|
Edit: - tl;dr I ended up buying it for three grand to help out my aunt. My uncle is the original owner of a 1973-ish Ford Torino. We used to sit and talk cars at family gathering until he passed away last year, quietly in his sleep. The car went to my cousin who left it with my aunt who now wants it gone, so my cousin asked me if I wanted it. While I've daydreamed about taking this car and having it rebuilt into a kickass daily driver, I didn't really expect to get it, and now it's here in my lap but I don't know if I should take it. MY cousin said that the last time she took it out the car barely backed out of the garage and it "barely made it back into the garage". I don't know if it's because it's been sitting undriven for almost two years and it has a couple hundred thousand miles on it, or if the car is seriously a POS. The car is 800 miles away so I can't just pop over and have a mechanic give it a look over. I've asked cousin to give me the VIN so I could look it up, but there's no obligation for me to take on the car. The thing is, I'm tempted. I know next to nothing about rebuilding a car, other than googling for parts and reading car-building blogs, so I'd have to find a place that would do it for me, but it would be kind of awesome to get the engine rebuilt, fuel-injection, stiffer suspension, new brakes, new interior, replace the three-speed with a five-speed, etc... You know, get a car for free and then spend $30,000 (?) to make it run well. But is this the car and the time to do it? I've always had a daydream about buying a Dodge Dart because I've always considered myself a mopar guy and my first car was a Dart, so a Ford would be... different I guess. Plus the whole Starsky & Hutch vibe. It could be fun. Expesive AF but fun. Agrikk fucked around with this message at 18:26 on Nov 2, 2021 |
#
?
Oct 26, 2020 07:18
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 26, 2024 10:43 |
|
|
Are you going to kick yourself in two years if you turn down the offer?
|
|
#
?
Oct 26, 2020 09:02
|
|
|
Car looks awesome. I don't know your personal situation in terms of finances, driveway space, etc, but I'd take it! You don't need to drop a huge sum of money into it right away. If the chassis/body is straight and not rotten, then you can look at getting the mechanics sorted (carb rebuilt, new brake parts, general service), and see how you feel about owning/driving it for a while before you commit to a full rebuild. I'm sure there are plenty of people here on AI who would be happy to give advice on the condition/parts/expense required to get this thing up and running. Are you able to get any photos of the car? Specifically engine bay, wheel arches, door sills, and any other areas which could be prone to rot or are known to have issues on this model. Knowing which state the car is in might help, since older cars last a lot longer in drier states.
|
|
#
?
Oct 26, 2020 09:55
|
|
|
Agrikk posted:The thing is, I'm tempted. I know next to nothing about rebuilding a car, other than googling for parts and reading car-building blogs, so I'd have to find a place that would do it for me, but it would be kind of awesome to get the engine rebuilt, fuel-injection, stiffer suspension, new brakes, new interior, replace the three-speed with a five-speed, etc... You know, get a car for free and then spend $30,000 (?) to make it run well. are you interested in learning? if you have somewhere to stash the car while you tinker on it, that would be the best of both worlds. you gotta start somewhere. even if you aren't interested in getting grease under your fingernails, pomp has the right idea; you don't have to trick it out from the get go. it can be a rolling restoration. bolind posted:Are you going to kick yourself in two years if you turn down the offer? this is the big one, though. if you would regret it more than a little bit, isn't it worth the few hundred bucks to go get it, and see what you're getting into?
|
|
#
?
Oct 26, 2020 12:09
|
|
|
These are all good questions to ask myself. Cousin has stated that if I don't take it it will sit in her garage under a tarp so I suppose there is no hurry. And as much as I'd like to take this on myself, I already have too many hobbies that family life is taking me from, so building a car myself, while soooo much fun, isn't in the cards. But yeah, flying down and taking the car to a mechanic to see what I'm getting into might be worth it. Let's see: Basic tuneup then Engine rebuild Aftermarket fuel injection New brakes New suspension New 5-speed transmission New wheels New interior New stereo ... ... 
