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

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Comments

  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 26,102
    Full leather seat restoration would cost about $5,000 or so.

    Good LORD! And that's more than the purchase price of any car I've ever owned, with the exception of my Intrepid! Before I'd blow $5K, I think I'd be tempted to find an old leather sofa to butcher up. Or go raid a Wilson's Leather or something! :shades:

    Is it hard to re-dye leather? The creme leather seats in my '79 5th Ave are starting to wear in some spots, with brown showing through. Oddly, it's coming in on the passenger side a lot, and it's not that often I carry passengers around in this car. The back seat is almost new, but with roughly 92,000 miles and 28+ years under its belt, the front seats are getting a bit worn. I doubt I'd ever spend the money needed to bring them back up to spec. If they got too bad, I'd probably just try to find something else that fit, from a junkyard or swap meet or something.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    No, dyeing is an affordable option, providing it is well done. There's something of an art to it, and the dye won't look good on leather that has been badly stained of course.

    the problem is that modern leathers kind of suck, compared to pre-war stuff. No, it's not that the cows aren't as good, it's how they treat the leathers these days to get all those colors and shapes. They look great but don't wear all that well if neglected in any way. Having nice original leather on a 10 or 20 year old car is a compliment to the diligence of the owner.
  • qbrozenqbrozen Member Posts: 33,792
    Eh, just buy a tweed cover or something. No big deal.

    '11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S

  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Army blanket...better yet, that black and white cow upholstery and a pair of steer horns is very appropriate for that car.
  • british_roverbritish_rover Member Posts: 8,502
    image

    Is proud of you.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Who IS that? Great character...

    Yep, Cadillac needs to get back to its ROOTS!

    image
  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 26,102
    Oh yeah, I remember him. That was Archie Bunker's boss down at the loading dock, Mr. Sanders. :P
  • stickguystickguy Member Posts: 53,734
    the Rhinestone cowboy was Archies boss?

    The little man in White is of course Boss Hogg from Dukes of Hazard.

    2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.

  • british_roverbritish_rover Member Posts: 8,502
    I was getting worried that no one would know who Boss Hogg was.

    image
  • stevedebistevedebi Member Posts: 4,098
    "I was getting worried that no one would know who Boss Hogg was."

    Doesn't really seem fair to have those Longhorns - I don't think the Dukes were from Texas! I always got the feeling they were in Arkansas or Alabama. The terrain was wrong for most parts of Texas, and the characters were wrong as well. But then it WAS Hollywood, so who knows...

    Not that I ever watched the show or anything :blush:
  • british_roverbritish_rover Member Posts: 8,502
    heheeh way off topic but very funny and mildly inappropriate.

    Signs over Hazzard County
  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 26,102
    Doesn't really seem fair to have those Longhorns - I don't think the Dukes were from Texas! I always got the feeling they were in Arkansas or Alabama.

    The Dukes took place in California. Mostly on a Warner Brothers backlot, but also occasionally at the Big Sky Ranch just over the hill from "Little House on the Prairie" and once in awhile in Soledad Canyon just south of Acton, where they also filmed "Duel", various episodes of Charlies Angles, CHiPs, BJ and the Bear, and a Geico commercial or two. I remember an episode of "V: The Series" where they trashed the Hazzard town set to make it look war-torn. And another episode where a crooked sherrif that was dealing with the Visitors made the Boar's Nest his base camp...although they had a different sign up that said "Desert Dollar" on it or something like that. :P

    Seriously, it was supposed to take place in Georgia. I think the first season, which only had half the normal episodes because it was a mid season replacement, was actually filmed in Georgia, but then they moved it to California for the rest of the run.

    Oh, and yeah, I knew who Boss Hogg was! The actor, Sorrell Brooke, did Play Archie Bunker's boss at the loading dock. The lady that played LuLu Hogg was in an episode too, playing one of Edith's friends that Barney Heffner was trying to shag after his wife Blanche ran off with the mailman, furnance repair man, Jehova's witness, et al one time too many.
  • british_roverbritish_rover Member Posts: 8,502
    Yeah the first season was shot in location in GA but it is very expensive to shoot on location so it wasn't continued.
  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 26,102
    I just realized something. Today is 7-27. Happy Torqueflite Day, everyone! :)
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,621
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Well if that diesel wagon were actually restored and has a warranty, as opposed to gussied-up with a used engine and some soap and water, it might be worth it to someone. Still it seems a large price to pay for a slow, clumsy smelly old thing.

    As for "being kind to the environment", that's pretty catchy but one wonders about the effects of growing crops for bio fuel on world food supplies and the quality of the farmland that grows it. Also the energy spent to produce it.
  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 26,102
    As for "being kind to the environment", that's pretty catchy but one wonders about the effects of growing crops for bio fuel on world food supplies and the quality of the farmland that grows it. Also the energy spent to produce it.


    I dunno how true this is, but I read somewhere that at this point in time, once you factor in production, distribution, etc, that a gallon of Ethanol still ended up using as much oil as a galon of gasoline to produce and get to market. I dunno about biodiesel, though.

    And if nothing else, it's still jacking up food prices as more farmland gets devoted to produce it.

