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Sports and Sporty Cars of the '80s
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Hmmm, hadn't thought about that. I guess I just had a hard time getting past that name, which didn't sound too pretty to me, and bore too much similarity to the brand with which it shared the showroom.
On the "rough ROUGH engine", true, you'd never mistake it for a Honda. Now maybe it's just me, but - and how can I say this without sounding wacky - sometimes there's a certain charm associated with certain imperfections. For example, while the leaky tops of the British sports cars of the '50s were annoying, and some would use stronger language, they also were part of what you got. However, you could overlook the leaks because the total package had charm. Same with the old VW Beetle; you accepted and liked the total package (or didn't), for what it was, because it had a certain charm, foibles and all. Of course certain cars, such as, say, the Hyundai Excel of the '80s, were poor and devoid of charm, but what I'm trying to say is that many of today's cars are too perfect to be charming. Maybe that explains why some of us are nostalgic for the olds ones, and participate in these discussions.
I just remembered another most excellent car from the '80's.
Her italian name meant "red head"
What was it?
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I always felt like wearing body armor when I drove my friend's Merkur.
it was better with the stereo cranked way up. :P
The SR4Ti turbo coupe was the Lincoln-Mercury Division's answer to the 3-Series, and Ford Motor Company's alternative to the T-Bird Turbo coupe, but from your comments it didn't make the cut.
Sierra, escort, rs200...
http://poupoune74.free.fr/voitures/peugeot_205_t16_1.jpg
http://www.classic-rally-star-club.com/CRSC/renault5%20turbo.jpg
One of the most impressive car ever was the bmw M1, and I would say thta The car of the eighties was the 930 turbo, with its extastic turbo lag and punch!
Pros: For a FWD vehicle, it has little to no torque steer. Its variable intake make the car quiet at low rpm and makes this very nice sound once it gets going. Once in 2nd gear, it can pass most cars for as long as it is 3500+ rpm. I've pushed it to 5000rpm quite frequently, sometimes 6k. And I just passed the smog check yesterday. Why won't it just die? (If it does, I can buy another for $900...)
Cons: The Legend has high roll, so I bought a sway bar from Addco. I just used 2nd gear for sharp turns and third gear for anything else over 50mph to keep connected with feedback. It has little performance upgrades for the engine. The turbo does not give a substantial boost.
The BMW M1 is one of those cars that "gets no respect" in America. You mention this car to a group of collectors or enthusiasts and it's like "oh, really---yeah---whatever".
Probably one reason is that they were never imported into the US, and the few that came in got pretty botched up by people who claimed capable of getting them to conform to DOT/EPA regulations. Also, the exterior is not very exotic and the interior is as plain as can be, in that spartan German sort of way back then.
They aren't cheap to buy but never achieved the levels of other exotics.
The M1 has all the creds but none of the appeal of Ferrari, Lambo, etc.
PORSCHE 930 --- what a kick! I love those cars, even if they can kill you. Still a helluva bargain if you ask me. Same price as an NSX and 5 times the fun.
The TR-7 also came out it the late 70's, I guess that may have been what put the final nail in the British sports car in this country.
I also dad a pair of '85 Maxda RX-7 GSL-SE's with the larger 13b motor and to this day I consider them the most entertaining cars I have ever owned. They handled much better than the '80 Prelude that they replaced, but they were horrible on gas for their size.
The coffin was nailed shut around that time on virtually all the small British sports cars. The management were hopeless and the Unions were redder than a Ferrari dipped in raspberry juice. That plus the scare that soft-top cars would be banned in USA just about killed-off the genre.............until Mazda reinvented the whole sector by copying the Lotus Elan; i.e. the MX-5, (Miata) but with parts that fitted and lasted more than 10 minutes.
The little Fiats and Alfa's were real characters; as small sports car should be. The Fiat Barchetta was a little gem right up to it's, (recent), end.
TR7 was a pretty good handler but the car was very dubious otherwise. They made the unfortunate choice of that Triumph Dolomite engine which I think Saab also used. Very prone to head gaskets blowing, as were the Saabs that came later. Not sure if Saab re-worked that engine, probably did.
Which ones am I missing, and how much are they worth?
