... didn't in the end. For some reason the insurance underwriter came back and suggested that the information I had provided so far was enough and the seller and me were able to revive the deal for this:
'93 Eagle Talon TSI AWD.
Got it home last night almost without drama (the coolant had been a little low and it burped it in a rather dramatical fashion, but after we topped it up it ran fine).
It needs a little work, namely:
- It needs a coolant catch tank, currently the overflow goes right on the ground and that's not what I want if I take it on a track or Auto-X'ing. Not a good way to make new friends IMHO.
- The front tint needs to be removed and replaced with something much less limo-tint like. Not because of legalities but because it's just too dark for my liking and almost impossible for me to see out of at dusk. And that strip on the windshield needs to go, too. It's more irritating than helpful
- It does appear to have a slight boost/air leak as I could hear it 'snuffeling' near the throttle body. Once I've got that sorted I'll probably need to try and tweak the hot idle a little as the big injectors make for a rather uneven idle.
- The additional gauges want to be relocated from the A-pillar mount, but that's not that urgent.
- Probably needs an alignment, but the tire pressures might be off so I'll check that first.
- Needs a GRM sticker, but I've got plenty of those.
I'm not a big fan of the wheels, plus they seem to be fairly heavy, so the longer run will include at least one set of wheels. The exhaust is a bit rice-tastic but I'll see if I can live with it. It's not obnoxiously loud, fit needs tweaking a little as the cat occasionally bangs against the floor.
I guess this weekend will be spent cleaning it and giving it a once-over to come up with the "real to do list". It wasn't that cheap for a 1st gen Talon but in the end I mostly paid for the parts on it and got the car for almost free so that can't be that bad a deal.
It also appears to be the only vehicle we have at the moment that doesn't have a penchant for marking its territory...
. I don't mind a light tint with the intensity of the sun out here and a pretty heavy tint on the glass sunroof, but the one that's on the car is ridiculous for front windows IMHO.
