Looking to Purchase a Rabbit!

[KoMbI19]

Hello, I am new to the water-cooled world and have some questions about purchasing an antique water-cooled VW.
Today on a drive about town, I passed a small used car dealership with a mid-eighties Rabbit Convertible.
Triple-white with a bad top and slightly faded paint. It has the fuel injected engine, and is a five-speed (Not sure if there were even carb ones).
It has 66,xxx miles on it and looks in overall decent to good shape. from one to ten, about a 6.
My question is, what should I look at as far as common issues mechanical/cosmetic before I go all gun-ho and buy it? Also, what price should I be looking at for a car of its condition?
Thanks a lot!
-J D
_________________
1972 Karmann Ghia Coupe- all stock
1982 Rabbit Convertible FI- all original
2006 Chevy Colorado Z71- 215k and still kicking!

[ps2375]

So, you're looking at a 30yr old car and want to know what to look at?

Everything. Especially in your neck of the woods. Rust in/at door hinges/jams, leaks from cowl down onto fuse panel. Does the CIS work correctly at startup and for a hot start. Clutch/trans aren't too bad but the trannies have a "self-machining" issue that you won't know about until its too late or it has already happened and has been fixed. I don't know a thing about the tops and as for price, what-ever the market will bring(up to you).

You could also check for cracks at/around the front strut towers. These motors can be fairly robust and take quite a bit of abuse, so check for sludge and old/worn hoses. The motor is not an interference one, so if the timing belt fails you should be fine, but that would be something to look at also.

[kamzcab86]