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

ab348

I remember that Olds 98 on eBay from a dozen years ago. It was nice but not perfect, and the guy wanted close to perfect money. I wonder where it is now. The Lincoln is nice but has lots of miles and the price is insane.

Mr_Shiftright

$4200--$4500 is probably all the money for the '85 Lincoln if the auction went really well. I'd offer maybe $2800 and flip it for $500--$750.

Oh, AMG "package"---that makes it more palatable. Okay, $6500 if it was really nice.

explorerx4

Back in 1985 Fords uprated engines had a dual snorkel inlet air and dual exhaust pipes.
Did anyone notice the little spring clips holding the lower rear fender plastic trim to the rear bumper? Probably not original.

tjc78

Actually the springs are original. My 89 LTC had them.

qbrozen

If you love something that much, you shouldn't be selling it.

But, at that price, I guess he isn't.

tjc78

Exactly, I don't get it. The funny thing is I've seen practically new in wrapper late 80s LTC sell for a third of that. Maybe his wife is forcing him to sell.....

fintail

I'd pay $6500 for a minty AMG trimmed W126. That car would bring 10K Euro at home, easy - if it sold for that money, it just might go back - there's room for a little profit in it.

fintail

That could be it. Reminds me of a friend who's father has a 78 Town Coupe, something like 25K miles - survivor condition (small flaws here and there). Her mother doesn't like it it, but her father can't let it go, even though he never drives it (not an original owner, just an older guy who likes Lincoln barges). Several months ago, her mother demanded he finally sell the car I posted it here once - he put like $7K on it, no bites - so he got to tell her "they just aren't selling right now" or something - and he keeps the car.

fortee9er

MB junhyards? Please tell me where are they. It took me a year t find a front bumper assembly for my '04 CL500.

Mr_Shiftright

http://www.silverstardismantlers.com/

http://www.a-german.com/

http://www.online-mercedes.com/index.php

http://car-part.com/

http://europeanautorecycling.com/

fortee9er

Thanks

fintail

Had my project car out on the road today, maybe 50 miles of highway driving, half of it in warm (for the PNW) 80F weather. Good news - the radiator recore/rebuild worked - hard driving, hills, temperature gauge never went out of the normal range. I'm happy I can drive it on the highway again. Bad news - received an email from the place where I ordered the chrome trim clips - even though they list them as orderable inventory, they can't source them after all. Someone at the MB show today gave me the name of a dealer who has an in with the classic center, and he says they can get it. My repaired clip is holding up anyway.

gsemike

http://newyork.craigslist.org/fct/cto/3995698858.html

Don't even remember these. Must have been a big deal when new but not sure what it's worth now

Mr_Shiftright

Hard to value---neither much known nor much loved except by a few diehards. Even at a $23,000 asking price, that's less than original MSRP of $25,000 (Now you know why it's "rare"--nobody bought them--sort of greeted with a big yawn)

Anyway, the asking price is not so good for a 33 year old "collectible" if it can't even break 1980 selling price.

I'd probably price it against an SVO hatchback (which it essentially is) and then add a bit for unique bodywork and rarity.

I'd guess it's worth about 1/2 of the asking price right now. That might change as time goes on, who knows?

Odd duck. It seems to sit on the old car "curiousity shelf".

gsemike

http://newyork.craigslist.org/que/cto/3985852906.html

This has to be a joke

Mr_Shiftright

a "chop" done by ACC in Beverly Hills for $11,000 extra.

Carosserie Le Chainsaw

Not Factory = No Value

I'd price this one against a clean "Paris" Deville coupe and leave it at that.

I saw a a chop on eBay, in "fair" to "good" condition, that brought a whoppin' $4,500. It was professionally custom built for Cincinatti Reds promotion events.

explorerx4

Been driving the Mustang on longer and longer drives since I picked it up last Friday.
It's running, although i was kind of worried about the transmission, because it was shifting differently that it ever had before.
The more I drove it, the more normal it became, although that's not all good news.
Idle was still fluttery at times, but since I ran the old tank of gas down and filled it with fresh fuel, it seems better. I'll need to drive it some more to verify.

tjc78

Auto? If so, have you replaced the TV bushing? If not have your mechanic swap it out to the brass one. The plastic one gets brittle and fails. When that happens the cable slips off and the transmission does all sorts of crazy things. If you drive it too far, you can destroy the transmission.

fintail

On a little road trip right now, have seen a few oddities, most noteworthy a 64 Country Sedan that's in my hotel parking lot right now. CA plates, original condition with lots of "patina"/age...I don't know what's in it, but I could see it has a 4 on the floor.

lemko

Nice car, (at least from the pictures) but 108K+ miles and $24K is definitely a no-go! I don't even know if the car would be worth $24K with an incredibly low 8K miles and was in flawless condition; maybe to a die-hard Town Car afficianado.

lemko

I don't think my wife would DARE make me sell my 1989 Cadillac Brougham! She would be gone long before the car was if she made such a suggestion!

lemko

Ugh! That is frustrating! I remember needing a part for my Brougham and I had to write a dealership in Wyoming that had the only remaining part in inventory. The parts guy was a nice friendly person who sent me a nicely worded letter with the part.

lemko

He wants $100K for the car and can't even post decent pictures? From what I see, the car isn't even worth $10K. I thought it was a typo, but he actually spelled it out "one hundred thousand dollars." That car probably twists like a pipe cleaner in a hurricane. The man is doing some hard-core drugs or is seriously delusional.

