Hot Rods What was the craziest car deal you made?

In 1970 I traded a rifle I had $5.00 in for a 1963 Plymouth Fury . It had a 383 with 400 racing heads and a 3/4 street cam.
An old boozer had gotten this car and put a tranny in it and said the tranny was bad and he just wanted to get rid of it. We towed it to my dads gas station and found no trans fluid had been put in the tranny. I was only 16 yrs old at that time.

 

a 62 falcon futura, saw it on a trailer, ask if for sale, no giving it to granduaghter for graduation, right, she got a new camero, i got the falcon, 27k miles, nice, nice, been stored 18 years, same everything, 1k, shined it up, went to colorado for the big show, did ok, the guy with the big mustache, my old car guy intreviewed me

 

Picked up a '47 Ford pickup for working a couple weekends.

 

Traded a washing machine for a stock 27 roadster PU

 

44 Mag Ruger Red Hawk & $ 400 for a 57 1/2 Ton Big Window with Nice 327 & Muncie with Big & Little Centerlines all around.

 

I bought a 54 Chevy from my H.S. buddy for $5.00, of course it was in 1964! The worst thing I did was trade my $0 Ford coupe for a 57 Chevy even, the 57 had a broken camshaft. STUPID.

 

$100 for a '63 Impala 2dr hardtop abandoned in a vacant city lot after the owner tore the frame bouncing it with hydraulics. Came with an extra frame!

Got paid $50 to haul of a '66 Impala 2dr hardtop and an 85 Caprice donor car. The Impala ended up having a 327 with a Winter Industries Hi-Rise Aluminum intake. The casting numbers were from late 63 to early 64 Corvette. Too bad I am not a Chebby kind of guy. One of the Good Guys Reps drives it, now!

I traded 2 tattoos for a this century OT sedan with bad brakes.

 

Put a subframe in a Metro in exchange for a nice Mk2 Escort van.

The guy couldn't get it to run right after spending big bucks on new engine gearbox clutch 4 new tyres and having 2 new wings put on it and a cheap respray.

Took me 2 nights after work to fix the metro and 10 minutes to sort out the running on the Escort. Turned out it had the wrong dipstick in it and had been overfilled with oil that it was being sucked into the inlet making it smoke and pink really badly.

Guy was very pissed off but stuck too the deal.

Drove it for 3 years until I lent it to my brother to move his stuff to a new flat. He got hit by a meals on wheels van and the insurance company wrote it off, paid me £900 and let me keep the van.

Ended up scrapping it but kept the engine box and axle for a future project.

P.

 

68 VW Bug from the back lot of a dealer in OKC. Not the type of car they normally had on the lot so I asked about it. Guy said it would not run, I asked him to crank it over. I gave $200 for it paid on a Visa card and pushed it off the lot to run the valves then drove it home.

 

Not really crazy... but some decent trading...

Bought clean '95 F150 for 3500 bucks...
Traded truck for a kid's fully restored '65 Mustang 1 year later...
Sold Mustang for 7000 1 year after that...
Ran into kid with my old truck as he was putting on a For Sale sign... bought back truck for 2500 bucks. He installed a nice stereo, fixed the leaky trans and only put 5000 miles on it in the one year he had it.

I love trades like that.

Best / quickest flip I ever made came courtesy of a buddy of mine who was delivering pizzas in his 240Z. He told me of this old man that had two '68 fastback Mustangs in his backyard wasting away in waist high weeds. I investigated and bought the pair for 1000 bucks... the next day I sold the pair to Unique Performance in Dallas (who used to build the Eleanor replicas) for 8000. They came and got 'em, no questions asked 2 days later.

The Mustangs were crap, but they bought them sight unseen. Both were 6 banger coded cars, no options, and both had been drag raced hard with half assed V8 conversions.

Still wish I woulda kept one though...

-Chris

 

In the late 70's I had purchased a 73 Road Runner with a bad tranny for $50.I fixed the trans and was in a gas station and a kid ask if I would trade for a Hemi GTX that wouldn't start. Got $100 to boot ,wirering was melted on the starter from th exhaust and had it running in about 2 hrs.
Drove it for a year and sold it for $3200.

Just two years ago I was given a 66 nova that a tree had fallen on,It was rough and no drivetrain.We had cut the tree up and winched it on a trailer and was at Subway eating on the way home. A guy came in and wanted to buy the Nova. When we delivered it I told him I didn't want the money I would just trade for all that old car stuff. Three 28-29 cowls,two coupe rear 1/4's ,5 doors, two A frames, two front fenders,and a bunch of front and rear axles including some hyd. wide 5 brakes . We we both happy with the trade and I since have done more business with him.

