Inspection Report on FGT 1301

[PA32Pilot]

New guy here, been looking for a Ford GT and I have had 2 in PPIs and both failed, miserably. This one I just wanted to share as they really tried to hide the condition and wanted buyers to be aware.

I drive my cars, so I was not looking for a garage queen but a cared-for car is still maintained. I asked about maintenance and condition and was told it was on consignment and the car was maintained and for the most part problem-free. Any used car, let alone one 17 years old and driven 10k miles is not going to be perfect, I buy enough cars to know this. However, this car was severely neglected and very poorly maintained.

This is the finding from the PPI, I decided to pass on the car. Not sure if this kind of posts are welcomed here but in other small communities on specialty cars we usually try to document cars as we came across them, especially problem cars.

• Water Temp, Oil Temp, and Boost gauge were not working. This is a known issue with these cars, and there was no way the dealer wasn't aware of it driving the car.
• AC Blend knob was non-functional
• Front Shocks were blown out and leaking all over
• The 6 rib drive belt was shredded, only had 3 ribs left. Pieces of belt all over the engine bay.
• Oil belt frayed
• Rodent damage throughout the wiring harness
• The tires were from 2011
• The Hood and Engine struts were blown out and would not support the weight.
• Driverside window seal had chemical corrosion
• Clutch needs replacing
• The crank sensor has bad leak
• Does not look like any service has been performed on the car in a long time, fluids were is desperate need of flushing.
• Power steering leaking.
• The door ajar light was illuminated with doors closed, doors would not lock.​
• The entire front end and fenders are painted, very poorly.
  
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[extrap]

Welcome!

The good news is its problems are obvious and plentiful, making it easy for you to pass on. The bad news is you paid somebody (I assume) to do the PPI. The GT experts known on this forum could bring it back to good, but the purchase price would have to be low enough to make it worthwhile ... and in reality the seller will prob find somebody who has more money than knowledge and sell it for a higher than fair price.

BTW the old tires, leaking shocks, and worn out hood and engine struts are expected and not a big deal. Maybe some of the others, too. Tell 'em I'll give 'em $80k for it, cash

 

[PA32Pilot]

Welcome!

The good news is its problems are obvious and plentiful, making it easy for you to pass on. The bad news is you paid somebody (I assume) to do the PPI. The GT experts known on this forum could bring it back to good, but the purchase price would have to be low enough to make it worthwhile ... and in reality the seller will prob find somebody who has more money than knowledge and sell it for a higher than fair price.

BTW the old tires, leaking shocks, and worn out hood and engine struts are expected and not a big deal. Maybe some of the others, too. Tell 'em I'll give 'em $80k for it, cash

I agree, and if known up front I would be more ok with it. But not being told always makes me believe they are hiding stuff and if the obvious stuff was ignored so long I can't imagine what else was. The only reason tires, shocks, and struts worried me was I was told this car is driven regularly and maintained well.

And yes, they were not willing to conceive on anything as they know someone will just agree and wire money

But I do have another going into inspection Monday! Another 05 White/Blue with 6k miles and all 4 options.

 

[nota4re]

Those rodents probably had a good chewing on that drive belt. A yummy alternative to wiring harness cuisine!

How did a PPI reveal that an oil pump belt was frayed?

 

[PA32Pilot]

Assuming they inspected it after dropping all the bottom panels. You can see the pieces of belts.

 

[JOETWINT]

No worries they will put it on some unnamed online auction and within a hour of posting somebody will bid it up 125k at a time to 425k haha

 

[nota4re]

Assuming they inspected it after dropping all the bottom panels.

You can not see the oil pump belt even with the pans off. (Have never seen one fray, either.... and it is pretty well protected from rodents, unlike the other belts.)

 

[GKW05GT]

This car has been advertised for quite some time at an attractive price even for the miles. Evidently you are not the only one who did a PPI before purchase.

 

[NorthwoodGT]

You can not see the oil pump belt even with the pans off. (Have never seen one fray, either.... and it is pretty well protected from rodents, unlike the other belts.)

I agree with Kendall about the oil belt. this looks more like the serpentine belt pieces, not the oil belt. either way I'd be pretty freaked out if I found this laying in my engine pan, probably never changed or some pretty hard driving! jmo

 

[Shark01]

This car has been advertised for quite some time at an attractive price even for the miles. Evidently you are not the only one who did a PPI before purchase.

Where is this car advertised? I’m curious what an attractive price for a car is these days.

 

[B.M.F.]

Nothing 15-20k can't fix..

 

[Shark01]

Nothing 15-20k can't fix..

Same thing I thought when I first read it.....the list is long but nothing complicated. Put some money into it, and it can be a driver grade car.

