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

fintail

170 hp from 400 cubes....that's like 6.5 litres I think. Huge engine mileage with small engine power. This makes me happy about technology and how things have advanced. My car has 50% more power with a third less displacement, and certainly better mileage.

Mr_Shiftright

Well if they can sell "brand new" ripped jeans why not junked out new model cars?

Some people find old decaying cars rather romantic but generally I have a more adverse reaction---if it was a nice and valuable car, I'm thinking that some dummy just let it rot out of laziness or greed, and if it's a worthless old car I wonder why they don't clean up their front yard.

ghulet

....is actually a pretty good deal. '70s wagons are pretty hard to find, what with most of them having gone to the crusher twenty years or so ago and many of the 'survivors' going to the derbies; hopefully this one won't end up there, but at $500, I wouldn't be surprised.

This, on the other hand, is definitely not a 'good deal'.

http://chicago.craigslist.org/car/107520252.html

'Runs but needs head gaskets'? And if that's replaced, we'll hope for a good rain and about six strong people to push it out of the foot or so of earth in which it's buried! That would be a $900 car if it didn't need the head gasket and were on solid ground. The interior looks nice, anyway.

fintail

I was thinking the same thing. Unless a real GM nut rescues that wagon, it's off to the demo derby.

That Caddy is a $90 parts car.

fintail

Cheaper Impala

I am sure the T market is deflating

Now here's a 2002

fintail

I want to like this, or maybe I just feel sorry for it

Mr_Shiftright

Parts are impossible or nearly so. Still you could buy it and SELL parts off it and probably make some money if you are patient. Not worth fixing up.

british_rover

I wonder what year M3 motor they put in that 2002. I would imagine just about any one of those engines would over power that chassis.

Mr_Shiftright

No kidding, and I hope they rebuilt it. M3 motors don't last all that long, they seem to fatigue quickly. Maybe because people thrash them or perhaps because they are somewhat stressed.

I don't think it would be too hard to get proper tires on that 2002/M3, but what it really needs is wayyyyy better brakes before anything else is done to it.

It would be fun though even if you scared yourself a lot. :P

stickguy

Given the size of the engine (physical), maybe they just went with the early 4 cyl. version? That wouldn't be too powerful for the chassis, certainly not too torquey!

I think it looked neat. Probably a lot of fun, and no more scary than a FrankenPorsche.

jrosasmc

When discussing M3 motors here are we talking about the E30 models (1988-91) or the E36 (1995-99)?

gsemike

How much would you offer for this and how much more would you offer for it if he washed it?

1987 Olds 442

stickguy

Well, just based on the problems I can see from the crappy pictures, it is ready for the bone yard. Not possible to save unless ou want to be so far underwater you will need a periscope to see daylight.

gsemike

These cars in sweet shape command 5 or 6 grand. Unless you completely just want to tinker and maybe have a nicely built small block sitting in your garage looking for a home, there no point taking this thing off this guy's hands at any price.

I just think it's funny when you see ads that state "don't go by the pics, the car is filthy and looks awful". Well, duh... clean it up.

british_rover

I agree they probably used the E30 4 cyl M3 motor and not the 6 cyl one since I doubt it would fit.

That motor is probably the least civilized of the M3 family though since those cars were the closes M3 to a pure race car sold for street driving.

lemmer

When the early M3s were new, I remember reading articles stating that a 325is was almost just as fun to drive and it was a far better car overall. It seems like the M3 would be far more expensive to buy and keep running, but some people have bestowed them with some sort of legendary status. Kinda like the Hemi v. Wedgie thing with Mopars.

lemmer

This BMW is being relisted, and it is getting really cheap. I am so tempted.

Nice little old Plymouth.

Pimped out Fiat - what an odd phrase.

fintail

That old 6 series is nice looking

The Fiat owner has a sense of humor nobody else will pay for

qbrozen

tempted? really? 180K miles, cheap cover on the driver's seat, cracked dash, etc, etc ... and a $4k reserve! We definitely have different ideas of what a good buy is for $4k!

stickguy

I love these cars, but wouldn't touch that one. Not that I could even register it in NJ with a gutted out cat converter.

