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

Mr_Shiftright

Well you can always call them up and give it a try. Somehow (call me crazy) I had this impression that insurance companies rarely turn money away. :P

qbrozen

oh, ya know, i think their site also said something about special editions qualifying as well. Which, again, leaves room for interpretation. I would say that means the mclaren pontiac thing I posted a few days ago qualifies.

andre1969

It was a Hagerty rep that told you that? I was able to get Hagerty to insure my '76 LeMans, which really isn't anything that special (except to me). I wonder if the fact that it's a coupe, versus a sedan, was the clincher?

I could see them insuring something like a 20 year old Alfa, because that's more of a sporty, fun, weekend-type car, and I doubt if too many people would buy one to run into the ground as a daily driver. But something like that '82 Delta, while I might try to hang onto it and cherish it, most people would just buy it to use up, and therefore might try to work the system by getting antique insurance for it.

IIRC, Hagerty's policy is actually pretty liberal when it comes to use of the car, though. While some insurers insist you only drive it on weekends, holidays, and to car shows, I think all Hagerty cares about is that you have a regular daily driver, and don't use your antique as a daily driver or backup car.

Of course, what falls into "backup car" territory is probably open to interpretation. If I drive my convertible or DeSoto to work on a nice, sunny day, would that be considered "backup" use?

andre1969

and if Hagerty's talking about "special editions", well my 1979 Chrysler is actually a "5th Avenue Edition". wonder if that qualifies?

Hey Lemko, you should've gotten the D'Elegance Edition when you bought that Brougham! And now that I think about it, my grandma's '85 LeSabre was a "Collector's Edition", so surely that must qualify. :P

andre1969

then check this puppy out!

I don't know if the phrase "The vehicle you are looking at is, without a doubt, the finest and most beautiful automobile to ever be manufactured in Pots Falls, Idaho." was meant to be taken seriously or as a joke?! :confuse:

Mr_Shiftright

Alice, git me mah shotgun!!! :mad:

isellhondas

Look at the money and number of bids that horrible looking little car got!

Mr_Shiftright

Yeah let's see if THAT sale goes through....

qbrozen

oh ... but its even better ...
reserve not met!!!!

i love this line in the description:
It starts right up and drives as it should.

.... uuuhhhh... and just how SHOULD it drive??? I guess I can't argue with the owner on that one. He's the only one who will know.

Mr_Shiftright

What engine do you think is in there? Mustang II?

andre1969

.... uuuhhhh... and just how SHOULD it drive???

Well, as someone who's owned several 70's cars, about all I can say is that it should start on about the 3rd try. It should also stall out occasionally at traffic lights unless you pop it into neutral and rev the engine a bit. It should squeal the tires in spirited driving and eat them up fairly quickly, unless you've upgraded the tires. It should nosedive in braking and lock up the rear wheels pretty easily. It should also spin out on slick surfaces with the least bit of warning.

And if it's REALLY running as it should, it should diesel on for a few minutes after you shut it off! :P

andre1969

Well it's just a rebodied Chevette, so I'd imagine it has a Chevette mill. What did they use...something like a 1.6 Isuzu unit?

oregonboy

Wow, you can see a Chevette under all that dreck? Amazing. They piled on every ill-conceived 70's styling cliche that they could imagine... but what happened to the stand-up hood ornament? :P

james

qbrozen

ok... someone here HAS to know what I'm thinking of. But all this discussion (and these couple of cars) have brought back a memory ... but I'm not sure where its from. It was in some movie, I believe. It was, what i believe was, a volkswagen bug with a frontend converted to look like a rolls royce. Is this ringing a bell with anyone??

qbrozen

well, in my search ... i did find this atrocity:
http://www.retro-designs.com/

but what i'm talking about is way older.

qbrozen

here's one about halfway down the page. but the one in the movie/show/whatever was completely finished with paint and all.
http://www.oldbug.com/freak.htm

andre1969

Wow, you can see a Chevette under all that dreck? Amazing.

Yeah, it took me awhile to put the pieces together, but it's a Chevette. The shape of the windshield, A-pillars, and door windows made me think of a Chevette, but once I saw that dashboard I was convinced. Although it looks like for this abomination they took another shroud for the gauge display and pieced it onto the passenger side, to make that map pocket.

And the seats and door panels look pure Chevette to me. There was a dress up trim level for the Chevette that gave it the lower carpeted door panels, nicer vinyl, and a bit of chrome. I saw a Chevette so equipped at Hershey this past fall, and had to do a double take when I saw how nice the interior was. It wasn't how I remembered most Chevettes being! I think the nicer trim level of Chevette still had exposed metal just below the window glass though; it looks like they put a piece of padded vinyl on this thing to try and dress it up a bit more.

