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I think many of us would accumulate old cars if we could. Every time I see some sub-$500 fintail, I am irked I can't just put it away somewhere.
Insane optimism of both price and condition
I'm leery when he gets the W number wrong
Should be fun to keep on the road
A little diesel greed
This seems odd somehow, maybe a Canadian market car
Malaise sport coupe
W123 Diesel -- hmmm....what happened to the "these cars run forever" story? He's already sunk a rebuilt engine into this old crate and now wants us to bail him out at $6,000? And check out the collapsed driver's seat. That would be fun to drive all day.
Don't know about the Northwest, but here in California diesel fuel is now $5.50 a gallon and regular gas is $4.45. All that and the privilege of going 0-60 in a minute or two? Don't think so. Try $2,500 and be happy to get it would be my advice in the current market conditions.
1991 Audi V-8: "Hurry, one this nice wont last long"
You got THAT right!
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
Audi V8 --*very* expensive maintenance and repair costs on a car that's not worth anything. Doesn't add up.
That's how I feel about it, too.
Although even $12k sounds like a fortune for one.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
I wonder what happened here
Rear door windows don't roll down, right?
A sedan for folks in the country
The Benz is an interesting scenario. Either has a rebuilt title, and it's not fully finished, or the owner is way in over his head to maintain and fix a 12 cylinder motor. Probably has other electronic problems. :sick:
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
74 Chevy Vega -- not a bad deal. You could pay $1,000 for it, install a crate engine, fuel injection, modern overdrive transmission, new suspension package, tires, wheels, premium sound, AC, etc and then sell it for $2,500. :P
take it from there.
Build your own El Camino.
This must have all the rigidity of ectoplasm.
My grandparents bought a brand new '82 Malibu Classic estate wagon in February of that year. It was about $11,000 out the door, which looking back shocks me, because it wasn't all that fancy. 229 V-6. Crank windows...all TWO of them!
I think it was the nicer trim level, but I'm not sure how they differentiated them because technically ALL Malibus were Classics in 1982. For 1983, they just called the car Malibu, but there was a CL trim level, which roughly equated to what had been the old Malibu Classic.
Anyway, since it was February, nobody thought to try the windows. And since Grandmom and Granddad were coming from a 1972 Impala 4-door hardtop, the idea that a rear window in a 4-door car wouldn't open never even crossed their mind.
Fast forward about two months to a hot Sunday morning in April. I went to church with them that day, and they let me sit up front. Grandmom sat in the back. She starts fumbling around, looking for something, and after a few seconds asks how do you open the windows. We looked all over but couldn't find a crank. But I think that's when we noticed the little flip-out vents, and figured out that that's all they gave you.
Well, let's just say it's a good thing we're Methodists and not Catholic, because if we were, after what Grandmom ended up saying about that car, she'd definitely have to pay a visit to the confessional! :surprise: I won't repeat the things she said here because Shifty will have to delete my post, but afterwards, she started referring to that thing as "The most expensive cheap car we ever owned".
I'll say this much for it though...it was an attractive car. Dark metallic blue with a nice ploodgrain contrast on the side. Snooty stand-up hood ornament, and those hubcaps that looked like they would cut your fingers if you ran them over them.
If I had the disposable income for it, I wouldn't mind getting ahold of one of those cars, and doing whatever it took to get the back windows to roll down. I imagine if you used a Caprice/Impala sedan for a donor car, you could force some of the mechanicals to fit. Now the Malibu had recessed armrests, but I guess if you were resourceful enough, you could use the Caprice interior door trim and cut it to fit the smaller Malibu door. It would just cover over the recessed area. Then just find a way to attach the bolt-on armrest the Caprice used. Kinda sad that I've actually put some thought into this, eh? :surprise:
In 1978, when those downsized intermediates first came out, GM claimed that the flip-out vent window, when used in conjunction with the roll down front window, would actually give you better ventilation than if they gave the car a roll down rear window and no flip-out vent. I dunno if that's true or not. I guess at highway speeds, it wouldn't be TOO bad, but cruising around town could be annoying.
Chrysler tried a similar stunt with the 1981 Aries/Reliant. Enough people griped about it that in mid-1982, they switched over to roll-down rear windows. They initially tried this stunt as a cost saving measure, but ultimately concluded that it really didn't cost any more to give the car a roll-down window and a stationary quarter window than it did to make the big window stationary and the small window a vent.
Too bad GM didn't take that hint. Those rear windows were stationary right up through the end, which was 1983 for the wagons and Malibu sedan, 1984 for the Regal sedan, 1986 for the Bonneville, and 1987 for the Cutlass Supreme.