 

this one......
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=370586&highlight=little+monster

 

32 Ford Tudor body, hood, shell and headlight bar w/lights for $600 in the late 70s, sold it for $1850 3 days later, bought a 33 Tudor with a running SBC hooked to the OEM stuff and decent paint for $1700, sold that a week later for $3750, then a 36 3W same drivetrain and needed the front fender put back on. Had a copper n white tuck n roll interior and a 59 Impala wheel. Picked it up for $1800 and sold it a month later for $4000. That was good money in those days. The killer was a 35 Packard 1201 8cyl, complete car with spares, the guy called it a 120 but it was the senior car on a 136" WB. $600. We started a restoration but family needs came up and we soldit for $5500. All we bought for it was $300 worth of paint. Those were the days. Now you need a really big knot of $$$$ to play like that. I wish I still had the 3w...

 

I'm the guy you call when you need to get rid of a car. these are two from earlier this year. I bought a 98 nissan altima from a friend of a friend. he said it grinds in gear and doesn't go and needs a new transmission. I figure, what the heck if I can get it cheap enough....so I offered $20 bucks. yes one single twenty dollar bill. when I got it home and was disconnecting the saftey chain I noticed that the drivers side cv looked odd...yep, broken cv joint. $80 later and I had a driving car. sold it for $3000 a month later....and immedietly bought a 94 toyota camry for $100 bucks that wouldn't start. one cheap relay later...and sold it a week later for $2000. I have a nose for finding this stuff.

 

Always a early B body fan, I spotted a 63 Plymouth Belvedere in the local trader. I had no money but wanted to check out the car anyway.
Drove about 30 miles to see it, loved it. A real "Old Lady" owned 2dr post 63 Belvedere, 37,000 orig miles, window sticker in glove box & orig key blanks, 318 poly and automatic. Mint interior. Price $2000.00

Told the guy selling for his neighbor how bad I wanted the car but didn't have the money at the moment but was going to try to come up with it.
This guy, a total stranger said " I see how bad you want the car, take it and get the money to me when you can" What I thought? So I drove it off. Straight to my bank,
the bank mgr came out looked at the car, and gave me the money.
Now we are talking 1980's, and they let me have the money on a '63 model. Ah, the good ol days.

Photo is after putting new wheels & tires on car.

 

Traded 4 WWW Tires for a complete '55 Chevy 2dr V8 car. The guy had gotten the '55 as partial payment from a customer and he needed WWWs for the '48 Fleetline he was building.

Traded a '48 Chevy radio antenna assy and some misc trim & interior pieces for a chopped '49 2dr Hudson project and a 4dr parts car. The guy was building a '48 coupe and needed a lot tiny hard get pieces that I had on 4dr parts car that a friend gave me.

 

My dad bought a '66 GT350 Shelby Mustang for 1500 bucks in 1976. CSX1692.

It was a little banged up, but it was a good driver! Sold it for much more in the 90's with a blown up 289...

 

At yard sale I bought 63 MG midget. The guy had a lot of parts thrown at it and it wouldnt start. "Positive Earth", ya know. I got it for 150 and pushed it around the corner and drove it home. The next day we drove it through the mountains and had a wonderful time. Puled into the driveway and the neighbor was watering hios grwass said he;d gimme a grand for it. He did too. In high school (1974) I bought a 65 F-85 olds cutlass 4 speed convertable for 100 and drove it to death.

 

A customer had no heat & no job. Called me out & needed a new furnace. Rerplaced the furnace & ducts (no a/c) & he paid me with a driver 55 Chevy 2 door hardtop. I kept it for a few months & sold it for a very hansome profit.

 

Swapped a tired 348 4 barrell engine plus 400 bucks to get a 58 Impala Coupe with a 6 and powerglide, a 58 Pontiac Laurentian coupe with 350/350 and power brakes and steering, and a siezed 348 motor. The Impala had FULL quarter panels thrown in the back seat. Sold off the 350 and tranny, all the Pontiac parts, and the 6 cyl and PG to cover my costs. Rebuilt the 348 and am restoring the Impala. Both are Canadian cars. I cut the entire floor pan outa the Pontiac and am welding it into the Impala complete seat riser to toe boards, rocker to rocker. (The Canadian Pontiacs and Chevs shared the same platform as well as innner fenders!)

 

I needed a car trailer and found one in the classifieds, drove 90 miles and bought it. Got home and decided it needed too much work, but had a friend that needed one, so I took it over to his place. He said he wanted it, but had no cash, but a neighbor owed him some. He went and got the neighbour, who had no cash either, but had a boat to trade. I went and looked at his vintage 1966 Thermoglass that had been garaged since 1968, and said sure. On my way home I stopped to show it to a buddy , a tow truck driver, who said he wantd it and would trade me for his worked over 750 Honda Supersport, I said sure. I put the bike in my truck and stopped at the bike shop for a new back tire, and the mechanic asked if I'd sell him the bike, offered me $2500, I said sure. He said he had $1000 and the rest on friday, or $1000 and his 64 Ford shortbed. I took the truck and the cash. Next day I took my new truck over to my buddies place and gave him $650 plus a running 327 he wanted for the boat back and a new grille and misc Ford truck parts. I had left home the day before with $1200 to buy a trailer, and now had a cool truck, a cool boat, and $350 left in my pocket. I still didn't have a trailer, but who needs one when you have a friend with a tow truck? I smiled and went fishing.

