Funny... I had 3 69 firebirds, one 400/4spd vert, 400/t400 coupe and a 350 coupe. Sold the 350 car 2 years ago(still have the other 2). He just brought it by last weekend to show its progress... The guy that bought it, he was one of the guys that would stop by occasionally to see if it was for sale. Go for it, you have a 50% chance, just be polite and friendly. Don't trash talk his car either...
The way the economy is right now never can tell might be a good buy. You will never know unless you ask.And the code violation comment,that truly sucks a dogs ass.
Do it! I found my old 59 impala sitting on the side of this guys house. He was an older guy and said the famous "I'm going to fix it up one day" but I pulled the I'll start fixing it up today if you sell it to me. Long story short he sold it to me just promised I would bring it by from time to time to show him progress. So my advice , knock
Go and knock! You never know! I used to drive by this 57 Stude Golden hawk...the one with the supercharged V8 engine.....I always though they would never sell it, yea it was rusty and battered. A few months later the car was gone and I found out from a local the car went to the junk yard because the owner thought no one would ever want it! KNOCK ON THE DOOR! Pete-
Kerry, do it and do it soon !!! When I was in High School I was in a program called Cooperative Industrial Education, to make a long story short I worked in an automotive machine shop and got paid instead of going to half my school day !!! Every day I would go by this car that I had know about years earlier. It was an Austin coupe, metalflake blue with orange windows, obviously a gasser or altered. Everyday I thought I should stop ... the one day I stopped it was gone, the guy told me that he had the junkyard come and get it ... 30 minutes ago !!! It had been sitting since 1972-3 (this was in 1982) and he finally decided he wanted it gone. So I say strike now, you may not get another chance
Just ask! My ride came from asking,good luck man.And one more thing F#@K CODE ENFORCEMENT! sorry still paying that stuff off
A good friend got a rust free, '65, one owner, 20k mile, mercury marauder for free by knocking on a door. Well he actually left a note. It's not the most desirable vehicle, but it's damn nice.
The following being a general observation and NOT a jab at the original poster. The FIRST question ANYONE in this situation needs to ask is... "Do I actually have any cash money to spend or am I just as full of crap as the last 20 lowballers who knocked on the guys door."
Any one ever wanted to date the georgous girl in high school but figured she would turn you down so you never approached her only to find she married a real dud? Someday you'll find out about this car after it's gone and if it sold for peanuts or was traded for a very common cheap car which you just happened to own at the time please promise me you'll put a big KICK ME sign on your back and don't take it off until your ass so sore you can't sit down. Appropriate slogan: NOTHING VENTURED, NOTHING GAINED Frank
If the guys is asking 15K, no I don't. But what if the guys says 2K....How do you know if you have enough money until you find out?
If you don't try you will be guaranteed of your results. Sage advise from my business mentor 20 years ago
Ok...but your missing the point. Just saying...desire often clouds a persons reality. You have to have a reasonable amount of money to do the deed right away. If the guy is out to lunch and watches too much Barrett/Jackson, so be it...but then again people WILL show up at your door with $200.00 fully expecting to buy a car worth 2-3 thousand dollars. Been there...and its really irritating to the seller. Trust me! No good to go and just ask a price either. CASH talks way louder than promises and gives you a real edge in bargaining too. Cool car though. Hope you can shake it loose and make something of it! Sure is a sin to see it lying around like that.
It does'nt hurt to ask! My dad gave away my 53 Belair hardtop when I was away at college. I had rebuilt the engine in it and a guy wanted to buy the engine. Dad told him he could have the whole car, just get it out of there. He told me he was tired of it sitting next to the garage. This was over 40 years ago, the old man liked to drink and when he did he would do stupid stuff! He bought a POS rambler off a drinking buddy of his and gave it to my sister to drive. She hated that car, but she drove it. We had fun teasing her about her old grey 4 dr rambler.
Go ask. I saw the Nash I'm building out back of a guys house. Asked about and showed him cash. I drug it home the next day. Worst case is a door slammed in your face.
I dunno. .. Looks like it needs tires. Of course you knock on the door. Think of yourself as a 'picker'
I always ask. I like talking to folks, just to find the story. I've peple ask me how much would I charge to haul it off. Or even say I can have it if its hauled off!
Do it! If nothing else, it will at least put it in the owner's head that someone out there is interested in buying it, rather than letting it sit, or worse.... crushing it.
a guy used to come to our house when i was a little sprite and ask about my dads 'bug' covered in driveway...it was a 40 ford body with no frame of fenders. it wont hurt you to ask so if you like it...ask!
Maybe I am weird but I don't have to own them all. Maybe you can knock and just say you are a hot rodder, noticed the car, thought it was cool. Wondered what the history of it was. Maybe you trade a few stories, maybe you buy a car. Maybe you meet a new friend. Maybe you get to see the hot rod in the garage. Maybe he climbs up a ladder and tries to kick your ass. Perhaps you could even offer some parts or help on the car as you just hate to see it sit. If you really want it maybe that is a way in, just my thoughts.
Seeing as how this was last May, It would be interesting to hear if anything ever did happen??????????
Just another zombie post floating to the top in the HAMB septic tank... some people go on and on about cars they should have bought, while the quiet one snags it and closes the deal. Bob
and another thing if you stop... if they say they are thinking about selling and say "give me your number", don't let it be at that.. i missed out on a 64 malibu ss that had been sitting for about 10 years. they said "maybe" and took my number, a month or so later it was gone. i should've just kept on it till it was gone or sold to me...
You know you're going to get the famous "I'm gonna fix it up someday" line. You can tell he's been working on it. Just ran out of sandpaper, primer, air in the tires and stuff like that. He plans on getting started again as soon as the swallows return to Capistrano. Reminds me of the engineless '53 2 door I obtained as a "parts car". I decided to fix it up and managed to strip the paint off the quarters and roof (surprise, surprise, just a little surface rust and NO bondo). I never did need any body parts except for the headlamp doors and got bored with the idea of fixing it up and ended up selling it to a wrecker who specialized in old Mopars.
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