Looking to Purchase Sandrail

Josh121

Josh121

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Hey guys, Ive been riding in the dunes for over 10 years. Started riding dirt bikes then moved on to SxS's. Ended up with a big turbo X3 running around 400hp to the crank. We all know how this goes and i still want more power and fun and wheelies. Im looking at buying my first Sand Rail. Looking to have a 4 seater, 500 + HP with the ability to continue upgrading and a sequential transmission. 

I have come across a few options including this 2017 Smith Sandcar with LS2 and a PBS sequential. Of course the Ad says everything was rebuilt and redone (weird how every ad claims this lol) Was hoping to get some opinions on this car and some things I should be sure to look at when I go view the car. 

Any and all opinions are welcome and appreciated. Thank you 

https://str8uptoytrader.com/listing/2017-smith-sandcar-ready-to-go-for-thanksgiving/

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I had a 2 seat Smith Car and it handled amazing.  You could launch it and it always landed flat and soft like a marshmallow.  With the right shock setup i would expect the same for the 4 seater.

However it only had a Honda motor in it (and a PBS RD4).  I loved that car and I would probably   still have it today if wasn't for the fact I had Fire sale opportunity to buy a Black Widow.

Full disclosure, the Tatum is my 8th car, post quads

 
As someone who recently purchased his first sandcar, it is worth your money and time to wait to have this any car checked out by someone who knows sandcars. From experience I can tell you that it is easy for a seller to polish up a car so everything looks great only to find leaking shocks, clicking CV's, a leaking radiator, 'rigged electrical system, etc. Does the guy have receipts for ALL the work listed? Maybe relevent, maybe not but why is the " car is a ripper and ready to rock" but he wants to trade for a similair car? 

@L.R.S. does transporting, appraisals, and inspections if you need those services.

 
As someone who never keeps anything, I've learned to only buy name brand when it comes to sand cars. I know absolutely nothing about Smith cars and therefore I wouldn't even consider it. I think there are much better choices in that price range. 

 
Car looks nice, but not familiar with smith at all. My car will be available in a week, and will be out in glamis the whole week of thanksgiving if you want to check it out. Just did tons of Prep / new parts… BFD, twin turbo, S4S… 96k

Still not sure why GD posts some pics upside down 

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I would give Dave McDowell a call. I’ve been out of the sand car game for a while now but I thought I heard PBS parts are hard to get now? Or maybe you can’t get cases for them anymore? I could be wrong but worth looking into.

 
EastMT said:
As someone who recently purchased his first sandcar, it is worth your money and time to wait to have this any car checked out by someone who knows sandcars. From experience I can tell you that it is easy for a seller to polish up a car so everything looks great only to find leaking shocks, clicking CV's, a leaking radiator, 'rigged electrical system, etc. Does the guy have receipts for ALL the work listed? Maybe relevent, maybe not but why is the " car is a ripper and ready to rock" but he wants to trade for a similair car? 

@L.R.S. does transporting, appraisals, and inspections if you need those services.
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Great advice right there. Have someone that knows what they're looking at take a look at a car you are buying

 
Beautiful car @EmpirE231 unfortunately it is out of my price range. 65k is already stretching me thin. Also thanks everyone for the comments on the PBS transaxle, definitely concerning. I am not in a rush to buy a car and will seek out the opinions of experts. 

 
I've had a few PBS cars, and had them gone through plenty of times.  All the parts are available, or at least were (and still made by Weddle - @Sean@Weddle to confirm) but as was stated before if you crack the case you're SOL.  Still, I slaughtered a few R&Ps and towed them back making all sorts of special noises and never hurt a case:


That said, and knowing nothing about that builder (which IMHO says a lot in and of itself, I've been around a lot of cars and know nothing about that brand...) I'd skip it and hold out for a "name brand."  I'm not just being a snobby douche (only partially) but for long-term value/resale and parts availability, knowledge on the car, etc. it is WAY better go to with a "name brand" that's still in business.  It's worth more $ up front now to save headaches and cost you less $ loss later. 

-TJ
 

 
Nice looking car but as others have mentioned, never heard of Smith Sand Cars. The PBS is a huge factor and even if its ok today it will be an issue at some point. Some internals are still available but not all and from my understanding no new cases exist.

Just my .02, if you really like the car, factor in the transmission issue when negotiating. 

 
Here's some non-misinformation:

PBS as a company closed its doors in 2020. There are no more PBS specific transaxle parts being made, nor do I see them ever being made again (not enough of them in use to spend the money on inventory to keep them going).

The PBS uses the same diff parts, R&P, gears, hubs/sliders, and reverse gear as a Weddle/Mendeola sequential transaxle. All of those parts are still being produced and are available. The PBS specific parts will be what kills it, cracked or broken housings (which does happen), a broken gear that damages parts, or any shifting forks or shift ratchet components.

The death of a PBS sequential transaxle is dependent on how much power is being put to it, and how hard it is being driven. That could mean 1 year of use, it could mean 10 years of use.  

The good news is that you could use the Weddle gears, R&P, diff can be transferred into Weddle housings at a much lower cost than buying a complete new trans (assuming those parts are still reusable after a failure of the PBS trans). You would have to weld/fabricate new trans mounts in to the chassis for the Weddle sequential trans, but the engine and other parts will remain the same. 

Carry on.

 
EmpirE231 said:
Car looks nice, but not familiar with smith at all. My car will be available in a week, and will be out in glamis the whole week of thanksgiving if you want to check it out. Just did tons of Prep / new parts… BFD, twin turbo, S4S… 96k

Still not sure why GD posts some pics upside down 

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Bad ass car. Even if the picture is upside down

 
If it was me I would research and research and take my time then take more time. I spent a long time looking and being patient till I found my car and it’s the best thing since my first child.  There are nice cars out there, take someone like LRS with you or some mechanic that knows what to look for. It’ll save you big money in the long run.  

 
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