Vance:
Personal opinion, but I think it's hard to overpay for a completely
rust-free car. Rust repair is very expensive, a pain in the butt and very
intrusive (Is a formerly rusty car ever really the same as when it was
made? That's a whole thread in itself). I bought my 130K mile 69 TR6 in
Tulsa, OK and drove it back to Ohio in 1991. Completely rust-free, but I
paid about 15-25% more than "book" value. Of course, how much (high
quality) rust repair can you buy for $1,500-2,000 dollars? In my mind, the
extra "rust-free" premium money and travel money I paid upfront was more
than paid back to me during the subsequent restoration.
At 11:44 AM 9/18/02 -0700, Navarrette, Vance wrote:
> William:
>
> Great stories. I acquired my TR6 last spring, after talking
>about it for a loooong time.
> I started my search in the usual place, the local paper.
>I contacted the owner, and asked all the usual questions. I was
>particularly careful about rust. He assured me that it was free
>from rust and "very clean".
> When I arrived, I checked the rocker panels near the
>front wings. Both rockers had silver dollar sized holes.
>There was another silver dollar hole near the drivers
>rear wing. The trunk floor had holes in it. All the emissions
>gear was removed, none of the gauges worked. There was no
>carpet in the passenger compartment. The tail lights
>didn't work. No spare tire, etc.... In short, a great way to
>teach your son the virtues of walking.
> What happened next stunned me. There was another person
>there looking at the car, who bought it, as is, for $4200 (US).
>I knew then that I had better be prepared to pay when I found
>that rust free car I wanted.
> Sigh. I probably paid too much for mine, but so be it.
>It was a Texas car with 0 rust, and not *too* badly buggered.
> Moral: One person's "clean, rust free" car is another
>person's rotted piece-o-crap. Caveat Emptor!
>
> Vance
>
>------------------------------
>1974 Mimosa Yellow Triumph TR6
>Cogito Ergo Zoom
>(I think, therefore I go fast)
>
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: William Whitmoyer [mailto:wwhitmoyer@samsonite.net]
>Sent: Wednesday, September 18, 2002 9:23 AM
>To: 6pack@autox.team.net
>Subject: RE:The TR6 I *didn't* buy...
>
>
>Kai:
>
>That reminds me of the 1975 BMW 2002 from California I saw sitting at an
>Ohio garage for several long winter months. The owner wanted double what
>it was worth (as a rust-free body shell) because the engine had just been
>rebuilt...of course, it had 160K total with only the head valve stems/seals
>redone at 125K (a common 2002 weakspot). Oh, and these people were fresh
>in from LA (sorry, Dick) and had 100% water in the cooling system..the
>first 10 degree Ohio winter cold snap...bang...that's why it was sitting
>outside this garage all winter. Conversation time: 5 minutes.
>
> <snip>
>
>And I've got more. Bites, doesn't it? I feel your pain in a way only
>possible with personal experience. I've had my share of good seller
>experiences, but that total is unfortunately much less than the bad seller
>experiences. Sorry if this is a little preachy and ranty, but this stuff
>ticks me off big time.
>
>
>William Whitmoyer
William Whitmoyer
69 TR6
72 Fiat Spider
90 BMW iX
91 CRX Si
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