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

xwesx

Hahhahahaha.... the best posts.

I was thinking along the same lines as fintail, but really it is one of those "huh?" scenarios. If I ever get that Pinto finished, I'm sure it will be the same story. Usually stuff like that is the result of being too sentimental - something of which I can be guilty when it comes to cars.

lemko

1988 BMW 750iL - Can you say "white elephant?"

I doubt I'd spend a whole lotta time restoring a Pinto, but I have been quite sentimental about my cars. If I was really foolish with my money, I'd have spent a small fortune restoring my 1968 Buick Special Deluxe to like-new condition. Heck, I've got to resist the temptation to turn my 1988 Buick Park Avenue into a concours winner and remind myself it's supposed to be my beater car.

xwesx

I doubt I would spend much time either, but I have no real plans to restore it. I just want to chop it up and turn it into a sleeper-beater for the fun of it. My guess is that I had better get to it in the next 10 years or I will just have to write it off because life will have run away with me. The problem, if it is one, is that my life is surrounded by projects and, prioritizing them, the Pinto rightly falls dead last. :P

fintail

She's crying for wide whites and proper caps...but otherwise might be a nice driver

I could get some extra kick for the C43

ghulet

...does the C43 really need extra kick (dumb question, I know)? Would that negatively affect resale, if that's an issue?

I think I'm one of the few people who really likes 'squarebirds', though I know they're pigs (handle and brake poorly, love gas, feel huge yet have no room)...that one looks nice, and the fact that it has manual windows is kinda nice from a maintenance standpoint. I think that's one of the cars of that era on which power windows, being optional, were more common than manual. I'd still rather have one with the 1960-only factory (manual) sunroof, but those are a bit hard to find, and command a fairly serious premium.

british_rover

I always like these not sure why.

Barn Find Corvair

Wish there was a pic of this.

Over priced nightmare!!

Overpriced nightmare????

Franken-Triumph

fintail

Nah, I wouldn't do that to the C43...I don't trust that kind of thing, I really prefer a normally aspirated engine. I doubt it would hurt resale, but you'd be lucky to get pennies back. And to does it need it...well...sometimes I think it couldn't hurt. The transmission in the thing really annoys me sometimes, the lag when you punch it seems about 500 years long. It's as if the car is asking "are you sure?" before it takes off...but once it takes off, it's a rocket. The 60-100 is much more fun than the 0-60.

The squarebird pulled it off pretty well in convertible form.

That Fiat looks pretty lumpy even under the primer. Disaster.

ghulet

I'm fairly impartial toward Fiats, I've not seen nor heard too many positive stories of ownership, other than the standard 'it's fun to drive when it runs' thing.

For less money, this is more my speed, though it's the wrong color, wrong body style, lacking in options, but it has that old lady car/sleeper (360hp, even with 4100 pounds, can be fun, at least in a straight line), original patina thing, and it's a steal at the BIN, IMO:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1968-BUICK-Wildcat-4DR-430-CID-4BBL-Nice_W0QQitem- - - - - Z170000844917QQihZ007QQcategoryZ6144QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

gsemike

What if you looked at it as "well I'm about to plunk down $300 a month to lease an Impala so If I ride this instead for a year anything after that is gravy"? It's a beautiful looking car for not a ton of money.

martian

Is a 1995, 165K mile model worth restoring? Engine is good, body excelent, interior like new only thing is: the front universal joints are bad-is it worth sinking money into this?

martian

Restore a PINTO? Yeah, it would be like restoring a garbage truck..nobody would buy it, and nobody wants to look at it. You might be able to sell it to a museum, but who else on Earth would want such a car? The Pinto was cheaply built and rode like a wheel barrow-it was nothing but a device to allow FORD to sell more big cars (CAFE average). Unfortunately, these cars did plenty of damage to the Ford name, and a few survive. I saw a Vega once-its hard imagin that it survived the rust (I understand that they came pre-rusted from the factory, :lemon:

andre1969

but I think Pintos do have a certain vulgar charm to them. I wouldn't even mind having one of those sport wagons with the little porthole in the side! How did these things perform with the little German-sourced 2.8 V-6? Were they at least tolerable?

I think a Pinto would be a neat car to have for those days that you just want to go against the grain and thumb your nose at society.

