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

lilengineerboy

The Coupe GT really didn't have a whole lot going for it. It was FWD not AWD, and had like a 110hp 2.2l inline 5 and was pricey. They also had a VW Quantum version for a little while. I can't believe the bidding is up that high. The doors and trunk interchange with a UrQuattro but that is about it.
The Volvo is cool. The coupe version even more so but the sportwagon is neat too. At that time you could get a Vega or Pinto in a similar configuration. Now we have cars like the IS300 sport wagon thing and the Mazda 3 and Pontiac Vibe...

Mr_Shiftright

I like the Volvo sportwagon. Very practical and pretty reliable car. My only gripes would be the B20 truck engine that propels it (rough and noisy critter) and the seating position, which dump your ears at about window sill level.

the only major catastrophe would be if the overdrive unit failed; otherwise it's a pretty simple car to work on and they aren't too fussy. I think the sport wagons have an early Bosch injection system that is electronic, but again, you can get all the manuals and parts you need for that as well.

Probably the toughest parts would be replacement exterior trim pieces or body panels, so don't nose into anything real hard.

kapbot

Seems reasonable.
Might be an excellent project, but not at the asking price.
Anyone have an informed opinion?

The Volvo sportwagon has got to be the only vehicle Shifty has commented on lately that he didn't blow out of the water!
I like it too.

british_rover

I like the jeep but it is not really worth anything or at least I don't think so. I forget which flatfenders are worth a ton of money but I think they have to be older then 1948.

fintail

Looks decent

explorerx4

where the "he 'double hockey stick'" is the shift lever?
no mention of that? :confuse:

Mr_Shiftright

'48 Jeep, if not rusted, is a pretty good deal. they aren't worth nearly as much as a real Army jeep, but they are fun and useful.

'65 Impala--these babies are starting to creep up in value. Okay buy at maybe 1,500--$2,000.

gsemike

I'd like to see alot more pics of the Impala but if the body can be done without doing a total resto, why not 2 grand or 2500?

british_rover

I think that is a push button automatic car.

I think you can even see the push buttons in the far left of the picture of the steering wheel.

andre1969

I think that is a push button automatic car.

Yeah, the '64 New Yorker had a 3-speed pushbutton Torqueflite. IIRC, they had 5 buttons in a column for R, N, D, 1, and 2, and then there was a lever that you slid to put the car into park.

Early models of the pushbutton transmission didn't have "Park" at all. When you parked the car, you just put it in neutral and put on the parking brake, which clamped down on the driveshaft. I'm not sure, but when the cars were new, they sold them with a big rubber wheel chock in the trunk, too!

I believe 1964 was the last year of the pushbutton transmission. At least, I had a friend who had a '65 Imperial and it had a column shifter. It used part of the old pushbutton linkage though, so I've heard that they can be a pain to work on. The '65 Imperial was a carryover though, so that may be why it was like that. The '65 New Yorker and other full-sized cars were new designs, so they may have been different.

Mr_Shiftright

They were very gas-hungry cars but the drivetrain, especially the 383 engine mated to the Torqueflite 8 transmission, was darn near immortal. Worst thing you could do was slam it into reverse while you were still moving forward, and that broke the rear servo in the trans.

I just saw a MINT '64 2-door hardtop for sale, all original!! for 10K. Not bad for a "collectible" car that would last until you died.

andre1969

Worst thing you could do was slam it into reverse while you were still moving forward, and that broke the rear servo in the trans.

I didn't think you could do that with a pushbutton Torqueflite. At least, in 1957 you weren't supposed to be able to. The transmission had a lockout feature that wouldn't let you select Reverse if you were moving forward...it would just go into Neutral. Similarly, there were lockouts for 1 and 2, where if you hit them at too high of a speed (I want to say 45 and 70, respectively) the tranny wouldn't downshift until it got below the threshold speed. Maybe they got rid of that feature in later pushbuttons, though?

xwesx

'48 Jeep, if not rusted, is a pretty good deal. they aren't worth nearly as much as a real Army jeep, but they are fun and useful.

I was thinking the same thing. At that price, and in the absence of significant rust, it is a great project core. The end result would not be a high-value vehicle, but the fun factor would definitely be there and one could get a decent residual out of it should it be sold for some unfortunate reason... but it better be a darned good reason even at that! :mad:

fintail

Here's a little freakshow

Mr_Shiftright

You could be right about that...I just dimly recall this reverse gear problem and I assumed it was from "rocking" the car back and forth in the snow...perhaps the same damage could be done by just having a car with too high an idle speed.

Mr_Shiftright

One can only hope they did something with the brakes as well.

british_rover

And added a fuel cell.

jlflemmons

Okay, so now it is a very fast little piece of excrement.

Mr_Shiftright

You get a bunch of guys in a garage, with too many beers, and things like this happen....

xwesx

"It drives like a factory car, only much faster!"

