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

stickguy

That is quick service. And should make for a fun weekend!

qbrozen

And I happen to be off next week for kids' spring break.

Lots of garage cleaning to do, though.
And deciding what to do with the Volvo. I figured I'd just donate it, but wife wants me to sell it. I'm not sure I see a point to that. If I donate, I'll write off $2500, maybe $3k on our taxes, which means ~$600 tax benefit. If I sell, I guess I'd ask $1500 and take $1k just to be done with it. It runs great, but no AC, PS leaks, rides pretty lousy (sport springs were apparently a bad idea), and the ABS light is on (broken wheel sensor). Is it really worth $400 to go through the trouble?

stickguy

Take the family on a nice vacation. A week in burn out city!

xwesx

qbrozen said:

And I happen to be off next week for kids' spring break.

Lots of garage cleaning to do, though.
And deciding what to do with the Volvo. I figured I'd just donate it, but wife wants me to sell it. I'm not sure I see a point to that. If I donate, I'll write off $2500, maybe $3k on our taxes, which means ~$600 tax benefit. If I sell, I guess I'd ask $1500 and take $1k just to be done with it. It runs great, but no AC, PS leaks, rides pretty lousy (sport springs were apparently a bad idea), and the ABS light is on (broken wheel sensor). Is it really worth $400 to go through the trouble?

Not really, no.

Perhaps throw it on CL for a week or two to see if there is anyone that really wants it in a hurry. At the end of that time, donate it if it is still sitting in the driveway. That way, if she's not comfortable with donating it, you can at least say that you gave the sale a try.

stickguy

I thought that the donate rules changed. You can only deduct what the charity sells it for.

qbrozen

Huh. Well, that would suck. Then again, why start telling the truth on my taxes now?

Mr_Shiftright

stickguy said:

I thought that the donate rules changed. You can only deduct what the charity sells it for.

That is correct...UNLESS...the charity actually uses it for....I think...one year. Otherwise, the charity sells it and reports the sale to the IRS--and that's all you get.

stickguy

Donate to local FD to use for jaws of life practice. Will eliminate any resale issues.

qbrozen

Ordered my first part already. One of those stereos that looks stock but has modern guts and capabilities. It was on sale.

Michaell

qbrozen said:

Ordered my first part already. One of those stereos that looks stock but has modern guts and capabilities. It was on sale.

Let the spending commence!

xwesx

qbrozen said:

Ordered my first part already. One of those stereos that looks stock but has modern guts and capabilities. It was on sale.

You'll have to get big speakers to go with it.... and an amplifier.... so you can actually hear the music while you're driving down the road. LOL

explorerx4

Good or bad? Sure looks nice.
https://charlotte.craigslist.org/cto/6037480165.html

Mr_Shiftright

Not too far off the mark for value. I'd offer $6K if it's nice but if it's super nice maybe it's worth it at asking price. These are hard to find in any kind of decent condition, and it will be a pain to keep up, but they are really fun to drive. The 1984-86 versions are better cars in every way and would be the one to have.

Very competent, fun car--just a hoot to drive and a unique experience/introduction to Alfa Romeo.

qbrozen

Glad you didn't find that earlier. I may have been tempted. From what I have seen, really nice ones have been going up. Well, at least the asking prices have. I have seen 5-digit asking prices.

tjc78

Do they have those retro radios with Bluetooth or Aux input?  That would be really cool in a classic 

fintail

I had the year-correct Becker Europa in the fintail rebuilt several years ago. They were able to add an aux port hidden at rear for a small fee - apparently it is a small job on these 50+ year old radios, must have been modern.

Mr_Shiftright

qbrozen said:

Glad you didn't find that earlier. I may have been tempted. From what I have seen, really nice ones have been going up. Well, at least the asking prices have. I have seen 5-digit asking prices.

Here's a really spectacular one that friends of mine are selling:

http://fantasyjunction.com/cars/1965-Alfa Romeo-GTV6-2.5 liter Inline 6-Cylinder

You need to have access to a good Alfa mechanic and a good parts source before pulling the trigger on these.

qbrozen

tjc78 said:

Do they have those retro radios with Bluetooth or Aux input?  That would be really cool in a classic 

Yup. The one I ordered has BT, aux input, USB, and even subwoofer and line outs. 

http://www.classicindustries.com/product/mopar/parts/rk6367.html

qbrozen

Mr_Shiftright said:

Glad you didn't find that earlier. I may have been tempted. From what I have seen, really nice ones have been going up. Well, at least the asking prices have. I have seen 5-digit asking prices.

