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

bhill2

Perhaps because I grew up on the west coast (Seattle) I would expect an Ambassador with 3 on the tree to be rare. Americans?, of course. Classics?, sure. But I equate the Ambassador with Pontiac, Dodge, and Mercury full-sizes. Am I wrong?

andres3

qbrozen said:

andres3 said:

Going to try a TCU tune for the first time in my DSG life. The tune on the TTS works so well on the ECU that I think it activates a torque limiting cutoff that causes the car to hesitate for no good reason occasionally/rarely under certain circumstances.

Going to add an intake to assist with about 10 extra HP that's been proven on several dynos apparently. Also makes the turbo sound a little more pronounced, and carbon fiber looks good under the hood.

Got Sport Cup 2's on order. Got Discount to claim warranty for mileage at $129 per tire for 3 of the four Pilot Sport 4S tires from Michelin.

Thinking new tires Tuesday at noon, new brake fluid at the dealer (they owe me for taking out my Motul 600) Thursday, and the TCU tune, APR intake install, and aggressive re-alignment alignment the following Tuesday at San Diego's premier Audi indy shop.

With the new rear shocks and these fixes, 7.6 1/8th mile times should be doable.

Buttonwillow Nov. 20-22 (3 days of fun!).

3 days? So did you make an appt immediately following for new tires and brakes?

Ha.... The Sport Cup 2's should be durable for like 10 tracks days... maybe.
The brakes, being aggressive noisy squeally track pads, should be durable for a while longer too (assuming the rotor doesn't die first). I have noticed the scoring "cut-outs" similar to slotted rotors by Brembo is noticeably less pronounced already (visually).

qbrozen

My Hawk track pads were toast after 2 days.

andres3

qbrozen said:

My Hawk track pads were toast after 2 days.

Are you sure they were track pads? The blue box ones are basically street "sport" pads. Also, were you driving around a 2+ ton behemoth?

qbrozen

That was my 135i. Not light, no, but pretty average these days. This was a while ago, so its tough to remember exactly what they were, but I'm almost certain they were one step above the performance street pads they had at the time.

I do admit that part of the problem was that I did not have the TCS completely disabled, so the brakes were working, unbeknownst to me, when I did not want them to.

andres3

qbrozen said:

That was my 135i. Not light, no, but pretty average these days. This was a while ago, so its tough to remember exactly what they were, but I'm almost certain they were one step above the performance street pads they had at the time.

I do admit that part of the problem was that I did not have the TCS completely disabled, so the brakes were working, unbeknownst to me, when I did not want them to.

Someone told me they smelled "brakes" behind my A3. I had brand new pads, and I thought that was more the reason than the TCS/ESC/ESP doing its thing!

As far as me spinning out the TTS (no wheels off the track though........ I'm blaming that on the rear shock TSB....

fintail

A few for today:

Rare, needs work, maybe worth saving

Seeing how these have gone crazy

Lead pic has the best parts, anachronistic wheels and chrome wheelarch trim

Conversion Burb

90s flashback

Most of these end up in the hands of the vapebro set

For the brave

Few early ones left, fewer when this reaches the end

Interesting road manners no doubt

In the dictionary under "money pit"

Rare, attractive big truck

Sharky

The market for these is minuscule these days

Ad copy needs a lot more detail

stickguy

I would love that Jeep. Get floors slapped in and good to go! Wife would despise it of course.

xwesx

That Diamond T truck price seems nuts to me given condition. I like the idea of having something like that, but not for $5000 (for a pile of parts).

fintail

Yeah, there's no upside to the Diamond T, even for free you'll probably never come out ahead. Money better spent on the Jeep perhaps.

xwesx

fintail said:

Yeah, there's no upside to the Diamond T, even for free you'll probably never come out ahead. Money better spent on the Jeep perhaps.