Yep.... I was thinking, "Okay, so now we have a very fast car that handles and brakes like the original. Great."

And, honestly, a 1980 Pinto? A classic? I'm not sure that is possible.... is not one requirement for "classic" the fact that it is sought out and collected? I think only the term "antique" applies otherwise....

Mr_Shiftright

"You enjoyed Charles Bronson in the past, and NOW...it's DEATH WISH III!"

gsemike

I'm sure the Pinto is fast but it's otherwise too plain to too interesting. The car has the original seats, steering wheel, shifter and probably paint. I wonder if it even has a tach? For 10 grand, how about a full race interior and a blower coming through the hood?

fintail

Something for andre, but no pic

andre1969

Hmmm, I saw a Dodge Diplomat copcar on a T-shirt at Target yesterday. Unfortunately it was THIS T-shirt!

:mad:

If it had Buford's LeMans on it, I would've bought it.

andre1969

this was kind of an interesting project. It was too long for me to read in detail right now. I wonder how much it would actually cost to build something like this?

qbrozen

I don't get it. Why bother? I'd also like to point out that, to the best of my knowledge, the old wagoneer was a much more rugged and capable trail vehicle than a modern Durango. The author points to the solid axles with leaf springs as if they are antiquated, yet its those same solid Dana axles that helped give Jeep the king-of-the-trails reputation it has today.

bumpy

truth in advertising

big chrome rims are in its future

Mister Two, for you

"newly rebuilt V6" Why???

a better V6

british_rover's track car

I thought the 283 had been dropped for the 307 by then?

It might sell better if you drag it out of the woods, or at least away from the Omni.

too bad it has the wrong engine

In this case, bigger rims would actually improve the looks.

bumpy

I don't get it. Why bother?

"to display in our booths at the June, 2006 Pocono Nextel Cup race and at the 2006 SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) Show"

boomchek

The cars in the woods remind me of some horror flicks were unsuspecting campers disappear, and their cars is all that's left.

Sorta like Wrong Turn, House of Wax, and especially Hills Have Eyes.

au1994

RE; The 3000GT...$6600 for a 1998 with over 163k on the clock??? And I bet he typed that wtih a straight face.

andre1969

The cars in the woods remind me of some horror flicks were unsuspecting campers disappear, and their cars is all that's left.

yeah, I thought of that, too. A few days ago, I found a house on 4 acres in Minnesota that was zoned for a junkyard, and it looked a lot like those movie scenes, too.

andre1969

I know the 307 was out by 1968, because Consumer Reports tested a '68 Impala 307. I think the 283 was an easier engine to build up, though, as it had a beefier block. The 307's block was relatively "soft" as it had a lower nickle content.

fintail

Lookin to open a junkyard?

andre1969

Oh, I wish! Nah, somebody had posted the link to an eBay auction that had a buy it now price of something like $1.5M. It had an old farmhouse, 4 acres, and tons of old cars and parts. Most of the cars were probably deteriorated too far to save, but I'm sure there were a lot of good parts. Plus lots of trim parts, grilles, bumpers, engines, and other stuff that was packed away in storage buildings.

I think it was advertised in Hemmings, too.

Oh, as for weird junkyard happenings, here's one. There's a big junkyard about 2 hours south of me, near Culpeper, VA. One day I was exploring through it, and way, way in the back, probably a good half-mile or more from the front office, there was a '76-77 Cutlass Supreme 4-door that looked to be in really good shape. It even had the keys in the ignition. Heck, when I opened the door the light came on as well as the seatbelt buzzer!

This car was buried far enough back in that junkyard that it couldn't have just been driven back there and parked. Once upon a time, this junkyard had neat rows with aisles between them, but as space became more critical, the owner just shoved cars into the aisles, blocking them to the point that you couldn't drive a vehicle back there. And many of the dirt roads had gotten so deeply rutted over the years that you'd need a good off-road vehicle to navigate them, anyway.

Just seemed really odd. Kinda creepy, actually.

fintail

That is pretty spooky. Must have been one heck of a battery.

I have the junkyard idea now and then too. I think it could be successful if you specialized in something, and kept overhead down.

andre1969

I always thought an indoor junkyard would be cool. Like in a big abandoned hangar or warehouse or something. That way you could keep the weather off the cars. Of course, having covered storage like that is going to run operating costs up.

If I ever got so filthy rich that I could never blow through all the money, I think I might open a money losing venture like that. And with the types of cars that I tend to prefer and hoarde, you know it WILL lose money. :P

qbrozen

SEMA explains it. Lots of silly mods that do absolutely nothing to add to the vehicle.

lemko

Well, you'd at least have me for a customer as we pretty much have the same taste in cars.

fintail

I've thought of that same thing. I see lots of old cars that I would like to save from the crusher, or that are too far gone to restore, but seem to have too many good bits left to justify crushing.

