It’s time for some spring cleaning, which for us means it’s time to be on the lookout for a great find. As people start clearing out the clutter of the winter, they tend to clean out their garages, barns, and sheds. Based on the variety of user submissions, we are going to guess that some people have already been busy. A few of these submissions are projects, but most are ready to be enjoyed. We typically prefer our cars in two door configurations, which there are plenty of here today, but we don’t mind a good four-door. The 1973 Mercury Comet might have four doors, but it also has a 302 cui V8 and is in great shape. If you like your four-doors a bit newer and sportier; there is a nice ’86 Shelby GLHS. On the two-door front, we have an interesting mix, ranging from an oval window VW Beetle to a Lancia Flaminia. If neither of these is quirky enough for you, be sure to check out the Ford Pinto Runabout. It has already had all the major work done and is ready to drive. If you’d like a VW, but the oval window is out of your price range or on the wrong continent, there is a Karman Ghia project. If you’d like a higher end VW, be sure to check out the Porsche 912, but be aware that it had an engine bay fire and needs work. There are a lot of great low-mileage drivers in this group, so be sure to take a closer look at all of them below!
1956 VW Beetle Oval Window here on eBay Australia (Mandy T)
1964 Lancia Flaminia Coupe with parts car here on eBay for $22,500 (Jim S)
1973 Ford Pinto Runabout here on eBay without a reserve (Jim S)
1969 Porsche 912 here on eBay (Jim S)
1971 Ford Mustang Coupe with 302 V8 here on eBay without a reserve (Jim)
1971 VW Karman Ghia here on eBay (Josh M)
1964 Chevrolet Bel Air Wagon here on eBay (Josh M)
1973 Mercury Comet 4-door with 302 V8 here on eBay (Jim S)
1986 Dodge Shelby GLHS here on eBay (Jim S)
1971 Saab 9-6 here on Craigslist (OffShore64Guy)
The 912 will no doubt find a new owner despite needing both F & R valences, and much work. Heck, we’ve already seen rusty basket cases that are missing lots or most of their parts sell for eye-watering money. I’m betting somewhere north of $20K, easy, for this one, even with the engine fire.
My lawyer says I had better add this disclaimer: The above is not to be construed as an offer to purchase this vehicle….as tempting as that might be.
But I would be sorely tempted by that lovely Lancia Flaminia Coupe, even if it has had what suspiciously looks like some not very good bodywork showing in the wheelwells plus bubbling under that new red paint. Just drive it only on dry sunny days and enjoy that fabulous early-’60s Italian fine-car luxury. It’s already had one offer and 32 watchers and I imagine it plus its included parts car will be gone.
The beetle was interesting till I saw it was on the other side of the globe. And I was interested in the Fiat till I found it was a Lancia, selling for 10x more. The Saab is interesting but seems a bit pricey for an example with needs. Oh well…
gawd……….ol’ Carroll would put his name on jus’ bout’ anything for a buck.
I like the Karman, if was rust free.
I passed up on an empty jar of Shelby peanut butter at a collectors fair a few years ago. No regrets, but I’m reminded of if whenever I see his name associated with something other than a Stang or a Cobra.
Wow. That 64 Wagon sure looks like a parts car to me. I like ’60’s wagons, but I think someone could easily find a much better example and avoid a huge, expensive hassle.
The strange thing is that I was thinking about what I would do with a Ford Pinto (or was it a Falcon…) the other day! This one is way too nice for my plans (I don’t have the heart to cut up a survivor), but it is still cool to see one that has lasted this long in such good condition.
Flaminia Coupe. gimme gimme gimme
either of the VWs would make a nice project/driver.
those SAABs are $8k now ??
I saw two straight and rust free ones here at a junk yard (So.Cal.),
Nobody got any pieces off of them….
could have had them for $1500 each…
Please fellas, Just because these “wonderments” are dragged out of a storage facility (barn) somewhere doesn’t make them worth beating each other up over at an auction. That Mercury Comet is something I drove for a while when they were new and the 302 in the engine bay was the most detuned slug ever. The Pinto, in case you have forgotten is an extreme fire hazard if hit in the rear and I have never encountered a Carmine Ghia that could even get out of it’s own way. I have my own weird tastes when it comes to antique vehicles so I would never criticize anyone else for their preference, all I ask is that we ….maintain perspective and keep a tight leash on perceived “value” without both , we make fools of ourselves to the advantage of the “auctioneer” signed …..wet blanket (hoping to save someone a few foolishly spent dollars)…….
Thank you, I agree 100% and could have not put it any better.
