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

Mr_Shiftright

I think I could figure this out myself, but I'd need to line up a place to do it for a couple weeks.

qbrozen

i just looked and i do still have the email. Only problem is I don't know the website with all the pics. OH well. The guy's name is Nick Muto. His alfa was a '74. It really did look incredible. From what I recall, it needs pretty extensive mods to shoehorn that thing in there (hence the kit that would provide you with new mounts, brackets, i believe radiator supports, maybe even a different radiator??).

I had contacted him back in November '05. He was planning on selling his car at that time, as well as coming out with the kit. Wish I could find that website again.

qbrozen

too bad the reserve isn't met. what could they possibly want for a 20-year-old 325??

Mr_Shiftright

Hopefully not more than another $400.

I hate those things...tight cockpit, top boot always jams due to cheesy design.

But hey, cheap and cheerful, go for it!

toomanyfumes

Not all GT6's look good in a photo... http://www.carspace.com/toomanyfumes/Albums/outlander/GT6 FRONT.JPG/page/photo.html#pic Hurry, only 4 days to get your offer in!

grahampaige

man that is tired.... someone is in for some major work

boomchek

Here's some pics of the V6 Alfa:

Alfa swap

andre1969

a guy in one of my internet Mopar clubs posted this...

"One of my neighbors had the last year New Yorker that was the big one before they downsized it to the aspen size.

360 with the "lean burn"....

I can't remember if it was with a tq or it had a holley/carter big two barrel. They had many problems with it..stalling...no start....poor performance.

After they hit the mileage that the dealer would no longer try to not fix it...they asked me to look at it.

The computer had been replaced three times, the carb twice , and the wiring harness was torn apart and put back together.

A 1971 or 72 thermoquad replaced what ever was on the car...beers and years get in the way here, i can't recall if we just put a earlier TQ on the manifold or
if we changed the manifold out also....

The other addition was the mopar performance electronic ignition to replace the double reluctor distributor that was on the car. Seemed to double the car's performance...mileage went up and it became 'the best
car he ever owned'"

How big of an undertaking would something like this be? Both of my '79 NYers seem to run just fine, as is, although the "new" one I just bought has a problem with the automatic choke, so it's really cranky at first if I let it sit more than a few days.

Would swapping on an older carburetor and putting a Mopar Performance distributor and ECU on the car really make much difference? I doubt if the car's mileage really doubled, unless it was really out of tune, or the carb and or/computer were really out-of-whack, and it was getting something ridiculous like 6-8 mpg!

I do remember hearing somewhere that if you use the existing manifold for this type of swap, for the distributor you need to drill a hole in the manifold to run the vacuum line, because the OEM Lean Burn distributor had a computer-controlled advance.

Anyway, I dunno if I'd actually go through with making such a mod to one (or both) of these cars, but the idea has always intrigued me. I first thought about doing a swap like this back around 1997 when I had my '79 Newport, but back then didn't have the time or the money.

qbrozen

yup. that's it. i didn't think that was actually the web address. i saw his email came from there, but the name seemed like a generic email provider or something. that's what i get for not trying.

qbrozen

so i contacted the seller. he says they are looking for $3500. What do you think? worth the drive to look? Is the price too high? seems like I should be able to get a newer one for that money ... BUT, then again, if its clean and all... PLUS, an '87 will just qualify for Hagerty's insurance! so that's a big plus. Will save me a couple hundred bucks a year.

andre1969

BUT, then again, if its clean and all... PLUS, an '87 will just qualify for Hagerty's insurance! so that's a big plus. Will save me a couple hundred bucks a year.

Really?! Hagerty will insure an '87 these days? Maybe I need to give them a try and see if they'll add one of my '79 New Yorkers to the policy? I'd be tempted to try adding both, but one of their stipulations is that the car be stored in a locked garage, and adding both of my NYers would put me at 5 cars, but only having a 4-car garage.