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2020 23:38
|
|
|
Agrikk posted:These are all good questions to ask myself. Cousin has stated that if I don't take it it will sit in her garage under a tarp so I suppose there is no hurry. And as much as I'd like to take this on myself, I already have too many hobbies that family life is taking me from, so building a car myself, while soooo much fun, isn't in the cards. if it's already mostly running and you can just change one thing at a time while you otherwise drive it, that makes it all much more doable sounds like you arent out much by taking a look, once long distance travel is a thing again
|
|
#
?
Oct 29, 2020 05:27
|
|
|
My cousin sent me the VIN and when I looked it up it's a 1970 Ford Torino with a 302 V8 built in San Jose, CA.Raluek posted:if it's already mostly running and you can just change one thing at a time while you otherwise drive it, that makes it all much more doable As it turns out, my wife knows that I've always wanted to build a car and was planning on giving me one for my 50th birthday next year. When I told her about this she was absolutely all in, and thought that this plan of upgrading one thing at a time over a few years was solid. I know it at least needs a major tuneup and shocks but yeah, flying down to have a look with a mechanic is the right thing to do. And building this car will be a whole lot more meaningful than picking up some random small block from an auction or barn find.
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 05:13
|
|
|
Agrikk posted:My cousin sent me the VIN and when I looked it up it's a 1970 Ford Torino with a 302 V8 built in San Jose, CA. Nice, my truck is from the same plant. It's actually in Milpitas, but Milpitas didn't exist back then so it was just sorta near San Jose. It's a mall now, but the cool thing is that they preserved the original building instead of knocking it down, so it still has sort of an industrial look to it. I like the '70 Torino; it's got sort of an Aus Falcon look to it. Post pics when you go take a look at it!
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 05:39
|
|
|
Torinos are cool. How meaningful is the family connection for you? How big is your budget? Assuming you’re committed to taking on a car project, would the cost of shipping this free Torino home vs buying a project Dart leave you with a lot more money to put into the project? The default answer you’ll get in AI to “should I do this car thing?” is “hell yeah” and that’s certainly my feeling here. That said, if the Torino doesn’t excite you and you’re not planning on doing the work yourself, and your budget is big enough (like the $30k you mentioned), you might have a lot more fun buying someone else’s finished project and driving it.
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 08:05
|
|
|
IMO show up with a new battery and a ratchet set and roadkill it home. You get a free Torino and a guaranteed adventure. I don't know what exactly you want to do with it, but I think you could have fun with it no matter what the car is or what you can do with it. It could be a rolling probable cause or a shiny museum exhibit. Worst case you could pass it on if you get bored. Is it a pre-smog engine?
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 16:04
|
|
|
Steely Dad posted:Torinos are cool. How meaningful is the family connection for you? How big is your budget? Assuming you’re committed to taking on a car project, would the cost of shipping this free Torino home vs buying a project Dart leave you with a lot more money to put into the project? My uncle bought Nellybelle before I was born and is synonymous with him. Although my project car would be a Dart, I realize that the project car would be just a car while putting money into building Nellybelle could give it new life. It would always be "my uncle's car" (in a good way) if that makes sense. My brother and sister asked if they could drive it, and my cousin was excited that I was excited to put new life into it. What is really cool about this is that my wife is all-in on this, and I didn't expect her to be. When I said that I'd put a couple of grand into the car maybe twice a year she didn't even blink and building out the car one chunk at a time seems a lot more manageable than making car payments against a $30,000 car that someone else built. quote:The default answer you’ll get in AI to “should I do this car thing?” is “hell yeah” and that’s certainly my feeling here. That said, if the Torino doesn’t excite you and you’re not planning on doing the work yourself, and your budget is big enough (like the $30k you mentioned), you might have a lot more fun buying someone else’s finished project and driving it. I think that's why I came here. I want to do this and I wanted other people to want me to do this.
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 16:56
|
|
|
Hell yeah. Do it!