A nice one probably isn't that much more, but if you live where there aren't any emissions test (Bama, right?), and you go in with your eyes open, you really aren't risking a lot of money for potentially a lot of fun. Just make sure you can afford to lose the investment, and try not to make it a daily driver you depend on.

stickguy

that thing is hysterical. And that guy is going to take a huge bath, unless he did all the work himself.

lemmer

That is the thing. I am not going to buy a 2-door sedan with an automatic as a fun car. I am also not going to buy an old BMW with 180,000 miles as a daily driver. That might be why the guy is having trouble selling it.

By the way, before people call me an idiot about 2-door sedans:

Main Entry: se·dan
Pronunciation: si-'dan
Function: noun
a 2- or 4-door automobile seating 4 or more persons and usually having a permanent top

My rule of thumb is if you can't tell if it is a 2 or 4 door from a silouhette, it is a sedan.

Mr_Shiftright

Whatever a junkyard would pay him.

lemmer

If you are going to pimp it out that much, how about a little more power. A new cam isn't going to compensate for all of the extra weight of the electronics, bigger wheels, etc. I assume the thing was no "bahn burner" in stock form.

I know the car is Italian, but I just like saying "bahn burner." In the '80s, that term appeared at least twice in every issue of Motor Trend, Car & Driver, and R&T. Kinda like now, nothing is old technology; it is "antediluvian," and cars don't have wheels and/or tires; they have "rolling stock." Is there some kind of car magazine thesaurus that every writer is forced to use?

Mr_Shiftright

"known to go 300K"

Known by whom? That's a pretty fanciful statement. Case in point, go to a Bimmer wrecking yard and read the odometers. You won't see any with 300K I'll wager.

180K?? Car could be very tired----but if it tests out all right, might be worth $3,500 but really more like $2,500. The automatic 6s are kind of dogs and they suck a lot of gas but in spite of his hyperbole he is right, they are nice cruising cars. I don't know where he got the impression that they were fast however---well, compared to what I guess.

Missing catalytic is a big minus, that'll screw you in many states. At least you'll have to buy a spare one to keep in the garage so that you can sell the damn car if you don't like it.

Might be an okay car if you can get the price down more. It's not nice enough for $4K, not at all.

andre1969

is a relative term I guess. I have an old 1985 Consumer Guide car book, and they tested a 6-series coupe. I think it had 182 hp, and I know the one they tested was a stick. It was one of the fastest cars from 0-60 in that book. I can't remember the time, though. For the most part, that book tested ordinary family cars, economy cars, and stuff like that, and by and large the most exotic you'd see in that book was a Mustang GT, Mark VII LSC, or a Camaro IROC. They did have a Jag XJ-S in it, though.

How bad would the automatic hurt performance, versus the stick?

lemko

I had the station wagon version of that 1968 Buick Skylark in that same color with a white roof. The interior of that car is also similar to my old car.

Mr_Shiftright

It's probably an 8 second car, 0-60 and maybe 9 seconds with an automatic. For its size, fairly spritely but most modern Japanese 4-door sedans would easily keep up.

The one you want is the M88 Euro motor with 4 valves and 288 HP.

Also driving those big Bimmer coupes with a stick shift is a real chore. It's a GT car, not a sports car.

lemmer

wrecked S2000

I don't think there is any way to come out ahead on a late model salvage car unless you are dishonest or value your labor at zero.

Mr_Shiftright

junkyard...it's just a Honda, so if you want one just go buy a new or used one anytime, anywhere. Why do things the hard way when the easy way is so easy?

fintail

"good Investment", " this BMW will keep going up in value"
Nice color though

Crumple zones work

stickguy

at least they hit the right end of the Volvo. All the good stuff on the Honda is up front.

