I am a member of an El Camino forum and I get an email weekly that lists posts that I may be interested in. Tuesday, I received the list of posts and there was one titled 1965 El Camino must go. I went to look at the thread and it was in a Maryland / Virginia regional group. There had been several posts on the thread and someone said that since the OP did not list a price it must be free. The OP responded and said that he would like $20 to cover his cost for the paperwork since it was still titled in Colorado. No one replied in several days, so I messaged him for his number. I talked with him and told him I would take it. I picked it up yesterday. It is a 283 with a manual 3 speed Hurst shifter. He had a new battery and several other things he had bought for the car. The quarter panels are rusty and the bottom of the front fenders too. Floorboards are good as are the bed and doors. The car is complete and he had done a power disc conversion on it while living in Colorado. It has been in his garage since 2006 when he had it transported to the DC area.[ When I tried to give him money he would not take any at all. I did drive 400 plus miles to get it and he said I had already done too much. ATTACH=full]5507849[/ATTACH]
The emblems are in the dash and the moldings for the hood are in the bed. The seat is soiled but is not worn threw or ripped.
So fine. Glad you made the effort. My family had a wagon same year. It was passed around, but I got to drive it the most
Ok, come on man, tell the rest of the story…….somebody died in it, right? Seriously man, that’s insanely cheap. Congrats on the score and I’m with elcohaulic on this one. Gussy it up a little a have fun with it.
That is the whole story. He wouldn't even take $20 ( I tried to give him $100). He said he couldn't believe we would drive that far for that car. There were people that posted on his thread from Alexandria Va that were El Camino owners that didn't step up. I did spend $270 on diesel fuel to make the trip.
I paid 175 times that amount for the second biggest piece of shit ‘64 El Camino I’ve ever seen a few months ago…I am never in the right place at the right time.
You bought a lottery ticket on the way home too, didn't you ? If not, you should have! Less than $300 in a fixable El Camino, hell ya! With some rust repair and paint that will be a nice cruiser. Wish I had of kept my 68, but times were hard and it had to go...
I just replied to a similar situation regarding free parts. Doing a long drive looks very appealing right now.
Thanks for the offer i7083 but the hood is in good shape and there is not much rust in the front fenders to repair.
so, do you sleep at night? Damm, I bet a little teeny tune up and that 283 will be running fine. Looks like it has duals and the tires look great. Some people have it all--------------------
Hello, Well, that sure is a nice bargain for what you spent. Having been an owner of a 1965 El Camino since new in 1964 and sold in 1976, it was a vehicle we wished we could have kept forever. We knew the value along with the fun it gave us during those long road trips and vacation locations all over the Westcoast of California. It had 125k miles on it when we sold it to a local surfer/sailor from Dana Point. I had written about the only repair was that a water pump was acting up at 120k and it was because the El Camino overheard us talking about selling it for a new car purchase we needed. HA! But, it did not require any other repairs for 120k and other than a few sets of tires, standard brakes and alignment, nothing else went wrong for those covered miles. It certainly had to be made on a Wednesday at the Fremont California plant in Northern California. Jnaki The simple advice is to enjoy the El Camino for all that it is worth. The best thing I put on the El Camino was this air pressure device behind the seats on the air valve. I had seen it in a small auto parts store and bought it instantly. Over the years, it has solved the puzzle of the amount of air in the factory air shocks. Perhaps, it was the key item that allowed me to adjust the pressure per loads in the bed, so the shocks would not blow out with the loads. In separate incidents, two desert racing motorcycles, a Harley Sportster or a bed full of camping gear and several surfboards, etc. were all at the mercy of the air shocks for comfort and handling down the highway. So, with modern parts and gauges, a new one could be added to the little tubing under the rear package tray out of sight. If only a simple air pressure gauge could not be found and installed, perhaps a little air pump kit with a gauge (in the removable compartment in the bed) would be perfect, so one would never have to go to a gas station for air. Just make sure to put in a sealer on the fittings so you don't get any leaks. With two or more longboards in the back, there were several hundred pounds of extra weight, including beach stuff. So, some air was needed to keep the El Camino level when on those road trips up/down the coast. But, with shorter surfboards and lighter weight construction, a single board was almost nothing. So, just enough air to keep the El Camino level was the answer. The inside gauge allowed me to go to any gas station to check on the air pressure for the best comfort for us and driving around. YRMV A lightweight 7' 6" Lighting Bolt surfboard strapped down, in its time period of surf transportation.
Good for you..amazing circumstance. I had a '65 El Camino 283, 4 spd, years ago used as my daily driver. A lot of work ahead, but worth the effort.
I had one in HS, ‘65 with a worn 283, PG and dual exhaust and glass packs. Cracked lacquer paint and all. Almost didn’t buy it. When I spotted the ForSale sign on it, went home and told my dad. We came back into town to get a closer look, the way the fella had the price on it is probably why it was still there. The owner was outside and we small talk a bit about 10/15 feet away from it. When I asked what he was selling it for he said “price is right there on the sign”. I looked, my dad looked at it, then we looked at each other like “this guys crazy”. My dad asked him what makes you think it worth that? Then asked if we could take a closer look so as to be nice. As we get nearer, we see that what we thought was 1500, was $150. We looked it over, my dad to the guy “sold, I’ll go to the bank”. The sign had 150.0, I’d bet after inflation for the past 45 years or so, still not as good a deal as the OPs!
@Elcohaulic my daily driver is a 72 El Camino. I have been driving it for about 3-1/2 years. That is why I was on the El Camino forum. I think the 427 would be fun but fuel economy as a daily would be tough.
@Budget36 your original 65 sounds like a great deal too. When I was in high school I bought a 55 BelAir hdtp off a car lot for $35. I put brake drums and wheels on it and drove it home. It was a "back row" car sitting on blocks.
Congrats Rod! Fantastic score, just unreal. You would think there would be a few Vince Gilligan fans in that part of the world, some Jesse Pinkman fan who would have jumped on this.
@BrerHair it surprised me that no one local stepped up and came for it. If you are ever up toward Huntersville / Cornelius hit me up. I will show it to you. I need to get by and see your project too.
@chargin03 I think he realized he was never going to do anything with it. He wasn't a car guy at all. It had sat in his garage for 16 years and he knew if he didn't get it gone it would be there indefinitely.
@jnaki I may put the air shocks on it. I wish I had the jack and hardware for it like your picture of the one you had.
Wow, that deal, and a good looking ride. Dont take it off the road, weld repair the bottom half of it, shoot it in brown epoxy and it'll blend right in. Fix it as you drive it. Complete running car that doesn't appear to be screwed with is such a bonus.
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