Shawn Q, You need to ask yourself, "Just what is a "fair" or equitable amount of depreciation a seller should need to absorb when they want to sell their car". Or, how much money would you be willing to lose if you had the same vehicle and wanted to sell it.
If the owner of the Crossfire that you are looking at purchased the car "new" when they first came out, then he probably paid 35K or more for it. Even if he purchased it brand new a year later, he probably still paid at least 25K.
I know we all want to get the most we can for the least amount of money out of our pockets, but at what point does it become "robbery"?
If you punch up (nadabook.com) and log in all the info, you can get a current "book" value for the car.
Speaking as a owner of a 2004 6 spd. with nearly 21K miles, I would hate to have to take $17,500 for my car, because it's worth much more to me. But if I had to sell it, and that was the "book" price for it, then I probably couldn't hope for anymore.
Any problems the car may have had, were probably taken care of a long time ago. Mine has never been back to the dealer for anything.
I use to be in the car business, and $17,500 doesn't sound like too bad of a deal. Like RPM pointed out, mention to him that you're going to have to replace the tires and maybe the seller will split the difference with ya and sell it for 17k.
Believe me, these cars are the bargain of the century, and probably the best kept secret in the automotive world.
Remember, even at 17.5, you're getting a Mercedes Benz, at a Honda price.
Good Luck.