So, friendly folks -- I've just got my "prospect", a '87 240 DL with something on the order of ~240k mi, back from the mechanic's pre-purchase inspection.

They report that basically every bushing in the transmission is cracked (rear torque & trail arm, front lower control arms), that there's some play in the LF ball joint, an inoperative overdrive, a loose water pump, some leaky transmission seals (front seal I believe?), "some valve noise when cold", and a non-functional oil-pressure warning light. Along with myriad small cosmetic things.

Now -- correct me if I'm wrong here. I'm looking to buy this for ~1600. It sounds to me like if I do the labor myself (something I've never done, but feel fully competent to do, with a good manual), that the bushings and the ball joint shouldn't be a problem, nor should they be too expensive. The overdrive is probably an electrical problem, from what I've gathered. Sounds like fun to me to much around with all this, actually.

So that leaves the oil-pressure light -- the mechanic was quite concerned about this in conjunction with the valve noise when cold, suggesting camshaft etc not getting enough oil. I'm figuring that if I ensure there's good pressure in the future, this shouldn't be a problem for a while, and then I can have the exciting experience of rebuilding the head.

Am I insane to buy this thing (as the mechanic suggested)? I truly enjoy working on things, though I haven't spent much time with cars, but it doesn't sound like too much of a mental challenge, at least, though it may be a lot of work.

Thanks for your advice.

-C