27th Jul 2007, 11:45
I recently came into possession of a 1986 Dodge Lancer 2.2 Turbo, a friend's late father had purchased it new off the showroom floor. Although it sat for a number of years, the condition was much better than initially thought. A tune up, new tires, new hoses and filters, battery and - presto! - a "new" 21 year old car! After rinsing off ten years of garage dust, then a thorough wash and wax, the body and paint looked like new. Then a professional detailing job and it now appears just as it did in the showroom. The interior is just as perfect as the exterior. This car cleaned up real nice! By the way, this car has 63K original miles, documented. Oh, and I ain't selling... eat your heart out!
25th Feb 2007, 07:25
I am the proud owner of a 1986 Dodge Lancer. I bought it new with 3 miles on the blue-green electronic digital dashboard. The Gunmetal blue clear coat is starting to breakdown on the hood, roof, and deck lid. Probably in better condition than most due to the high quality car wash, and hand versus machine washing.
This is an ES model with the Turbo Multiport EFI and leather seats and food dicer alloy wheels.
Currently, the car has 187,000 miles. When the tranny was removed to fix a front pump seal leak, I had the dealer rebuild it and include a new pump and torque converter.
There have been quite a few statements made as to the reliability of turbochargers, but this is an original turbo, and I believe the longevity is due to the water cooled turbo bearing housing and reasonable oil changes. When talking cars and eventually getting around to this one, the joke is "too bad the turbos don't last."
I which I had one in long term storage. You don't see too many on the road, on eBay, or www.autotraderclassics.com
When you go for parts they say, you mean Mitsubishi? No, I mean Dodge.
Next stop is going to be the paint booth for the original color. As this one has never been wrecked, it should come out nice.
Happy motoring!