Even in #2 condition, pretty much any 1980s Porsche will pass up $4,000.
BMW - any 6 series, M3s, 3-series convertibles, M5s.
MB - 190E 2.3-16 (probably even some of their more prosaic sedans are over $4K)
VW - Corrado, Cabriolet, maybe even a super nice Scirocco 16V
Audi - Coupes, S cars
RX-7 Turbos and Convertibles, maybe even a 323 GTX
Alfa and Fiat convertibles
TVRs
'88 Fiero
Supercharged MR2
Celica All-Trac Turbo
That's just off the top of my head anyway.
I'd say that the only high #3 sporty cars that won't break $4K are the Japanese ones. Nobody much wants 80s Japanese cars of any kind, or if they do want them, they don't want to pay much for them.
Clean Alfas and Fiats should break $4K easily, as will any 450SL of course. Even a 1984 C4 Corvette will break $4K in halfway decent shape (the least desirable of the C4s).
$4K doesn't buy a lot these days in anything sporty or decent-looking from the 80s, unless you want an RX7 or something "psuedo sporty", which means all show/no go.
The objective here is to determine which cars defy the norm of a bad decade, and command a premium price, however modest, in the marketplace. What makes the '80s interesting, in my opinion, is that it's a turnaround decade. It's when the downward trend reversed, and the desirability trend line generally began to move up.
So really the only #2 80s cars you are likely to see are "survivors", a very rare bird.
You could easily put $20,000 into an 80s car and still not have a #2 automobile. Pretty much you need highly detailed engine compartments and painted, re-bushed frames (underdcarriages) to qualify for #2.
My point being that any #2 80s car is going to be priced higher than $4k-$5k because of the huge investment in it. (be that unwise or not).
I know you can buy a very decent #3 Alfa Spider for $4,500 or so.
I said I didn't think any Chrysler cars would qualify, but maybe, just maybe, a Chrysler Mark Cross woody convert, or a Chrysler Maserati TC might sell for >$4,000. Or, how about the bustle back RWD Imperial coupe?
It's hard to call a really bad car "a bargain", no matter how cheap it is.
My view on "sporty", is that, unlike a sportscar, any convertible has an element of sporty. That would include one like the FWD Lebaron, with the driving dynamics of a sedan, and a rather poor one, at that. Of course, an '80s BMW 3-Series, convertible or otherwise, fits the definition better.
In terms of price, I guess I'd pay something over $4,000 for a nice late '80s, low mileage LeBaron convert, or Maserati TC. I'd buy it for the wind-in-the-hair feel and convertible styling, and drive it like a sedan with a mediocre chassis should be driven.
Really? Not even this:
BMW E36 M3 SEDAN :surprise:
(Yes, I realize that it's not an 80s car)
I guess if you think golf is a "sport" than maybe you think a 4-door is sporty? :P
I agree. The list of '80s cars submitted thus far includes the following:
Even in #2 condition, pretty much any 1980s Porsche will pass up $4,000.
BMW - any 6 series, M3s, 3-series convertibles, M5s.
MB - 190E 2.3-16 (probably even some of their more prosaic sedans are over $4K)
MB C124 300 CE
MB 107 Roadster
VW - Corrado, Cabriolet, maybe even a super nice Scirocco 16V
Audi - Coupes, S cars
RX-7 Turbos and Convertibles, maybe even a 323 GTX
Alfa and Fiat convertibles
TVRs
'88 Fiero
Supercharged MR2
Celica All-Trac Turbo
Corvette C-4
Buick grand national
Toyota Supra turbo
Late '80s Chevy Camaro Z28s and Pontiac Trans-Ams
'89 T-Bird Super Coupe (maybe)
Alfa and Fiat spiders
Mazda RX7
'82-mid '80s Chrysler Mark Cross woody convert
Chrysler-Maserati TC
Imperial coupe (maybe)
That's more cars from the '80s with a sale-by-owner market value exceeding $4,000 than I would have imagined. Which ones have we missed?
Some are dirt cheap, like a 1984 C4 Vette automatic (least desirable of all C4s IMO),
any Fiero (who would want one for $5?)
a VW Corrado (take my car, please)
a Maserati TC (but it's a classic, wait, don't hang up!)