 

last january i found a chopped 29 ford coupe body with a current non-op title on craigslist for $1000. i had shoulder surgery so i could not drive. i paypaled the guy $200 to hold it for me and to pull it off craigslist. the next week the doctor cleared me to drive so my first drive in 3 months was an 11 hour round trip to pick up the body. it also came with cherry tank, the old man said it was nos, and i think it is.

 

Traded a 750 Honda for a 63 Chrysler Newprort, that I still have.

I think the best one was the 69 Chev Kingswood 9 passenger wagon for $125.00, it had a 12 bolt posi, TH400 and best of all a 427. I then sold the 12 bolf for $225.00. So I ended up with a 427, TH400 for -$100.00.

 

Its OT but a guy had his 72 Chev LWB ps, pb, air, deluxe trim, painted and motor rebuilt. Paint was very nice but the motor smoked like crazy from day one. The guy was pissed because the motor guy wouldn't stand behind it. He said "A truck that don't run aint worth $300!" I said "I'd give that for it" He sold it to me and I drove it home smokin like crazy. 5 minutes under the hood and a new PVC and it ran perfect.

Bought ($100) a 64 chev when the owner said the oil pressure went out. Oil gauges plastic line got on the exhaust manifold and melted it.

 

I just don't have that kinda luck. I did haul off an old silage truck for my father in law and got to keep the early 70's 400 that was in it.

 

Traded my 64 impala for a 76 sportster, looking back that may be the dumbest thing i have ever done.

 

Back in 1966, I traded a 1959 Olds 2dr, a 305 Honda superhawk, a portable TV and a nice watch I found on the beach for a Bradley GT ( vw chassis with wild looking glass body). The most memorable time with that car was getting pulled over on Pacific Coast Hwy by the California Hwy Patrol. I asked the cop "what did I do" He said him and his buddy figured the car was going to take off at 100plus and leave him. They just wanted to see what the hell it was. When I showed them the wimpy 50hp motor, they laughed.

In 1968, 2 friends and I bought a 1950 Ford coupe to travel from SoCal to Florida on a surfing trip of the Gulf. Paid 50 bucks for the car and found $ 40+ worth of change in the trunk. The car had about a full turn of play in the steering. As you can imagine driving down the crowned roads back then was an adventure.

 

Answered an ad in the local paper about a Chevy II. It wasn't running but I wanted it. The man told me it jumped time,, he took my $100.oo and left to run some errands and I was waiting for my buddy to show up to help me trailer it out of there.
Meanwhile I chatted with his wife and she said that the car was a sore topic for them as they were driving it as a daily driver and that he "gave it a tune up and it stopped working".
That's when I decided to look it over and see what I could find.It was mine because he had my money and I had the signed title.
So I looked,,No.1 top dead center,drop the distributor in,set the advance,trace the plug wires,snap em on,work the throttle-yes-had fuel,gap the points,turn on the key,,spark spark,,put the cap on,then the air cleaner. Got in started it up and she was like "wait a minute".
I drove off slowly with her saying "it wasn't for sale".
Then my buddy pulls in and with the owner behind him,,he was hanging out the window saying "Hold up a minute" and motioning me to stop. They were wanting to re-negotiate the deal as now it was running ,,,so I kept driving.I drove it home, my buddy loaded my car on the trailer and came some time later.
We laughed about that several times. I drove that little nova a couple of years. It didn't have a heater so I'd keep burning charcoal brickettes in the floorboard in a coffee can.
Weeze poor folks.

 

1957 corvette California car 2 owners, had a choice of $200 without motor or my 327 and $200 running with a 283 and 2x4. The 283 was tired so I took it non running for $200. Fell on hard times at 19 yrs old and traded it for a running cameo. It is still in the neighbor hood sitting in a garage that belongs to a buddy after 25 years as a competitive street and strip racer.
Now he would rather drink than race so there it sits.... but that's another story. MickeyC

 

Did some good deals in my life, but this was the best...

1998 I Sold a real ratty 34 Chevu PU for 400 bucks to a guy who managed a big offshore drilling co. When he told me what he did, I mentioned that I used to paint helipad signs back in the 80's in Houston. He asked if I would be interested in doing any now. I ended up doing 32 helipads in 6 months @$6200 each. Took about 2 days to do one plus room and board and all the good food you can eat.