Purchase Details

• Date: 2022-Dec-12
• Location: Copart in China Grove, NC
• Winning Bid: $525 Total Fees: $735.45

The Joys

Torque. Low-end torque for effortless acceleration that was fun. Despite spending nearly double the auction cost on fees, delivery, insurance and registration, the 30 days of fun was worth it. For 2k and a month of fun it's exactly what I was looking for.

The Struggles

Drivers side catalytic converter needed to be replaced. The engine was not original - the car probably had 322k miles on it, but the engine was clearly a replacement - of what vintage, who knows.

The minor dents in the front taught me that the suction based dent removal tools have a very small window of usefulness. As in, zero percent of the dents shown here were able to be removed with any of the tools in this Amazon Dent Puller Kit.

The significant rear dent showed that what you really need is hydraulics and body kits. This one from Harbor freight was able to get the vehicle up to 'good enough' appearance.

Replacing the cats would be expensive, approximately $1,400 and would require dropping the engine, which in turn would require hundres of dollars of additional tools. I started this entire process with the goal of bolt on repairs only, no paint, no body work, no significant diassembly. On a vehicle with 322k miles, it did not seem worth it.

Final Outcome

Sold to LKQ for a few hundred.

The Experience

So close - if you can pickup a car like this and have the components, the cost dynamics change significantly. This car had the best sound system I have ever heard, and was very comfortable.

Charges and Payments