Yeah. The price is certainly more realistic (for a runs/drives vehicle), for sure.

explorerx4

What is going on with the wood platform in the Corolla wagon? That alone probably exceeds the payload capacity.
Like the data plate on the REO: top speed 37 52. I guess that is in low and high range.

omarman

I want to like the non-running Bronco but it costs $22k plus a complete resto. And if I win the lottery to afford all that then I want to buy a running/done Bronco, "so let's not waste each others time."

sda

I like the 70 DeVille. Having had a 70 DeVille convertible I have a soft spot for these.

fintail

Looks like Facebook Marketplace is the new online asylum now that CL charges for ads. Took me about 3 minutes to find this assortment of oddity and pain:

Great period colors

Limeyland equivalent with lots of spaghetti

Doesn't seem too bad these days

Weathered the years and miles in fine style

Elite

Cool 80s look with those wheels

deSade edition?

Same seller as the old Lincolns from last week

Also has this project car hell

Preservation piece

Buy by the pound

Plaque

For the very brave

Very cool, what a price

Not many of these around

Angular "classic"

A couple things wrong

Maybe worthy of rescue, Andre?

Depreciation doesn't sleep

Rare, still falling

xwesx

Like the '72 Blazer, but they are going to buy a lot of cakes for that thing at $45K. Maybe in another decade these will be up that high?

stickguy

Maserati. Wow. Good luck to some poor fool.

ab348

The 300CD coupe looks remarkably handsome in those colors and with the white sidewalls. The yellow 450 SEL is pretty neat although I wonder what is supposed to go in the rectangular hole next to the gear lever, and of course the mileage is a concern (along with the red-flag air cleaner). Same holds true for the 450SLC.

The Grand Marquis looks good except for the steering wheel but I would want a thorough inspection. The Taurus is an interesting find in that condition - probably bought for less than half that price at an auction. The Blazer is lovely but the price is nuts. The Chrysler is just nuts. Surprised by the pricing on those late model Benzes, they really took a big hit.

The problem with FB Marketplace in this format is that you need to click through to see what kind of vehicle is on offer, whereas with CL the URL usually gave that away.

tjc78

The Grand Marquis looks good except for the steering wheel but I would want a thorough inspection.

You can never trust the mileage on a 90/91 Panther. The speedometer gears are junk and either aren't working or previously repaired.

fintail

Yep, facebook URLs make each link a surprise

I think the hole on the console of the 450SEL was the front/rear stereo fader wheel.

fintail

This just showed up as a find in France. W112 300SE LWB, 1963. The ne plus ultra of fintails, top of the line, only ~1500 built for worldwide consumption in a 4 year production run. Original prices approached those of a basic Rolls-Royce in some markets. These had a larger FI I6 than my car, tangentially related to that in a gullwing. Interesting color and rare (along with very expensive to replace) woolcloth interior. Off the road for 30 years, solid but needs everything. Seller wants 24K Euro for it, probably won't get that, but it'll still fetch a pretty penny on the continent, I bet around 15-18K Euro:

stickguy

those seats look comfy. and pretty color. Must have been rare back then.

sda

fintail said:

This just showed up as a find in France. W112 300SE LWB, 1963. The ne plus ultra of fintails, top of the line, only ~1500 built for worldwide consumption in a 4 year production run. Original prices approached those of a basic Rolls-Royce in some markets. These had a larger FI I6 than my car, tangentially related to that in a gullwing. Interesting color and rare (along with very expensive to replace) woolcloth interior. Off the road for 30 years, solid but needs everything. Seller wants 24K Euro for it, probably won't get that, but it'll still fetch a pretty penny on the continent, I bet around 15-18K Euro:

I like. It still tickles me that a premium car like that as late as 63 didn’t have electric windows. The French love their cigarettes, it seemed like everyone, teenager and older smoked when we lived there. I wonder if the interior still smells of them.

fintail

Enthusiasts estimate there are under 100 left in the world in roadworthy condition. These are complex cars that cost a fortune to put right if they are neglected. On that note, these are air suspended cars, and this car is sitting pretty high for being off the road for 30 years, I suspect the suspension was converted (unless the car was somehow pumped up via auxiliary means) - another bill to deal with.

stickguy said:

those seats look comfy. and pretty color. Must have been rare back then.

fintail

Power windows (and seats) weren't even optional on any fintail. AC was always dealer installed. Those luxuries were standard on a 600, but it was a degree of magnitude more in expense, I think around 25K in 1964.

