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

fintail

That's a cool car. I wonder why the owner put it away at 3 years old...some kind of mechanical failure I bet. And yeah, he's dreaming on that price. I'd rather have the best fintail in the country.

hpmctorque

Fuel economy must have been horrendous, and it probably belched enough noxious gases to melt 25% of the polar ice cap. However, it was a really cool car in its day. I wonder whether Al Gore might have owned a big displacement muscle or pony car back in the day.

andre1969

Would you then really spend several thousand to have your old car(s) repainted?

If it was enough of an inheritance that I could afford to comfortably retire and never worry about money again, than I wouldn't hesitate to put a good resto on the DeSoto (right now it's mainly in the shop for mechanical stuff, but I don't want to mess with its 56 year old paint just yet), the Catalina, or the LeMans. Now, I might think twice about my two New Yorkers. I think one of them would stand a good chance of ending up with a Mopar Performance crate engine, though! :shades:

andre1969

I wonder if Pontiac was doing anything special to the 455 that went into the Trans Am by 1976, versus the one that went into regular cars like the full-size and intermediates? I think they're all rated at 200 hp, but I guess they could have still done something different with the camshaft, carb, or whatever, to give you a broader hp/torque curve, but still end up with the same peak hp?

Still, with a 4-speed, and in a car that wasn't especially heavy for the time, it must have been a fun ride!

In 1977, Pontiac offered two versions of the 400. There was a 180 hp version that was used in the mid- and full-sized cars, and a 200 hp version that was used in the Firebird/Trans Am and the "1977.5" Can Am. Or, if you were in CA or a high-altitude area, they'd substitute in a 185 hp Olds 403.

toomanyfumes

I think it was a standard 455, I remember it had about 200 hp, and miles of vacuum hoses under the hood. When I bought it, they were all rotted, and I had a hell of a time figuring out where they all went with the vague diagram in the shop manual.

I was nervous when I took it for inspection, because I wasn't sure I had them in the right places, but the guy at the DMV had the same diagram I used, stared at the spaghetti pile of hoses for about 30 seconds, and said "looks good."

It was a fun car, though, good torque and would do a good smoky doughnut in a parking lot. (I bought it when I was 18 or 19.)

fintail

First sunny Sunday here in 5 weeks, I got to take my old project car out for a spin. I was a little concerned about starting, as the battery is ~6 years old, and the weather is cold - but the car fired up on the first turn of the key as usual. Running pretty OK, an occasional miss here and there - eventually some adjustments will be needed. Not looking too bad:



Most interesting thing in the lot by far:

xwesx

"The weather was cold." You crack me up sometimes, fintail! :P

fintail

There's been some frost the past couple mornings - that counts as cold for here! :shades:

tjc78

Car shows nice. Perfect condition IMO. Nice enough to drive and park at a show, but not a trailer queen you are afraid to breathe on.

I have serious old car withdrawl. I want an older barge, but I shouldn't right now.

fintail

Thanks. It's a good 10 footer - not embarrassing to be seen in, but not exactly a trophy winner. I can drive it hard and not worry.

You should buy that 61 Caddy!

bhill2

There is a 1971 Volvo 1800E in Hemmings Motor News this month. The seller apparently had a $103,000 rotisserie restoration performed. Now he is selling it. He doesn't mention how much he is asking, but I've got to believe that boy is about to get a hard lesson in return on investment.

Mr_Shiftright

He's asking $121,000 for it, which is about $100,000 too much, sad to say.

bhill2

He's asking $121,000 for it

Well, he said that he has $121,000 into it. I'm tentatively giving him the benefit of the doubt that he doesn't expect all of that back. But I bet he's not expecting to lose $100K, which as you indicated is about what he will have to accept if he sells it. I foresee him owning that car for a l-o-o-o-ong time.

Mr_Shiftright

Actually the ad says the price is $121,000. :surprise:

http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/carsforsale/volvo/1800e/1498898.html

bhill2

I'll be switched. The print ad doesn't include his asking price. Hail the electronic age and pity the seller, who actually is that clueless.

Mr_Shiftright

He is merely exercising his First Amendment Rights! :P

andre1969

The First Amendment merely states "Congress shall pass no act..."

Doesn't say anything about the rest of us! :P

Mr_Shiftright

I suspect that this Volvo isn't actually for sale---not seriously for sale at any rate. Best thing he could do is take it to a very high end auction and take his lumps on it.

fintail

121K for something priced perhaps at 400% of actual value, and with no pics? Sign me up.

Mr_Shiftright

Well yeah, that's what i mean. The whole thing is a bad joke.

texases

I tried going to his web site- he's a restorer/dealer, lots of cars shown, but not this one. :confuse:

fintail

It would be like restoring a fintail, wanting all your money back and then some (I wonder how much of that claimed restoration cost is inflated labor rates), and then not showing any images of the car. I don't get it.

bhill2

I tried going to his web site- he's a restorer/dealer, lots of cars shown, but not this one.

Hmmm, this makes me wonder if the ad is a teaser, and he wants people to say "I've got to see that Volvo", go onto his site, and thereby see (and hopefully buy) another car shown there.

omarman

I went looking for pics of that nice safe $100k Volvo but all I found was this.

blh7068

I wonder if Pontiac was doing anything special to the 455 that went into the Trans Am by 1976, versus the one that went into regular cars like the full-size and intermediates?

No. Just to clarify, it was the same 200 hp engine that could be had in the full size and station wagon lines.

srs_49

That'll teach 'em not to mess up the handoff!

tjc78

Was actually thinking of looking at this, until I saw the interior. I'm fairly flexible but could never!

77 Continental

andre1969

Hmm, i actually like that...LOVE the exterior color! But yeah, not so crazy about the green on the inside. I think if it had a velour interior it would come off better, but in leather and vinyl it looks too shiny and almost greasy. Plus, I don't like the way the carpeting doesn't quite match. Actually, if the leather/vinyl parts were closer in color to the carpeting, I might like it better.

I have a good friend who's crazy about that light jade green, and also crazy about Ford products, so I sent that link to him.

tjc78

Yes, I like the exterior as well. I've seen that exterior on a few 70s Continentals and it has always been with the green interior.

Mr_Shiftright

They look like old airline seats...I'd imagine in a hard turn you could slide 6 feet!