Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

roadburner

I have toyed around with finding a nice non-numbers matching 1973 Corvette with SB and stick. I like the smooth nose coupled with the twin bumpers in the rear. I don't care about the numbers matching because I'd drop a GM Performance crate motor in it along with a five speed. I may have over 25K in it when I was finished but I bet very few cars could catch it- especially after I tinkered with the suspension a bit...

qbrozen

volvo is sticking around. No way I could ever find its equal for what I have in it, and no way I could ever have a better, lower mileage, spare car.

Yes, you can buy the Benz. But its more than your budget. :P

I was going to suggest the Fiat $199 lease. Hard to beat that for a new car. Although you do have to realize it is a $7200 commitment overall.

roadburner

1972 Jensen Interceptor

It looks very clean; in it's day it was considered to be competition to the DBS. The fact that the engine and slushbox Chrysler means the mechanicals are cheap and easy to maintain. And you gotta love the Lear 8-track...

michaellno

And you gotta love the Lear 8-track...

You think anyone has created an 8-track to USB conversion?

:P

stever

Sort of. :shades:

8 Track USB Drive

Supposedly if your player has an audio-out connection, you can hook it up to your PC line-in and use Audacity or a similar program to play the tunes.

qbrozen

At least 1 rusted inner rocker in those pics. and the driver's seat doesn't look like I'd expect after just being redone last year.

tjc78

You think anyone has created an 8-track to USB conversion

No but I've seen someone take one of those 8Track to Cassette adapters and then put in a tape to line out plug so they could play their MP3 player. This was the best solution to keeping the factory 8track player in the car.

stickguy

good point. I better get going. And I pretty much have only been looking at private sales. really don't want to spend time at the local bottom feeder car lots!

I am going stir crazy cooped up at home, even though I work from here. it is nice to get out on occasion.

Maybe I should take Farmer on a quick trip to tampa to go shopping?

stickguy

the money is not a big deal over 3 years. Anything I buy, factoring in repairs along the way, is going to cost something! at least with a lease there are no worries about it.

a bigger wildcard is how long I will need something. In june, i could inherit the Acura back from my son (if he manages to get a job after graduation), since it is not worth much, but he should then get something more trustworthy. most likely, I help get him into new and he does the payments. So in effect I would be "buying back" the TL.

Then in 18 months or so (8/2014) my daughter will go to college, so for at least 1 year, the Volvo will be laying around looking for someone to drive it (except when she is home on break).

cheap and flippable, or a toy to keep long term (like that overpriced CRX I found)

I should have bought your MR2 when I had the chance.

michaellno

I am going stir crazy cooped up at home, even though I work from here. it is nice to get out on occasion.

I, too, work from home, and it would drive me nuts to not have a car available. I run errands occasionally, and at least once a week I take myself out to lunch.

You better get to it! Perhaps an early present to yourself.

stickguy

I IM'd my wife earlier to tell her I was bored and was going car looking to amuse myself.

She said OK.

she is either still numb from me agreeing to her getting the RDX (which she still loves at least), or she is living in fear that I will start taking it away from her all the time!

tjc78

CL

Another Acura

Right around the corner

90's Green

stickguy

maybe I should look at Ebay more often. Better looking stuff than on CL.

The mazda is close, buy man, 9k miles in 18 years? has this thing ever left Camden county?

I like the 2 Acuras though. The CL seems like more car, but the Integra is cute. stiff on miles (though I do already have a 170K Acura in the fleet, so what is another one?). Just odd to see it for sale at a Toyota dealer, but that gives me a little more confidence. The 3 series looks nice, but I would really be leery of a recently spruced up car from a dealer in Philly that can't spell Auction.

Wonder what the CL is really worth? That dealer seems to have a lot of nice stuff, and bidding is low at this point. Integra already getting up there at 2K.

tjc78

If the Mazda wasn't such a stripper, it would certainly be worth a look.