But then, something like a 1987 325 convertible would probably fall more under "special interest" than a big, hulking late 70's sedan. I was surprised that they accepted my '76 LeMans.

qbrozen

yup. 20 years is the cutoff. that's why i was finally able to insure my '86 alfa with them last year. That was running me about $450 with my regular insurance and is now $180 with hagerty.

oregonboy

Here are a couple of examples in the Seattle area, both with higher miles and more money.

this one has a hard top

an amazing blue

Personally, I would pay a bit more to get the next generation bimmer:

black 5-spd

nice emerald green 5-spd

james

qbrozen

i'm sure the next gen is a better car, but i do like the round headlights.

i think my wife just talked me into driving there on my lunch break.

oregonboy

Hey - good luck! I hope it's a nice one.

james

andre1969

Hmmm, maybe I will try to get one of my New Yorkers added to Hagerty. Right now they're running me about $300 per year each, for just liability. It would cost me about $21 per year to add one to my Hagerty policy, if I insured it at their minimum value of $3500. One thing that's cool about Hagerty is that they only charge you once for liability, no matter how many cars you have, so putting additional cars on the policy is dirt-cheap. $6.00 per $1000 of value, IIRC.

Mr_Shiftright

Well $3,500 is a strong retail price for an '87, but sure, if it's clean and tidy and runs well, why not? Be sure you can fit in it comfortably and be SURE to operate the top mechanism. This car may have metric size tires and if so and if they are wearing out they are quite expensive to replace...they'll have like a "400" sizing rather than 15 inch or 16 inch, etc.....

Also check for pressure in the coolant reservoir tank (not good if there is any), as this model will crack cylinder heads....also water in oil, oil in coolant, overheating etc.

qbrozen

geesh! now ya tell me. ;b

i just got back from checking it out. nice little car. i did not expect it to be SO SLOW, though.

said they had an offer of $3300. I offered $3350. they are going to call the owner and let her know. We'll see.

Mr_Shiftright

Shouldn't be that slow...you should do 0-60 in about 8.5 seconds....so, like a Toyota Corolla or some such....

lemko

Wow! Just one more year and Hagerty will insure my Park Ave!!!

qbrozen

hmmmm... is that really supposed to have 168hp? i looked on msn and only found data for the '88, which states 168. It definitely didn't feel like it had that. Tough to tell. I mean, I expect an SUV to move like that, but not a small car. 8.5 secs would pretty much put it on par with her Pacifica. I would say the Pacifica seems faste. But maybe its all in my mind. could also be I just wasn't pushing it enough. I did, in fact, realize there was another inch or so of pedal travel after I was on the move and trying to get it to downshift.

w9cw

I bought a new GT6 in February 1968. It was actually a '67 titled as a '68. Fun car, and you could actually learn to live with the eventual oversteer due to the swing-axle rear suspension on the MKI. Drove it over 75,000 miles before trading it in - only major repair was replacement of the gearbox's shifting forks. Note: It had Delco-Remy electrics, not the "Prince of Darkness" electrics. The sweet 2.0L Inline 6 was still smooth as silk. The best fuel mileage I've ever recorded was with the GT6. One cool summer's night in 1968 my brother and I were on our way from the midwest to the east coast. Typical interstate driving - fuel up, and drive until you need fuel again. I recorded 39.9MPG, and that was at a constant speed of 70MPH. Heck, I still remember the VIN number: KC8712L. You never forget your first car, just like your first girlfriend!

Mr_Shiftright

I think if you started off brand new, you had half a chance with a GT6---but inheriting someone else's gross neglect---no, that didn't work out.

Inline 6s are the BEST for smoothness, and really fun on an old sports car.

qbrozen

so i received a message that our offer of $3350 was accepted. Unless they moved to the next offer ($3300) after not hearing back from me before they closed shop this evening, it looks like we'll be getting the bimmer on Monday.

Man, I hope this isn't a mistake.

by the way, shifty, how do i check for pressure in the expansion tank? just pull the lid and hold my hand over it? A radiator usually has SOME pressure, doesn't it?

Mr_Shiftright

Oh don't worry about it. If the car runs well and doesn't overheat, you're fine. Did you check the top operation--I mean, that metal lid that snaps down over the top?

stickguy

Broz, you know enough about cars to get a "feel" for one on a test drive. I have always been lucky enough to sense a good car from a bad one, and I am sure if something major was amiss, you would have gotten the willies.

Plus, that looks like a fairly established, reputable place selling it. I doubt they would have messed around if they knew it was a dog.

Plus, it looks nice enough, and is cheap enough, that it is hard to imagine you could lose much on it. A good detail, some DIY maintenance, and it wouldn't be hard to flip if you needed to.

