Would you buy a used car with RUST on it? *pics*

[Xyclone]

I am looking at a 2005 Subaru Legacy GT with relatively low mileage. The car is great, the mechanics are sound, and the interior is in good shape, and the price is just about right. However, the seller has damage on the car, caused by maybe a shopping cart on the driver's door, and concrete pillar scraping on the rear passenger wheelwell. Well, he didn't get those fixed, and since Subaru's paint is thin, there is rust on the surface.

My question is, will an reputable auto body shop be able to tell with 100% certainty that the rust has not spread in to the car (frame, trunk, axle, etc.)? Also, will they be able to fix it so that it will never come back? If they were to replace the panels and repaint, is there any risk to buying the car? The car is listed for almost $13k for "fair" condition on KBB, he is offering $11.5k, I talked him down to around $10.5k. He was estimated $1600 to fix all the damage on the car, but I will take it to a body shop tomorrow.

Should I buy this car? Pics included below.

[imghttps://picasaweb.google.com/109334212602301094500/LegacyGT?authkey=Gv1sRgCOuUwZXJ_uLCAw#5651633650706126754[/img]

 

[Rifter]

as long as the price makse sense after the cost of repairs sure why not.

 

[Doppel]

Take it to a shop and see what they say. I'm optimistic that they can repair this just fine. They'll need to take both the panels off and either repair or replace, but rusting metal from an accident, like this one, is not as bad as multiple rusting panels that have no real hope in hell of getting replaced. I would think worse case if they are not confident they can remove every last speck of rust from these panels they could get new ones in place and paint those.

I had a bumper repaired and totally repaired for around $500 after getting rear-ended and 4-5 years later when I sold car it still looked perfect, although that's plastic so zero chance of rusting.

I'd be confident after going with whatever body shop concludes!

 

[angry hampster]

That car should be worth less than $10k without rust.

 

[Miramonti]

That rust is nothing. Light fender rust from some scraping isn't going to spread like a virus to vulnerable parts of the car. Get it fixed and/or lightly sand and touch up any effected and exposed parts. If you're in a salt zone (which it doesn't look like you are based on the components seen thru the wheel), it will cause rust to spread easier, but your worries shouldn't be from that scrape, they should be from the overall effect salt has on everything underneath.

 

[KK]

That car should be worth less than $10k without rust.

Agree, looking on edmunds I got
True Market Value®
Trade-in $7,605
Private Party Sale $8,544
Dealer Retail $9,550

for this car in average condition with 65k miles.

OP, how did you come up with 13k?

 

[Kroze]

It's a good deal if you can buy it for $7k, I don't know where you get the $13k figure but that's ridiculous.

 

[JCH13]

I'm no expert, but I think that little bit of body work should be well under $1600.

 

[SuperSix]

Minor repair at best - someone swiped a pole or something. You should focus more on the mechanics of the car.

 

[CraigRT]

I would buy. I have bought a car with a similar scuff. Had it fixed and life was good.

 

[Capt Caveman]

Rust is isolated and due to the body damage. Non-issue.

 

[NutBucket]

Honestly, I sold mine for $10.5k with no body damage. You should be able to do better price wise.

 

[jlee]

rofl, that doesn't even count as rust.

Paging black2na...

 

[7window]

that will rub right off. seriuosly

 

[FuzzyDunlop]

404 rust not found
I came in expecting this!

Just sand it down and shaker can over the small area.
Video Demo: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tfG7B7VAtA

EDIT; Oh wait, thats silver! ya you want to get that done by a pro. If it was a solid non metalic color the above fix would work, but you will have a hard time color matching a metalic color...

rofl, that doesn't even count as rust.

Paging black2na...

this :awe:
listen to him.

 

[Doppel]

Some of the prices here quoted one edmunds et al are not realistic, at least based on a quick search of CL.

however, looking again it looks like a door received a nasty ding in addition to the other panels' rust.

 

[manimal]

make sure to get a good PPI on any car you look at. Get it on a lift, compression test, the whole works. One can get a reputable place to do it for 100-200 bucks. Has saved me in the past on many occasion.


I personally would lowball on a car with that many issues.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

rofl, that doesn't even count as rust.

Paging black2na...

Yep, OP must be from a 'sunshine' State.

 

[Jumpem]

Absolutely not.

It's also the main reason I won't keep a car longer than two and a half to three years here in central NY. They use way too much road salt, so I trade them in before the rust destroys their resale value.

 

[herm0016]

rust is not cancer. once you have some it does not spread to the rest of the car like a virus.

 

[Black2na]

the is serious weak sauce. that can be fixed with no adverse effects it would lower the price for me due to repair cost but i would have no concern about it lasting as i wanted to keep it. thats just light surface rust from paint being scraped off its not comming from the inside out so its not behind the panel. so it wont come back. and i would charge in the range of 900-1000 to fix that in my shop. i say go for it a 2.5GT in good shape good mileage is well worth 10.5 and then once you get the cash to fix it fix the damage and have a really nice car at a fair price

 

[Capt Caveman]

Absolutely not.

It's also the main reason I won't keep a car longer than two and a half to three years here in central NY. They use way too much road salt, so I trade them in before the rust destroys their resale value.

And in 2-3 years, the rust on that vehicle shown on the OP would not have gotten any worse with a little prep, primer and paint. The value of the vehicle will have dropped less than any new vehicle you buy.

 

[PingSpike]

I was wondering what you were talking about until I saw you were from California.

 

[earthman]

You're being silly. Around here you can't find a used car that doesn't have rust. How could a rust spot on the door "spread" to the chassis? (That car does not have a "frame"). Stop worrying about it. No car from 2005 has a "rust" problem.

 

[Xyclone]

Honestly, I sold mine for $10.5k with no body damage. You should be able to do better price wise.

Was yours in the "limited" trim? I'm thinking about $9.5-10k... Also how many miles?

Thanks for the comments on the rust, guys, now I know how it works. However, Legacys/Outbacks have rust problems for some reason... not this car in particular.