Also, I just pulled up a Chevette to compare...this monstrosity's bumper is the same as a Chevette's. The way it has that exaggerated pontoon bulge that comes to a point on the door makes me think a bit of my '76 LeMans! Similar color, too.

qbrozen

still looking for that bug and ran across this .... car.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1973-Volkswagen-Beetle-hotrod-ratrod-streetrod_W0- QQitemZ270075857271QQihZ017QQcategoryZ6019QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

stickguy

you can see the Chevette from the outside, but the interior is a gimme.

As to bugs, those RR grill/hood deals seemed pretty common back in the day.

There is a bug conversion that lives near me that is a replica of an old panel wagon. I'm drawing a blank on the name, but something from the 50's/60's from Britain (maybe a Hillman?) Anyway, looks well done, nice paint, mags, etc. 1st time I saw it, I had to do a double take to see the bug features in the nose. Neve looked inside however.

But talk about a blind spot!

qbrozen

yeah, it seems to be more common than I would have ever thought. still wish i could remember the movie, though.

isellhondas

Yep, definatly a Chevette now that I took a second look.

The car didn't hit it's reserve and was a no sale even though bidding was frantic!

Man, I wonder what the reserve could have been!

He should try Barrett-Jackson!

fintail

I've seen old Beetles with '40 Ford front end conversions too.

LOL at andre's 70's vehicle driving description. And that Chevette...I had to email that one to people at work. Hilarious, worst car I can recall seeing.

Dunno if this could be anything or not

Another big decent looking driver/work car

andre1969

LOL at andre's 70's vehicle driving description.

This must have been a real sad sign of the times, but on the driver's side visor of my NYer, there's a label that gives you detailed information on how to start the car, let it warm up, procedures on what to do if you flood the engine, or if it stalls out, etc. I can't remember if my LeMans has anything similar or not.

w9cw

The dash and interior is the dead give away on the Chevette.

lilengineerboy

Awww GTIs give me warm fuzzies.

kapbot

I am pretty sure you are thinking of Cheech & Chong's "Up In Smoke".

It starts out with the close-up of the Rolls grille, then widens out to reveal the VW.

xwesx

If I drive my convertible or DeSoto to work on a nice, sunny day, would that be considered "backup" use?

Here's backup use:

I am currently driving my '69 C20 because of the loss of the '96 Subaru wagon. I have no other vehicle to drive (Econoline not winterized). That's "backup." :P

lemko

...was one to make it look like a 1940 Ford. I recall a VW that was parked behind my middle school that had this conversion. Looked pretty convincing - at least at to my 12 year-old eyes.

boomchek

That retro design new beetle is so ugly. And those fender skirts, yuk! The white color doesn't even match!

I think the movie you're thinking of is Major League. In the beginning Wesley Snipes, who plays Willie Mays Hays (I think) pulls up to training camp in a white Beetle with a Rolls Royce front end.

xwesx

Hahahhahahahhaha! That's right! I was wracking my brain trying to remember the movie as I also recalled seeing it, but could not place the movie.

explorerx4

at least they provided a place for the front seat passenger to hurl the last meal they ate. :surprise:

stickguy

if it was buy me, and was really in that good shape other than needing a clutch, I wold grab it. I love those cars.

Although the "perfect body" does seem to include a rusty dent on the hood, or is that just a leaf??

Still, I wonder about any car listed as "just needs XX to be driveable/perfect/whatever. If it was that easy, spend the money to throw a new clutch into it, and get more back.

Without a clutch, it is somewhat pot luck, so maybe I offer $500 and roll the dice. Put a $500 clutch in, and if it drive A-1, suddenly could be a 2K car. Or a piece of crap with a new clutch.

british_rover

WOW I have only seen one of these in person ever..

http://hartford.craigslist.org/car/257581152.html

explorerx4

if i have this right, it is backup to the outback?
sorry about the subbie. :sick:

explorerx4

pictures are pretty old. wrong rims and exhaust. why do i know this? i have no idea. :confuse:

qbrozen

BINGO!!
Thanks, boomcheck!

yeah, his name was willie mays hayes, because he "runs like hayes [hays?] but hits like mays" ... or something like that.

hahahhaa.

qbrozen

Looks really clean. probably still a bit overpriced for a 6-cyl. But if its a nice as it looks, I'm thinking it wouldn't be bad for $3900.

