wanted EK sedan

samrob93 · Post by **samrob93** » Wed Nov 11, 2009 10:29 pm

hi i'm kinda of new to this so bear with me.
i am looking out for an ek for my first car,
i turn 17 soon and i want to have one so i can have it on my P's
i am looking at around 4 to 7 thousand and in good condition, although i am happy to spend some money on fixing it up.
thanks

NoMAD · Post by **NoMAD** » Wed Nov 11, 2009 11:11 pm

welcome samrob93

little more info might be needed mate... what sort of engine you after?

standard car or modifed?

where are you located?

oh and the most important thing... FB's are better than EK's

cheers
NoMAD

dave68 · Post by **dave68** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 9:08 am

Don't belive everything you read,beauty is in the eye of the beholder....Nomad

EKS' RULE

samrob93 · Post by **samrob93** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 11:45 am

well i think just the standard grey motor, not really fussed
probably modified, well i'm based in rural victoria, but i am happy to travel as farm as melbourne or adelaide or even up into NSW
but i am definetly going with dave EK is the way to go

minifb · Post by **minifb** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 11:58 am

dave68 wrote:

EKS' RULE

Hi Samrob... Do not listen to this guy.. Go for the FB . They look better and hold there value a lot better than an EK...
Seriously they are both great cars. 4-7 grand should get you a half decent one. good luck with your hunt. Cheers Mark

Stygian · Post by **Stygian** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 12:24 pm

Hey samrob,

If you are on your P's you might want to avoid a modified vehicle with a red motor and stick with the grey (I'm thinking rego problems and engineer's certificates, hefty insurance premiums and hassles with cops if you go modified). Besides, you can always hot the grey up later if you want...

Oh, and EKs are the best. But if you find a really nice FB, that works too.

samrob93 · Post by **samrob93** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 4:31 pm

thanks for that guys, honestly i don't care about FB or EK, one or the other. and thats a good point about the grey motor.
one other things is there any serious flaws that i should look out for when buying one??

Baz · Post by **Baz** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 5:11 pm

samrob93 wrote:thanks for that guys, honestly i don't care about FB or EK, one or the other. and thats a good point about the grey motor.
one other things is there any serious flaws that i should look out for when buying one??

Yeah.....Rust, Rust and more rust.

That's the main 3 things to look for.
Take a fridge magnet to any viewings.
Cheers and good luck with your search,
Baz.

Stygian · Post by **Stygian** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 5:33 pm

samrob93 wrote:thanks for that guys, honestly i don't care about FB or EK, one or the other. and thats a good point about the grey motor.
one other things is there any serious flaws that i should look out for when buying one??

Rust is the arch enemy of these cars... watch out for blisters under the front and rear windscreens particularly. Floorpans can rust right through, but if you come across a mint original car with original rubber floor mats DO NOT attempt to lift the mats - you will only tear them. Get on your back and slide under the car and have a look. A car with original mats will probably have been well looked after.

If the car has carpet and it stinks of mould then water has soaked into them meaning it is likely the floors have rusted out. By all means try to lift that stuff up carefully and have a look.

Keep an eye out for dodgy panel work, particularly around the rust prone areas like the sills, doors, rear quarters, tops and bottoms of the front guards and around the headlights. Bad repairs may cause terminal wallet burn.

If you can, take a trolley jack with you when you check the car out. Ask the owner if you can jack the car's front end up (slide the jack right under the middle of the front end). Make sure you get both front wheels off the ground, then grab the top and bottom and pull the top towards you. If it moves back and forth the kingpins are worn and need to be done. If you grab the sides of the tyre and feel alot of free play when you wiggle it, new tie rod ends and a drag link rebuild might be in order. You can always use a bit of movement to bargain down the price a bit too. If he doesn't want to let you do this, act as if you are no longer interested and walk away. He might come around. if he doesn't, he is hiding something.

Check the ID tag and the chassis number. If the chassis number starts with "EK" then make sure the body number on the ID tag starts with "EK". If it says FB, then walk away.

Apart from rust, there is not much in the way of serious faults. Go for a test drive like you would any car and check it for brake, electrical, steering and suspension problems. EK and FB Holdens are pretty old now, so it is unlikely that you will find a car that doesn't need at least one thing attended to, unless you want to pay top dollar for a fully restored car.

That's all I can think of. Plenty of other forum members are far more experienced than me and they might want to comment.

Cheers,

Andrew

Baz · Post by **Baz** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 5:36 pm

And don't buy off Evilbay without inspecting the car.
Photos can make a pig of a car look like a million dollars.
A lot of dodgy stuff for sale on there !

Cheers, Baz.

dave68 · Post by **dave68** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 5:58 pm

samrob93 wrote:well i think just the standard grey motor, not really fussed
probably modified, well i'm based in rural victoria, but i am happy to travel as farm as melbourne or adelaide or even up into NSW
but i am definetly going with dave EK is the way to go

Har ha!!!! Good choice, but in saying that I have both "EK and FB" in the stables..... Love them both. If you haven't noticed it's an ongoing thing on here. You have your tragic "FBers" like Mr Mini.....and thoes on the fence, ME!
Which ever you choose it will be the right one, good luck.

minifb · Post by **minifb** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 6:24 pm

dave68 wrote:
samrob93 wrote:well i think just the standard grey motor, not really fussed
probably modified, well i'm based in rural victoria, but i am happy to travel as farm as melbourne or adelaide or even up into NSW
but i am definetly going with dave EK is the way to go
. You have your tragic "FBers" like Mr Mini..

PFFT Ive just got class............Not like the EK owners...

Cheers Mark

dave68 · Post by **dave68** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 6:38 pm

You lost your class when you shaved you beared off mini...

samrob93 · Post by **samrob93** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 6:50 pm

thanks guys that all sounds like really good advice,
so it seems that rust is the devil...
does any one have a idea about the cost of repairing, a medium amount of rust?? just any rough estimates so i can get my head around it
Cheers
Sam

Cal · Post by **Cal** » Thu Nov 12, 2009 7:13 pm

Not cheap. As an example, if you're looking at replacing all the floorpans, you won't get much change out of 2 grand.

The final cost depends on the amount of rust, and where it is