One of my other favorite sellers on eBay outside of the California donation lot is what seems like a salvage yard that keeps a few saveable vehicles out of the scrap pile by posting them for sale. One such car is this custom-painted 1985 Chevrolet Caprice, which was clearly someone’s project before it got carted away by the scrap man. The bodywork looks pretty decent but as the seller over-emphasizes, this is still a project and you should expect to find plenty of mechanical issues to sort out. Check it out here on eBay with a Buy-It-Now of $3,999 or best offer.

The third-generation Chevrolet Caprice was a long-lived model, and have a permanent place in automotive and American history. This era in particular is baked into the cultural bedrock, having been used as a police car, taxi cab, family hauler, commuter car, and almost any other use you can imagine. The Caprice was the the station wagon your parents drove you to in school and that later became your first car because it was damn near unkillable. And, if you had a particularly rough night, it was the car you were placed in the back of when the local constable had enough of your antics.

These days, however, the fact that it’s a bit of an icon hasn’t translated into higher values. These are still fairly cheap cars to buy and collect, but sadly, most anyone into preserving them also seems very keen to stick it on 22-inch wheels and perform dangerous antics in the streets. The Caprice really is not meant for such shenanigans, and was considered a bit of a driver’s car back in the day – after all, Car & Driver magazine named it one of its 10 best rides in the early 80s. It makes you wonder just how helpful including a car magazine in your media buying forecast was for nabbing awards from the editors. Regardless, this Caprice looks decent enough inside, even if the colors aren’t exactly attractive – the steering wheel doesn’t seem to match the dash.

Under the hood, there’s a familiar engine, as the 5.0L 305 V8 was the workhorse of the lineup, and good for about 150 horsepower – certainly respectable enough for the era. The seller reports that the engine will spin freely, but due to the starter being inoperative, the engine can’t be fired up (or, at least, they’re not going to take the time to get it fired up.) In all likelihood, there’s no issue with the engine, and if there is, you can easily source a replacement. One curious detail I noticed? This Caprice has the flush-mounted headlights, which didn’t come until a few years later. As it often is with cars that end up in places like this, the mysteries are endless.