At the Ford Nationals a few weeks ago there was a bunch of Pintos. I remember this one style that was orange with cream/off-white accenting, and it was actually kinda cool.

bumpy

If the U-joints are the ONLY thing it needs, I'd say go for it if you like that sort of thing. Problem is, at 165k it will probably need a lot more than just U-joints unless the priors owner(s) actively kept up the maintenance.

fintail

Just what does this guy think he has?

This is a nice looking old beast

fintail

You could do a lot worse for $1500...many upper end cars can guzzle that much in a major service. If someone wants a hobby car and doesn't have their heart set on a trendy musclecar etc, there are still cheap ways to get into the old car hobby. You can get something reliable and cheerful for a few grand.

Mr_Shiftright

If it were cheap it might be worth it, but they generally tend to be the kind of car that nickels and dimes you to death---also very heavy, so don't expect it to go as fast as it looks. Have you driven it much? The interior design, visibility and ergonomics is enough to make a man crazy.

andre1969

I like it, especially at that price. FWIW my '69 Bonneville, which had a 400-4bbl, was probably heavier and less powerful, yet it was faster than anything that bulky had a right to be.

If that Wildcat was closer, and I needed a spare car, I'd be sorely tempted.

british_rover

but if I get one I think I want a convertiable. I have always liked those big late 60's early 70's convertiables.

british_rover

looks like a fun rally-cross/rally car to me.

Always had a soft spot for these but I think this one has been hit.

I have worked on these before and they are a complete nightmare.

Want what he is smoking.

how not to drive your land rover

gsemike

That Prelude may not be that far off. If the miles are real and it looks as good as it looks in the pics, that car has a real following. I wouldn't be surprised to see it go for big money.

I can find nothing attactive about that Bonny. What a lame attempt at a sporty sedan. You usually don't see POSs like that photographed in doors so I'll add 5 bucks for that.

british_rover

The SSE Bonnes were actually kind of decent performance wise for their day and price. The SSEIs of the latter year bonnes had a 245 hp or more supercharged 3800 Series II. Heavily modified versions are putting out more then double that figure now.

british_rover

This is one of the oddest Ebay ads I have ever seen.

Might be ok if it isn't rusty. Don't know if it is priced out though.

Nice big convertiable.

gsemike

Truth in advertising. Probably an OK deal for someone who knows what they're doing

How about a picture of the rims???

Runs strong but needs a driveshaft.
It's got Cherry bombs and probably too much carb but you could probably do worse if this is what you're looking for

These cars used to be so hot. Too bad he messed this one up.
I'm running out of chances to own one

british_rover

This one looks like a nightmare.

Mr_Shiftright

(clutching heart and falling to his knees....ARGHHH!)

qbrozen

i'm sort of with gsemike on this ... sort of not. I'm thinking more like $6k, which is still alot of money for a 15-year-old Honda. BUT, what kills this thing is that its an automatic. I think most people looking for an old low-mileage Prelude Si are looking for a manual trans. That's just my guess, though.

qbrozen

What kind of 3000GT are we talking about? VR4? Stick? Auto?

I think the only 3000GT that might ever be considered "collectible" would be a manual trans VR4. BUT, only the brave and strong-of-heart (and wallet) need apply.

british_rover

Yup it is one grand and up for spark plugs on that if you do not do the labor yourself.

Have to remove the rear intake manifold and I think rear turbo charger to get at the rear sparkplugs.

fintail

Unusual Camry (there's something you don't type every day)

These old coupes make fintails look as desireable as Hemi Cudas

The price is right

Could be a neat beater

Mr_Shiftright

I share your skepticism. I've seen the behavior of this "cult car" market before----yep, there is a "following" but the minute you ask a premium price, the buyers scatter like partridges. It's the same for cars like the SVX---people find them interesting but not interesting enough to pay any more that blue book for them.

Sometimes you can "hand-sell" an interesting car by spending a lot of time with just one buyer and slowly convincing him of the merit of paying three times book price.

But the idea that this seller's phone is going to ring off the hook for a '92 Prelude automatic just doens't ring true with me.

I'd say the car is worth under $5,000.

Mr_Shiftright

Now what do you suppose a "fuel sensor" is on a '68 Plymouth? Maybe he means the gas gauge float?

Diesel Camry -- oh, yeah, right...just a "sticky" fuel injection pump....a mere trifle....and we're sure that swapping in a used injection pump will take ten minutes and work perfectly. And 45 MPG?!!! Say what?