A 60s car in France, no doubt it has seen a lifetime's worth of cigs and still bears some of it Funny, my car was also smoked in as most were during the era, but there's no trace of it now - the interior materials of the era have a distinct smell, and have canceled it out.

sda said:

I like. It still tickles me that a premium car like that as late as 63 didn’t have electric windows. The French love their cigarettes, it seemed like everyone, teenager and older smoked when we lived there. I wonder if the interior still smells of them.

xwesx

fintail said:

Power windows (and seats) weren't even optional on any fintail. AC was always dealer installed. Those luxuries were standard on a 600, but it was a degree of magnitude more in expense, I think around 25K in 1964.

A 60s car in France, no doubt it has seen a lifetime's worth of cigs and still bears some of it Funny, my car was also smoked in as most were during the era, but there's no trace of it now - the interior materials of the era have a distinct smell, and have canceled it out.

I think the same is true of my 1969 C20. I found an unused cigarette in the ashtray compartment when I first recovered it, and I have left it there to this day as sort of a relic of the truck's previous life (as the vehicle was last used in 1972 prior to my acquisition of it, the cig is quite old). As with yours, there is otherwise no hint that anyone ever smoked in it. Granted, with vinyl upholstery and lots of metal, this interior did not have the capacity to absorb odors like more modern cars do.

fintail

That could be part of it in the fintail. Some hard surfaces, vinyl, and I think the wood might have its own smell too, especially as I give it a yearly treatment of lemon oil. Old MB seat stuffing is also known to have a smell, it might all combine to drown out 40+ year old cigarette remains. I've certainly never smoked in it (or elsewhere) and the prior owner was a non-smoker, that's 30 years alone.

I seem to recall old Fords can have a particular smell too. I remember looking at an old car somewhere, maybe at an auction, and it was a flashback to my dad's 60 wagon, something unique about it.

xwesx said:

I think the same is true of my 1969 C20. I found an unused cigarette in the ashtray compartment when I first recovered it, and I have left it there to this day as sort of a relic of the truck's previous life (as the vehicle was last used in 1972 prior to my acquisition of it, the cig is quite old). As with yours, there is otherwise no hint that anyone ever smoked in it. Granted, with vinyl upholstery and lots of metal, this interior did not have the capacity to absorb odors like more modern cars do.

ab348

The Cutlass has a distinct interior smell that my buddy always comments on when he gets in. He says it reminds him of GM cars from when he was a kid.

gsemike

X5 Won't Start

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/432588650987848/ Only 85k and no details. Could be a dream score, could be a nightmare

qbrozen

gsemike said:

X5 Won't Start

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/432588650987848/ Only 85k and no details. Could be a dream score, could be a nightmare

oil leak on a twin-turbo v8. No thank you.

fintail

I bet the deferred maintenance could fill an encyclopedia. What would it be worth, pristine, lower miles, in an area less prone to shenanigans? Probably not worth the gamble.

texases

No photo of the rod poking out of the block...

stickguy

Up the road from QB. Should offer him a grand, then drag it home to keep the equinox company.

Probably easiest (being a relative term here) to pull the engine out and fix it on the bench. Send it over to wheeler dealers.

fintail

Been awhile;

Grandma's baby?

Style for cheap

I like it

Flashy driver

Getting thin on the ground

Roller skate

Big yeller

Cheap (these days) driver with needs the seller should address

Vanishing

Haven't seen one before

Expensive but maybe not insane

Rich Corinthian leather

Size restriction

Blue on blue

stickguy

Love the 911 and the civic.

I would buy the Volvo. 2 door twin to car my family had when I learned to drive (folks had bought it new). Exact same colors. But ours had all the windows in it!

tjc78

Daytona is pretty cool. In the 80s we were very much a Mopar family so I remember them well. Radio is from the 90s, not original to the car.

I always liked the LHS as well. Good looking/driving car. I almost bought one once, but was afraid of reliability.

qbrozen

Civic and Cressida for me. Maybe that Turbo Daytona.

texases

911 - "needs CV boots" = "needs CV joints", I bet...

andres3

How much experience do you guys have buying cars sight unseen?