Here's a really spectacular one that friends of mine are selling: http://fantasyjunction.com/cars/1965-Alfa Romeo-GTV6-2.5 liter Inline 6-Cylinder You need to have access to a good Alfa mechanic and a good parts source before pulling the trigger on these.

Wow. 20 large is new territory.

omarman

Beautiful '86 GTV6 even though the link appears to point to a '65 Alfa with an "inline 6." (Which would be a 2600?) And the ad itself describes a "2.5 liter Inline 6-Cylinder" at the top. Not just the usual slant 6/V6 wonky ad copy because...it's the Busso developed Alfa Romeo V6. Which is the only reason why you want the punishment/reward of owning an Alfa Romeo GTV6 to begin with. And V6 is part of the car's name.

Then I watched a 30 second video of a snarling, backfiring Autodelta GTV8 replica and felt much better.I watched this video 4 times.. It's like a drug.

Mr_Shiftright

omarman said:

Beautiful '86 GTV6 even though the link appears to point to a '65 Alfa with an "inline 6." (Which would be a 2600?) And the ad itself describes a "2.5 liter Inline 6-Cylinder" at the top. Not just the usual slant 6/V6 wonky ad copy because...it's the Busso developed Alfa Romeo V6. Which is the only reason why you want the punishment/reward of owning an Alfa Romeo GTV6 to begin with. And V6 is part of the car's name.

Then I watched a 30 second video of a snarling, backfiring Autodelta GTV8 replica and felt much better.I watched this video 4 times.. It's like a drug.

Just a typo in data entry I'm sure. These guys know the difference! I'll tell them.

Well looks like they sold it. I'll have to ask what they got for it. I'm sure there was some wiggle room in that price.

Mr_Shiftright

Groovy ride. Could be fun:

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/cto/6075396475.html

Super nice engine job and I like the way the truck sits.

stickguy

I actually like that one. Price seem fair enough. Would like to see a few interior shots though. I do like the engine choice. Better than jamming in a V8. That thing is probably scary enough with a basic 6.

ab348

Infamous GM promo video screencap of an Econoline in a panic stop:



In fairness I imagine all those first-gen 1960s van pickups were similar. Earlier this week I was at a car customizing shop where they were converting a '68 Dodge van into a shop pickup. Those were all very scary to drive. As Jay Leno said, "In a head-on collision, you would be the first one on the scene."

xwesx

Best not to (actively) think about those scenarios while driving one.

xwesx

I was browsing through this month's newsletter from RockAuto, and they featured a '76 MGB in at the bottom. There's only a brief writeup on these monthly features, but I thought this one might be discussion-worthy here.

Mr_Shiftright

He's practically made a new car out of it--got rid of the ugly rubber bumpers, changed the suspension and the entire stance of the car, as well as the powerplant, of course. There's very little '76 MGB left in there.

Nice job btw.

isellhondas

ab348 said:

Infamous GM promo video screencap of an Econoline in a panic stop:



In fairness I imagine all those first-gen 1960s van pickups were similar. Earlier this week I was at a car customizing shop where they were converting a '68 Dodge van into a shop pickup. Those were all very scary to drive. As Jay Leno said, "In a head-on collision, you would be the first one on the scene."

Anyone remember a famous wheel standing truck from the 60's? The Back Up Pick Up?

Reminds me of that. Like the Hemi Under Glass!

explorerx4

@isell here you go. Hemi under Glass
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=jay+leno+hemi+under+glass+crash&view=detail&mid=ACE9CA47023CE6A2E4A7ACE9CA47023CE6A2E4A7&FORM=VIRE

isellhondas

Yep, that's the one although the 1st Gen Barracudas were the first of these.

I'll bet that got Leno's attention BIG TIME!

stickguy

Mr_Shiftright said:

He's practically made a new car out of it--got rid of the ugly rubber bumpers, changed the suspension and the entire stance of the car, as well as the powerplant, of course. There's very little '76 MGB left in there.

