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Now let's be fair. It's four-wheel drive; doesn't that count for something?
2009 BMW 335i, 2003 Corvette cnv. (RIP 2001 Jaguar XK8 cnv and 1985 MB 380SE [the best of the lot])
2009 BMW 335i, 2003 Corvette cnv. (RIP 2001 Jaguar XK8 cnv and 1985 MB 380SE [the best of the lot])
Color name - "kermit"?
Definite period piece, nice condition, shame about the fault
Suddenly it's 1991!
Seldom seen flat top
Expensive restored fintail, wrong about the year
Freakshow
Would be cool restored
Lovely W115
Nice hubcaps
This might be a better deal for the tin can shopper
Nice glasshouse
Lawn ornament
I'll admit I like this, seller probably wants the moon for it
A real G-Wagen
Ford bustle
Classy beater, Euro model too
CRV's great-grandfather
500 SEL -- money pit
Ferrari 400i--- actually it's the cheapest Ferrari money can buy. Ferrari miles are like dog years--if a Ferrari has over 30,000 on it, that is considered extremely high. A 400i that's nice should sell for no more than $20,000 to $32,000 tops.
Corvair Rampside -- another sleeper that's worth restoring.
Mercedes 200 Fintail---the seller is crazy. Might be worth 1/2 that.
73 Montego -- the car misses the cut-off date for most people's interest (1971) but really if it's nice and clean, rebuilding the transmission is no big deal. Car might definitely be worth the money!
81 Lancia Beta---recycle for Turkish teapot industry.
1960 Olds 4DHT -- if it's a #4 car, which it sounds like, it's worth about 1/2 asking price.
2009 BMW 335i, 2003 Corvette cnv. (RIP 2001 Jaguar XK8 cnv and 1985 MB 380SE [the best of the lot])
I like that 300D a lot, if it is as nice in person as it looks in pics. Great colors.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '08 Charger R/T Daytona; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '08 Maser QP; '11 Mini Cooper S
In fact, it was in the late '70s and I will guarantee you there was no MB dealer in the Tri-Cities.
At the time, driving the 300D was a revelation to this small-town boy. I thought the Volvo handled well, which it did relative to the domestic offerings of the time. But one of my coworkers had come with me (just to get out of the Tri-Cities for a day) and at one point during the test drive I was doing about 60 down a semi-paved road and she wasn't even aware anything unusual was going on. I fell in love with that car and if I had known about the independent mechanic in Richland I would have kissed my Volvo goodbye and left in the 300D without a backward glance.
2009 BMW 335i, 2003 Corvette cnv. (RIP 2001 Jaguar XK8 cnv and 1985 MB 380SE [the best of the lot])
Couldn't pick two more different vehicles...that 2002 caught my attention, too, but I'd sure prefer a small bumper one. And the later wheels just don't do it for me.
If you had bought that car, you very well might still own it - they last forever, and are immune from racing-created crashes.
Once diesel fuel skyrocketed in California, it didn't seem worth it to keep up with the 300D---despite all the mythologies, if you want to drive this car on modern freeways you have to have your foot into it all the time, and that means on a good day you'll get 21 mpg. Not bad for a big car actually, if you aren't in a hurry.
I think the day I decided to get rid of it was up in Lake Tahoe, at high altitude. I was parked on a hill, and even in low gear, the car simply would not move. There was not enough power to overcome the uphill inertia. I had to back down to level ground and charge the hill.
If you shop for a 300D, I'd bet you any amount of money you'll have to drive 25 of them to find one that is even in halfway decent mechanical condition.
They have the ability to be "walking wounded"--being fairly simply machines, they can stagger along for decades, smoking, ailing, with half their systems inoperative, and the driver bragging "yeah, they run forever".
And they do, sort of.
But to find one in acceptable running and cosmetic order? Well, lotsa luck with that.
I guess it really depends on who owned them, and for how long. if a 300D falls into the hands of someone cooking up peanut oil in their garage, you know the car is probably not going to get the best of care.
I don't mind automotive mythology---I even like it. I just won't spend money based on it.
Certainly a mint 76 Accord is rarer than a mint 76 MB. First gen cars are pretty rare as a whole, anymore.
Oh, a 300D is molasses in May. A 240D is molasses in January. And a 190D fintail or even older diesel - cold tar.
1964 Continental on Craiglist
I'd paint it black as I think it's a more desirable color for these cars but I'm guessing mechanicals could be $5k on the low side, paint and body $10k, and interior another $4k? I'd be in it for about $25k if I'm lucky, maybe better off buying a resotred one already?
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
I bet it'd be $0.50 on the dollar, restoration costs vs. eventual sales price...
Im thinking more like
Mechanicals---$12,000 (engine, trans, differential, suspension, brakes, power steering, power brakes, radiator, wiring harness, driveshaft, wheel bearings, springs)
Body and Paint---$18,000 (strip to bare metal, remove all glass and trim, remove interior, remove top, strip dashboard and instruments, steering out, body off, rust repairs, metal fabrication, paint)
Interior -- $8000 (leather upholstery, door panels, carpeting, kick panels, dash
chrome -- $6000
Top -- $3000 -- includes overhaul of top mechanism
Misc -- $10,000 (tires, wheels, trim, electrical, faux finishes, hand fabrications, glass, etc).
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
Another example of having a budget and budget control before you start your restoration.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
64 Conti in LA
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
classic case of no way to restore for what it is worth, unless you can do all the work yourself, and even then maybe not@!
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
It's a little different for this other fellow I know---he paid $75K for a certain vintage Maserati---and it, too, is now completely in pieces down to the last nut and bolt---but on the far end, he has a potential value of $375,000---so he has some breathing room there.
So far I've just been browsing Craigslist for old Mopars, Camaros, Mustangs, and similiar type of cars. There seem to be plenty non runners for under $5k,
but I just don't want to end up buying one only to bury myself with a $50k restoration and losing money on it.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
I saw a really nice light green 1965 Continental in the neighborhood near my workplace about 10 years ago for $4,500. It had a patina, but it wasn't such a wreck I'd be ashamed of it. Trouble is, I don't have the room for such a car and I sure as heck wouldn't want to leave that beauty out on a city street.