80s Alfa Spider (sure it's as slow as a dump truck, but it's PURDY!)
BMW 635 (I think your offer is insulting----I'll take it!)
BMW 325 convertibles (I'm asking $7,500, I'll take $4,000)
1987 Z28 coupe (Whaddya mean it's not a 1969 Z-28?)
One of the most disappointing cars is the Reatta. I thought it could make the list, but no. Asking prices exceed $4,000, of course, but not average transaction prices. As a budget, comfortable touring car, devoid of sports car pretensions, of course, I think a Reatta is an excellent value. I'm prepared to get flamed, but I think that at this stage of the car's life cycle the Reatta could serve as a low cost alternative to the 380 or 450 Benz two-seater. A comparison with the Allante would be more appropriate, but remember, we're talking old iron here, and time serves as a leveler.
In terms of the Z28, the second from last generation Camaros are my personal favorites. I happen to like the styling better than the '69, but that's just personal preference. Trouble is, there aren't many unmolested ones of that generation around.
I think you could find a #2 Reatta for $7,000 and a #2 Allante for $12,000 if you shopped aggressively. Which is about 450SL money as well. But you won't find a decent #2 560SL for that...not yet anyway. They are still depreciating however.
Personally, I think an '80's New Yorker with the turbo could be kinda fun. Thick padded vinyl roof and all. Most people just wouldn't expect a car like that to have a turbo. I don't think those turbos are all that fast by today's standards. Most of the smaller ones saw 0-60 in about 9.5 seconds with an automatic and a bit quicker with the stick, while the NYer/Dodge 600 was probably more like 10. For the mid 80's though, that was competent, at least. That was the Turbo I, which had 146 hp. Now there was a Turbo II a bit later on that put out 174 hp, and a Turbo III, which had something like 225 hp. I think was only offered in the Dodge Spirit R/T in the 90's, but it was pretty brutal. 0-60 in something like 5.9 seconds.
If it weren't for the fact that the Dodge Spirit R/T was a four door, it probably would qualify for our list.
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As for the American two-seaters, they are iffy IMO on reliability but trainable--you just need to de-bug them and attend to the endemic problems that are well-known,and not push them beyond their limits. A Corvette C4 could easily be a daily driver and you can drive those fairly hard. A 5.0 Mustang is cheap reliable fun but lacks refinement to say the least. Rock 'n Roll! Ditto Camaro--bring your duct tape.
Nothing from Sweden comes to mind as "sporty" and French cars, well, nuff said. As for the Italians, the post 1981 Alfa Spiders are pretty reliable--I drove them as dailies for many years with only minor mishaps, and they are more refined than anything British or than Fiats.
I don't consider barge-like American coupes "sporty" myself so didn't include any of them.
In sum, I like the car, hate that it is a convertible. My wife only likes it because it is a convertible.
I've been looking at all kinds of '80s and early '90s sports cars, but they are hard to come by in decent shape around here.
I live in a temperate climate, right on the coast and except for 10-20 days a year, convertibles don't work so well in the San Fran Bay Area. The only state that I think God designed specifically for convertibles was Colorado.
1989 Supra in below average condition with replacement JDM turbo engine with lots of go fast junk on it - $7,500.
1986 RX-7 in below average condition with Chevy 350 conversion. These always seem to be described as 90% complete and they still want $5000 or so.
1986 944 NA in bleow average condition with NA engine replaced with a turbocharged 944 engine. I never understand this. Did they just happened to have a blown engined 944 and a 944 Turbo with a demolished body around? This seems to happen a lot with Supras and MR2s also. 944s also seem to regularly get the SBC treatment. Why not buy a 928 if you can't live without V8 power in your Porsche?
The RX-7 transplant with a Chevy 350 is plain "bad idea".
The 944 to 944 transplant can really transform the car into a supercar, but again, not with a below average automobile.
In the case of the Supra and 944, if these transplants were done on a nice looking car, it would have improved the value, a rare case of a modified Porsche being worth more than an original one (other cases might be tossing out the dreaded 2.7 engine for a nice Euro 3.0 or an SC 3.2 motor). Also putting a 6 cylinder into a 914 Porsche, but that's a bear of a job.
Gen II RX-7