  ???

Replace engine oil with low weight oil (5-30 or 10-30). Fill the tires to their MAX Capacity.
Drive it 50-100 miles in the interstate at 55-80 MPH.
Then, stop at a gas station. Get the tire-air-pressure down to the specs on the door of the car.
Check all fluid levels, even the "new ones." 

If it all checks out OK, drive it like you stole it from the Police impound! A long trip will be great for it.   

AVOID constant SPEED/RPM. I.e. Drive 63-65 for 5 minutes. Go up to 75-80 for another 3-5 minutes; down to 68-70 MPH...
and so on like that. You want the engine to break in properly. 

Go for it. I've owned three MAZDA (1983; 1990; 1991). I would buy them all again. Reliable cars.