I've been looking for a beater to drive while my projects are down for some build time. I want something that can reliably pull 25+ mpg, has a heater and wipers, no computers, and no Medusa m*** of vacuum lines under the hood. I was in a mind for an early Chevy 11, Falcon, Valient, Corvair, heck even early 70's Jap pickups would do. 4 doors are ok, wagons are cool, I really don't care as long as it's cheap. Seems not that long ago anything aside from a 2 door was just about free, now I guess they were all given away 'cause I can't find them for the life of me unless I'm willing to pay B-J prices. Is this the world we live in now? Devin
Afraid so dude. I've been thinking about doing the same thing myself, but just like you I can't seem to find anything even remotely decent. I remember buying my 77 Plymouth back in 01' from a little old lady. Slant 6, 73**x miles, etc for 300 bucks! Found a comprable one today on CL for 2500! I'm not even looking for something cool or old, just a beater to get back and forth to work while I do some work on my Galaxie, but it's slim pickin's out here in Texas too...
You guys are just looking in the wrong places. Pick any town and drive the back alleys and look in the back yards, you will find plenty of those type of cars parked and no longer being used. Sometimes they are in need of minor repairs, sometimes major repairs, but they can usually be scooped cheap. Occasionally they were just parked cause the owner got a new car or something like that. I've bought a few of them that way.
Blue one is right, look ELSEWHERE! I am in the hunt for a 59/60 Elco. I had an 81 in college that got me hooked. I would even buy a "late model" Elco. I have seen several in the last few months for under 2500 here locally. None were advertised.
I was talking cars with one of my customers (Im a copier guy) and he said he had an older car he wanted to get rid of. I had to take a p*** on his 70 duster with slant six and factory moon roof for 800 bucks. Too many other car irons in the fire at time (two years ago) I gave the guys number to my dad, he knows a bunch of Mopar fanatics, I think one of em picked it up. Just remember the best time to find the good deals is when you arent looking and dont have a need LOL.
Somebody has a '63 or '64 Rambler Amb***ador for sale in Tracy, CA. I think the number on the window was $2500, maybe? Don't know if that's Barrett-Jackson money for you, but I know I don't have it. dv
I know just a few years it was earlier. I snagged an old 70 chevy pu 54K miles, 6 cyl 3speed and will keep it. they are just getting that much harder to find in the past few years. Everyone wants gold for them. There are good deals out there just not every week. I admit I do like early 70's jap trucks something about a little datsun with slots.
I'm a working man with a family. I was expecting to find something for $500 or less. I know all the back alleys in my area, i live in a relatively remote rural community. I've got prospects on a couple of deals, but they're too new and too much money for my taste. A 20 year old honda with over 200k ain't worth 2 grand to me, but that's what is available at the moment, or drive the 70 bumpside at 10 mpg and 50 miles a day. Devin
Family and friends along with their friends are where the deals are. Put the word out and a cheap car will drop in a couple of weeks. Watch Out!
Around here the crusher is paying $11.50/hundred. So a 300 pound car is over $330 with no comebacks. That is why no $500 dollar cars. you take the tires and battery off the car and you have your $500.
$500 is a project car price for the most part. http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/cto/2079990863.html http://sacramento.craigslist.org/ctd/2090358812.html http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/cto/2084530420.html http://sfbay.craigslist.org/nby/cto/2086894100.html http://stockton.craigslist.org/cto/2064127662.html http://stockton.craigslist.org/cto/2064123270.html
Ive never owned a Chevy II that got 25+mpg. Ive a **** load too. Even the off topic one we built with an LS1 and overdrive barely got that. You can pickup an early International Scout for under 1,000 bucks that will pull 20ish mpg if you dont drive like a dbag. Im all about these little rigs nowadays.
the $50 car is now a $500 car, so a $500 car is ... well, do the math. yeah, it's hard to find anything remotely resembling a "cl***ic" for a reasonable price anymore. even with the economy the way it is, it's still tough.
