it might be tough to fix it for less than 700, maybe it would be worth more to part it out? depending on what it is some little parts can go for big bucks
Recently, I've ran into alot of extremly cheap late model cars. An trashy looking but solid '86 Mustang 3.8/Auto from my cousin for beer money, and a rear-ended '86 Lincoln Town Car 302/Auto that I drove home. Both under $100.00. After seeing some of the JC Whitney "hot rodding" and "kustomizing" that young rednecks do to their minitrucks and Dodge Shadows around here, Me and one of my friends were kicking around the idea of practicing some top chopping and stuff on something disposable, like an S-10 or a Ranger. Then selling it off to someone. Of course once I started looking/photochopping, it seemed kinda useless. Leaning the windsheild back made it look deformed and not really any lower. Sinking it behind the firewall created the problem of getting everything lined up later, and sideglass would've been a problem also.
I've not sold a car yet but I sell used stuff all the time to fund whatever it is I'm wanting to purchase. I come home with the new item and the wife never says a word as no money has left the account. Get your ducks all in a row first though. Depressing to sell something and not make money. High mileage Toyota's still sell pretty well though. If nothing else, take it and get 1-200 out of it as scrap.
I used to flip quite a few cars, dont have the time to spend on it now. made a lot of money off of 5.0 mustangs in the 90's, parted out quite a few muscle cars. anything with a big block (70 smog barges) was a good buy to part out. the prices ive seen lately make it more difficult to do anything. with barrett jackson making people think they have gold in their backyards I think it would be more difficult to do. I had a good deal going with a small local car lot dealer where he'd buy cars for me at auction that I could fix if I helped him out from time to time. also had a deal going with a local junk guy where I got first choice on engines. I'd get 5-10 small chevy's and rebuild them to sell but with machine work as much as it is lately dont know how much you could make.
I flipped a bunch of cars back in the '70s for extra cash. I did well enought that I went into the used car business for awhile, and started flipping them again for a time after I closed it. But I stuck primarily with what I knew best...Mustangs, Mavericks, and other Ford products. I also didn't buy any pieces for resale that needed major mechanical work because I liked to roll them over quickly with little time or money invested.. Nowadays, the later model cars have gotten complicated enough to repair that just changing the water pump on that Toyota..never mind fixing the tranny problem, could be complicated and expensive. You'd also have that darned Califoria smog check to worry about and have no way of knowing that it'd pass beforehand. By the time all is done, you might have more invested in that Toyota than what it's worth. The whole deal is definitely a gamble. But here are a couple of other ideas... Since Toyotas sell much better out there that back here in Ohio where American cars still rule, why not list it on eBay in the Parts Car catagory as-is, explaining it's problems and that you have " legal documentation"...don't mention the word Title, for it? You might be surprised at how much it brings and Parts Car listings are cheap.. From what I hear, Cragslist draws a zooful of wanna-be's and lookie-loos when you're trying to sell a car. If you have the space, you could try parting it out, but I don't know if there's much demand for '89 Toyota stuff. If all else fails, borrow or rent a tow bar and haul it to the crusher as-is. Back here, the scrap price for cars is high enough that I see some VERY clean looking later model cars that definitely would have been repaired a couple or 3 years ago being hauled to the Jaws of Death"... Jan
Its amazing how different things are in different parts of the country. Around here, our local dirt track has a 4 cylinder class, all stock. Its almost imposibile to find anything with a 4 cylinder within 30 miles of here for less then $600-800 if it runs. Add to that the high scrap prices and cheap cars do not exist anymore. Still wouldn't spend much time doing much fixing, and would for sure check into how much is involved to make it work. Might be more then you thought, both in labor time and material cost.Did some car flipping and parting years ago for extra bucks. Gene
I used to do that and always lost my ass. If you get it for $100 with a title, take it straight to the wrecker and be done with it. You would be amazed how picky the under $1000 car crowd is. You better have a like new, smogged, registered, perfect body and interior on that puppy. The mindset of "people need a transportation car so they will buy anything that runs" does not fly in Cali. Maybe because they work harder for their money or get only so much from the Govt, they want it to go further.. Dont waste your time. But if you do, you can come up to my yard and take what you need for super cheap.
i just dragged home a craigslist freebe. 1982 S-10. dessertratrodder said it well " too picky" fixing smog stuff takes any profit away. dealing with tweakers sucks too.
My brother and I bought a 91 S-10 for $100 and drove it home .He tried to sell it for $500.......no takers .So, we filled it with scrap metal and took it to the CRUSHER ........we got $375 for it and cleaned up the yard a little . Fill it with scrap and JUNK IT!! You should get at least $250 for it,maybe more.
Have done this a dozen times throughout my life. Virtually impossible to turn a profit if you live in an inspection state, even if the car is free to start with. Usually, the best way to get value out of a car like that is to put 20,000 miles on it, and then sell it for what you've got in it. But then you've got to be seen driving the turd. I did this over the winter with a high mileage 89 toyo pickup that had rust issues in the rear frame, but was otherwise beautiful. As with all projects, work scope snowballed to 3x the planned labor, and 2x the cost. Eventually decided it was too nice to let go for market value, and gave it to my mom instead. And that's how well intentioned plan to make a thousand, ends up costing a thousand. But now I can borrow the little 4 banger to chase out of state parts and let my 454ci chaser sit. And in a few years when she tires of it and it needs a clutch, guess who's driveway it will return to. Ya got a teenager in the family (or a loser uncle) that really needs some wheels? Here's your chance to be a hero in your grandma's eyes for $200. The real value in these cars usually isn't thru the want ads.....
I do it, sometimes it works, sometimes it don't. I'm lucky enough to live near a college town which usually helps with the sale of "cheap transportation", they don't give a crap what it looks like if it will get them back and forth to the bars.
I've flipped cars, but found that it is rare that a really low-buck or free car is worth the effort. A nice clean $1500 car that is available at that price only because of some mechanical problem that I can easily fix is a much better bet. It helps to use boneyard parts to repair it (for profit sake, I mean). I would stay away from a car with that many miles and also being an older Toyota, parts may be hard to find and $$$. On the other hand, a water pump is less than a $100 and someone might be glad to give you a grand for it once it's fixed...
To get the most money, you'd want to pull all the wiring and aluminum out and sell that separately. I got $1.48 a pound for insulated copper wire this weekend, and aluminum (like wheels and radiators) are worth pulling too. Also, the catalytic converter is worth good $ at the scrapyards, some go for $100 just in scrap. Most scrapyards have different policies. If you don't have a title, they'll make you fill out a bill of sale. Title won't have to be in your name if it's signed. They'll want all the fluids drained, gas tank cut out, catalytic converter cut out (which you'll want to do anyway) and no tires on the car or in the trunk. Talk to your scrapyard ahead of time if it has A/C, sometimes it needs to be professionally drained and sometimes they dock you for a car with A/C. If you pick it clean and if you're getting good $ at your scrapyards you should be able to pull an easy $300 for the car in scrap, more if it has aluminum wheels.
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