One auction. One auctioneer. 121 vehicles. 86 buyers.
When you have 85 sets of eyes competing against your automotive tastes and your wallet, the chances of finding a good deal at an auction goes into a deep decline.
Such was the way of last Monday. But there were some surprises.
You had a helluva time!
A nice long party. Plenty of nice conversations. Fireworks. A nightcap. More fireworks…. and…
We hold these truths to be self-evident.
That all men are created equal.
That they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights.
That among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
One engine. One man. 300,000 miles… and it was only the beginning.
Yesterday I visited an auction where 8% of the vehicles had over 300,000 miles.
I did a double-take when I did the math. (Read More…)
Checkers wasn’t always a game. Ajax wasn’t always a cleanser. Edsel… was not ever quite a hip name. Even back in the day. Although Ford spent several billions of real dollars trying to make it so.
Sometimes brands deserve to die. Just going down the proverbial list shows about a 95+% rate of, “What were those?”, followed by quite a few, “Yeah, I remember those. They sucked.”
Then you have a few that seem surprisingly contemporary. A Saturn can still be a futuristic machine if some manufacturer decided to resurrect the brand and invest in new distinct models. Pontiac was a place. An Indian tribe, and a brand that sold well over 20 million vehicles, and included dozens of memorable model names.
Truth be told many of these old names sound far better than the current ones. An Eagle sounds like a better name for a sporty car than a Dodge. Mercury sounds more hip than a homely Ford. Even the stillborn Amati brand was a far more melodic muse than that guttural Mazda moniker.
Car brands. Car parts. Even certain auto service companies, like gas stations and repair chains, had names that are still easy and fun to remember.
Do any of them deserve a tomorrow? Let us know. Oh, and before you ask Derek and Brendan, Canada apparently does qualify.
2001: A Parking Space Androgyny
After reading TTAC for a few years now, I have totally drunk the Kool-Ade: it’s always cheaper to keep you car on the road than to buy a new one. But where does one draw the line between saving a few shekels and personal satisfaction?
I bought my 1999 Solara SE (3.0L V6 5MT) in 2000. It had 12,000 miles when I bought it from Carmax–basically a new car. Almost 12 years on, I’ve now got 99,000 miles on it, and I’ve put almost no money into it, save for regular oil changes and service. Unless someone changed the brakes before I bought it, it still has the original pads. I’ve definitely gotten my money’s worth out of it, especially since there’s been so little hassle with repairs. I give it an annual detailing, so aside from the late-90’s bar-of-soap styling, it still looks like a new car. It is roomy, nominally fun to drive, and has enough juice to hold its own on LA freeways.
But I’m tired of it.
At my last major service, my trustworthy mechanic gave me a to-do list for next time: brakes, all new struts, new clutch (maybe), timing belt and water pump, and new plugs He’s not trying to milk me–I do feel the suspension rattle, and the shifter grinds a bit going into second and sometimes fifth, although it’s not slipping yet. This guy drives to his shop in a CRX with 375,000mi–I like the way he operates. But I’m thinking that the repairs will be at least two grand, when the resale value on my Solara is only about $3500. It’s worth more to me than to anyone else–but is it worth the investment?
We’ll be welcoming our first kid in November. My wife drives an ’05 Outback Sport. I have my eye on either the Outback 3.6 or the Acura TSX wagon (or the new Escape. I drove a diesel Ford Kuga in Scotland recently and loved it). My MO: buy slightly used, no cars with trunks, and keep this next car for at least a decade. I don’t need AWD in SoCal, I can slum it with an automatic, and I’ve had enough 350 V8s in my past to quench my need for speed.
So–for you and the B&B: Should I fix up the Solara and drive it for another 3 years, or should I go for the wagon?
Picture courtesy of Autoevolution.com
I was all of 22 years. College graduate. A young guy seeking nothing more than a nice Sunday drive with his girlfriend.
The entrance ramp to Route 17 was a one lane affair with an old Buick that seemed to be all too hesitant. Five seconds. Ten Seconds. An eternity of 20 seconds came and went before the vehicle started to creep forward and seemed ready for forward motion.