Heck, I would have jumped all over it if it was a 5 speed!

qbrozen

yeah, i hope. i did make a mistake on the benz since the head gasket went shorty after buying it, but i guess sometimes you can't predict the future.
besides, at least i sold the benz for about what i had in it and got to enjoy it for 6 months in the process.

i did check the top, shifty. its like new, so that's a big plus. I think the front end might be a little sloppy and the seats won't last long, but other than that, it all seemed good.

totally unrelated but ... check this out.
just how do you go about getting a late model import into the US anyway? Doesn't it cost a fortune?

Mr_Shiftright

It isn't legal. That's what the "Show and Display Only" comment means in the auction description. It's admitted as a museum car.

If the GOV catches you driving an illegal car such as this, they will impound it and destroy it (i.e., crush it while you wait).

fintail

Isn't there a catch where it can be driven with dealer
plates or something?

Our tax money at work!

Someone I know who doesn't know a lot about cars claims a local lot has a EU-market W211 E55 AMG, I am going to see what's up with that.

Mr_Shiftright

Nope, show and display only, that's what it means. And they WILL seize it, too. They don't mess around. You'd have to trailer such a vehicle.

I suppose you could sneak it out but if someone rats on you, you're toast and so is your car.

Sometimes, if they are in a good mood, they won't crush it but merely deport it post haste on the next ship out.

Also, these vehicles are, I believe, under a surety bond, so the new owner would have to assume that bond, I guess.

No wonder the seller doesn't want e-mails!!

texases

Is there anything special these days about an EU-market MB? Don't they have very similar specs to US-market ones?

fintail

They still have a variety of engines and trim available that we never see (usually lower spec), and sometimes a few oddball electronics, I believe a Nav with TV tuner etc.

british_rover

Yeah NAV with TV turner is pretty common on high end euro cars.

The remotes that come with the RSE equipped Range Rovers have a TV Tuner button.

qbrozen

ah, i see.
that's a shame.
why would someone even bring it here in that case??

boomchek

Yeah that's kinda dumb, to pay that much money for the car there, plus shipping costs, to bring it here and have it parked in the garage.

Mr_Shiftright

Who knows why people do half the crazy stuff they do with cars.....the red mist?

fintail

"Frankly I am tired of working on a British car and do not want to work with it anymore"

Here's a freaky little thing

Well done clone

british_rover

Why does this car interest me?

Hmhh if it runs how could you go wrong for 499?

Could probably sell this for four times as much in the northwest.

texases

Clone-don't know why, but I don't like black wheels...cheap to fix, I know.

texases

Scirocco-yes, if it wasn't a New England (rusty?) one, it'd be good - it has just about all the bolt-ons I could want, they are fun, and easy to work on.

british_rover

Probably fairly rusty yes but might be salvageable depending on where it is.

boomchek

Here's some picks of the week:

You don't see these every day

Rough 3 series convertible for cheap, mostly cosmetic c issues

69 Firebird

I think he's pushing it for that kind of asking price

HA! Joke of the week!

Tired Cadillac

Decent looking BMW 2002

"If you like buying broken cars for any reason whatsoever, then this is your dream come true" That's what I always dream of I wonder if he'd let it go for $100 bucks.

Car is complete except for the rusted areas

">link title

qbrozen

heck, that rough 3-series makes the one I'm trying to buy (i say trying because the garage still hasn't called to say "yeah, come drop off the money") a bargain!

fintail

You're right about that VW, just look at this

british_rover

Haahahahah

Man that is funny.

Mr_Shiftright

Ever driven those older VW diesels? A couple weeks in one of those and you'd be happy to pay $4 a gallon to drive a gasoline car. It's one of the world's most dreadful driving experiences. You'd have to be beaten down and desperate to do it IMO.

texases

But look what you'd be missing! "Heated tanks" - you could make french fries on the way to work!

Mr_Shiftright

OH yeah, hauling 100 lb vats of grease from restaurants and processing it with lye in your garage sounds like so much fun--fortunately, all of us on the commune have plenty of free time!

british_rover

I have have only driven turbo diesel VWs and the older versions of those are pretty bad. I hate to think what a non-turbo diesel VW is like.

Mr_Shiftright

It's...it's......absurd is the only word that comes to mind. It's like driving a moped on a freeway.

Friend of mine got so frustrated with the performance of his VW diesel pickup that he added a turbo....that helped quite a bit but then the engine blew up. No surprise there.