I was told by a wrecker driver that Morrison Auto Parts in southeast Austin has to get rid of all their old iron to make room for the toll road. I haven't been there ,but he said there was a lot of 50's cars ,etc.
Does Morrison have a couple of places? There is a Morrison's right south of Lockhart - I believe that's the one in the photo above. There is also a yard between Lockhart and Austin, but don't think that one is as big as the Lockhart yard. That being said, is the toll road going through south of Lockhart?? Thought it was on the north side....
Some one out that way has been selling old stuff on Craigslist for that reason for quite a while now. Don't remember who.
Here's the latest I saw posted: -------- Original Message -------- Subject: [Shop-talk] OT: 1950's American cars looking for a home Date: Wed, 17 Jun 2009 11:05:49 -0500 From: Pat Horne <[email protected]> Reply-To: [email protected] Organization: Horne Systems To: Shop Talk List <[email protected]> A local junk yard has been stockpiling American cars from the 1950's for some time. They are shutting down due to highway construction and are planning on crushing them if they can't be sold. They are located about 30 miles South of Austin, Texas. They are at Morrison Auto Parts, 1-512-376-2127. 13019 S Hwy 183, Mustang Ridge, Texas. They have newer and possibly older vehicles also, but the older stuff is of higher priority to me. I have no connection with this company, except as a satisfied customer. Peace, Pat
They've been saying this for a couple years. They won't sell just parts off the old cars, only the entire vehicle. Personally, I think the prices they are asking for these cars is ridiculous. Matter of fact, the price went up on a '54 2dr Bel Air they had. He wanted $900 for it 3 years ago, and now he wants $1,250! Morrison's is north of Lockhart on 183, between Austin and Lockhart. It is about 2 miles north of the Hwy 21/183 Intersection, at the corner of 183 and Old Lockhart Hwy. In the picture above, Morrison's is the on the top. There is another junkyard 1/2 mile south of them (the cluttered section in the picture) and they don't seem to want to sell anything either. The yard south of Lockhart on 183 is Henslee Auto Parts and they only have newer stuff.
When it comes to wrecking yards, them "having to get rid of" means nothing. They will say that because if people think its headed to the crusher, their heart over rides thier brain out of sentiment. Doesn't mean the prices will be any lower than they ever have been. If the car has BIG value, they will get moved. If the car has minimal value, they will try to hold out for a better price until (unfortunately) they do crush a car that wouldn't sell "cheap". It's a business, for most yards, not a hobby or "passion" like it is for most of us. No different than working in the dog pound, they uthenise many animals a day, I couldn't do it. That's heart vs brain.
it will be interedting to see what happins, i am sure the closer we get to the dead line, if their is one, the lower the price will get as scrap isnt worth a shit right now
They told us that they were going to crush everything "by the end of the summer" for the new toll road. That was 3 yrs ago. But, since the tollroad is mostly completed in the Austin area..it's moving south. I've heard they're still negotiating right-of-way properties. They old man who owns Morrisons is probably ready to retire anyhow. No telling when things will start to go to the crusher. I'll try to swing by there soon and get some details.
Too late. Morrison's is empty. I drove by there today and it was baron, along with the other yard just south of it, nothing left but trash. I guess they finally made a deal on the right-of way land purchasing for the toll road.
they've been hauling for like a month. but yeah, they were asking $$ like scrap was still $10 / 100. funny thing (well, funny..) one of the guys there is blind, but he worked at the parts counter. not bad.
Too bad! Mr. Ford and I tried to get ahold of the two 39 Ford sedans they had about six weeks ago and the guy wanted $1000 apiece for them. Wasn't a lot left of em, maybe worth that much in parts like brakes, pedals, axles, and wishbones. We just didn't have that much cash to blow, so it didn't happen. Fascinating, how the junkyard owner mind works: (1) I want 'this much' for 'such and such'. (2) 'Such and such' will be crushed in 'X amount of time'. (3) But I flatly refuse to lower 'this much' because that's I want, even as 'X amount of time' is looming. No dealing under any circumstances! (4)Finally, 'such and such' is crushed for "1/10th of 'this much' /shitty scrap price" to insure that 'so and so' doesn't get 'such and such' for for less than 'this much'. Haha. My head hurts. I still want to crack some junkyard skulls for crushing all those cars. And there were some good ones. Again I say, too bad.
You're also paying for his time to deal with you. And everyone else who asks about cars and doesn't buy anything. Gets tedious after a while. Not everyone is cut out for Wal-mart type customer service. You're better off telling him "scrap is at $X per ton in today's paper, I'll give you twice that cash and haul it away today no questions asked" and you might get a deal depending on how stubborn the guy is.
We tried that with them, even when the scrap prices were high as hell. They were being stubborn. It cost them money to have the cars hauled, & scrapped. They would have made out like bandits had they taken the offers that were given. Damn shame.
The Jalopy Journal
