Buying '86 camaro but........Please help

Hi everyone. I don't know much about cars, so I'm here to ask if anyonw can help me. I'm in the process of buying an '86 camaro z28. It's a really nice car. I test drove it and it ran pretty fine but when i gave it gas it didn't exactly "take off" for being a v8. Is this a problem? It also shakes but I was told that's because it's carborater not fuel injection. The person who's selling me the car is supposedly a mechanic and says he put a rebuilt motor in it this January as well as a new transmission. He also said he put new breakes but when I would push the breakes to stop, the car didn't exactly stop right away and I has to apply more pressure on the breakes to come to a complete stop. But overall the car looks and ran pretty good I guess. But what concerned me is that the check engine light was on. He said that he doesn't know what it could be. He says he's tooken it to numeous auto shops and they can't find anything wrong with it. He says it's probly something very simple like a wire that's not connected or somthing like that. This may be true, but if he's a mechanic shouldn't he know why the light comes on? Sorry to make this long, but my questions to all of you is: Why might the light come on? Could it be a big concern? Should I take a chance and buy the car? He originally was selling it for $3,500 but would let me have it for $2,800. What do you all think? Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

Oh any by the way, He also say the light turns off sometimes. It turn on and off, but when I drove it the light stood on the entire time.

[SG007]

Ripoff, find a better one. I hate shady people like that.

[poormillionaire2]

Sounds like it has too many problems than its worth. I say to pass it up and look for a better one. When you buy a used car, you're also buying its problems. And this one sounds like it might have a lot of problems.

[Morley]

Run like hell and DON'T use that guy as your mechanic. A carb will run just as smoothly as FI when set up properly. Its my guess that he fugged up that install (and breaks) and wants to get rid of the car.

Really think so? That was my intial thought. This is the link check it out please.........
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/car/306884759.html

[Morley]

The inside and outside look OK BUT...If it has the DT's (shakes) when running then something is wrong in that engine and it will only get worse. The best you could hope for with those symptoms is that he has some plug wires swapped around. Then again if he did the engine swap and brake work himself and can't even figure out misrouted plug wires....NO THANKS!

OH, and $3500 for an '86 is about $1500 too much.

[tx_1987_gta]

I a, going to have to agree on this one..... Keep looking and let this one go.

[ikeyballz]

lol, tx, you have some awesome cars.. you got pics up? (sorry to hijack post).. which ones your most fave?

[ikeyballz]

btw, king daddy, youre in oregon? 209 area code?

[macker914]

I think the car LOOKS nice, but it sounds like something was not done right on it, as far as the motor rebuild that the guy said he did.

I would run away, far, far away!

Good luck finding an f-body, though!!

[Earlsfat]

Junk... Find another... there are plenty 3gen camaros around.

First, never trust anyone who needs to sell something "ASAP" and my own personal rule of thumb - NEVER believe a sales ad that has stupid written all over it... "if u dont have money then dont call" ... Nice English, what's he in 5th grade?

Ditto on Morley, if it vibrates / shakes (DT's .. hah! good one!) something is seriously wrong. If it's got a radical cam, etc and vibrates then ok, but you'd be sucked into the seats when you hit the gas if the engine was that strong.

Actually im from Northern California. 209