I'd have a lot of fintails, but other cars too. Call it a hobby instead of a business, then losing money won't seem so bad. Everytime I see some parts car fintail for <$500, I imagine putting it in some facility where maybe it could help a more fortunate car.

Mr_Shiftright

That's about the dumbest project I've seen in a long time...even for a SEMA show...all you have in the end is the same "nobody cares" Jeep Wagoneer that you could have had without doing a thing to it.

So if I put a Ferrari V-12 in a bread van would I get much more than an occasional "huh...that's interesting...c'mon alice, let's go see the new cars".

oregonboy

You mentioning Ferrari and Jeep Wagoneer in the same sentence (along with "nobody cares"!) reminded me of this piece of work: (warning, not for the faint of heart!)

http://www.saabnet.com/tsn/members/gallery.html?memberID=93&do=show&id=3354

james

boomchek

What an atrocity. Aparrently the story is that some mgr of a Las Vegas casino totalled a Ferrari and so they mated the undamaged front end and motor to a Wagoneer body. Here's the story:

Jerrari

Mr_Shiftright

Oh yeah, I forgot about that abortion...or maybe I didn't forget, it just dwells in the fearful subconscious.

qbrozen

Go directly to the crusher. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200.

qbrozen

This is a neat lookin' project. Seller's email is a bit disconcerting, though.

How can you NOT post pics for this??

Looks pretty nice. Is it worth that kind of money, though?

For the same price, I'd rather have the Cutlass

I had a hobbyist remote car of one of these

hmmmm... i like this. Price seems excessive, though. I wonder what engine its got.

andre1969

I like that Cutlass convertible. Not sure about pricing, but I think the midsize convertibles are starting to get up there. It used to just be the musclecar variants, but I'd imagine none of 'em are cheap. $8500 sounds reaonsable to me, low enough that I'd wonder what kind of problems it has.

I kinda like that Caprice convertible, but 1974 is about the worst year to get when it comes to horsepower. IIRC, the 400-2bbl only put out 150 hp! There was a 4-bbl version that put out 180, I think, and then the 454 was probably in the low 200's. I dunno if it's true or not, but I've heard that the 400 block is also fragile, because it's still a smallblock, but bored to within an inch of its life.

I'd be tempted by that Dart, depending on what it looks like in person. Most likely it just has a 225 slant six, which put out 110 hp that year. I think there was still a 198 variant that had 100 hp, but if it was still around by '72, it was very rarely ordered. If it's a V-8, it would be a 318-2bbl with 150 hp. There was also a 340 available, but only in high-performance versions. It put out 245 hp.

I always wondered why Mopar never really bothered to offer a 318-4bbl? The old, heavier 318 wideblock was offered with hot carbs in the Fury for '57-58, but after that it was relegated to pretty much grandma car status. Now the lighter 273 "LA" engine was offered as a 2 or 4-bbl, and the 360 was offered both ways. They did try putting a 4-bbl on the 318 starting around 1978, and once the 360 was gone, the 318-4bbl was the stable of Mopar copcar engines throughout the 80's.

I guess they just figured the 318-2bbl was strong enough, for the most part? And by the time the engines started getting choked down, perhaps it was easier to just offer a 360-2bbl instead of a 318-4? I think the main reason the 318-4bbl came out was for California use. The narrower bore was probably better for emissions. In 1980, California made the CHP order their St. Regises with 318-4bbls instead of the 360-4bbls, and I've heard that they ended up seeing record turnover.

Mr_Shiftright

59 Rambler--no upside here. Nobody cares about these cars. You'll never see your money out of it. Best to hot-rod it or paint Disney characters on it (actually don't do that, Disney attorneys are ferocious!)

Mercury custom -- I love chopped 50s Mercs with frenched headlights, etc.

'71 Olds convertible -- yep, it's worth the money if it's nice--as high as $12K

74' Caprice -- also worth the money but it's a dog, I'd pick the '71 as well

'89 Raider --- "smokes", eh? Remember, that V-6 is not rebuildable, so you'd have yourself a problem if you tore it down and had to bore it.

'72 Dart -- no title? Fine, how about $100? Way too risky.

gsemike

Those Craig's listing are in NJ. Here in the NE, that Cutlass is easily market priced for a respectable convertible. GM intermediate convertibles from 68 to 72 that a respectable drivers will range from 8 to 12. A really nice one can go to 15. Of course factory big block cars in vert form comman a king's ransom everywhere.

The full sizers such as that Impala seem to command far less even in very good shape.

Mr_Shiftright

the 70s convertible market is starting to light up...a "classic" case of the worthy (the 60s convertibles) bringing up the less worthy in the rising market. I could sell a million really clean, really sharp 70s convertibles in California for $8,500 a pop. I'd have to call the police to control the mobs, seriously.

But you start to break $10K, and the action seems to stop.

andre1969

'72 Dart -- no title? Fine, how about $100? Way too risky.

Oh wow, I didn't notice the part about no title with the Dart! Guess I need to read these ads more closely! :surprise: