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

fintail · October 2019

The blue on that Riviera appears identical to the color used by the small town cheapo bodyshop who'd paint old police cars for "Friendly Auto Sales" back in the day. That made me suspicious.

explorerx4 · October 2019

Supra sold for $84250.

andres3 · October 2019

explorerx4 said:
Supra sold for $84250.

You could get a loaded TTRS for that! 400 HP. 0-60 in 3.6 seconds stock.

xwesx · October 2019

andres3 said:

explorerx4 said:
Supra sold for $84250.
You could get a loaded TTRS for that! 400 HP. 0-60 in 3.6 seconds stock.

So passe.

stickguy · October 2019

plus the Supra, in theory, might appreciate instead of depreciating like used bananas. Of course, you can't actually drive the Supra, so not really very useful!

sda · October 2019

fintail said:
That limo is a crazy train, it could see some success in livery service as a specialty vehicle. You'd probably do OK on prom night. Just don't be in a hurry, as it will be slow.

Speaking of BaT, Can we hit 6 figures?

Pretty

And more of the local CL 20th century gong show:

90s style

Could be a driver, I am noticing a trend of BC cars being offered here at what appears to be a price that should be CAD but is USD

Seeking to recoup the "investment" no doubt

See above

Interesting ID tag, some hipster should be all over it

Low miles, no mention of the Achilles heel

Real ad, so only real interest please

I liked these when I was a kid, today real ones aren't much more expensive

With 40 years of neglect cars can rust here

GTS

Stuck

Very restorable life sized model kit

Froggy

Woody

Surprised look

Miles

The only way to travel

Slant

Commendable preservation, optimistic desires

Nailhead

GTS needs TLC ASAP

Is the 78 230 fintail’s younger brother?

fintail · October 2019

Lower model relative to the lineup, but it has similar aesthetics for sure.

sda said:

Is the 78 230 fintail’s younger brother?

fintail · October 2019

TGIF:

Maybe a dangerous idea

Rare but too dear

Yikes

Probable money pit but I find the color combo pleasing for this car

GT

Craigslist Cash Price

Good provenance, optimistic

Project car heck

Pretty squarebody for a pretty penny

Longboi

Odd powertrain for this

Final year USDM for non-cabrio

Getting thin on the ground

Wedge

kyfdx · October 2019

I like the Scirocco

The Opel is a '69, as is noted in the body of the ad.

stickguy · October 2019

Nice looking bug. And I’m a fan of the Scirroco.

texases · October 2019

I'm more of a first-gen Scirocco guy. And some of the claims in that ad are funny. Especially the "HARDLY VISIBLE CRACK ON PASSENGER SIDE"

Looks big to me, covers half the windshield from bottom to top...

tjc78 · October 2019

For some odd reason (other than the paint color / graphics) I don't mind the FrankenBird

Scirroco's are always cool.

Fiero = Scary (reference R8 picture from C&C)

Agreed great colors on the 79 Benz

ab348 · October 2019

Like everyone else seems to think, the Scirocco is the pick of this litter. Someone should snap it up. The TR7 is interesting - not that any TR7 is a bargain or a wise buy, but that one is almost free and has had much spent on it already. Can't be many left that solid.

I remember the '49 Ford/T-bird mashup from back at the time. Someone locally might have even had one. Curious.

I suspect the headlights on the Opel GT are frozen in the upright position. I recall Wheeler Dealers had a similar problem with theirs.

The '79 450 owner is using a reason for selling that is so bizarre it must be true. The red over caramel interior is indeed eye-pleasing. Hope it finds a good home.

ab348 · October 2019

BTW, if anyone has Motor Trend TV online, yesterday they dropped the first 3 episodes of a series entitled "Ant Anstead - Master Mechanic" which chronicles him building a single-seat tribute car, a homage to the Alfa 158 racing car ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfa_Romeo_158/159_Alfetta ). The title leaves me cold but I enjoyed the 3 episodes I saw. Not sure how many more are still to come. He did these while Wheeler Dealers was on hiatus. It is not scripted at all and seems almost cinema verite in style but with good production values. I like him in this sort of show, not having to deal with the scripted parts of WD that seem to get sillier all the time.

stickguy · October 2019

Tr7 seems like a bargain, with all the work and spares. Though I always did have a soft spit (maybe in my head) for these.

gsemike · October 2019

stickguy said:
Tr7 seems like a bargain, with all the work and spares. Though I always did have a soft spit (maybe in my head) for these.