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 17:12
|
|
|
There are a few things missing from this thread to really help us evaluate it: Pictures of the car Location of the car, where it was driven its whole life. Was it garaged or did it sit outside? Is it all original or modified? Repainted? If this is a rust belt car that sat outside every night then it's probably a basket case, and you'd have to love it to want to put the energy in to fixing it. If it's a southern car that was garaged then it could be nice, or at worst old, faded and dried out, and won't be too bad to deal with. If it still starts and runs that's a great starting place, and even if it leaks all the fluids it can be probably made to run decent as is. And if it's all original, I would recommend not customizing it, as it will hold value better as a one-owner survivor in the event you decide to sell it for a dart after a few years. I did google image search and that is a much cooler Torino body than the later ones I was thinking of. Also it appears there was no 4 door of that generation. So you have a pretty unique american "sports car". Looking forward to the thread when you get it.
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 17:26
|
|
|
Definitely do it! Also, has this been posted yet? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSb_UKSw37Q b
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 17:34
|
|
|
gently caress YES All I would consider is if I had the space, had the time, and had at least a little bit of money to throw at it over time. Get it so that you can tool around in it and worry about the rest of the project later.
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 18:36
|
|
|
LloydDobler posted:There are a few things missing from this thread to really help us evaluate it: No pictures yet, let me see if I can dig through an old family album to see if any exist. But as a '70 it is reminiscent of the "Red Tomato" from Starsky and Hutch The car is single-owner 2-door, owned only by my uncle and it has been garaged and driven in the SF Bay Area its entire life, excepting the odd road trip to the mountains or LA or whatever. It is no longer stock as it has an aftermarket crate 302V8 and aftermarket power steering. It runs and drives, though my cousin said she was "impressed that it made it back into the garage after backing it out into the driveway" but probably because it's been standing idle for a year and a half, rather than any serious mechanical issues. It's got fresh paint as my uncle has had it repainted every ten years or so with a fresh shade of blue. My favorite was the cobalt blue micro flake paint job from the early 80s and the deep shag carpet in the back footwells.
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 19:47
|
|
|
See, this sounds awesome and it's my opinion that you must do it.
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 20:33
|
|
|
Agrikk posted:The car is single-owner 2-door, owned only by my uncle and it has been garaged and driven in the SF Bay Area its entire life, excepting the odd road trip to the mountains or LA or whatever. It is no longer stock as it has an aftermarket crate 302V8 and aftermarket power steering. Yeah, thats about perfect for what you want as an easy restoration. It should be very rust free. My 66 Volvo came out of the bay area and is one of the most rust free ones I've ever seen.
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 20:49
|
|
|
you must take this car
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 21:07
|
|
|
Great choice on deciding to take the car! We're all looking forward to seeing it, and for the project thread which is certain to follow!
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 21:22
|
|
|
Sounds like a really cool project and you should definitely do it. Edit: whoops, got my years wrong. You won't even have to smog it if you're in CA!
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 21:54
|
|
|
Taking ownership of this car brings up a couple of questions: 1. How do you transfer ownership of a car if there isn't a sale? The car will technically be a gift, so how does that work? 2. How will I insure this car? Surely a 1970 car has a bluebook value of right around zero, but if I drop $3000 every six months into it how do I establish value so I can insure it?
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 22:12
|
|
|
Agrikk posted:Taking ownership of this car brings up a couple of questions: 1 depends on the state. Typically, it's a transfer of title by signing the back of the current title with the new owner's info, and an application for new title in the new state. In Ohio, you need an "out of state inspection" which amounts to a worker looking at the vin and making sure it matches what's on the title. Then register like any other car. 2 depends on your current insurance and what your needs are. Your current insurance will probably have an option to insure the car for a "declared value" that you and your insurance company agree on. You can also look at specialty insurance like Hagerty that is in the business of insuring cars of particular value.
