Help determine value of Monte Carlo
 

I'm looking at an 88 Monte Carlo SS. Says its a true ss from Alaska (no ac from factory). 18,000 miles and I looked inside oil cap and motor looks new. Carpet sun faded and dash cracked and minor rust from them primering car but never painting. No body damage. Only real problem I have found is they lost tail lights. Cranks and runs. Seems like a no brained but if car is a true ss it should be worth $1500 easy for a project car. Pretty sure its a true ss, it has the white headrests with ss embroidered in them. Any advice welcome.

I don't know... did you look at it yet and confirm that's why it's rusting? I'm always leary of something like that. If someone is going to keep a car with only 18,000 miles on it, how come they didn't keep it in a garage or something to keep the sun and dash from getting sun damaged?

Have you looked underneath it? Does the undercarriage reflect 18,000 miles? Does it look like it was run in salt or snow? With those low miles, it shouldn't. What about the condition of the floor pans? Any holes rusted through? What's the trunk like?

Are you sure it's not 118,000 miles? I do'ntk now if they had 5 or 6 numbers on odometers in that year.

Popping the oil cap off the valve cover is a good sign, but it doesn't neccessarily mean the engine only has 18,000 on it too. Things can be cleaned.

$1,500 sounds like a good price if it is what htey say it is. I'd do a lot of investigation into this car though.....

^^ good points. Another telltale sign is wear on outside edge of driver seat.

All G bodies were 5 digit odometers. In 86, only the Camaro and Corvette had 6 digit odometers... that and the 9C1 Caprice. Everything else was 5 digits... I know I'm missing some newer ish cars that came out at that time, but Chevy was the last to adopt 6 digit odometers IIRC.

http://www.mcsmk8.com/88-MONTE-SS/CARS-11.JPG

That picture is off a 1988 M/C SS

That car more than likely has 118K, or 218K since the car was getting repainted. Even in Alaska, keeping an unused car outside wouldn't make sense. I can't really see how a car's dash would be sun-damaged at 18K. My Cutlass had 90K when I bought it, and that car had sun damage on the dash, and the owner supposedly garaged kept it... but also drove it far when he did drive it.