This reminds me of a recent experience. Andre1969 and I were at the Carlisle GM Nationals in June. A guy in the car corral was trying to sell a 1978 Cadillac Eldorado that looked like it was sitting at the bottom of the Hudson River for 30 years for something like $4,500. It didn't have the proper engine, then interior was wiped-out, the body was perforated with rust everywhere, and all the plastic filler panels were gone. We were cordial, but it took Oscar-worthy acting skills not to burst out laughing or tell him how delusional he was.

lemmer

But I figured Shifty and Fintail could nail the value of this car better than anyone else.

2005 C55 AMG with 39K. Supposing it checks out, what is it worth?

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=35242&endYear=2- 014&showcaseOwnerId=43077378&startYear=1981&makeCode1=MB&engineCodes=8CLDR&engin- eCode=8CLDR&searchRadius=75&maxPrice=20000&mmt=%5BMB%5B%5D%5B%5D%5D&listingId=34- 3680763&listingIndex=9&Log=0

Plus, would it kill me in maintenance? Do the motors explode at 100K? Anything else like that I need to know?

Mr_Shiftright

Well miles are good, price is "asking". Autotrader has 36 examples with an average asking price of $18.3K, so figure 5%-10% off that should put you in a "fair price for buyer, fair price for seller".

Edmunds says $16K for an exceptional car with no excuses, which seems a little bit light, depending on where you live. Car doesn't have NAV and some other goodies, so....

I'd say between $16K--$17.5K for an exceptional pristine car.

berri

When I was growing up there were several big time Ford fanatics in our neighborhood. They both claimed that the 64's and 55's were exceptionally reliable cars. I don't really know. I liked the dash on the 56 and the overall looks of the 63 better, but I think they were were fairly similar otherwise. I always thought the 64 country sedan was a pretty clean looking vehicle for it's time though.

qbrozen

Manheim is not much help here.

05/09/13 PA Regular $17,100 53,475 Above GREY 8G P Yes
05/07/13 ST LOUIS Regular $13,000 87,324 Avg BLACK 8G A Yes
05/08/13 CALIFORN Regular $13,000 88,478 Avg SILVER 8G A Yes

But I'm thinking the asking price ain't that bad. I'd be a bit more comfortable at $19k.

I had an eye out for these for a little while, but reading up on the fuel mileage brought me back down to earth.

texases

"I had an eye out for these for a little while, but reading up on the fuel mileage brought me back down to earth. "

I was surprised when Audi/BMW/MB started cramming their big v8s into their smallest (in the US) cars. So much for the 'Big 3' making the gas hogs...

steine13

30 mile Vanagon pickup

What is it that Shifty says about buying ultra-low mileage cars?
Can't drive them anywhere?

Also, where did the Help buttons go that let you shorten a link? I do this about twice a year so I can't remember the html code... here's the long version:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Volkswagen-Bus-Vanagon-TRISTAR-TRISTAR-VW-VANAGON- -SYNCRO-4-WHEEL-DRIVE-DOKA-DOUBLE-CAB-30-ORIGINAL-/321184010172?pt=US_Cars_Truck- s&hash=item4ac80f0fbc&vxp=mtr

Cheers -Mathias

stickguy

I think it is cool. and would have no interest in paying that much for it. Now, if it was a decent condition used one for cheap, what the heck!

but man, the owner claims to have paid 82K for it! And I thought the current bid of 31K was outrageous.

Mr_Shiftright

Oh well it's a 4X4 "synchro" and a rare crew cab so this is like crack cocaine to a VW bus nut. Added to that you get double bragging rights at the Annual California Hippy Days VW VANATHON and Tie-Dye Competition, for having low low mileage.

To a VW van owner playing one-upsmanship, this is like a stack of extra aces up your sleeve. Nobody can trump you.

This is, in effect, VAN-halla.

fintail

Really rare color for a C55. No special toys on it (no mention of nav,I don't see parktronic etc). It's a mid-high teens car. Powertrain will be solid but a W203 can have electrical glitches. I like the color.

fintail

And my car is another 25 years older. If worst comes to worse, I am going to visit a high end body shop I know, and see if they can make a substitute.

fintail

I looked over the wagon, steering column was weird/looked modified, so the 4 speed is probably not stock.