Any guesses to the true value of this?

Ouch!!

This could be a fun project if it wasn't overpriced. And I mean OVERPRICED. Good grief. Even if it was a redtop, you still got the bad head gasket. I'm thinking $1200 on this.

I think this is the cheapest running SL of recent memory.

I think he's describing a different car entirely

One nightmare for fintail, coming right up.

fintail

That fintail is a $100 parts car, and I am being nice with that.

I have yet to see a Corrado that hasn't been abused...I would be leery of those. They fall into less than careful hands in my neck of the woods, anyway.

fintail

I am usually leery of those who insist on putting letters after their name...but the car looks pretty decent

These tin cans seem to be common lately

lilengineerboy

I like the old Nova...I was taught to drive in a '76 w/250 straight 6 and 350TH. My father said that car was on its last leg and he wouldn't put more than $100 into repairing it. It ran off a couple of sub-100 repairs for like 8 years. Not that its worth it, but I think it would be fun to put a Camaro with a FI 5.7l under a Nova.
The '95 M3 had a slightly different engine than the 96+ that was more receptive to mods and stuff (hence the chip/exhaust) but since it already had high mileage, I don't know what I would do with something like that.
SR20DET-yeah weaker engine thats dying and no guarantee of the quality of the swap, plus body damage...
MBZ-SL- the car is on the 'Jersey craigslist although its in Allentown, PA (although its only like an hour away I suppose) and with California plates. I dunno about that.

fintail

Oh yeah, on that SL...I think I have heard the 75-76 or 76-77 models can be troublesome, something about the FI.

Mr_Shiftright

Corrado might be worth $4,500. Looks like a nice car.

There is no such thing as a "cheap" Mercedes 450SL. We know the drill---full inspection and bargain like hell on it. Yes, the mid 70s cars had catalytics built into the exhaust header...not a good place for them.

boomchek

I like the Caddy. Looks well maintained. And I probably would pay close to what he wants for it if I had the spare moola.

lilelvis

http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/mld/car/257787303.html

Not the best looking car, but for $3900 it seems like a pretty unique sleeper. Drivetrain parts are pretty easily obtainable. I believe that engine has about 220hp in that model/year. Seems like you could get 300-400 out of that drivetrain without any trouble.

Maybe 400-500.

Maybe I need to stop looking at that ad before I buy something I really don't need.

lilelvis

"The vehicle you are looking at is, without a doubt, the finest and most beautiful automobile to ever be manufactured in Pots Falls, Idaho."

What I find really amusing is the door sills actual say POST FALLS. But somehow I think pot was certainly involved with that vehicle. It can only . . . It can only . . .
Wait. Sorry, I just threw up in a mouth a little bit.

It can only be described as the aborted love child of an AMC Pacer after being gang raped by a 1977 Dodge Aspen, a 1974 Pontiac Grand Prix, a 1974 AMC Hornet, and of course a chevette.

Man, add all wheel drive and body cladding to that and call it Aztek. Yeesh.

lilengineerboy

The 70s and the need for emissions controls were not kind to German cars. Domestics just ran crappier but the German cars would cook themselves.
The 380 engine cars had an issue with timing chains. Some of the cars only had one chain and things were ugly, the later cars had a double row of timing chains and they were considered much better.

mdxtreme

As one who traded in his 2005 E500 4matic wagon for a 2007 R63 I think I can at least answer that question from my perspective. The answer was insufficient interior room for even the 3-year old grandkids in the E. I'm 6'2" and the driver's seat was within 2" of the rear seat when positioned for me.

Personally, I really liked the E-Wagon driving dynamics and its looks. I still haven't warmed up completely to the design of the R but there is no denying that this vehicle surprises a lot of people.

gsemike

For what it's worth Allentown is less than 20 miles from the Jersey border and some of the burbs in NW Jersey are pretty affluent whereas Allentown is a little more industrial. Maybe the seller is just trolling for a Mercedes fan.

Mr_Shiftright

that Jensen should be a Mark III model and so should have more HP than that...maybe 285HP...so it should move out smartly even for a big car. Fairly rare model, something like 5,700 cars made. Price seems fair enough

Downsides are especially biodegradable tin excuse for a body and frightening gas mileage. But I bet she'll do 140.

andre1969

Downsides are especially biodegradable tin excuse for a body and frightening gas mileage

So what you're saying then is that Chrysler had more to do with the Jensen than just the drivetrain? Sorry, couldn't resist. :P Guess I shouldn't be saying that, considering what a Mopar hugger I can be sometimes.