Get car running for free?

[Buick35]

Sounds too good to be true.I just saw on my Florida's craigslist that a guy wants to make a video of getting an old car to run for free, he says the older the better.I'm thinking that the 59 Buick Electra for $300 in Nevada that might be a good candidate.If I could only get it shipped here reasonably.

[Matt Harwood]

I suspect "get it running for free" actually means "put some gas in it, clean the plugs, and try to jump start it."

[Buick35]

Could be.

[F&J]

That guy won't restore anything, it will be like Matt said above.

 

Many YouTube channels make money by doing "will it run" videos.  Others do videos of dragging vintage cars out of fields and barns, so they buy cheap cars just to make the monetized video.  One local Youtuber bought 2 cars from me 2 years ago.  He said he'd only buy them if he could make the video on my property.

 

 

[TTR]

And what was that old wisdom again ?

”You get what you’re paying… “ 

[John_S_in_Penna]

4 hours ago, Buick35 said:

I'm thinking that the 59 Buick Electra for $300 in Nevada that might be a good candidate.  

My thoughts:  Call the man, talk to him, ask for references.

It can't hurt to talk to him.

 

Then:  Get the 1959 Buick that caught your eye, if it's okay.

Figure on getting it running yourself;  then if this Youtube deal

works out, you're only ahead.

[Twisted Shifter]

2 hours ago, TTR said:

And what was that old wisdom again ?

”You get what you’re paying… “ 

       ...If you're lucky!

[Rusty_OToole]

I have gotten old cars running "for free" that is, without buying any new parts, that had been off the road for 30 years or more. Using odds and ends found around the garage, plus a borrowed battery from another car and a motorboat gas tank plumbed to the carb. I would say, if the air cleaner and spark plugs are in place, no parts missing, the hood closed, and I can turn the engine by hand 9 times out of 10 I can have it running in a few hours.

 

Usually this involves cleaning the points plugs and carburetor and sometimes replacing defective wiring. A little oil down the cylinders and spin it on the starter with the plugs out. If you have gas, spark and compression they will run.

Edited July 6, 2022 by Rusty_OToole (see edit history)

[John_S_in_Penna]

And Mr. Buick35, if you merely get it running and

functioning and do nothing else, you have done a

big service to the hobby:  You have saved a car

that would otherwise have been destroyed!

[TTR]

Or perhaps the offer is only about making the video for free, as in he wouldn’t charge the car owner or mechanic for filming them, regardless of how much time or money they might have to spend to get it running ? 🤔

[Ed Luddy]

16 minutes ago, Rusty_OToole said:

I have gotten old cars running "for free" that is, without buying any new parts, that had been off the road for 30 years or more. Using odds and ends found around the garage, plus a borrowed battery from another car and a motorboat gas tank plumbed to the carb. I would say, if the air cleaner and spark plugs are in place, no parts missing, the hood closed, and I can turn the engine by hand 9 times out of 10 I can have it running in a few hours.

 

Usually this involves cleaning the points plugs and carburetor and sometimes replacing defective wiring. A little oil down the cylinders and spin it on the starter with the plugs out. If you have gas, spark and compression they will run.

I've done the same, but a trick a young smart guy taught me was using a few ounces of brake fluid  squrited into the cylinders when you are cleaning the plugs and add a bit of Seafoam cleaner into the gas you fill the float bowl with. Saved a Olds 442 engine this way.

[Bloo]

In my opinion, if you want it, get it shipped and do the "get it running" part yourself. For one thing, I hear nailhead Buicks are prone to stuck valves after a long sit. Someone needs to check it out carefully. Then. proceed as @Rusty_OToole suggests. Some of the videos I have seen would give you pause (and that is putting it nicely). Also, it is usually all about the video, not the car. The culture has changed, and people who were raised into the hobby and know exactly what to do are uncommon now. Not non-existent, but uncommon.

 

[Bryan G]

I've avoided clicking on any of those videos that pop up on YouTube. On one level, resurrecting an old car that's been sitting for 10-20 years can be quite exciting. I've done it myself, and drive about 100 miles a week in a 73 year old car that was dead in the water last year. But to watch some quick and dirty "get it going" video? Sure, that engine will run! As Rusty said, and we all know, if the engine isn't in pieces it can run. But...can you keep it running?

[Dandy Dave]

My wife and I watch Vice Grip Garage with Derick for entertainment on youtube. She actually intoduced it too me. Most of the stuff he gets running and drives home parts are availible for, and if something goes south there's always a trailer to get it the rest of the way home. The only thing I wonder about is how he gets stuff home without getting pulled over and checked for Registration, Title, and insurance. I've never seen a dealer plate on anything??? I'm getting too old, and ache too much (Psoriatic Arthuritis + Osteo also), to lay on the ground under some junker in a field. Funny thing is, I did that for a living for years when there was no you tube. I could have been making the big bucks just entertaining folks. I could still try out being a stand up comedian for fun. I said for a while now I missed my calling in life. I could be a crabby old Mechanic complaning about everthing and make money doing it. LOL.. 😅🤣😂😜 

Edited July 7, 2022 by Dandy Dave (see edit history)

[3makes]

I can vouch for the crabby and grumpy old mechanic as the result of just one phone call.

[Dandy Dave]

2 hours ago, 3makes said:

I can vouch for the crabby and grumpy old mechanic as the result of just one phone call.

Don't take it Personal. I bust and pick on everyone. 😁 Dandy Dave!

[Peter Gariepy]

There is a new trend on Youtube.

Content providers take videos of something they are good at like getting a car running, cleaning a yard, or restoring a watch.

They do it FREE!

But... they make money from YouTube.  

example:  https://www.youtube.com/c/SBMowing

Interestingly its profitable.

 

I'm not defending this guys ability to get a vehicle running, but... I would not be surprised he did this to make YouTube content.

 

 

[plymouthcranbrook]

Remember my old adage. Sometimes free is too much too pay.  Just be  careful.

[TAKerry]

I wish one of those you tubers could have worked on my truck last week and saved me $600!!