Sorry the entire ad smacks of....you know what.

This is a $300 beater/hobby car.

andre1969

what the seller meant by "fuel sensor" on that Fury, as well!

As for that Camry, I liked the part where the seller mentioned that it's fast compared to modern Diesels. Umm, aren't modern Diesels actually pretty close to their gasoline counterparts in acceleration? My Consumer Guide has a 1985 Camry test, with the 4-cyl/auto, and it did 0-60 in about 13 seconds, which was about on par for a car like that back then. About equal to a K-car or Cavalier or maybe a Stanza, but a bit slower than an Accord (this book lists about 11-12 seconds), but much quicker than a Tempo (15.9 seconds for the Topaz in this issue). But back then, didn't your typical car Diesel take about 20 seconds to get to 60 mph? Now this book also listed a 1985 Benz midsized (300E?) Diesel at 0-60 in about 12 seconds, but then Benz knew how to do a Diesel!

Mr_Shiftright

I'm sure this car drives like a dog. To this day no one makes a diesel as refined as a Benz.

fintail

That Camry seller is a fixture on the local craigslist, known for huge diesel prices. I think he had an old Toyota diesel pickup for like $4000 too, and a $2500 Dasher diesel.

People in these parts see "diesel" and think they have a gold mine

Another one

Crazy

It might even be relatively nice, but that's a pretty penny

lemmer

My mother just replaced her '98 Jetta diesel with a new '06 Golf. She still has the Jetta. It is fairly clean and well maintained. It is a 5 speed with around 120,000 miles on it. I wonder what she could get for it.

How about a Lotus Espritthat just needs a little carb fixin' and adjustin' to get it into top condition.

Cheap Saab Turbo that probably just needs a linkage adjustment and a new turbo hose and has couple of other minor issues (like a salvage title).

Low mileage Thunderbird turbo coupe.

qbrozen

i gotta hand it to him, that's probably the cleanest engine compartment I've ever seen on a car of this age. 525i

qbrozen

But its got one heck of a hood ornament.

Mr_Shiftright

yeah well if you buy an early Esprit Turbo, have a pull-handle fire suppression system installed because you're going to need it.

Saab Turbo---now let's see...we have a salvage title, probably a bad clutch, leaking AC system, and low turbo boost. Deduction for worst case scenario, I calculate that the seller should pay you about $2,000 to haul the car away for him.

T-Bird Coupe --- nice but it's still an '88 T-Bird. Price is extra-silly. Try $3,500 and be thankful to get it.

qbrozen

But what is a non-GTO really worth?
'66 GP

qbrozen

I had NO idea you could get such an obnoxious interior in such an elegant car.

lemmer

It it just the pictures, or does Bordeaux Burgundy mean pink across the pond?

british_rover

Hmhh i think that might be bit of a visual obstruction when driving.

Someone should email him asking if he would sell the hood ornament seperately.

Mr_Shiftright

Those 80's Rollies are shockingly bad automobiles. He'd be lucky to get half his asking price.

$15,000 would be more than enough for the car, a gift from God. You could spend the additional $10K on a good used tow truck.

jrosasmc

How about this one, what do you think:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Mercedes-Benz-300-Series-Mercedes-Benz-350-SD-Tur- bo-Diesel_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ6330QQitemZ4653787694QQrdZ1

qbrozen

what about this one? seems kinda nice for the current bid. i do worry about that non-straight hood, though.
'89 300e

fintail

IIRC those 350SDs are very unspectactular engines, although that looks like a very clean example. Ditch those handles on the roof though!

I kinda like the red one...rare and bizarre color for that car. Looks to be in OK condition...the engine should be fine at that mileage if maintained. You could do worse. No worries about the hood...it's a big hood, and if you don't close both sides with the same force, it misaligns like that.

fintail

Nice 80s Jag

fintail

Not many of these have survived like this

Mr_Shiftright

80s Jag XJ6---suicidal money pit, but if you have to buy one, at least buy a nice one. Pretty pricey at $4,150. The 1986-87s are the ones to have--they are less suicidal. $2,500 should be more than enough for this car.

lemmer

My friend is going to buy this MGB if the price is right. Apparently he has the reserve set at $10,000. The car is 10 miles from my house. My friend has seen it and says it looks and runs even better than he expected. So, if the auction ends unsuccessfully how much cash should get it done? I am thinking $8,000 up to maybe $9,000 if he has to have it.