The only real question then is that what the buyer is looking for.

 

[davidn]

Nothing 15-20k can't fix..

That is what I was thinking ....depending what the car can be bought may not be all that bad ...there are few GT Techs and or shops that can get her all Squared away ......

 

[69b302]

Atlantis Motor Group has the car listed for $379,900. The pictures present well, but too bad no effort was put into a proper sales prep.

 

[Shark01]

Atlantis Motor Group has the car listed for $379,900. The pictures present well, but too bad no effort was put into a proper sales prep.

Geez, WAY too high for the condition.....

 

[w.a.nelson]

Can't believe anyone would let the car get into this condition!

Not even a Corvette or Porsche fanatic.

 

[nota4re]

OP - As you seem to be genuinely interested in obtaining a GT and want to do so with eyes wide open, I think it may be beneficial to you to discuss this PPI. Kudos to you for having a PPI done - no one should even consider a car in this price change without a PPI. But, understand that there are differences in PPI's and specifically the inspector's familiarity with the vehicle being inspected. With the exception of what you describe as a very poor paint job at the front, the GT doesn't necessarily strike me as being in poor shape. I get it that you are rightfully mad that the seller wasn't more forthcoming. You should be. But, lets' look at the PPI outcome and dissect it a bit.

• Water Temp, Oil Temp, and Boost gauge were not working. This is a known issue with these cars, and there was no way the dealer wasn't aware of it driving the car. How many start/run cycles were performed while watching the gauges? It is relatively common that a car with an older or partially depleted battery will "wake-up" with one or more inoperative gauges. That could be the case here unless there were multiple start cycles and these 3 gauges always failed to initiate.
• AC Blend knob was non-functional - Blend doors are known to stick. There is a lot written here on this forum about the problem. Often time you can get them to start cycling without digging into them. Sadly, more common than anyone would like.
• Front Shocks were blown out and leaking all over I think this claim may be exaggerated. I have seen and replace many GT shocks because they are showing evidence of leaking. The shocks on these cars are 17 years old. Almost EVERY GT that comes through here has one or more shocks that have started to leak. Never ever have a seen a GT shock that "is leaking all over".
• The 6 rib drive belt was shredded, only had 3 ribs left. Pieces of belt all over the engine bay. Yeah, and this probably made quite a racket when it happened! My guess is that a rodent chewed into the belt. Not that big of a deal (other than not being disclosed) and can easily be replaced.
• Oil belt frayed - As I expressed previously, this cannot be discerned without quite a bit of work to remove the oil belt cover. Removing and re-installing the cover is the hardest part of an oil pump belt replacement. This notation makes me suspect of the PPI integrity.
• Rodent damage throughout the wiring harness The GT is a pretty simplistic car electronically. If everything worked properly, there's probably some re-taping that needs to be performed but perhaps not that big of a deal?
• The tires were from 2011 Unfortunately not that uncommon. You'll want the Bridgestones anyway - a much better tire than the OEM Goodyear.
• The Hood and Engine struts were blown out and would not support the weight. Gas struts are a consumable. I'd bet that these struts are weak/bad on the majority of GTs out there.
• Driverside window seal had chemical corrosion Weird!
• Clutch needs replacing I'm skeptical here too. What were the noted diagnostics that led to this conclusion? I don't think a failed clutch in a GT is easy to diagnose. Maybe be a LOT less costly repair can resolve.
• The crank sensor has bad leak Have never seen this. Nevertheless, it's a single fastener and an o-ring. Not a big deal
• Does not look like any service has been performed on the car in a long time, fluids were is desperate need of flushing. Brake and clutch fluid can get ugly quickly in a GT. Most cars we see are in need of flushing.
• Power steering leaking. Not uncommon for power steering units to weep and often this will go away when the car is driven more frequently.
• The door ajar light was illuminated with doors closed, doors would not lock. The door ajar light will illuminate if the clamshell or bonnet is not closed tightly. I'd say an improperly closed front bonnet is most often the culprit for this light. Note that you will never "hear" doors lock or unlock in a GT.
• The entire front end and fenders are painted, very poorly. That sucks..... and you are right that it is not evident from the pics on their website.

 

[extrap]

Nothing 15-20k can't fix..

Same thing I thought when I first read it.....the list is long but nothing complicated. Put some money into it, and it can be a driver grade car.

The only real question then is that what the buyer is looking for.

That is what I was thinking ....depending what the car can be bought may not be all that bad ...there are few GT Techs and or shops that can get her all Squared away ......

Man! You guys are killin' my $80k offer!

 

[extrap]

I enjoyed this sorta PPI the seller included in their listing on BaT. How many, um, typos can you spot?

 

[roketman]

Keep looking!
My car with 58k has none of those issues!