Hey Bandit, I call the color Ruby Red but you are right it probably is the "Dark Red" that you mentioned.
I also agree that most of the car is stock OEM and sadly I think that even includes the fluids.
You have hit the nail on the head with your 93 example you mention is why I have concerns.
I am still digging info on the car.
Today my 16 is going in for some minor warranty work so while I am cooling my heals a the dealer I will put together and post the details on my meeting with the owner yesterday.
VH

 

Hey guys, I did meet with the owner of the C4 on Tuesday, he seems to be a genuine person. Problem is he really had nothing to offer as far as maintenance. Owner said car was maintained by the dealership that has it now but he really lacked specifics. Autocheck report shows oil/filter 3 yrs ago. New battery two yrs ago. 3 owners, 1st 5 yrs, second 16 yrs and current 4 yrs. He traded it in on a C5 to this dealer. Things I noticed on more detail look:
-Paint is Ok shape for a car its age, some minor scratches and pits here and there but what you would expect. No sun fade. Glass is good. Gaskets are well on their way to being shot. Panel/door gaps are good and paint is consistent across them.
-Top looked good. Like I said earlier gaskets are bad, splitting. No evidence of leaks.
-Rockers have never been cleaned. Road tar and slime are all over and hard to tell paint condition.
-luggage carrier on rear is good except by the fuel filler door where it shows paint wear but no dents.
-Underneath the car jack points are good except frt driver side where the floor pan has an open fiberglass damage spot. The damage area is punctured with exposed fibers and it looks just like the lift arm impacted it. Not good.
-Mufflers look really good. Did stock resonators have “SLP” on them?
-Wheel wells look good. A arms and whole area by struts looked clean, almost no brake dust. This looked better than cars I have seen with even less miles.
-Tires are dated mid 2013. Kumohus. Wear was consistent across tire tread.
-Area under cockpit pan clean and no damage.
-Under engine looked Ok, no drips, Radiator area no damage and all aero dam panels were there with minor rubs.
-Top of engine looked clean with all panels and covers in place, harness and plumbing looked factory routing and attachments.
-Area under water pump looked dry and best I could tell the Optispark was dry. I think 94 had a mod to the Optispark for this issue.
-Other than Eng oil I highly suspect that all fluids are original fill. Probably Tranny and differential also orig fill. Ugh. Clutch fluid was dark but did not smell burnt.
-Headlights rotated smooth and quiet until they reached full travel where the Pax side clicked several times in both directions. Headlight panels fit well in the hood.
-Power on checks I pushed very button I could see and all worked and display was clear and bright.
-Seat controls and mirrors ok.
-The owner had one ignition key. No fobs. I remember my 93 C4 had passive door locks with Fobs. It was a coupe. Did they drop this in 94 or did that not come on convertibles.
-Wear in the interior was noticeable but I think consistent with 20K miles.
Unfortunately is was raining like crazy and car was in showroom so no run checks. I have the dealer pulling anything he can find in GM system for work on car. I will get him to clean rockers. Need to do run checks, drive and put it on a lift.
I appreciate the help guys.
VH