Ok,

I am looking to buy an s2000, and you may have seen my introduction.

I found an 01 with 34k

its got a clean title, although it did have a commercial lein at one point.
Car looks very good except the front bumper, you can tell was repainted.

At closer inspection, that crossmember that the radiator, and the a/c condensor sit on is bent like it hit something. Where it is spot welded to the frame rails directly above it, the drivers side is fine, but the passenger side is twisted so two of the spot welds arent fully on there.

The front bumper was resprayed pretty cheaply (not great masking skills, some runs) so I know that any work that the person may have done I would be able to see it.

All the engine bay parts line up, hood is evenly spaced with fenders.

My question is... does this part do anything but hold the rad/a/c components up? I wouldnt mind having that little damage that I could repair myself and save a grand or two, but not if it could possibly make other problems.

Everything else on the underside looks good (oil pan, sideskirts, anything that may have been damaged in whatever would have damaged that.)

They are going to put it up on a rack for me tomorrow, but just wanted to get some insight of what to look for, and what I should spend on something like this. As far as I can see, the lower crossmember would need to be taken off, and a new one welded in, and a new front bumper with paint.

I was thinking about offering 16.5k out the door before I found this. What should I try for? the price on the window is $17,398

Thanks

 

Did the guy mention the car had damage? If not I would steer clear.. who knows what else the guy is hiding. Without the damage I would say definitely make the purchase as the price is right.. but personally, I would steer clear or a car that was not properly fixed after an accident.

 

Sounds like a slap and dash repair job. They patched it up for sale as cheaply as possible, etc.

I'd be patient and keep looking.

 

They didnt say .. "this is what happened from an accident"

But rather said, "the car looks like it was in a small accident since the bumper looked like there was a scratch on one side near the headlight.

So it does look like its ONLY the crossmember and bumper with visible damage, but I told him that I wasnt really sure if I wanted to spend that much on a car, and have to worry about damage and what had happened. This was as he said 17,398 was a lower price than I looked at it before (17,999).

I have found a few more that are semi local. Of course, a few good deals are yellow. I dont mind the color, but I dont really want the attention that a yellow car would bring. Really have my mind set on a silver. White or black if I found a good deal.

So we will see, not in too much of a hurry, so thats one good thing since I have a daily driver car for as long as I need it.

there was a nice one in tampa, but it was up North for most of its life, and its got quite a bit of rust underneath, something I wont touch.

 

My car had that damage and it really was/is no biggie ... the piece you are referring is not part of the frame structure ... it is only bent sheet metal. If the radiator and A/C were not damaged, then this further supports the conclusion that it was a minor incident.