Is the work a plus, or a sign that this guy is giving up on it?

stickguy · October 2019

The key is to find one where they finally gave up, right when they reached the end of the work needed! But that’s like timing the bottom of a bear market.

But at that price point, very little risk.

fintail · October 2019

Had the old dear out yesterday, enjoying some rare sunshine and fall colors:

Ran sweet with few of the odd little misses it sometimes exhibits, and the turn signals worked 100% of the time. Someone was in a good mood.

fintail · October 2019

If I had space and some extra money burning a hole in my pocket, this would merit consideration - always liked these, and this one is spec'd perfectly.

ab348 · October 2019

Nice seats. That button-tufted style is very much out of fashion these days but I always thought it looked very posh. The only obsolete style I like better is the square waffle-pattern stitching. I find it unusual that today the vast majority of vehicles have similar minimalist upholstery stitching patterns, even luxe brands, with the rare exception being a diamond-stitching style in a few luxe makes. I never liked that look as it reminds me of aftermarket or one-off "custom" upholstery.

omarman · October 2019

Trippy Hippie on the same CL for just a bit more money.

stickguy · October 2019

Econoline is cool. even though it is probably a beast to drive, and won't ever get out of single digits for MPG.

Those Cressidas (and the Maxima of the same vintage) were neat. And you could still get them (especially the Maxima) with a stick. Pretty sure could do it in the Cressida too.

tjc78 · October 2019

Could you imagine the auto critics today with those separated HVAC controls?

Why wouldn’t they have put the clock upper left and then one HVAC control panel. Typical Japanese of the era. Make it look more gimmicky and techy than it was

Cool car though, and that’s a nice example.

tjc78 · October 2019

You want button tufted? Check out an 80s Fifth Avenue!

explorerx4 · October 2019

@tjc78,
I was thinking that Cressida looks like a Toyota with a Chrysler interior.

ab348 · October 2019

tjc78 said:
You want button tufted? Check out an 80s Fifth Avenue!

Chrysler did very nice interiors in that era, though I was less enamored with their dashboard designs.

fintail · October 2019

When I was a kid, a friend of my dad had one of those Cressidas, which seemed very modern as I think it had a digital dash etc, and the angular lines with the composite lights made it seem cutting edge. But the interior caught my eye then, as it seemed like something out of a 5th Avenue or Cadillac.

Not a fan of the diamond pleating either, it was once an ultra-lux thing, but now everyone is doing it, so you can find the same basic style in a loaded G-wagen or in a workaday Hyunkia CUV.

bhill2 · October 2019

We had an '88 Cressida exactly that color, but with a velour interior. Great car; great performance for the time (slightly detuned Supra twin-cam) and in 150K miles, nothing went wrong.

omarman · October 2019

That reclining Sasquatch van art totally transforms the '85 Econoline into a new age mystery machine. Looking at the first pic seemed to me like a Shaggy portrait with Scooby nearby searching for snacks. They both looked so alike to me as a kid watching the original cartoons. Fun stuff.

Wonder why the seller is getting rid of it. If storage is a problem I'd just park it outside. Talk about lawn art!

xwesx · October 2019

To be honest, it looks to me like the Econoline has had a rough life. Used hard, put away wet, and just never much thought about what it needed.

fintail · October 2019

Photo taken through the windshield so a little glare - I think I found an example of Project Car Hell:

stickguy · October 2019

I think that one needs an alignment.

texases · October 2019

That’s what happens when you buy a knockoff Mr Fusion Home Energy Reactor...😄

Michaell · October 2019

Was there a cars and coffee close by?

kyfdx · October 2019

fintail said:
Photo taken through the windshield so a little glare - I think I found an example of Project Car Hell:

Sad.. that is one of my favorite color E46 M3s.

