Paul from PA Posted January 26 Share Posted January 26 What is the roughest condition potentially most valuable car you ever purchased? I can think of two I owned. 1968 Firebird 400 convertible that was sideswiped and later caught on fire as the son was burning garbage. The other one was a 1969 Boss 302 Mustang with no drivetrain, hood and missing other parts. Both cars were sold 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Bamford Posted January 26 Share Posted January 26 28 minutes ago, Paul from PA said: What is the roughest condition potentially most valuable car you ever purchased?... 1912 KisselKar 4-50. Tractorized around WW2, parked soon after, purchased in 1993. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Smolinski Posted January 26 Share Posted January 26 1966 Biscayne L72, M20 four speed, 4:88 rear, metallic brakes, transistorized ignition, with build sheet. No engine or trans. Incorrect reared. No metallic brakes. No shifter. None of the TI parts. Interior was there but crap. Body was rusty. Frame was good. Wrong rims. Had the original 7000 rpm tach in the dash. Bought it sight unseen from a junkyard in Maryland for $1000. Tach was worth that. Part two of this story a little later on. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted January 26 Share Posted January 26 1969 Cougar Convertible factory Ram Air 428CJ Four Speed Posi with all paperwork. I decided too much work and the guy that bought it from me did a full boat restoration that would have been at least 200K if I had to do it. Before and After. 10 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted January 26 Share Posted January 26 Actually. I have a better one than that. And I promised my dad I would restore it before I die. Sigh... 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plymouthcranbrook Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 (edited) 4 hours ago, alsancle said: Actually. I have a better one than that. And I promised my dad I would restore it before I die. Sigh... So now you have to make it to the next millennium? Edited January 27 by plymouthcranbrook (see edit history) 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 11 hours ago, plymouthcranbrook said: So now you have to make it to the next millennium? Fortunately, the Hollywood is a fairly small and simple car. So I think if I can live to be about 90 I have a good shot at it. 1 1 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
58L-Y8 Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 17 hours ago, alsancle said: Actually. I have a better one than that. And I promised my dad I would restore it before I die. Sigh... A.J.: Do the floor pans show evidence that the convertible coupe body was a completed shell at Connorsville which they then modified to accept the rear drive? When you do the restoration, consider a supercharged '54 Kaiser six for power. It's surprising that at some point in its history that that modification hasn't already been done. Make it drive as good as it looks. Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
60FlatTop Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 (edited) How about a 1963 Dodge small body Polara two door hardtop, factory black with a red interior. 361 B-block Arizona car. I hit a driveway head on from the ditch it crossed and flipped it end over end. One of those 3 AM things coming back from the all night diner after the bars closed. Would have been quite popular with the MOPAR crowd today. Over 50 years ago, back when I had a bit of a wild side. I just posted this and looked at my signature picture. Still a little wild I guess Edited January 28 by 60FlatTop (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jp1gt Posted January 27 Share Posted January 27 worst car was a Fiat 850 spider. Fun to drive but you could always depend on it to break down! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank DuVal Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 13 hours ago, 58L-Y8 said: When you do the restoration, consider a supercharged '54 Kaiser six for power. It's surprising that at some point in its history that that modification hasn't already been done. Make it drive as good as it looks. 8 more cubic inches? Doesn't sound like worth the trouble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angelfish Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lump Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 Hmmm...I've bought a LOT of very-rough "projects" over the years, but here is one good example. When visiting family in Massachusetts, I encountered a back-yard unofficial salvage yard filled with vintage junked cars. I ventured onto the property, and soon met the owner. The timing was perfect, as he had just been battling local government over taxes and etc, and wanted to leave the state. He would indeed sell me the cars, but only if I bought ALL of them, in a package deal (another big story, for another time). Yes, I bought them, and spent the better part of three years hauling them out of there. One of the coolest cars there was also one of the roughest... a 1942 Ford convertible. But man, it was ROUGH! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Luddy Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 1969 Dodge Charger R/T 426 4 speed. B5 blue, white rump stripe white interior, power windows, ralley dash, etc. Bought it 1975 or 76 (foggy 70's lifestyle) It didn't have the original 426 Hemi, plenty of rust (Canadian car from new), big dent in drivers door, bad exhaust, worse brakes and steering. Had to keep it off the road when the safety check lanes opened for the summer 2 week blitz. Sold it to a friend as I couldn't afford to fix it. He got T-Boned and it was wrote off and scrapped. I've lost all the photo's of it but a Mopar sleuth did do a bunch of research on it years ago. The dealer I bought it from contacted me 20 years later wanting to buy it back when he realized how much they were climbing in price. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHuDWah Posted February 5 Share Posted February 5 1930 Model A Ford Sport Coupe. Sorry, no pix. When I was looking for a car many years ago, my aunt remembered she used to work with a guy who drove it every day. Dad and I tracked him down. It turned out he was an alcoholic but still had the car. It had been sitting in his yard for years without a top, rust in cowl, quarters and floor. The under-seat tool pan was just a big hole. The rumble seat cushions were gone and the front seat was in tatters with a colony of bumblebees living in it. The guy's kids had packed the radiator full of mud and we eventually found the frame was warped. We paid too much but at least the sheet metal was straight except for the rust, most of the unique SC parts were there, and it had a title. The landau irons were missing but we lucked out and found a pair at the first swap meet we went to. All this was back when original parts and quality reproductions weren't unobtainium with prices to match like now. It took 20 years off-and-on but we did a ground up restoration. This was pre-internet and Model A has been researched a lot more since, so we made some authenticity mistakes. But Dad was one of those guys that could do anything he put his mind to and we learned a lot as we went. So the car turned out pretty nice for a first-time amateur attempt, nice enough to always trophy in local shows. The only problem was we never could get it to run cool, no matter how much we flushed it, tinkered with timing, whatever. After Dad passed, I lost interest. I no longer had him to enjoy the car with me. So I sold it and got enough to cover our out-of-pocket cost. We had lots more invested with our labor but those memories are priceless. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crusty Trucker Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 (edited) On 1/27/2024 at 8:37 PM, Angelfish said: Are you the guy who bought this Ferrari? Need any bridges or swamp land? Wrecked Ferrari Worth $1.9 Million? https://www.esquire.com/lifestyle/cars/a44870792/ferrari-wreck-monterey-car-week-auction/ Edited February 6 by Crusty Trucker (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angelfish Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 Well, when you already have everything... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdome Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 2 hours ago, Crusty Trucker said: Are you the guy who bought this Ferrari? Need any bridges or swamp land? Wrecked Ferrari Worth $1.9 Million? https://www.esquire.com/lifestyle/cars/a44870792/ferrari-wreck-monterey-car-week-auction/ I know where there's a 33 v12 packard sedan that is in better shape and more complete than this Ferrari. It would look real nice next to this Ferrari. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crusty Trucker Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 55 minutes ago, jdome said: I know where there's a 33 v12 packard sedan that is in better shape and more complete than this Ferrari. It would look real nice next to this Ferrari. I'd be hard pressed to find a car, any car, anywhere, that wouldn't look nice compared to that Ferrari ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 On 1/27/2024 at 9:23 AM, 58L-Y8 said: A.J.: Do the floor pans show evidence that the convertible coupe body was a completed shell at Connorsville which they then modified to accept the rear drive? When you do the restoration, consider a supercharged '54 Kaiser six for power. It's surprising that at some point in its history that that modification hasn't already been done. Make it drive as good as it looks. Steve Sorry Steve, I just saw this. From the firewall back it is 100% Cord with the exception of the transmission tunnel (Crudely cut out) and rear end. The convertibles had Cord leather interiors, at least ours did. The sedans had Graham specific hardware like the door handles, but the convertibles used Cord. The convertibles might have been made from entire cars given all the Cord stuff not swapped over to Graham. No need to swap engines, the supercharged six from Graham was more than enough power for the size of the car (which is not big). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
58L-Y8 Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 1 hour ago, alsancle said: Sorry Steve, I just saw this. From the firewall back it is 100% Cord with the exception of the transmission tunnel (Crudely cut out) and rear end. The convertibles had Cord leather interiors, at least ours did. The sedans had Graham specific hardware like the door handles, but the convertibles used Cord. The convertibles might have been made from entire cars given all the Cord stuff not swapped over to Graham. No need to swap engines, the supercharged six from Graham was more than enough power for the size of the car (which is not big). Thanks A.J. This confirms what I suspected, the few Hupmobile Skylark and Graham Hollywood convertible coupe and phaeton bodies were those already in the assembly process at Connorsville when the cease production order came down. Those would have been included in the inventory of stamped body panels, tools and dies that Norman Devaux acquired with the idea to develop a lower cost car with Cord design appeal. Reflecting on the engines, other than more readily available parts sources for the late Kaiser engine, there wouldn't be much horsepower gain from the, as my late friend who owned a couple second generation Kaiser observed, "the old forklift engine." Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Smolinski Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 On 1/26/2024 at 2:55 PM, George Smolinski said: 1966 Biscayne L72, M20 four speed, 4:88 rear, metallic brakes, transistorized ignition, with build sheet. No engine or trans. Incorrect reared. No metallic brakes. No shifter. None of the TI parts. Interior was there but crap. Body was rusty. Frame was good. Wrong rims. Had the original 7000 rpm tach in the dash. Bought it sight unseen from a junkyard in Maryland for $1000. Tach was worth that. Part two of this story a little later on. Part 2 of this story as promised. Someone on CT mentioned seeing it in the junkyard. I messaged him and got the name of the yard and phone number. When I called the yard to inquire about the car, I said “I don’t want to sound like a wise a—, but how do you know it’s a real L72 Biscayne?” His reply was “ cause I’m lookin’ at the build sheet.” My reply was “I’ll take it. Can I send you a money order?” About 2-3 weeks later it was in my brother’s shop in Indiana. Over the next 4-5 years, I lived on EBay, collecting correct parts with correct dates for it. The TI parts were difficult and expensive to buy. The 1 year only dual snorkel air cleaner search saw me with several of them (8-10) including one that was NOS. I found correct dated 858 heads for it about 10 miles from my house and correct exhaust manifolds off EBay. I had a correct M20 trans. I really lucked out on finding a correct dated long block for it. It was a replacement block that did not have a VIN stamp nor the CE stamping on the front pad. It did have the correct alphanumeric code stamped on it and the date matched my car’s build date. Guy had it on EBay and I convinced him to sell it outright to me. Also found the metallic brake setup for it, but missed out on a correct 4:88 rearend for it. After all the fun of collecting parts a fellow ‘66 enthusiast made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. He has since had it restored and added to his ‘66 collection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 1 hour ago, George Smolinski said: Part 2 of this story as promised. Someone on CT mentioned seeing it in the junkyard. I messaged him and got the name of the yard and phone number. When I called the yard to inquire about the car, I said “I don’t want to sound like a wise a—, but how do you know it’s a real L72 Biscayne?” His reply was “ cause I’m lookin’ at the build sheet.” My reply was “I’ll take it. Can I send you a money order?” About 2-3 weeks later it was in my brother’s shop in Indiana. Over the next 4-5 years, I lived on EBay, collecting correct parts with correct dates for it. The TI parts were difficult and expensive to buy. The 1 year only dual snorkel air cleaner search saw me with several of them (8-10) including one that was NOS. I found correct dated 858 heads for it about 10 miles from my house and correct exhaust manifolds off EBay. I had a correct M20 trans. I really lucked out on finding a correct dated long block for it. It was a replacement block that did not have a VIN stamp nor the CE stamping on the front pad. It did have the correct alphanumeric code stamped on it and the date matched my car’s build date. Guy had it on EBay and I convinced him to sell it outright to me. Also found the metallic brake setup for it, but missed out on a correct 4:88 rearend for it. After all the fun of collecting parts a fellow ‘66 enthusiast made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. He has since had it restored and added to his ‘66 collection. Help my memory, the L71 is the tripower 435HP and the L72 is the single four barrel 400 HP? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Schramm Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 (edited) I would vote that the car with the least amount of "accessories" will be the best car because there are less things to go wrong. Buy a car with an engine and manual transmission, like a big block Corvette with a 4 manual speed transmission. Edited February 6 by Larry Schramm (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Smolinski Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 14 hours ago, alsancle said: Help my memory, the L71 is the tripower 435HP and the L72 is the single four barrel 400 HP? The L71 is the 427/435 Corvette engine with 3 X 2. The L72 was 1966 only and 427/425 with single 4 barrel. The L71 was Corvette only. The L72 was Corvette & full size, and I believe it was installed in a handful of Chevelle. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angelfish Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 (edited) So no, I'm not the guy who spent 1.9 million on a wrecked Ferrari. But this was given to me in about 1985 and I spent almost that much bringing it back. Still have it and make a point to drive it every month all year. Edited February 7 by Angelfish (see edit history) 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John348 Posted February 16 Share Posted February 16 (edited) These two door sedans were hard to find when they were common. Being on a limited income I came upon this rotted gem for $200. I did the majority of the work myself with my friends who were skilled at their trades who did it on the side. It was a 12 year project and still looks just as good. I could never do it again, I was on top of my game! Here is the article from the restoration profile in Hemmings Classic Car from August 2010 Edited February 17 by John348 I can.t seem to rotate the photos (see edit history) 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Schramm Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 Improved? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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