1997 Festiva GLi

[glenpinn]

Hi everyone, my 16y/o daughter has been offered a late 1997 Ford Festiva GLi from a deceased estate, she is still learning to drive, and can go for her P plates next June.

This car currently has 49,600km on the clock, the owner was 60 when she bought it brand new from Tilford motors in Hobart, it has been driven about 10 times in the past 5 years since she got sick, the interior is like new, it has aircon, 3 speed auto, body is 80% good as it has a shallow dent on the rear passenger side door, and a few scuff marks here and there, and it had its last full service in August this year, 1 month before the owner passed away.

The owners daughter went thru all her mums papers in the car 4 weeks ago, and found a list of other repairs that the mechanic gave to the owner when it was serviced in August, all of which totals $1260, so rather than the daughter spend that money on the car herself, she has offered the car to us as it is, and we pay for that work to be done instead.

The list of major repairs that are needed are indicated in one of the attachments, but the 2 new tyres have already been put on the car 3 days ago by my mechanic at a cost of $160, because the old ones were perished and we could not drive the car until they were fitted, but as yet no wheel alignment has been done.

I took the car for a drive yesterday, and it runs very nicely, no shakes or rattles or squeaks, but the auto transmission is a bit odd, in that when you take off it doesn't seem to change to 2nd when it should, and when it does it has a slight jolt to it, and then as soon as it gets into 2nd it seems to go into Drive almost straight away, so it seems to be very iffy to me, or is this the way it is meant to work.

Finally, is there anything about this car that i should be looking out for when we finally get it signed over to my daughter.

Cheers