Thinking about buying a 93 camry

[intheb0x]

Hello,

im a new member here, i have a friend with a 93 camry with 194k miles.

he said he is willing to give me a good deal on it, but we have not spoke numbers, i have driven the car a few times already, it drives great, it rides smooth, ac is ice cold, heat is hot, acceleration is nice.

i have helped him work on it to, replacing the ignition coil, and distributor cap.

things he has done on his own is new front brakes consisting of new rotors and pads, it does seem to have a exhaust leak up front.

other issues with the car.

car has a LARGE oil leak coming from the passanger side, i cannot locate exactly where, but it does not seem to be coming from the top of the motor, im thinking oil pan gasket, this has been happening for a while now, he just continues to add oil as it needs it, which is atleast once every 2 days.

new issue, today when i drove it, i noticed that the brake went all the way to the floor while coming to a stop, he said he knew nothing about it, we swapped seats and he said it never felt like this before, we checked the fluid it was below min, we added some and i proceeded to pump the brake, it was still squeshy, so i knew there was a leak after a lil time searching and pumping we found the leak, it seems to be coming from directly under the drivers side back door, its in some frame type housing that i did not remove, but from what i can tell its not a rubber line thats leaking, its close by but is not the source of the leak.

i intend on fixing the oil pan gasket myself, any idea about the brake issue??

how much should i offer on this car with the current problems it has?

i was thinking no more then 700.

thoughts and opinions on the car??
thanks

[intheb0x]

i forgot to say it has the 4 banger in it.

not the 6

[96paseo]

$700 doesn't sound too bad. The brake fluid leak is most likely coming from the metal line going back to the LR wheel. The oil leak on the passenger side is most likely the seals. I doubt its just the oil pan if the leak is real bad. Pull the upper timing cover to see if there's oil on the timing belt. When I bought my 93, it had a major oil leak as well. I was putting at least a quart in it every week. I did all the seals plus new timing belt and tensioners. The oil pump seals will leak the most when they go bad. I also had to replace my radiator, clean the IAC, flush the cooling system, etc etc. Just some things to keep in mind depending on how the car was cared for by teh previous owner.

[bronzemaxell]

seal normally leak engine oil includes valve cover gasket, (there is also two half moon, one on each side) cam shaft seal, crank shaft seal(front main seal), oil pump seal, oil pump housing o-ring seal, and engine oil pan. if the rear main seal leak, it will be more difficult to fix.

my 93 camry did the same thing, once it leaks, it will leak more and more each day. it will not get any better until the leaking seals are replaced.
looking to spend about $200 to $300 for parts only to replace all seals mentioned above and water pump.

i had a brake fluid leaked once, because i ran over something, and scrape the buttom of the car where the metal brake hoses are.

[intheb0x]

it leaks alot more then a quart a week, it gets driven alot thou on top of that.

That black cover on the passanger side is the timing chain cover?? It's pretty dry around it.

[hill8570]

Gotta agree with the other posts RE the oil leak -- the oil pan gasket usually doesn't leak much oil (it's not under pressure, after all). Big oil leaks on the passenger side are almost always one of the oil seals behind the timing cover. Most of those seals are under pressure, and will spray all over the inside of the area (including all over your timing belt) before dripping out the bottom of the timing cover. Until proven innocent, assume you'll have to go in and replace the seals and timing belt (and might as well do the water pump while in there). Pretty cheap parts-wise (+/- $100), but lots of labor time. Set you back around $500 at a dealership, or a weekend if you DIY.