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2020 23:07
|
|
EVERYWHERE 
|
In California, you write the sale amount on the paperwork, and you are taxed some amount based on it. There is an option for a gift, but I think it is only for immediate family members. I think they use bluebook value if your sale number is too low (or zero). You can always make up a number, like $700-1000, that sounds reasonable for an "old junk car" and they won't question it. I have a friend who legitimately bought a car for $1 and was hassled at the DMV over putting that down, though. I don't know how this works for out of state sales. If it's going to be your daily driver (which it sounds like it isn't, but this is what I'm most familiar with) it's insured based on what the insurance company thinks it's worth, which as you point out, is nowhere near what the car will actually be worth if it's restored or modified. There are collectors insurance companies, such as Hagerty, which is accustomed to this kind of thing. They won't have a problem with you listing your high dollar modifications and setting a declared value based on them. The downside is that they require that the car is garaged, and that you have another car as your daily driver. I think there are mileage limitations to ensure that you aren't using it as your primary vehicle. I've never done this, but I think others here (IOC's '70 C10, for example) have used Hagerty for their classics before.
|
|
#
?
Nov 12, 2020 02:10
|
|
|
Some states have moved to some depreciated value of original MSRP for tax purposes to prevent various shenanigans. The upside is that old cars are very cheap to buy and register.
|
|
#
?
Nov 12, 2020 02:53
|
|
|
Yeah, my practice has always been that I bought the car for $100 if it's a private sale. The state doesn't ask questions, takes their five bucks in tax, and sends me on my way.
|
|
#
?
Nov 12, 2020 03:53
|
|
|
Agrikk posted:No pictures yet, let me see if I can dig through an old family album to see if any exist. But as a '70 it is reminiscent of the "Red Tomato" from Starsky and Hutch Where in the SF Bay Area is it? If it’s near (30 miles ish) to me (Pleasanton) I’d be willing to at least go take a look and take pictures of the important stuff and see what sort of general condition it’s in and any major work that it may or may not need. This is a seriously cool prospect for you, doubly so with the approval of your better 2/3rds.
|
|
#
?
Nov 12, 2020 06:30
|
|
|
I have my old car insured for an agreed upon value, they required my agent to look at the car in person and document the condition with photos so that it at least had the appearance of being valuable in the range I suggested. You can't just take a piece of poo poo rustbucket and insure it for 100k and then wreck it to get a payout. Some insurers will require an appraisal, which is the other official way to get a value for the car. Sometimes it can be done by any automotive dealership, sometimes they require a professional appraiser.
|
|
#
?
Nov 12, 2020 09:28
|
|
|
charliemonster42 posted:Where in the SF Bay Area is it? If it’s near (30 miles ish) to me (Pleasanton) I’d be willing to at least go take a look and take pictures of the important stuff and see what sort of general condition it’s in and any major work that it may or may not need. Thanks for the offer but I can just have my aunt send me pictures herself and I can talk to my Uncle's mechanic. Apparently he's been taking the car to the same guy for the last twenty years or so so there should be decent history there.
|
|
#
?
Nov 13, 2020 06:44
|
|
|
Sound like a great project. Do iiiiiiiiit.
|
|
#
?
Nov 13, 2020 15:40
|
|
|
A lot of things can be answered if you send 4 corner shots of this showing while car, engine bat, interior, and as many reasonable under car shots as you can. The guys here can tell you a rough estimate of what shape it’s in and how to proceed. How many miles are you from car? After pics I can probably fine you my brokers # and if it rolls can get it shipped to you way cheaper than going to get it. In TN we have a family member form. Otherwise bring pics and put $300 down. I legitimately buy cars for $3-500 and sometimes get hassled on newer stuff I bring pics and show them. Pics will help a lot. I know you are excited we are excited for you! Just don’t put cart before the horse
|
|
#
?
Nov 15, 2020 14:59
|
|
|
everdave posted:Just don’t put cart before the horse But it's already RWD?  
|
|
#
?
Nov 17, 2020 21:30
|
|
|
A new wrinkle in the proceedings: My cousin has been diagnosed with late stage stomach cancer so her mom, my aunt, now wants to sell me the car for $4000. Free this was an easy decision. But $4000...? I'm not going to negotiate for this because my aunt seems to think she can get five for the car and I'm not going to try to chisel her down from her "family rate" seeing as how it is going to go towards medical care. She has "a guy who works on old cars" available and I'm to call him so we can talk about the quality of the car and presumably take pictures. What am I looking for and what should I ask him? Obviously things like - how many miles on the motor / transmission - how many miles on the car - any rust or leaks I'm also thinking about the frame itself. I want him to take pictures of the gap between the door and the front fender to see if there's any sag and if so, how bad. Maybe pictures from the front / rear along the sides to see if there's any twisting. What else should I ask and what other pictures should I ask for?
|
|
#
?