Maybe it's what Shifty says - massive 20K+ in engine repairs plus a salvage title.
Shame, as it's a nice and rare color, too.
That car cost 135K a mere 5 years ago and is now at 10% of that. That's some resale.
Local Bentley dealer had a funny display in front of his showroom the other day - a Continental coupe and a pair of convertibles alongside an original Mini.
A 2003 Corvette Z06 is worth more than that car. Talk about resale.
Sounds like a nice guy, but I think he knows more than he's telling. Every MB owner with a problematic MB does. I even do on my Benz when I tried to sell it.
I asked him what's wrong, he said "Nothing Really, but I shouldn't say nothing because it does run rough"
He said that a couple years ago, they spent $8-9k rebuilding the motor at Phil Smart MB (not sure if I got the dealer name right). He said the rebuilt motor had no warranty, and now it's running rough. He told me that one place told him it's just spark plugs which would cost him $400, and another mechanic told him it's something else (he said it was internal), and that it would cost $3000. When I asked him about check engine lights, he said none are on, but the car just runs rough.
When I asked him if it's a rebuilt car, he said the engine is rebuilt, before the reception started going bad so I couldn't get the full story.
He said he has 3 people looking at it tommorow.
I have a feeling that it's something really major, the car is probably a rebuilt (maybe ex-flood car?), otherwise he'd drop the $400 and ge the spark plugs done, and even that cost of plugs seems a little low for a 12-banger. I know my C240 has double plugs per cylinder and it's about $1k to do them here.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
I think the plugs can be done for that much, at least for a V8....but as you say, if a $400 or even a $3K repair will add 10K to the price of the car...why not do it.
It's in my backyard, so if you are thinking of buying it for the other half, I could inspect it :P
He says he has lookers...and the thing will probably lure someone in.
Black on black, 166K. Excellent maintenance. Has two new coil packs and a new ECU as of a couple of days ago. The engine compartment is spotless - not shined and armor alled, just good old fashioned clean and maintained. Except for the recent issue as listed above, the car has been relatively trouble free for the last seven years that my friend has owned it. It runs great and is very strong. Everything feels very solid mechanically. Sometimes a hear a little more driveline noise than I would like. It is hard to tell if it is something wrong, or if it just part of the Audi's charm as the car isn't Japanese smooth. WIth the Turbo 5, you could almost call it a little coarse. Clean carfax, but had a high quality partial respray to clean up bug damage and rock chips. The paint looks excellent.
The interior looks good. The leather seats have patina, and I mean that in a good way. A '95 Lexus would have hard shiny plastic looking seats with the side bolster basically torn off on the driver's side and maybe a rip or two at the front of the seat. The Audi seats look broken in, with some creasing, but no tears or discoloration. Everything inside works great, except for some of the dash lights are a little dim.
The only thing that really bugs me are the wheels. They were chrome Borbets. My friend hated the chrome, so he had them painted flat black. It is well done, but I had a friend comment that he thought they were just filthy, not painted black. I see his point.
He is asking $6500. Somebody got $5K for a similarly high mileage, but salvaged title cars on eBay, but another similar but lower mileage car only went for $7K. Asking prices on Autotrader countrywide range from $4,500 to $14,500 with an average of $7,831 for similar cars with at least 100K on the clock.
I don't think I can resist it. I think I must buy it.
Does it happen to be the short wheelbase model?
You just made me choke on my coffee. Are you serious?? $1k? JUST for plugs? Hell, I'll pull the damned engine and tranny right out of there and change them myself for that $$.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
I know in my E55, which is also a twin spark setup, the plugs are something $15 each, x 16 = $240. I can't imagine those on a smaller non-tuned engine costing more.
Is this a situation where parts of the engine have to be removed to get to the plugs? On my ES you have to take off half the intake manifold. :sick:
I want to say from what I have read, I can have mine done for under $500....they are claimed to be 100K plugs, and my car is at 34K, so I haven't done it yet...but they'll probably get done well before 100K.
This is another area where an I6 is superior...in the fintail. I can reach down and access each plug with nothing in the way.
It was an '87 RX7. The paint wasn't great and there were some major dings on the outside. The sign in the window claims 32k original miles and gave a laundry list of mods done to the car, including turbo upgrade. Looked like the carpets were folded up on the seats, so I couldn't see much of the inside. No asking price, only "thousands invested, reasonable offers considered." It also had a list of mod parts that had yet to be installed.