Just picked up a two door '67 Valiant for $300 and it runs and drives, just needed floors. I'm halfway done installing them as we speak. It's going to be my daily when I get them finished. Currently a slant six automatic with the original California black plates, it will eventually get disk brakes and a four speed transmission.
4pedals, You must not be looking very hard, or you`re hardly looking...`cause there are more cheap cars available right now,then ever before.
You aren't looking hard enough and don't have enough to spend. I'd suggest a newer import..... I've bought 5+ 1994-2000 4 cylinder imports from $20-$400 over the last 2 years. spend a little money fixing them and some elbow grease cleaning them. Instant 2000-3000 dollar car. I've never had over 700 in any of them all said and done. I will agree the older stuff is getting hard to find, but they are still out there. Realistically, you won't be finding a very decent pre 1980 runner for 500 unless you are really searching. Last year i bought this for my girlfriend. I paid $1000 for this and drove it home. It has a rebuilt motor and transmission. I've probably got another $1000 in it over the last year. Mostly rebuilding the brakes, front end and personalizing it for my own taste. good luck
If you want a cheap beater, your sights are set on too old. My last three drivers were $525, $700, and $500 - an '89 Suburban, a '91, then a '95 van. Then there are the ones I picked up and resold - '99 van $900 (nothing wrong but wear and tear) '00 Dodge minivan $125 (needed $20 of stuff to fix and I drove it around the parking lot) '96 Ford (little 4cyl sedan) $100 - ran and drove, had wrong computer in it '94 Saturn 4dr - was a freebie, guy I sold it to put about $200 in it and his daughter drove it all over '89 Dodge Ramcharger - $50 - put $150 in it, drove it two months, sold it for $450 I had a shot in there at a '62-ish Falcon 4dr for $400 that ran and drove, but I never even went and looked at it - $400 is about what it was worth. Falcons, Corvairs, Chevettes, Pintos, that's about all I can think of that might turn up and fit in your price range and be drivable. I've seen plenty of cars needing some work, but that ran, go for under $1000 at surplus auctions too. You generally get a wholesale price there, unless someone turns up that wants a particular vehicle really bad. In fact I remember one last year where a running, driving '99-ish Dodge panel van with 66,000 miles on it sold for $200. You could have driven it over the scales and made money on it. I myself got a diesel Suburban that ran and moved for $200 at one of those auctions about 4 years ago. The tires on it were worth more than I paid for it - brand new LT235/85R16 snows.
I know what you mean,I think the slots make us weak... Im not crazy about a chevy luv either but add a set of slots and I cant help it...
I noticed a 1995 Firebird that had been sitting in this guys yard for a while.Every week he has a yard sale so last week I stop and ask about it.I drove her home for $700...runs great! It was a 5.7L and a 6 speed transmission...you just never know!
Get on Craigslist - go to Las Vegas - select "cars and trucks", then in the search window, type PAHRUMP...then hit search....town is full of "daily drivers" for sale. dj
It is just going to get harder to find stuff. With the spread of the internet, more and more people now want old cars, and those that have them are becoming more aware of that. Thus, the prices go up, and what folks thought of as just an old car is now a pile of gold. So, farmer Joe with the 63 Chevy ll that has been sitting for 20 yrs. now thinks it is worth $5000. Maybe it will all even out eventually, but the cheap stuff will be long gone. I kinda liked it better before the internet, cell phones, and all that. I consider it a necessary evil now.
Ain't that the damn truth. I know I haven't come across any killer deals in quite awhile because of this. I honestly don't care what the car is (for the most part), but just like the OP I'd like to spend less than 500 for a car that will move under it's own power with some tinkering. I'll keep looking, but damn, it used to be so much easier it seems.
