This is my first post, and I thought that I would see what the cumalative knowledge of this group has to say...
I'm thinking about buying a 2002 SLE with 43000 miles. I wanted to know if there is anything that I should be looking for as far as problem areas. The car had an extented warrenty to 48000 miles or 4 years which has expired but there were no claims against either the factory warrenty or the extended. The car looks immaculate, and drives very nice. I noticed a slight ticking in the motor, but I don't know if that'* normal or not. If I was to buy it, would anyone recommend a warrenty, or would that be a waste of money? I'm concerned about all of the computers and such. I can do mechanical work, but electrical is a little worrisome for me. The dealer is asking 13900 for the car, I'm hoping they'll come down to around 13000. How'* that sound? Thanks for any comments or suggestions.
JB

$13,925 is exactly blue book on it, however they are going for thousands less on ebay and locally... id say keep looking unless you can get them down more than 900

I personally think the 2000+ Bonneville is a great car. But if I were you, I would review the common problems thread in this forum. Also, speaking from personal experience, I would check the floorboards in both the front and back seats. Water intrusion seems to be a fairly common problem in these automobiles. My front and back floorboards on the passenger side were completely soaked, and that mold smell aint fun. Also check the trunk for moisture. I also agree that the price seems a little too high. But not having the seen the car its tough to make that call. So good luck to you and happy motoring.

Agreed... the common problems to look for are listed in a sticky. The low miles are great, however I wouldn't recommend paying high book ... unless you don't have any other options out there and are not going to be driving her much. Otherwise you will always owe what it is worth (or you'll owe MORE than what its worth).

One thing to check is the electrical functioning of all the passenger doors. My car only had 31k on it when it was 5 yrs old (comparable to your deal there). Because it had been sitting, there was corrosion on the main electrical hub in the driver door. This prevented the power to the passenger doors. this was corrected under the warranty.

Also....check the tires for signs of dry rot... you may be able to get new ones on , or at least money off from the purchase price.

Okay, after looking at the commen problems, if I decide to buy it, it might be good to do an extended warranty to cover some of these problems. You always have to worry about why people sell relatively low mileage cars. The car has new tires, I think replaced by the dealer. If they call me back today with the numbers I want, $13,000 or there about, I'll go back and look for water damage and or intrusion and the electrical things. It comes with a 30 day/3000 warranty so, I would think if it was a snake oil job, I would see the problems before then. I don't know. I won't have to worry about owing more than it'* worth because a trade in appraised at $7000 and owe nothing on it. Before anyone asks, it'* a good car, Saab Turbo, but it has too many memories. Long story, but to make it short, it'* better to be rid of it.
So, thanks for the info. I have some more things to think about.
JB

This isn't a mechanical issue... Moving to General Chat...

Don't necessarily go by the book value. Go to www.autotrader.com and do search on that year Bonneville for a hundred or so miles within your zip code to get a feel for pricing. In my area, $13K isn't too bad, but by you it may be high. If you see similar cars nearby for less, I would use that as your cutoff point. If they go for $12K, start between $10K and $11K for an offer and go from there.