Now, if only the car was 32k original miles and NO mods done, I'd be very interested. And RX7 is tough enough without picking up someone else's half finished mess.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
By all means, have the car thoroughly inspected by an Audi shop. This is a wonderful car but not one you want to "get behind on" in terms of repairs. The drivetrain is bulletproof and long-lived. Trim pieces and cosmetic items could be hard to find and might be expensive, so if someone backs into your headlights or tailights, for instance, prepare them for a shock. A real shock.
If the car passes inspection, start compiling an Audi Resources List, of online parts suppliers and wreckers who have S6 parts.
The miles are higher than I'd like but you know, for a rare car that's 13 years old, you gotta take what you can get most of the time.
If you don't get the car inspected, shame ON you.
I'd take it to an Audi independent, and scour it for things like oil leaks, ripped CV joints, blown/leaky shocks, rusted exhaust, leaking power steering rack, scored brake rotors----things like that, which are all visible in ten minutes while on a lift. I'm not worried about the engine or Quattro system.
Also play with ALL the electrical switches, and work the HVAC system to make sure it's behaving right.
Fintail, that CL600 is very tempting, but I think the last thing my wife wants is another MB needing repairs.
Even at $13500, let's say worst case scenario it's a rebuilt car, that needs a new motor, so add $20k??, so I'm in it for close to $35k, which still makes it a rebuilt car for $35k now. I might as well find a same generation but older one all original without shady history for the same dough.
The CL600 is tempting to get it, but it could end up a pretty expensive paperweight or lawn ornament if you don't have the dough to fix it.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
A local dealer has an 03 CL55 for 33K...better to buy that than a V12 car. The early kompressor AMG cars are depreciating very sharply right now, just like the 99-02 AMG cars did a couple years ago..
You asked about garage space... I don't have any, but I have a cheap storage facility about 40 miles from my place. Currently leave the Buick there in winters.
The car is still there. The owner said a number of people have looked, but no offers. I might just wait it out and offer him half. It will probably offend the guy, but maybe if I bring him some documentation, he may be able to be convinced.
I'll keep you posted. Plan to stop by again this weekend to possibly make the offer.
I already played with the HVAC and every switch I could find, and was shocked that everything seemed to work properly. The only issues inside are that the radio has a little bit of interference come through occasionally, the some of the dash lights are a little dim, and the climate control temperature number is slightly dim. No deal breakers there.
I still seem to be hearing a sort of coarse noise sometimes under acceleration that feels like it is coming from almost underneath my feet. Of course, I had an Acura that a similar but much louder noise, and it turned out to be a loose screw on the cover for the catalytic converter. Any noises from an Audi seem to scare me a lot worse. I had already decided that the differential was self-destructing or something. And now that I've thought it a little bit more, I am pretty sure it only happens until the car warms up.
That's true, but at least they (sometimes) pass my 'collectible' test - they can sell for more that original price. Not so much with this guy's list of cars.
old Land Rover
You don't see these in this shape around anymore
Cool poncho, and decent price
Big Caddy, decent price, and identical to one sitting on flat tires in my apt building parkade
Another cool Caddy this one a limo, decent price too
Galaxie Wagon
Buick Special no price
Unfinished Mustang
39 Plymouth appears in decent shape
Funky van called Greenbrier
Early Econoline
Neat veedub
"cheaper to buy than a hybrid lol I don't think you'll see environmentalists in this car
homemade chop top Mini, I wonder how stiff it is
half a dragster
Beautiful Maserati
Unrestored MG TF
big project 67 Cuda convertible
ran great a few years ago
decent price Lesabre conv
Benz Adenauer fintail's specialty I think I read somewhere that these were super rare
Another one for Fintail
"Original paint" hmm that should cut down on my restoration costs
sitting for about 25 years, at least it doesn't say "ran good when parked"
holds you and 19 buddies lol, i wouldnb't be surprised
Impala project
Really old Land Rover
Volvo P1800
Never seen one like this
Can't see anyone restoring an Eagle Wagon
Packard, at least the onwer is honest about restoration not for th elight hearted
I see it has a matching canopy
Great 10 foot car
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
Adenauers are beautiful old fashioned cars that could break Bill Gates in restoration costs...that nut wants 85K for his incorrectly-tired example with an iffy looking interior...he's probably trying to double the 40K he sunk into it, and it would take another 40K to set it right. They are "rare" in low production numbers, but most of them seem to have survived.
The weird two-toned fintail is a better bet...start cheap and you can only fall so far, and it's a diesel so some wacko will always want it, no matter that 0-60 is timed on a calendar.
Austin Atlantic with its moderne styling is really cool, I've always liked those. The Maserati is cool too, and it's so.....flat. VW notchbacks are cool too, almost never see them these days.