Project Cars--You Get to Vote on "Hold 'em or Fold 'em"

Mr_Shiftright

You really don't want a 356 or 911 out of a barn. These cars in particular suffer mightily from long term careless storage. Between the frozen calipers and the possibly damaged engine (flat engines don't like to sit there with moisture getting into the cylinders---they freeze the rings on the bottom side of the piston to the piston liners and that's $$$). You can't come out alive on an old Porsche unless you have a running engine that can be tested and certified okay---because rebuilds are $8,000 on up for 4 cylinders and $10,000 on up for the 6s. And they are NOT Volkswagon engines when you take them apart either--much more complex and requiring a high level of machining and precision assembly---an old VW engine, you can just slam those together in comparison. A Porsche engine built by a VW mechanic will probably blow up.

2002s are all over the place in California. Figure a decent one is $4,000 and up. But even a project would be okay if you don't have rust. There's a decent aftermarket for mechanical parts and some trim pieces for a 2002.

andre1969

1996 is actually the year to get if you really want an Impala SS. IIRC, the 1994 had a column shifter and no tach. For 1995 they added a floor shift, but the tach didn't show up until 1996. Minor details to be sure, but I've heard it's enough to make a difference.

I like the Impala SS, but personally I'd just go get a '94-96 Caprice or Roadhazzard for a fraction of the price, and essentially end up with the same performance. A wolf in sheep's clothing, in essence.

I always thought it would be cool to take that LT-1 drivetrain and plant it in the older, boxier, lighter, '77-90 Caprice. Or better yet, a '78-81 Malibu coupe. I'm sure that by now it's been done...I'd imagine that if I thought of it, there are probably plenty of people that have already done it.

qbrozen

hmmm... that '69 Monaco looks real nice for the money. I wonder what engine it has. I'm guessing not a real potent one or the seller would have an extra zero on that price.

If there's no rust underneath, I think I'd be interested no matter what engine it had (as long as it runs, that is).

andre1969

I like that '69 Dodge Monaco, especially for $900! Those "fuselage" era '69-73 Mopars usually didn't excite me, although I find that, with age, I do appreciate them more. There's something aout the '69 Monaco I always liked though. I think the stylists did a good job at hiding its fatness. Somehow it just comes off a bit sleeker to me than a '69 Plymouth or Chrysler.

Oh, if I had about $1000-1500 burning a hole in my pocket, I saw a few vehicles for sale at a car show in Macungie, PA that caught my eye.

First was a 1974 New Yorker 4-door hardtop. It needed a good cleaning, and to be honest wasn't the most beautiful thing in the world, but I kinda liked it. Had a 440-4bbl, and the only rust I could find was in the lower part of the rear quarters, which was common on these things. That part is almost horizontal, so you have to practically get up under the car to see it. I know they say that in the late 70's when cars got downsized, they became more space-efficient and in some cases were actually roomier. Still, this sucker felt HUGE inside compared to my '79 NYer. Harder to get into and out of, but once you were inside the legroom was expansive.

Second was a 1977 GM pickup. I can't remember now if it was a Chevy or GMC. It was a 3/4 ton, 8-foot bed, 350, 4wd, 8400 lb GVWR. Looked like it had less rust on it than my '85 Silverado, but it was extremely spartan inside. Still kinda tempting, though

Third was a 1981 Dodge Diplomat coupe. Bucket seats and a floor shift. Didn't say what engine it had, but I looked under and saw a crossover pipe, so I'm sure it was a 318. It actually looked like it was in really good shape.

4th was a 1964 Olds 88 4-door sedan. A good 50-footer, but up close some of the "repair" in the rear quarters involved electrical tape! I always liked the '64 Olds...kinda makes me think of a Lincoln in a way.

All of these cars were priced around $2000-2200 which, I thought, was at least somewhat grounded in reality. At least these people weren't thinking they had rare collectibles or something!

andre1969

I was curious about that '69 Monaco too, so I looked it up in my old car book. Looks like that year, the Monaco was kind of an upscale Dodge, with the Polara being the lower-level big model.

The Monaco had a 383 standard, with 290 hp. I'm guessing that was a 2-bbl.

Optional was a 383 with 330 hp (4-bbl most likely). You could also get a 440 with 350 or 375 hp. I think they were both 4-bbls, but one just had a hotter state of tune.

The Polara, OTOH, had a 318-2bbl with 230 hp standard, with all those other engines optional. The slant six was limited to Darts and intermediates.

So it looks like you can't go wrong with that Monaco. Even the suckiest engine really doesn't suck. Except probably gasoline! :shades:

qbrozen

now you're just making it worse. now i am REALLY interested ... but still live nowhere near it.

andre1969

now you're just making it worse. now i am REALLY interested ... but still live nowhere near it.

I hear ya on that one...why is it that all the cool stuff is always in Fintail's neck of the woods, but around my area all I see is the overpriced crap! Life just ain't fair sometimes.

qbrozen

yeah. Seattle is some strange hotbed of decent project cars. Some is Alabama it seems too ... not as many as Seattle, but still WAY more than NJ, that's fer sure.

gsemike

Why would you do all this to a LeSabre???