Tons of cars on Ebay. I put it in 25 miles of my zip, price from $1 - $4500 and manual trans to narrow the field a bit.

stickguy

that CL piqued my interest. Of course, that is the one where the auction ends in a few hours so I have no time to actually think about it!

tjc78

It looked right up your alley. I would think many of those were automatics.

oldfarmer50

1994 Mazda--wow, I never thought I would see a car where the milage was TOO LOW. I'd have to know the history of that car. It might have spent 15 years rotting in a barn.

breld

So my brother finally made a decision. He's held on to his 4Runner for 8 years, but once he got the itch, he acted just like me - totally obsessed with the whole process.

I mentioned some of this along the way, but he considered small SUVs - X3, Q5, XC60, RDX, FX35 - along with wagon choices - Allroad, XC70 and the upcoming 3-series. He even borrowed my wife's X3 and my A5 for a week to get a feel for the cars (glad our fleet could serve the purpose).

He was drawn to the Infiniti and Acura for their reliability, but at the end of the day, he enjoyed the Allroad the most, so he should be picking up the Audi tomorrow, once they put on the tint and clearbra. I think he's still having some sticker shock, but I imagine he'll be real happy with it.

qbrozen

hmmm... that's right up my alley. Damn.

Edit: D'OH!! No A/C! ugh. That's my one deal breaker. Perfect otherwise.

I like how he calls no A/C an "option" ... and where exactly is this factory radio?

tjc78

No A/C is a killer on that one.

Edit, you noticed it at the same time I was posting

jayrider

A/C was standard -- the dealer or person who bought it had to have it built with it deleted. Probably on the lot as the super cheapie and when folks came to check it out were steered to another model. Of course someone thought it attractive enough to buy it anyway. Here in St. Louis, I'm constantly surprised by the number of folks driving newer cars cruising around in 100 degree plus weather with the windows down. And in the midwest, it's not a dry heat.

stickguy

Not sure what the max someone has in. I put in 2K and that was already under. If I really knew I wanted it I might throw more out, but would hate to buy something it turns out I did not even like or want to drive.

All nervous watching, and I am not even bidding!

Edit: usual end of auction flurry, ended up at $2,825. So my cap for not having seen it was $2,500, but sounds like someone probably got a pretty good deal.

kyfdx

$2850

stickguy

I really, really want the BMW that Tom found (1998 3 series coupe). My wife much preferred that one too. More my style I guess. And it is miley, but sounds nice, and for a low use toy garage queen, shouldn't be a problem!

I expect my daughter will like this one too. She hated the CL (said it looked like an "old man car").

Wonder if I can figure out a way to get out there to wherever in Philly it is by Thursday?

I still am really leery of Ebay though. Not seeing the feedback that shows a lot of cars being sold here. Plus I tend to be a worry wart on this type of stuff!

but what the heck, I will give them a call tomorrow and see how it goes.

kyfdx

Ride in style...

corvette

A lot cheaper to buy than my 2003 540i, and it looks like the LCD pixels are all or at least mostly working. Also, it has a tape deck... Mine doesn't have that! :P

stickguy

well, the roundel and price are attractive. And it is really close to me. Other than that, pretty much nothing I am looking for!

does seem to be a lot of nice car for the money, but I bet that 3K is just a (modest) down payment on this baby.

nyccarguy

That E36 323is, but that's a decent amount of miles & with close to 200K on the clock you have to kind of expect the worst.

Now that Integra looks nice for all of its 174K miles. That car with 140 hp & a 5 speed stick unmodified is a nice find. Double wishbones on all four corners too:). That car weighs NOTHING. 2600 lbs? Maybe?

stickguy

I'm really talking myself into that one. I have no real feel for what makes sense to pay for it, with those miles.

You are right that seeing one without any boy racer mods is rare.

A rare bird, but probably a good chance of lasting a long time, if I am only putting 3K a year on it (or maybe less).

I like the BMW also, but not sight unseen from an unknown seller. And I know that it could become labor intensive.

nyccarguy

Check out this 1998 Acura Integra with 110K miles on it & a recent service

tjc78

wherever in Philly

407 Philmont ave, Feasterville-Trevose, PA 19053 according to a quick Google of the phone #.

Looks right off I-95 and Street Road about 15-20 mins north of the Ben Frankling Bridge.

nyccarguy

Here's a 149K mile E36 328iA. It's black/sand with a slushbox, but looks clean from what I can see on my iPhone.

stickguy

nice color. But pricey for that old.