Mass hysteria is setting in on the old car market.
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Those that have dabbled in Real Estate or the stock market are onto this new bubble. Flipping cars without paying taxes or other fees are lucrative for those trying to hide assets or income or incapable or unwilling to do hard work.
Mind you, many of my comments are laced with cynicism, so when I ask is a SAAB worth $8k , it obviously only is when at least one person will pay that price.
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You will not see me travel distances to the likes of Gullwing Motors, Beverly Hills Car club or even the “Brummen” gallery (NL) who offer cars for twice the money than a regular guy just down the block. They obviously are employing the same (kind of) people that were selling variable interest loans less than a decade ago or are still selling derivatives/junk packages to European banks.
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Isn’t this a beautiful world, where all morals and ethics have been flushed down the toilet….?
Maybe a harsh way to put it, but that’s how I see it.
“Carmine Ghia”…sorry sounds like a Mafioso hit-man. I know you meant Karmann Ghia, still gave me a chuckle.
In the 1960s a clapped out Ferrari GTO with a racing history could be bought for a few thousand dollars. I still have the tiny ad from Road & Track that says so. The same car, restored, now costs $35 – 50 million, assuming one of the 36 owners is willing to sell.
Did this happen overnight? No, it happened gradually over the last five decades. It’s just that the value appreciation has kicked up a notch in the last couple of months or years, depending on the particular collector car that you happen to fancy. For example, the Ferrari 330GTC that I wanted to buy doubled from $8k in 1976, which I could not afford, to $15K in 1979 when I finally had a few bucks and could finally afford it. It then appreciated to $30K when I sold it a couple of years later. Nice increase, but not enough to retire on.
Robbery? Moral turpitude?
Nope. Just plain supply and demand, plus a big helping of appreciation for wonderful pieces of automotive art, the designers who created them, the drivers who raced them, and the craftsmen who brought them back to their current perfect state.
You want moral turpitude? It’s in the financial meltdown of 2007/2008 that was perpetrated by Wall St. and Canary Wharf that cost millions of regular people half of their savings for retirement or a home in a few days. It’s in the high-frequency trading that is going on every day on Wall St RIGHT NOW that prevents regular people from getting a fair shot at investing what they have left…..you know….as an alternative to the near-zero interest that banks are paying now because of the financial meltdown of 2007-2008.
You can guess where this is going. Unlike Wall St. fraud that regular people could not avoid in time to save their money, no one forces anyone to pay the $240K that is the going price for a very nicely restored Superbird or 190SL or ……[insert your favorite car here].
The big increase in vintage and collector car values over the decades has many other causes, too, like the US Gov’t pumping up the money supply to help the economy, and good old inflation, to name just a couple.
There’s one more I forgot to mention: free market capitalism, which allows people to buy pretty much whatever they want, providing they have the funds, and allows sellers to sell what they own at pretty much whatever price they see fit, providing there is a buyer.
And who can blame people with funds who use some of it to buy something that’s timeless and beautiful and that won’t lose half its value in a couple of days because of fraud in financial markets? As much as I don’t like the fact that I can’t afford to buy back some of the nicer cars I used to own way back when, I don’t blame people who buy these cars at current going prices, even if that going price will be higher next year. For one thing, it guarantees that they will be well cared for and won’t end up as scrap. For another, there is absolutely nothing I can do about it because all this is built into people and the society we live in.
Personally, I don’t see this as a moral issue. It’s just the way it is, like it or not.
Very well put, Dolphin.
Whenever I find an old R&T, I save the classifieds for dessert.
Good grief, I’d love to have that 9-6.
And maybe I’m the only person that thinks that Pinto is cool as hell.
The GLH is gone…. “no longer available”
Someone had cash, and felt that the car was worth making an offer that could not be turned down?
The wagon is gone too. I saw one like it (rusted patina) for 10k at Cars & Coffee Dallas this Saturday. The interior was in great condition, but needs to be stripped to bare metal and painted. I didn’t take any info or pictures.
The GLH looked to be in decent shape. Late 80s I worked with a guy who had one who said you had to be careful jacking the car up at the proper jack points only otherwise you risked bending the car. Not the stiffest of vehicles I suppose.
My next door neighbor had the same Pinto. Same year and color. It was awful then, its awful now.
I remember in college I saw someone had taken a 70-72 Pinto, and put a 289 in it. low profile pro-stock style hood scoop, black, skinnies up front, 70s and mags in the back, and side pipes. Look like something that escaped Grumpies garage before he could get through with it.