I had thought the vehicle was long gone when, a few seconds later, I pressed the accelerator and…
Most auto auctions will have an ‘inop sale’ right before the regular sales begins.
Inop sales consist of vehicles that don’t run for one reason or another. It could need little more than a battery or a fuel pump. Or it could be that the electric system is fried, the engine is toast, and the car is truly worth more dead than alive.
Me? Boring???
To Steve:
My name is Alex and I currently own a 2003 Toyota Land Cruiser 100 series.
It is my 3rd one (99, 2001 and this 03) as well as a 93 (80 series). I am a diehard Land Cruiser and Land Rover fanatic. I also have had my fair share of Range Rovers, which I have finally learned to appreciate from a distance as I cannot afford to continue to repair them on a weekly basis.
My 03 Land Cruiser has 158k miles, which is nothing for these cars and looks showroom new for the most part. I also refuse to give the truck up. Period. However with gas being where it is and trying to preserve the Land Cruiser as long as I can, I’m thinking about adding a vehicle to the stable for a daily commuter.
My only requirements are it being reliable, somewhat fuel efficient (well, anything better than the Land Crusher) and fun to drive. I’d rather go with a more vintage car that may be slightly more expensive to repair as it will be different and way more fun to drive than a boring econobox.
I like the Starion/Conquest, but there might be some reliability concerns, or maybe a 3 series (E36). I want to keep this under $5,000 and have factored that in with higher repair costs. I know I definitely do not want a Mustang or Camaro or generic. I’d like something that sticks out. Rust issues are of no concern in Southern California, so no worries on that. If you have any other odd ball suggestions, please help me out.
Is Social Security the third rail of politics?
Perhaps. I don’t know a single politician who ever got elected by telling his constituents, “Let’s cut Social Security expenditures to seniors.”
That would almost be like trying to become the CEO of a company by telling the senior executives, “You know… we get paid far too much for the work we do. Let’s cut our pay and while we’re at it, reduce our executive pension programs.”
In a similar vein, raising speed limits tends to get a similar reception with most county and city governments. The lost revenue. The safety issues. The ‘children’. When discussing this idea in any public meeting, you’re likely to get little more than a combination of glazed eyes and hard stares from city officials.
But it’s a bit different in Bricklynn. That’s because Bricklynn’s citizens are a bit more involved in their town’s decision making than usual.
Autotrader.com recently decided to borrow $400 million for a brand new venture.
Was it in the field of research and development? Nope.
New marketing studies to explore an emerging niche in their core business perhaps? Not quite.
Issue a one-time $400 million dividend to their private shareholders and executives just before the IPO? Bingo!
The ones who will be paying for the principal and interest on this debt will be the upcoming shareholders in the form of lower earnings, a lower market valuation, and one other not so little thing hidden in the prospectus.
My wife had an old Steenkin’ Lincoln.
It was a 1983 model. 4 doors. Maroon. What I would call ‘Mighty Thor’ had been nothing more than a temporary home for sunbathing cats and vast amounts of driveway real estate.
Thumbtacks, staple guns, duct tape, a maroon bathmat for the passenger floor, along with a new battery and fluids gave the car a new life.
For several years it gave my wife basic transportation at a time when gas was cheap and our expenses were slim.
Then it happened…
What would you do with 900 Saabs?
That is the golden question that will be answered this Wednesday. Ally Financial, GM’s past and future finance arm, seized nearly 900 vehicles on the ports of New Jersey and California once Saab Cars North America missed payments on their outstanding loans. Much in the way of litigious discussions were pursued in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, and now the final axe of Saab dispossessory will be swung with an online hammer through GM’s SmartAuction web site.
Can you buy one?
I still have hundreds of old cassettes and compact discs.
When do I use them? Whenever I drive an older car.
There is just something truly enriching and authentic about taking a decades old cassette, that still works, and listening to it in an old Miata or Town Car. Just cruisin’ around town and enjoying the depth of an artist’s complete work.
It was a long, boring, wonderful weekend.
I had no deeds to do, and no promises to keep. Other than spending time with the family and getting better acquainted with old Simon & Garfunkel songs, I pretty much had the time to myself.
It wasn’t until late Sunday that a piece of news would forever change my life.
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