ANd man, the new autotrader site really stinks.

stickguy

I bid on the Integra up to $2,500. Someone came over the top at $2,550 but reserve was still not met.

I talked to the dealer, and it sounded quite nice. Just had state inspection, brand new tires, very clean in and out and mechanically.

Really curious what they reserved it at, since that seems like a pretty good bid, and way more than they can wholesale it for.

qbrozen

Well, $1125 over what they paid. Figure with fees, transport, and some spit and polish, they may have made $800-$1k. So everyone should be OK with that deal.

stickguy

the sales manager I talked to this AM about the Integra emailed back. Offered it for 3K. So we were not that far apart.

corvette

While at Carmax this morning having my Altima appraised, I walked through their lot and saw a charcoal colored 2007 VW Passat 3.6 4motion wagon. Pretty cool, but their no-haggle price was on the high side.

oldfarmer50

Stick, nyccarguy, am I doing something wrong. When I clicked your links I got a 1990 Accura. :confuse:

stickguy

the links from NYC both pointed to a 1990 integra on Autotrader. the links to the cars I was looking at work.

kyfdx

eBay is great for sellers... not so good for buyers...

nyccarguy

Damn - ill look again & post from computer instead of iPhone.

nyccarguy

1998 E36 328iA

nyccarguy

1998 Acura Integra LS

What's up with this 2001 Acura Integra GSR?

stickguy

well, the GSR is the holy grail, and one in that original condition and low miles is probably really rare, but that still seems like an ambitious price.

speaking of Acura, any thoughts on what that black one should go for? Trying to decide what to offer back.

kyfdx

That has to be the nicest '98 Integra going.... hard to find one that hasn't been molested... I have no idea on the value, but $5K seems awfully high for a 15-yr-old economy car... I'd say it's worth under $4K... (but, at a new car dealer? who knows?)

The GSR price is just stupid... no matter how low the miles are, it will never be a collector car... You can get a five year newer, RSX-S for way less money...

nyccarguy

That black one is almost as tough a call as the still almost brand spankin' new GSR. I think you went with your gut and bid $2500. Like you said, $3K + Tax & Tags has got to be close to becomes what? $3400 - $3500 real quick. At $2500 it seem worth the risk, but at $1000 more I think I'd pass. Don't burn the bridge. String the guy along and maybe you'll get lucky with it in the next 2 weeks.

What did you think of that 110K mile one I posted?

I'm so curious as to where they got that low mileage 2001 GSR from. Trade in? Auction? Storage locker? and how much did they pay for it? $8K? $10K at the most? Even at that ambitious price, imagine getting that thing for $15K OTD?

stickguy

thanks. always good to have a 2nd opinion. I was debating just shooting back $2,600 and that was it. May not work. Plus of course, it is black...

the blue one? Looks nice, just refurbed a bit, but not paying 5K for a 110K mile 1998.

the GSR? That must have some from some collector. and at that price, it better go back into one, since you can't just drive the damned thing!

Good news. I found a local private sale Integra, similar to the black one (even asking the same price). Original owner, a few less miles, and silver (much better color). if I can make the logistics work, will see it Friday. No clue of course how flexible the owner is.

but, it seems that my obsession at the moment is an Integra. Worse things to look at, since it is pretty close to what you have with the Prelude.

nyccarguy

Cars are meant to be driven, not collected! Besides the fact that they are asking an OBSCENE amount of money for a 12 year old Acura that only stickered for what? $23K when new? The car is BLACK! I swore off black after owning my Black TSX for 2 1/2 years. It just shows every single ding, chip, & scratch. Not swirl marks. Oh no, my Black 2010 TSX did not have any swirl marks.

Keep looking & don't get frustrated!

nyccarguy

Pretty close to what I have with the Prelude is right. In fact, a GSR was my backup if I could not find a leftover 2001 Prelude w/ manual transmission.

stickguy

interesting. Seems the guy did not want to wait with the black one. It just got relisted.

based on that, and since I now know what the reserve is, I will just watch it until Monday, and see what I come up with over the weekend. No real reason to do anything else now, unless I want to take the 3K offer I bet.

if I am still frustrated by Monday, can always reach out then.