Hey everyone how's it going? my name is Kane and im 18 years old. recently i was driving around and came across this car with a for sale sign, i ahd no clue what it was so i had to look. what i found was a 1981 dodge mirada in decent shape, rear quaters behind the wheels are rusted thru nothing crazy, it has the 318 2 barrel. what i was wondering is where should i be looking on this car? it was parked in a barn for 11 years and onyl has 43k km on it. the guy wants 500 bucks fires up and drives soudns pretty good. Thanks for all the tips!
New Guy!
- Thread starter Kane
- Start date
Joe12459
Well-Known Member
$500.00 sounds like a really good deal, as long as it's not too badly rusted, especially the frame rails. The parts for these cars are getting hard to come by, but are still around if you look. The hardest part to find is the windshield, so you should make sure that's OK.
--- Post updated ---
By the way, welcome aboard!
--- Post updated ---
By the way, welcome aboard!
Front passenger side has a hole in the frame where it meets te body about the size of a dime, windshield is cracked but not crazy. I'll upload some pics when I get some totally forgot to snap some, it's a base model burgundy in color
Justwondering
Well-Known Member
Welcome to the party.
Jack Meoff
Mopar Maniac
First of all welcome aboard. Great to have you here.
Post us up some pics so we can tell better. There is a small circular hole already in the front frame rail but I'd like to see some pics to know what we're dealing with. Floors and frame rails are the big thing to look for on these cars. Being unibody those parts are part of the structural integrity of the entire car. Other than that the 318 is a diehard engine. As long as the transmission shifts okay then I'm thinking you're golden there and you can't beat $500.
Post us up some pics so we can tell better. There is a small circular hole already in the front frame rail but I'd like to see some pics to know what we're dealing with. Floors and frame rails are the big thing to look for on these cars. Being unibody those parts are part of the structural integrity of the entire car. Other than that the 318 is a diehard engine. As long as the transmission shifts okay then I'm thinking you're golden there and you can't beat $500.
Joe12459
Well-Known Member
A small hole in the frame is no big deal. If the crack in the windshield is small enough, it might be able to be repaired before it spreads. Otherwise, like I said, it's almost impossible to find one.
Jack Meoff
Mopar Maniac
I know that here where I am good ol Apple auto glass said they could put one in almost anything. Not cheap but doable. I think they gave me a $400 guesstimate for my 78 Caravelle.
Yeah I'm coming from a 91 jeep cherokee it was also unibody so that's good to know, yeah I'm not afraid of metal work I'm going to university for my welding ticket. I'll be sure to post pics on the windshield is no small crack it's most of the lower part of it but I can see clearly, I crawled underneath and the floors are solid tranny works in all gear but I'll be driving it tommorow night. I'll be sure to get lots of pics
rcmaniac791
Well-Known Member
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Welcome aboard! Nice to see another young guy on here. I'm only 19. We got to keep these things going.
For $500 I'd go for it. In my opinion, a solid 318 and trans are worth that.
For $500 I'd go for it. In my opinion, a solid 318 and trans are worth that.
Joe12459
Well-Known Member
Sounds like a great deal! If you buy it, post lots of pics!
80mirada
Well-Known Member
Unfortunately, the windsheild is the biggest headache, but they do appear occasionally. J-bodies are good solid cars, but they require a lot of searching to find parts.
Dr Lebaron
Well-Known Member
If I was 18 and looking at a pre 90 car, I'd call the insurance company first to see 'if' you can even get insurance on it.
If you're in Ontario, you're not getting insurance.
If you're in Ontario, you're not getting insurance.
kkritsilas
Well-Known Member
ATF +4; which is the successor to the original fluid that came with the car. Some like Mercon for firmer shifts.
Perfect thank you, I'll try and get pictures up tommorow night going to throw tires on it and take it for a spin. It's a deep burgundy but kinda faded. Was parked in a barn for 10 years
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