    One thing I've always wondered, what would happen if we tried to back to the horse and buggy days? What kind of effect would that have on pollution? While you wouldn't have automotive emissions, horses have an emission of a whole different variety. Plus, they have to be fed. If everybody in the country swapped their car for a horse, I'd imagine that would put an incredible strain on the food supply.

    In rural areas it might not be so bad, but could you imagine a big city crowded with horses? I imagine the "emissions" would be horrible! I was thinking about that one day while at a friend's house in DC. Most of the houses in this neighborhood have garages that face the alley out back. Although before they were garages, they were stables and carriage houses!
  • lilengineerboylilengineerboy Member Posts: 4,116
    I dunno how true this is, but I read somewhere that at this point in time, once you factor in production, distribution, etc, that a gallon of Ethanol still ended up using as much oil as a galon of gasoline to produce and get to market. I dunno about biodiesel, though.

    US Ethanol - silly (corn-based, hard to grow, cuts into food supply) political move to make it look like the government is trying to do something.

    Central America Ethanol - sugar based, easy to refine/transport reasonable alternative to gasoline (with the exception of a much lower specific energy)

    BioDiesel - soy bean based fuel that is easy to refine, more environmentally friendly both in refining and use than Ethanol, doesn't appreciably cut into food supply (apparently soy beans grow on the moon), easy to transport, etc.

    Things like the greasecar or stuff that runs on post-consumer waste WVO/grease don't count. Making every vehicle in the US run on waste grease from HappyWok isn't going to work.
  • british_roverbritish_rover Member Posts: 8,502
    I agree wit all of that. Corn based ethanol is stupid.

    Brazil has managed to become completely independent of foreign oil by switching to sugar cane based ethanol.

    Also not only is corn based ethanol screwing up our food supply it is disrupting the supply of tequila. I care a lot more about the tequila supply then the food supply. :P

    Mexican farmers torch agave fields to grow corn.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Criminal!! Monstrous!! Call in the Marines!! :cry:
  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 26,102
    I'll second that! Even if ta-kill-ya tends to give me the trots... :shades:
  • british_roverbritish_rover Member Posts: 8,502
    Ah you just need to get the right kind.

    I will drink a top shelf Añejo Tequila on the rocks in a low ball glass. Sometimes I add a little lime juice and sometimes I just drink it straight.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    My local bar makes an awesome top shelf. Two of those and I walk to my studio to sober up before I drive home.
  • british_roverbritish_rover Member Posts: 8,502
    The Mexican place near my dealership makes great margaritas. They are easily the best Mexican food in CT, which sounds like no big deal, but they are probably the second or third best Mexican place I have ever been too. A family that I went to school with down in Virginia owns several Mexican restaurant around Richmond and they are tied neck in neck with this old restaurant I used to go to back in Midland, Texas for the fist place spot.

    Anyway they make a great margarita for me out of Anejo tequila , Grand Mariner, the juice of one fresh lime and one quarter of an orange freshly squeezed.

    A couple of those drinks and you are down.
  • lemkolemko Member Posts: 15,261
    Both Sorell Brooke and Denver Pyle, (Uncle Jessie) were in the classic 1967 film "Bonnie and Clyde." Sorell Brooke played CW's father and Denver Pyle played a Texas Ranger who was cast adrift in a rowboat by Bonnie and Clyde played by Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty.
  • omarmanomarman Member Posts: 2,702
    Sorell Brooke played CW's father.

    It may have been this guy, Dub Taylor, playing the father of C.W. Moss...

    image
    A time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing.
  • lemkolemko Member Posts: 15,261
    Wow, they sure look alike! You're right. Per the IMDb, Dub Taylor played Ivan Moss - CW's father.
  • xwesxxwesx Member Posts: 17,776
    2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 2013 Ford F250 Lariat D, 1976 Ford F250, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100
  • steine13steine13 Member Posts: 2,825
    Yes, quite a while ago. But it's still worth looking at, ain't it? -Mathias
  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 26,102
    Wow, that almost looks like one of the obligatory scenes out of those rural horror movies like Texas Chainsaw, Wrong Turn, Disappearance, From Dusk till Dawn, etc, where a big stockpile of vehicles from decades of victims gets discovered. I wonder where the bodies are? :surprise:
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,621
    Always fun to see those pics...there are fintails, and some misidentified cars too.
  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 26,102
    I dunno what makes the seller think this car has air bags and ABS, but otherwise I think this 1982 Ninety-Eight is a sharp looking car. I love that "Jadestone" color. I think that's about one of my favorite car colors of all time.
  • lemkolemko Member Posts: 15,261
    Nice! I wish they had more pics! Too bad it is all the way in Iowa. It would make a nice replacement for the Park Ave!
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Price seems optimistic by about 20-25%. It would have to be "out of the box" new for that kind of money.
  • andre1969andre1969 Member Posts: 26,102
    Nice! I wish they had more pics! Too bad it is all the way in Iowa. It would make a nice replacement for the Park Ave!