Ad is a little vague. 9k looks like alot with those cheapo rims but I guess if you love this car

Gas prices are putting a dent in the price for older SUVs

This one too

Dorethea should hope that someone needs parts off this since it probably needs a head gasket. Sounds like she may not know to fill up the radiator

Decent driver for $2,200?

This looks good for $1350

If it has all this done to it, he's taking a bath on it, but if all that is done, how could the engine look so crappy? Maybe he'll throw in the stick holding up the hood.

jlflemmons

for an original, he's got a market, but a replica???

http://austin.craigslist.org/car/190950471.html

andre1969

I like that Monte SS with the Camaro engine. I even kinda like that '83 Malibu wagon, but yeah, the engine is kinda ratty looking. I wonder if the guy's using artistic license using the term "rebuilt". For example, my '68 Dart has a rebuilt 318 in it. Yeah, it was rebuilt back around 1991 and has gone about 96,000 miles since then! :P

stickguy

Here's one in Phila. Looks nice enough in the thumbnails, and at least the price is realistic.

CLASSIC CAR FOR SALE - 1969 MGB ROADSTER
Classic English roadster in very good condition. Still plenty of time to drive this beauty in the Summer/Fall.
Asking $6,500. Serious enquiries only at 215-517-5646

Hmm, the pics were in a pdf that i can't seem to copy/paste. Maybe I can snag on pic?

Nope. But, it is green, and looks pretty straight, etc.

qbrozen

This feature might vary by version, but on my Acrobat, you can save the file as a jpg. It will then make each page of the pdf its own picture.

british_rover

You could also print screen and then copy the information into windows paint and make a JPEG of it.

stickguy

But I might have to call in tech support for that!

qbrozen

Talk about false advertising. Its mint ... yet wrecked. Boy, wish you could drive it and see how GREAT it is. Oh, and good thing that axle is just bent and not broke because .... uh.... i don't know what the advantage is, but there must be one!

Hmmmm... might be the best bargain i have seen for a 300E. What do you guys think?

Oooo... a Benz diesel that the seller is not asking an appendage for.

Wow. Its cheap mercedes day.

Or how bout a cheap turbo volvo wagon?

Mr_Shiftright

There is no such thing as a cheap used old Mercedes and definitely no such thing as a cheap volvo 740 turbo. Better to call them "deferred maintenance specials". They are the equivalent of a cheap mortgage with a balloon payment just over the horizon.

If it doesn't have a stack of service receipts the size of the Manhattan phone book, you don't want it.

The 300E looks decent for the money--retail should be about $2,500.

au1994

slightly bent axle? Is that like a little bit pregnant?

qbrozen

oh, i disagree. There is such a thing as a cheap Benz ... until you want to actually drive it.

I do find the 740s cheap ... but that's mostly because i know how to work on it. They are more reliable than my S70, yet most of the important stuff is identical between the 2 (yeah, the statement seems contradictory - but the biggest problems were all the extra stuff they added to the 740 to make it a "new model").

fintail

Somehow that 124 looks kinda rough...how did those headlight bezels get broken? Still might be a bargain though, as they all need Euro lights anyway. The 123 is in a very nice color, and the 126 doesn't look half bad. Nice pickins.

qbrozen

Who the hell is paying $3k on ebay??!

fintail

Probably no way out of this

Couple coats of wax and some chrome polish, and she's good as new

Nice looking old tank

qbrozen

oh man. I "started the bondo" on my '66 caddy. Well STOP it!

that Desoto seems like a great deal. Not from a collector's standpoint, as I know its not exactly desirable. But $5k to drive something that looks like that is a bargain, I think.

Not to mention, a great starting point for a rat rod, if you feel the value truly never will go up.

lemmer

We are still looking.

My friend and I are planning to drive to Atlanta one day on the weekend if we can line up multiple MGBs/944s to look at.

It took a while to talk my friend down from the last car, but now that we have seen a lot of ads that look good for cars in $7-9K range, he has given up on the $12K car with the worn paint job.

andre1969

that '52 DeSoto, too. Too bad it's not a Firedome though. When I was a kid, my Granddad had a '53 Firedome, which I think was about the peak of the '49-54 style. He sold the thing just about the time I hit driving age, and I'm still a bit miffed about it sometimes. I know where the car is, but it's been sitting about 20 years at the edge of a forest, and hasn't been run since the guy tried to jump start it with a 12-volt system and fried it, soon after he bought it from Granddad.

If you wanted to take something like that and convert it over to a 12-volt system, what all would you have to change? Distributor, coil, starter, and generator maybe? Anything else? I know they didn't have fuse boxes back then, but had fusible links or something like that. Would all that other wiring, like what goes to the lights, radio, heater and such have to be upgraded, as well?

lemmer

$12K for an old 240SX with a bad paint job, Cooper tires, a big hole where the radio should be and 250K miles? No thanks. You pull the engine out and you paint the car, but the brilliant idea to paint the engine compartment never comes up?