Dec 7, 2020 02:36
|
|
|
I'd pass on it at that point. If they think they can get 5k or more out of it let them because they probably need the most they can get. They could possibly get more depending on the condition of the car.
|
|
#
?
Dec 7, 2020 04:26
|
|
|
I hate to be a downer but I also wouldn't pay anything more than a token for the car. Go back and read your own first couple of posts in this thread; try to read them as if it was someone else saying it. I don't think that person would pay $4k for it.
|
|
#
?
Dec 7, 2020 04:27
|
|
|
Applebees Appetizer posted:I'd pass on it at that point. If they think they can get 5k or more out of it let them because they probably need the most they can get. They could possibly get more depending on the condition of the car. Same wish them well and let it go
|
|
#
?
Dec 7, 2020 11:22
|
|
|
Agrikk posted:A new wrinkle in the proceedings: Personally I don't think of old cars in these terms. Understand that mileage and use destroys cars, but so does time and sitting. If it somehow has 200k on it with the original drivetrain and the chassis was taken care of it might be in better shape than the same car with 60k that was never taken care of. I'd also say unless it was garaged since it was new the question isn't "any rust" it's "where and how bad". Always assume the worst, that the engine will have stuck rings or be so clapped out it won't build oil pressure, that anything rubber will have disintegrated 15 years ago and will need replaced, and that it probably won't have brakes. Budget and plan your time for that, and then hope for the best. My 68 Polara was in storage for over 20 years, but the back end was on gravel instead of concrete. I just finished replacing the trunk, both rear quarters, as well as the rear leaf spring brackets, and had to put a fuel cell in because it was all so rusted out. I would not buy that car sight unseen or without someone who legitimately has your best interests in mind and knows what they're doing looking at it closely on stands and ideally taking a ballpeen to any suspect sections of the chassis. Old iron can go from a fun project to a nightmare pretty quickly.
|
|
#
?
Dec 7, 2020 18:58
|
|
|
I'm going to diverge from the general consensus here and say go for it anyway, assuming one thing. Do you have as strong of an emotional attachment as it sounds like you do? I don't know the details of your financial situation, but from the general parts I know from your posts in the IT thread you should be able to afford it if you want to. If you have a strong sentimental attachment it could mean way more than a random Dart, and that could be worth it. Also, if that crate 302 engine is relatively new that could be worth a good amount, and could mean other newer parts got put in.
|
|
#
?
Dec 7, 2020 22:26
|
|
|
There are some good viewpoints here and I admit to being of mixed mind. In talking with my cousin she said that it was her mom who wanted cash for the car, against my cousin’s wishes. Where it gets awkward is when she says “if you don’t buy it I’m going to fight for the car and just keep it in my driveway.” So now I could buy the car, let aunt sell the car on her own, or do nothing and see if cousin grabs the car at which point I could make a deal at a later date. But that last option feels really icky. Yeah, I could afford the car. I think I’m going to kick this decision down the road and call a mechanic I know down there to take a visit to the car for some photos and a cursory inspection. When it was free I good on the car. But four grand is four grand that I could have put straight into the car and it’s a harder sell for Mrs. Agrikk. E: this thread is becoming more e/n than AI. Sorry to air out all my deliberations like this. I was hoping for photos and gear upgrades... Agrikk fucked around with this message at 05:59 on Dec 8, 2020 |
|
#
?
Dec 8, 2020 05:54
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 26, 2024 10:43 |
|
|
If you have no emotional attachment to it move on from it, it's not worth the family drama imo. If they can't sell it they will eventually want it gone and probably offer it up to you for free again 
|
|
#
?
Dec 8, 2020 06:05
|
|