What's your batting average in terms of "glad you did it vs. regret it"

stickguy

Done it new, never tried used.

kyfdx

Service loaner with 10K miles from a dealership. Only had this car a month, before I flipped the lease to a friend.

4000 mile car that had gone through auction, from an independent. This car had undisclosed, but repaired, body damage, which is why it wasn't at a dealership. Hadn't hit the carfax, yet. BMW didn't put it in the service history (it was an employee lease) until a month after the auction, which is why it didn't show up when I checked on it.

Still a very reasonable price. We drove it for two years, then sold it to the same friend as above. She drove it for 13 more years. Just sold it last year.

Even then, not exactly sight unseen. I flew to get both of them, and could have turned around and flown home, if I felt something was off.

ab348

I like the 911. Even with those needs I suspect you wouldn't lose much on it if you kept it a while and addressed those things over time.

The '69 Volvo would be cool but it needs a rear quarter window and why is the back corner of the hood bent up? We had a '68 similar to that one and don't be expecting to win many drag races or open the front vent windows very far (they hit the door panel after a couple of inches).

I remember that I liked those Daytonas when they appeared, until I drove one.

xwesx

andres3 said:

How much experience do you guys have buying cars sight unseen?

What's your batting average in terms of "glad you did it vs. regret it"

Not sure I have hit a "regret it" yet, but the Q7 came close. All others were good for me.

I'm at three new, three used. New is 3-0, used is 2-1(ish). The dealer makes all the difference for me. Plus, PPI lets you go in with your eyes open. I decided on that *after* the Q7, as I had never had a bad experience up to that point.

sda

xwesx said:

andres3 said:

How much experience do you guys have buying cars sight unseen?

What's your batting average in terms of "glad you did it vs. regret it"

Not sure I have hit a "regret it" yet, but the Q7 came close. All others were good for me.

I'm at three new, three used. New is 3-0, used is 2-1(ish). The dealer makes all the difference for me. Plus, PPI lets you go in with your eyes open. I decided on that *after* the Q7, as I had never had a bad experience up to that point.

Why was the Q7 a bad experience?

qbrozen

andres3 said:

How much experience do you guys have buying cars sight unseen?

What's your batting average in terms of "glad you did it vs. regret it"

Done it 3 times. One new, one used, and one classic. No regrets.

tjc78

Go figure... the one you drove is the problem child!

I've done several new sight unseen, but never used.

stickguy

Closest I came was a carvana one, but it sold before I could. That would be a combo of faith in them and their inspection and disclosure process, and being able to reject car when it arrived. And a return policy.

So pretty much no different than showing up at a dealer and buying one off the lot. But that has no return policy!

So that arrangement is more of ordering a car, not buying it, sight unseen.

kyfdx

I probably shouldn't worry about it. I don't do that great with used cars, when I buy them in person.

stickguy

I’ve bought some duds in person. But those were private sales. At least you can research dealers to ge comfort level.

xwesx

sda said:

Why was the Q7 a bad experience?

It was all dealer. I mean, the car itself is just a used car, so that means it comes with some use history. But, the dealer.... OMG. The dealer. My biggest issue with them was the salesman and his blatant lie that the vehicle had no body damage. I sent him an email asking for a few detailed photos. He sends them to me. I asked about what looked like it could be body damage (previous, poorly repaired), he specifically told me that there was no blemish there, that the issue in the photo was reflection.

I pick up the car.... BODY DAMAGE, exactly where he told me there was not. In addition, we were treated like red-headed stepchildren when we arrived to pick up the car. They shuffled us off to an empty back room, including our luggage, until they could bring the car around for us. At that point, they offered to pull the car up to the side door so that we could leave out the back, at which point I told them that I preferred leaving out the front, and made a show of it a little as well.

The folks we dealt with there were just obnoxious. They were just not obnoxious enough during the buying process for me to go through with it, but afterward they were terrible. Terrible. I left them an online review to reflect as much.