Topic: Finding a car
Hey I'm just starting the process of looking for a car. I'm considering a p71 but am open to suggestions. Are there any tips for finding sub $500 cars?
The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Lemons Newcomers → Finding a car
Hey I'm just starting the process of looking for a car. I'm considering a p71 but am open to suggestions. Are there any tips for finding sub $500 cars?
Go to Crazedlist, specify $1 to $500 as the price range, and use such search terms as "Fiat," "Packard," "Hillman," "1952," and "Rover" in order to find good Lemons cars.
You forgot Z cars and MR2s.
You forgot Z cars and MR2s.
Shhhhh! Don't give away our secret weapons!
and E30's & Miata's...
SHO's are good too, just bring lots of engines......
You can also go to a tow company. Tell'em what you're looking to do and that you are interested in a car donated or cheap, and of course you'ld be honored to run it with their sticker.
The p71 that won best yank tank was advertised here for $617 with a roll cage installed!!
Or with a user name like yours, http://forums.24hoursoflemons.com/viewtopic.php?id=2486 would be a good choice. They are actually pretty good, and they seem to last.
Go to Crazedlist, specify $1 to $500 as the price range, and use such search terms as "Fiat," "Packard," "Hillman," "1952," and "Rover" in order to find good Lemons cars.
Other good search terms are "Lancia", "Renault" and "Tata".
edit: I forgot, "ran when parked" is essential.
Sometimes you find the unexpected
I found the one I'm working on in the cars for sale section here, but also I know the Pick n Pulls around me tend to have a couple of cheap cars that they are selling pretty cheap.
thanks for all the tips. I would love to buy that fiesta but unfortunatly I live in Virginia.
Don't let that stop you...I just picked up our Lemons car near Detroit and I live in NC....
Also think about wrecked or otherwise broken cars if your team has the mechanical aptitude to fix them. Sweat equity doesn't count toward the $500 cap, and we made the most of it. We found several cheap beaters on CL with problems as simple as blown head gaskets or bad clutches for next to nothing. When the shop bill for an old beater is going to be $500-$1500 or more, a lot of people just get rid of it. One example was a dead '95 Geo Prizm (re-branded Toyota Corolla) with 150K miles that ended up needing a distributor, alternator, shocks, brakes, tires, and a front crank seal to get it road-worthy, plus the AC worked! That car was free for the pickup. I used it as a daily until I sold it, but it would have been fine for Lemons. We ended up using a Civic that had been in a 35 MPH front end collision and was undrivable. A come-along, wire rope, immobile object, and a sledgehammer got it back in shape pretty quickly though, and we had a lot of budget cap room to buy parts with.
A come-along, wire rope, immobile object, and a sledgehammer got it back in shape pretty quickly though, and we had a lot of budget cap room to buy parts with.
Lemony bodywork/frame straightening at its finest...Love it...
I forgot, "ran when parked" is essential.
I like searching CL for "rare" with a $1000 cap. You find a lot of interesting vehicles that way...
"Wife wants it gone" is one of the best.
Also look for "mechanic's special" and "my loss, your gain." I believe the catch on our car was "car overheat but don't know why"...
How about "comes with CAI and Tien springs"?
How about "comes with CAI and Tien springs"?
BINGO that worked for us!! You would be surprised what gems in the rough you can find on Craigslist. No doubt the best deals will need some work. I like searching for Lemons type cars on CL and find potential ones all the time. Like a previous poster said about tow and storage yards. Great places to find one as are auto repair shops. There are more and more people that can't pay repair bills and after a lawful amount of time passes, the shop can sell the car. There are great deals out there if you look hard enough especially if you're in a larger metro area.
^^^ snicker...
I found the Anglia's by searching "no title". worked like a charm!
If you check Craigslist ads in Fla. Mrs. Tiger Woods has some killer deals on some tastey whips, I'm sure you would get substantial bs laps, but it would be so worth it.
I'd bet that if you got the car from a Tiger Woods divorce sale, and had the documentation to prove it, the judges wouldn't assess any BS laps, like they did for the Paraguayan Diplomatic Mercedes. Of course, expect it to get claimed at the end of the race!
better hope none of this cars have Tein springs, old adjustible shocks or CAI ;-)
The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Lemons Newcomers → Finding a car