Nice job btw.

that is what I would want to do to it. Looks nice. Might consider a different engine though. I wonder how a Miata motor would work in there? Maybe a rotary?

stickguy

you mean this one?

uplanderguy

ab348, when I first saw that Econoline in Shifty's post, I immediately thought of that video about the Corvair Rampside versus the Econoline, and there you posted it! LOL

ab348

xwesx said:

I was browsing through this month's newsletter from RockAuto, and they featured a '76 MGB in at the bottom. There's only a brief writeup on these monthly features, but I thought this one might be discussion-worthy here.

Mine arrived in my inbox today and I read the article. I like most of the changes except for the grille. Wonder where it came from? Looks a bit like an Aston Martin piece but I suspect it isn't that.

Mr_Shiftright

There were some MGBs with V-8s built by the factory (about 2,600 of them). MG was inspired by Ken Costello, an engineer and race car driver who shoehorned a Buick 215 V-8 into an MGB. It actually weighed 40 lbs LESS than the 4 cylinder it replaced--LOL!

Today, you can buy various install kits for the Ford 302 from aftermarket suppliers. I wouldn't mind building one of those someday.

qbrozen

Hopefully the Coronet arrives today. Did not leave Thurs as originally planned, nor by noon yesterday, which was the 2nd estimate I was given. It got on the road late yesterday with ETA of this evening. Driver is supposed to call me this morn with a more accurate time.

Mr_Shiftright

We are squirming in anticipation.

stickguy

got lucky that the weather cleared just in time. supposed to be warm and dry for a while now. Much better than freezing and tons of rain!

isellhondas

Mr_Shiftright said:

There were some MGBs with V-8s built by the factory (about 2,600 of them). MG was inspired by Ken Costello, an engineer and race car driver who shoehorned a Buick 215 V-8 into an MGB. It actually weighed 40 lbs LESS than the 4 cylinder it replaced--LOL!

Today, you can buy various install kits for the Ford 302 from aftermarket suppliers. I wouldn't mind building one of those someday.

That would be much like those old Sunbeam Alpines that Ford called Tigers. Ever had a ride in one of those?

I'll never get in one again I can tell you that. This one had the Weber set up too!

qbrozen

Another delay. Tomorrow afternoon is the new story.

stickguy

anticipation. Maybe he is driving it out!

omarman

Or the car got delivered Friday and it's better to have a fun weekend without being pestered with questions and pic requests. "Nothing to see here. Maybe delivery tomorrow..."

isellhondas

Paging Uplander.......

Anyone have any thoughts on this?




https://seattle.craigslist.org/est/cto/6041956348.html

Mr_Shiftright

Probably a brokered hauler--they pick up and drop along the way.

Be sure you inspect the vehicle for damage before you sign off.

isellhondas

Funny, the guy with the Studebaker doesn't know how to spell Coeur D' Alene!

stickguy

or brakes.

qbrozen

Arrived about 3 hrs ago and of course I have been out there messing with it since. I'm not completely disappointed but also not pleasantly surprised. Despite what he told me, there most definitely is rust starting. The large bubbles in the paint at the bottom of the passenger door are a surefire tip for even the most clueless person. Oh well. 

Speedo cable is broken, which he could have easily mentioned. And I don't know why you'd say it drives wonderfully when the steering wheel has 5-6" of play in it and grinds like a cheap pole dancer. I'm afraid to drive it because the brakes could not even hold the car still at idle. Maybe I've just forgotten what manual brakes are like. 

On the plus, it does shine very nicely. Carpets seem to be new. Seat covers are very possibly original. The replacement engine is year correct (maybe?), which is a relief. It is not, however, the HP engine, as far as I can tell. A little bit of a disappointment only from a value standpoint but doesn't make much of a difference once I start messing with it.

Speaking of dates, if anyone knows when Dodge started producing '67 vehicles, that could help. The engine is from 8/2/66. 

I will end this first account with a bit of trivia. What the heck are these things I found in the trunk?

explorerx4

Like it, but seems overpriced.
https://hartford.craigslist.org/cto/6081341331.html

explorerx4

@qbrozen,
Is that a slot for a jack?

stickguy

bummer it isn't quite what you were expecting, but hopefully it is good enough to still be a nice car, and good value.

the steering, well, from what I remember of having old domestics, brakes and steering (both manual, and drums to boot) are about what you described. Though I am sure you can improve on that quite a bit if you can get under there.