    Yeah, I'd like to see some more pics of it too, especially the interior. The interior on Jadestone cars was done up to match the exterior, although they'd sometimes do the dashboard in a darker green. At least that's how my '82 Cutlass Supreme was, which was that color. I guess they did it that way because GM had a dark jade color around that timeframe too, and they probably didn't want to invest the money on dashboards in two different shades of green.

    Years ago, there was an '82 Ninety-Eight in that same color scheme for sale at a local park-and-sell lot, for like $500. It sat there for a long time. I'd go by that lot on occasion, as their inventory was constantly changing, and one day I saw a huge puddle of antifreeze under it. Then, one time I saw it sitting with all four windows rolled down, and I think it stayed that way for several weeks. I guess it finally got sent off to the junkyard. It was kind of a shame to see a once majestic beast like that laid so low, but nothing lasts forever.
  • xwesxxwesx Member Posts: 17,776
    Hahaha.... that is what I was thinking, Andre. It looks quite amazing, but do not open the trunks! ;)
    2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 2013 Ford F250 Lariat D, 1976 Ford F250, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100
  • jlflemmonsjlflemmons Member Posts: 2,242
    That '82 is also a RWD, not FWD as the ad states. It almost makes one wonder if the picture and the ad don't match?
  • stevedebistevedebi Member Posts: 4,098
    "That '82 is also a RWD, not FWD as the ad states. It almost makes one wonder if the picture and the ad don't match?"

    Or the picture and the ad and someone's brain don't match... :surprise:
  • steine13steine13 Member Posts: 2,825
    I like the car, and it would be a cool vehicle for any ex-pat German.

    But I don't get it... if it was done right, the rebuild, the new cooling system etc... the price is too low.

    OTOH, there isn't much room upward on the price... these old tanks aren't worth a lot. I'd feel better with an original drivetrain, well maintained. Miles, schmiles, these things last.

    I decided years ago to "never" buy a car with a rebuilt engine or transmissino, unless I knew who did it.

    -Mathias
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,621
    Yeah, I thought the same thing. Even that engine, which wasn't the finest MB ever made, shouldn't be shot at 135K. I would really want to know who did the work, and see records.

    Still, it looks decent, and has Euro features (highline velour interior too), so it is of minor interest to a MB enthusiast.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    It's European car, the kiss of death here in the States. This is a significant deduction in value. But anyway, the price is just about market correct for any old Benz sedan from the 80s. The well-to-do don't want them, and those who are shopping them can only write a check for just so much $$$. Loans are impossible to get for cars this old, pretty much, unless you do a local lot "mouse house" at very high rates (basically back door loan-sharking)....so Euro specs, punishing repair costs and budget-minded buyer base all add up to $3,500.
  • steine13steine13 Member Posts: 2,825
    ...so Euro specs, punishing repair costs and budget-minded buyer base all add up to $3,500.

    Right, I'm with you on all that.

    I just don't see how a halfway decent engine rebuild figures into this. If the engine was shot, it would have been smarter to just junk the car.

    Put another way, I'm not questioning the value of the car, I'm only suspicious of the quality of the work, given the amount of money available.

    -Mathias
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Oh, I see what you're saying. Well sure, if Uncle Fred did it in his backyard, you can just forget it; otherwise, a repair order from a decent garage should be assurance enough.

    People are always sinking money foolishly into old cars. They get caught in the trap of "oh, if I just rebuild the engine, why these Benzes run FOREVER"

    Point is, anything runs forever if you keep pouring money into it. When you see these old Benzes with shiny paint and 250K on the clock, it's not only a testament to the car's quality, it is also a testament to the large # of dollars that preserved the car you see before you.

    When you have an 80s GM Ford or Chrysler, you can go to KRAGEN and get a $49 alternator. You can't do that with a Benz. And Uncle Fred can do a valve job on your Camaro in the backyard. He can probably lap in new valves by HAND and buy a gasket set for $9. But you'll never get away with that on a Benz.
  • qbrozenqbrozen Member Posts: 33,792
    also keep in mind that "rebuilt engine" rarely means the engine has been rebuilt. You start asking questions and find out it got a new head gasket and valve seats, end of story.

    '11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S

  • qbrozenqbrozen Member Posts: 33,792
    saw an ad in the local auto shopper this morning that gave me a good laugh.

    from memory:
    '89 Jaguar XJS. 90k miles. Good mechanical condition. New brakes and tires. Free XJ6 included. $5500.

    '11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S

  • hpmctorquehpmctorque Member Posts: 4,600
    "...When you have an 80s GM Ford or Chrysler, you can go to KRAGEN and get a $49 alternator. You can't do that with a Benz."

    It's too bad that a lower cost aftermarket doesn't exist for old Benz parts, and frustrating, I might add, because they'd be such desirable cars to own if maintenance and repair costs were more reasonable. Yet, you still see a lot of old Benzes and BMWs on the road. Maybe the number of 20+ year old Benzes and Beemers in circulation is comparable, relative to the numbers produced, as American and Japanese luxury cars, but it seems greater. Has anyone seen any stats on scrappage rates for various brands, to support or deny the accuracy of my perception?
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,621
    I remember something out of Canada several years ago that had MB leading in survival rates for cars from something like 1985-1995, at something like 90%, but I don't recall more.
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