Wonder if the S2000 engine is OK? Hard to tell with all the stuff stripped off. Nice 2X6 though holding up the hood (wonder if it is included?)

Not even sure if that engine can be used in any other application, unlike trading the FWD engines between cars.

Nice car though. My BIL has a first year model in silver/red. He loves it.

rorr

"Not even sure if that engine can be used in any other application...."

Makes a dandy donor drivetrain for a Lotus 7.....

lemmer

That BMW will likely increase in value about 2.5% a year as long as he spends $100-$200 in maintenance.

1racefan

This will make a lot of loyalists cringe, but I wonder if that drivetrain would fit in a Miata?

andre1969

for seat comfort? I know German cars tend to have seats that are firmer, but more supportive and contoured so that in a quick sit they might not feel comfortable, but on a long trip you'd appreciate it. However, the seats in that 320 look like backbreakers to me! The bottom cushion looks like they just stretched some vinyl over a board or something.

jrosasmc

As far as I could tell older Saabs and Volvos had the most comfortable front seats I ever sat in. I think they matched the comfort of the much larger Cadillacs as well.

fintail

I had a friend with an old Volvo 240 - big squashy bucket seats, not bad at all. Similar to the fintail.

Fintail seats

qbrozen

Hmmmm... wonder if it would fit in an '86 alfa spider.

certainly not worth $10k to buy a donor car, though.

jrosasmc

How is your C36 in terms of ride and seat comfort on extended highway trips?

fintail

C43...and it's actually quite good. At first I didn't like the seats, they were very tight and conforming compared to the 126, they hold you in. In the 126, it was like I had several inches of extra room like on the sides of my legs and hips. You could really move around in the seat. But now I am used to it, and find the support comfortable. They also have air-filled lumbar support, which can make them even tighter.

The ride itself is a lot harsher than the 126 in town, but is fine on the highway. Funny thing...when I had the fintail and the 126, the 126 was so smooth and relaxed, and the fintail loud and rough. Now the fintail is smooth and floaty, and the C43 much more taut.

andre1969

I'd consider this bright green beast It actually doesn't look THAT bad, either. The rear quarters are pretty bad around the rear wheels, and the rear bumper has had it, but the rest doesn't look too bad. I really have to wonder though, what the seller is smoking to make him think a '76 Delta is going to get 18-25 mpg! :surprise: If I were to take a wild guess, I'd venture to say you might get 16 on the highway IF you kept your foot out of it!

This isn't the first time I've seen some kind of ridiculous mileage claim for an old car, though. Just surfing through eBay I also found a '76 Chrysler Cordoba with a 360-4bbl that supposedly gets 19-24 mpg! Yeah, right.

lemmer

Looks pretty rusty to me, and a little too green for my tastes.

escalade2007

:sick:

lemmer

Nice old Corona.

It was a long road from this to the Titan.

How many times a day do people tell him that he misspelled rotary?

My Mom had one of these GLCs, but it was the Sport model.

Time warp Civic.

Mr_Shiftright

Darn, I'd buy that Datsun pickup if it was closer.

Old Japanese cars---somebody needs to tell these people that 99% of old Japanese cars aren't worth anything. They are all priced 100% over what they are worth it seems (or more). Well, let eBay teach 'em then.

au94

anybody else find it odd that 3 of these were automatics? I though most of the early imports were sticks.

lemmer

I didn't even really notice as they aren't sporty cars, but I can only imagine that automatics would make these cars miserable to drive. I remember clearly that the GLC was plenty slow even with a manual.

jrosasmc

You really would buy that '68 Datsun truck? I thought you weren't too fond of older Japanese imports! :P

Mr_Shiftright

Well it's just to USE...like a shovel or a rake or something. I wouldn't have to love it.

Eckually I am in fact very fond of a few old Japanese imports, like the Datsun 510 coupe, and the RX-4 wagon (of ALL things Shifty!)