Also, no thanks on the girl.

qbrozen

i like the paint.

not a bad little body ... uhhh... for both the girl and the car.

lilengineerboy

He might find someone special who dreams of that car/girl at night or he might be looking at something more like 6-7k. The motor is a good mod if done correctly, and runs about 3k. The value also depends with SR20DET it is, black top or red top, and options like limited slip and similar. A 240 in good, unmolested shape is getting hard to find in itself right now.

andre1969

the 1973 Chevelle taillights that are on the car. I know it's kinda hard to notice them because there are other, umm...distractions, such as the little spreadeagled trunk ornament. :shades:

british_rover

Yeah I think that was a redtop SR20DET which is the middle of the pack in terms of performance I think. He might just get 12,000 for it if someone is looking for just that type of car.

The girl is ok looking looks a little young to be posing like that though.

gsemike

that doesn't make alot of money but has a good deal of home equity that he feels should be tapped like a kid hits his piggy bank when he wants candy has decided that he's due a 2000 or newer 911 convertible.

What should be expect as far a maintenance requirements? He doesn't want to do any more than add oil.

qbrozen

he's gotta at least CHANGE the oil once in a while.

seriously, though, ANY german car, not just porsche, should NOT be neglected in the maintenance department. I think he should look elsewhere if he wants a vehicle that can be treated poorly.

lemmer

How about a really nice Solara?

qbrozen

exactly. Maybe he needs someone to put a toyota engine in a 911 body for him.

I dunno. What even comes close to a 911 that can handle low maitenance? Only thing I can think of is an S2k, and that still doesn't compare.

Lessee... low maintenance with high initial cost and high cache and high fun quotient ....

anyone?

gsemike

Let me clarify that he supposedly willing to have the prescribed maintenance done but it will all have to be done by a pro.

The S2000 would be out because he needs a back seat.

I think that he's got champagne taste on a beer budget.

british_rover

911 back seats only count as back seats if you are a dark ages torture master.

lilengineerboy

I saw a Mercury Capri XR2 today (the Australian convertible) and it had a huge dude driving and a tiny kid squished in the "back seat." It really does have a back seat but that kid was like 5 and didn't fit back there. Come to think of it, she should've been in a child seat.
Sorry, just thought of the tiny backseat comment.

qbrozen

if this was closer, I'd probably have to buy it at this price.
240 5-spd wagon

stickguy

THe need for a rad support concerns me a bit. But, if the Usual rust is not = no body panels left, that could be my sons first car! I don't think I would worry about teaching him to drive stick on that beast.

If it was near me I would go take a look, but Bensalem is about 40+_ minutes away.

stickguy

And I would arrange to have someone videotape my wife seeing it in the driveway, since the look on her face would be priceless. That, and it could be good evidence for the court case.

qbrozen

i think if its a runner and the floor is solid, you can't go wrong for $200.

I do wonder what happened to the rad support, though.

That's about an hour from me ... hmmm... maybe if its still available this weekend .....

stickguy

if they had posted a picture. Of course, that's probably why they didn't.

fintail

Hard to tell by the pics, but looks OK

bumpy

If he wanted $12k, he should have swapped in an RB25DET. Skyline seats and tails are nice, but not nice enough to put it past $7000.

Mr_Shiftright

'73 450SLC -- well, it's a gas-sucking money pit but the price seems quite fair nonetheless. Usually these fixed head coupes in "fair" condition run around $3,500. If it's clean and everything works, you could flip this car for $1,500 profit.

ghulet

...I like those SLCs, at least to look at, in spite of the bumpers, not for a 'driver'. The problem on pricing with these is that people think they're worth the same as the advertised price of SLs, which usually carry a dream asking price to begin with themselves (think of seller with the average repainted '76 450SL, who thinks it's worth $17k). That example looks really (well, the paint, anyway) nice for the price.

lemko

Geeze! Thanks for the info. If I had a six-volt car, I'd have mistakenly tried to jump-start it with a 12-volt system as well! I guess you'd have no choice but to either find a 6-volt battery or use a charger with a setting for 6-volt. Where do you get 6-volt batteries anyway? I don't recall seeing any at the local Pep Boys.

lemmer

'73 Buick Century that needs a little work for $5000.

People seem to think their old Supras are collectible or something.

qbrozen

Ooooo... that Supra has NoS floormats. Obviously a sign that it was driven by a little old grandma to church on Sundays.

qbrozen

So a friend of mine just leased a new Highlander and wishes to sell his '96 Civic Dx coupe automatic with about 115K miles.

Now, I know this car, and it has been in an accident in the past (it was stolen, actually, and when the joyriding thieves were through with it, they courteously parked it on top of a highway dividing wall). $2k of work was done to it at that time, but not everything was fixed as I know it needs a new front suspension and I believe a CV assembly. The theft was a few years ago, so they've been driving it without a problem since then, but that thing does NOT currently feel like a civic should.

SOOO... here's the question: do I take him up on his offer of buying it for $1k? I figure its a $3k or $3500 car without this history or current problems. My intention would be to fix it and flip it.

My wife says no way ... but I'd like a 2nd opinion that is more objective.