To me it just got a lot easier and cheaper when the internet came along (or when I finally got a computer sevral years ago) Im a 55 chevy freak and around here you would have thought they were on the verge of complete extinction. I think the guys who had them back then wanted more for them then, than they do now, after the internet reallity check. I remember the first time a friend of mine at work showed me how many 55 chevies close to my price range were on ebay,I didnt think there were that many left on earth Needless to say, Thats when I bought a computer
I agree that you're asking a lot in that you want an "old" car that gets at least 25 mpg. Even the economy cars of yesteryear (Falcon, ChevyII, Valiant, Pinto, Vega) seldom got 25. They didn't have to; when the full size cars of the same era were getting 10-15 mpg, 20 or 21 seemed like heaven. Hell, my cousin bought a new Vega in '74 (shut up, they were troubled times), and he was lucky to get 23 mpg with it. I recently added another S10 to my fleet--'96 short box, 4 cylinder/5 speed and A/C with 80K miles for $700.00. 25 mpg and a good swap meet beater too.
Try searching Craigslist using "Search Tempest". It allows you to enter alot of different parameters and works! I like the early Datsuns, especially pickups, but they are getting upwards of $700 here. You want mileage? Try a 90s Mazda Protege. My kid was given one, we fixed the hanging bumper and put tires on it. Gets 40 plus MPG. I know it's not early, but what are you going to do? I've never had an early car, including my Chevy II with the banger, get better than about 20 MPG. My daily driver? My beater '34, 16 MPG, but I only drive about 30 miles a day. And yes, it does **** driving it in snow.
Chevy II, Falcon, Valiant, Corvair.. these are all worth more than the "driver" price. they are now collectible. you want a good cheap driver get an old 70's Volvo. bought mine for 500 around 1999. I've put a good 100,000 miles on it beyond the 160,000 it already had, and have about $3000.00 in replacing worn out stuff over the years. it left me stranded twice, once when the timing belt adjuster came undone and it skipped a few teeth, and once when my replacement (non Bosch) fuel pump took a dump. it's fuel injected but no computers. one more good thing... it is invisible to cops.
I don't think you're being realistic either. Maybe you could do like a couple of the other guys here suggest and flip a couple of cars - drive them, fix them up, sell them. Then you'd have a bit more to spend. I did just buy a cheap beater to drive while I repaint my daily driver '55 Chevy pickup. A Jeep Cherokee - LOADED but has peeling clearcoat and the brakes were grinding (just needed pads). The tires on it were 2 months old and according to the receipt in the glove box they cost more than I paid for the Jeep. Had been on CL for a couple months. I'll drive it till this spring, fluff it up a bit and double my money.
C/List does help an awful lot . I see ads all the time on there asking for cars for $500 and they get them . I have emailed them and people feel sorry for them and sell them cars that run . Most need paint and rust fixed but they do run . You need to look for the makes of cars that no one would want to fix up . Those are the easy finds . Also with the s**** prices down , people aren't selling the cars to the scape haulers anymore for nothing either . Back in August I saw a ad on C/L about a 1972 Mustang forsale . Went to look at it and the windsheilds was broken . Tree fell through the windsheild . Interior was torn but nothing a blanket won't fix , Floors were solid and the car wasn't a POS either . The engine did turn over by hand . He wanted $500 for it with a clean ***le in his name . He also has 2 other windshields to replace the broken one . I had $300 and wanted my friend to go in 1/2 with me they clean it up and flip it . He got cheap on me so I lost the deal . Someone got a killer deal out of that car too ! They are out there , you just need to look to see who has too many in their yards . Remember town ordnances about having them in yards . That is easy to score that way too . Retro Jim
I could not advertise it on here as it's too new and it may be more than your budget will allow but a buddy just sold his Dad's 85 Ford Country Squire wagon - immaculate, loaded and everything worked, 80K miles - asking $3K I think but I know it went for less than that. My point is to perhaps up your years and you may find something to beat on until one of your projects are done.
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