Has anyone mentioned that neglecting maintenance/repair on a BMW will really come back to bite you?

explorerx4 · October 2019

Is that Estorelle blue or something like that?

fintail · October 2019

Good call on the Mr Fusion, I think where that thing is going, we need roads. Maybe it suffers the same issue as M4s and handles unpredictably if the tire pressure is off.

I'd wager maybe only via ownership styles, old BMWs have lower survival rates than MBs.

kyfdx · October 2019

explorerx4 said:
Is that Estorelle blue or something like that?

Not Estoril

Laguna Seca Blue

gsemike · October 2019

fintail said:
Good call on the Mr Fusion, I think where that thing is going, we need roads. Maybe it suffers the same issue as M4s and handles unpredictably if the tire pressure is off.

I'd wager maybe only via ownership styles, old BMWs have lower survival rates than MBs.

Yes, definitely see more modded BMWs than MBs, meaning more have been put through the wringer

gsemike · October 2019

qbrozen · October 2019

I would have agreed on the Fairlane ... until I got to "302 V8." Sad. If you are going to replace the engine, at least put in something BIG.

explorerx4 · October 2019

I was ok with the 302 on the Fairlane, but no power steering?

stickguy · October 2019

2002, for a bumper car and not a Tii, seems overpriced. No way you could restore it and not be deep underwater.

kyfdx · October 2019

stickguy said:
2002, for a bumper car and not a Tii, seems overpriced. No way you could restore it and not be deep underwater.

Seems like lately, a non-running example brings $5K

At least it's not an automatic..

qbrozen · October 2019

explorerx4 said:
I was ok with the 302 on the Fairlane, but no power steering?

No PS in my Coronet with a 440 weighing down the front wheels. That Fairlane would probably feel like it had PS to me.

stickguy · October 2019

huge diameter steering wheel and about 10 turns lock to lock, no need for power assist!

I had a bunch of manual steering cars. The only one that actually was hard to drive? My grandmothers VW 412 wagon. Light, engine in the back, and you still have to be a body builder to parallel park that thing, or go around a tight curve.

qbrozen · October 2019

stickguy said:
huge diameter steering wheel and about 10 turns lock to lock, no need for power assist!

I had a bunch of manual steering cars. The only one that actually was hard to drive? My grandmothers VW 412 wagon. Light, engine in the back, and you still have to be a body builder to parallel park that thing, or go around a tight curve.

Can’t say I know why, but the Coronet is REALLY hard to turn. My ‘79 Zephyr with manual rack and pinion was quite easy.

fintail · October 2019

I remember my dad's 68 Fairlane with manual steering (and brakes and a 3 on the tree) seemed like a real bear to drive, or especially park, at low speed. Not my favorite car to drive as a 16 year old. The car being pretty old at the time probably didn't help, either. I do recall the late run 289 in the car was an excellent runner though, never missed a beat, no cold start or driveability issues (unlike the 390 in the Galaxie we had at the same time).

gsemike · October 2019

The Fairlane was a compact car at the time. No details whatsoever in the ad, but the right 302 could be plenty of engine for that. I think I have seen it around and it's got decent sound, but that could just mean that it's a 160 horse wheezer engine with flowmasters. If it was donated from a GT, we might be onto something here.

On P/S question, it's made it this far without it. I'd have to drive it to see if it's livable. I'm not seeing a brake booster, so I guess we are looking at manual drums too.

xwesx · October 2019

qbrozen said:

stickguy said:
huge diameter steering wheel and about 10 turns lock to lock, no need for power assist!

I had a bunch of manual steering cars. The only one that actually was hard to drive? My grandmothers VW 412 wagon. Light, engine in the back, and you still have to be a body builder to parallel park that thing, or go around a tight curve.
Can’t say I know why, but the Coronet is REALLY hard to turn. My ‘79 Zephyr with manual rack and pinion was quite easy.

Have you inspected it to ensure that the gear box is not intended for hydraulic assist? A manual steering car should be easy to steer as long as the vehicle is moving, so if it is not, there is likely an issue in play.

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

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