Help!! ..questions about purchase of a 1999 Avalon

[frederick36]

Hey guys, I'd like to ask a question to address my main hesitations concerning a car I'm thinking about buying.

I've found a 1999 Avalon with 60k miles on it, seems to be in good shape. There are almost no door dings and whatnot.

That it has no door dings and such low miles suggests to me that the car sat around a lot. I suppose this wouldn't bother me so much but my prime concern with this car is the possibility of the engine sludge issue. Of course, I'd hate to buy a car only to have the engine sludge up.

Could the car having been so idle contribute to the possibility of engine sludge?
Also, if I take it to a trusted mechanic, do you guys think it's possible the mechanic would be able to spot any nascent sludging?

Anyway, I'm obviously a little worried about this, I dislike spending large sums of money. I'd appreciate any feedback whatsoever concerning the purchase of this '99 Avalon, anything to ask a mechanic to check for or anything I should check for and stuff like that.

Thanks guys

[artrip36]

have your mechanic take off the front valve cover. pretty easy to do and will give you a pretty solid look at whether it shows signs on sludge or not. also ask whoever you are buying this avalon from how often they changed the oil.

[csaxon]

In your area I'd be more concerned about a flood car. Check it good! If it's been locally serviced the dealer should have records. It's a solid car in general, the most common problem has been steering pump leaks.

[frederick36]

Cool, thanks for the replies fellows.
Two other things concern me.
One: this site (http://autos.msn.com/research/vip/re...a&model=Avalon)
Claims the car may have a pretty serious problem with the air conditioner
in addition to possible engine issues.

Secondly, no side air bags.

Bleh, deciding what to spend on a car is hard to do