I like the 63 over 64 too, but the wagons are cool with the curved rear glass.

Mr_Shiftright

AMG cars don't seem to age well in terms of resale value either.

fintail

The rate is likely higher than a standard car as MSRPs are so bloated. They do hit an eventual floor.

ab348

Have you tried Restoration Specialities?

http://www.restorationspecialties.com/Products.html

qbrozen

That's really cool and I'd really love to have it ... but not at that price. And at $82k? I hope that's not USD! I just can't imagine paying that kind of money for it. There are so many far far more interesting vehicles in the world for far far less money.

omarman

Save the petrol blue whale?
Looks kinda nice in that color but since it's a euro version I wonder if petrol blue was even offered in N.A. market?

texases

" Gives about 20mpg"

Ya think?

Mr_Shiftright

yeah...."about" 20 mpg. Approximately. You know, between 12-20, somewhere in there....

Actually it seems like a very nice car. Should be worth about $3,000--$3,200.

tjc78

That color is actually kind of nice! The wheels look like something off a late 90s Crown Vic or Grand Marquis.

gsemike

Cars on LI for under $5k

http://longisland.craigslist.org/cto/4000899854.html Looks fine but what does 'true miles unknown so don't ask' mean?

http://longisland.craigslist.org/cto/3995617723.html 94 E320

http://longisland.craigslist.org/cto/4014278868.html S80 looks clean except for the armrest

http://longisland.craigslist.org/ctd/3999931176.html Almost looks clean but what happened to the bed?

http://longisland.craigslist.org/cto/3975549815.html Not saving enough to deal with a salvage title. Surprising to see a moonroof in such a base car

http://longisland.craigslist.org/cto/4014312229.html The epitomy of beauty

http://longisland.craigslist.org/ctd/4014183667.html I kind of forgot that these existed

Pickings are a little better than I expected here

fintail

"so don't ask" means "run away".

A white MB with a blue interior, you don't see em like that anymore. Wheels are incorrect for the year, which is worrisome - but it's cheap.

I bet a tree or sign fell on the pickup. And if that Lexus is "mint", I need to take my fintail to a concours.

andre1969

Whenever I see a pickup with a dent in the bed like that, it reminds me of the movie "Twister", when a telephone pole fell across the bed of the Ram.

Mr_Shiftright

01 Civic---the word "tranny" in an ad always makes me cringe...next thing I expect to hear is "yeah, and then I rolled the pickup".

1984 Mercedes E 320 -- looks a bit rough in the interior (what was mom DOING in that car?) , but price is about right. You can pick up clean 97-98s for around $3500 or so.

97 Mazda--- 4 cyl auto isn't that great a "work truck" and that dent would probably mean a "total". a bit pricey---try $1500.

The Epitomy of Beauty (lol) ---and here I thought it was the Parthenon...

SPEEDWAY MOTORS! Bad credit? No problem! Do you have furniture in your house? Are you legally dead? WE DON'T CARE. Buy here, pay here! No one turned down!

xwesx

The Epitomy of Beauty (lol) ---and here I thought it was the Parthenon...

Hey, it's your "bream" car, so what do you have to worry about?!

Funny enough, on that B4000 pickup, the seller asks "1,500 OBO" in the ad itself, but has it listed for 2,100. /facepalm

fintail

I remember seeing Twister at the drive in with a childhood friend, who was then driving an 81 Skylark that his dad bought for him out of an estate. It was a pretty dark blue on dark blue sedan, and it was well equipped. It had like 20K miles on it - sadly, the kid and his brother slowly destroyed it.

andre1969

Wow, that's really cool being able to see it at a drive-in. Especially, considering that drive-in scene they had where "The Shining" was playing!

Kinda sad to hear about that '81 Skylark. Even though it's hardly a collectible, or even a standout automobile, I just think it's sad when a nice, well-preserved car gets subjected to death by a thousand cuts like that.

fintail

It was a fun coincidence. I remember that time - summer of 96, really well. Seems like yesterday and a million years ago, both at once.

The Buick was a loaded model - pimpy velour interior, power everything, I think it even had a tape player. I think by the time the kids had it a couple years, they had blown it up. I remember one of the brothers went into the army, bought a new Mustang (ca. 1999), and totaled it within 6 months. Bad fate for the Buick. I felt kind of sorry for it, it survived pristine for awhile, but was given a death sentence by kids. But, they can't all be saved, especially as I was a student at the time using the fintail as a daily driver and project car both.

Speaking of ruining nice old cars, in the late 80s, a young female relative was gifted old cars by family - one a 1970 Ford Custom 500 (or maybe a Galaxie, but not an LTD) sedan, and one a 1978 Versailles. Both were nice cars, the Lincoln especially - I thought it was gorgeous, with nice leather and moonroof etc. She killed both cars within a year of receiving them.