A friend of mine is looking to buy an "old car" for that vintage V8 sound and look. He knows he cannot afford the high dollar stuff such as Chevelles, Camaros, Novas, Challengers, RR/GTX and that's okay. He's not brand loyal but kind of likes Mopars. I told him to search for Olds Cutlasses, Skylarks, Pontiac Lemans, 318 Dart Swingers, and that kind of non muscle car stuff. I started looking on FB and Feebay to help.

It's unbelievable what people are asking for this stuff! Some is absolute junk and it's priced in the thousands. Even six cylinder, four door stuff.

I told him be patient, don't rush and to remember asking price doesn't mean selling price. But it sure is discouraging.

Some of the engines in the BOP cars have some issues from less than great engineering designs so it's important to do some research over those things ahead of time. Some Buicks have oil pressure problems as one example. All 3 of them will cost more to rebuild as well. Better to pay for one that has a good engine that doesn't need rebuilt. Honestly that should be said about pretty much anything these days.

People overlook Mercury's, but some of the early Comets are very good looking cars. Cougars and Rancheros are also not super in demand, and some look pretty good.

62-67 Novas with a six can be converted to a V8 for dirt cheap. Not sure those cars are cheap though.

Older short bed pickups are fun, and easy to work on, and have good resale value. Can always buy a long bed and have it cut down to a short bed too.

Aspens or Volare with a V8, Early 60's Valiants, late 70's Dusters and Dart Sports if you can find one.

And, yes, many people are high on their own supply with pricing things they are trying to sell. Most of it will never sell for what they think it's worth, and their wives and kids are going to dispose of it after they are gone.

Cash is king being the timeless expression. Never know what folks will take until you show up with greenbacks

old is a relative term and it depends on how much work he is willing to put in or how "done" the car has to be for the price.

I have seen stuff from the 80's and 90's that are 30 to 40 years old now if you think about it, in the 3 to 4k range, even corvettes in that range, but the will require another 5 to 10 k of work to make them very nice, or you could drive it as a beater with only a couple grand of work.

anything from the 60's under 10k is going to be a project.
saw some old vette stuff 62 that is just the body. 65 that is just the running drive train/frame for around 20k .

but there is a 68 barracuda for 6k, but it is in parts.

C-bodies are still pretty affordable, you can get a BB c mostly done for under 20k

really need to pick an era and price point that makes sense.

I think the position that should not be overlooked from the seller's POV here, they are only looking for that one single motivated must have buyer, and they have the time to wait.
Meaning those as others stated, are not real market prices, but it does have an impact on the perception of market prices, and why the real market priced offerings quickly leave the market as being sold.

First-Time buyers almost always mess up. They set their budget too low to buy something great, they believe that asking prices on the internet have something to do with reality, they don't understand that many auction sales are fake, and they don't know how to tell a good car from a pile of crap. The point being, he may be able to buy a much more desirable car than he thinks he can at this point. And don't be afraid to borrow a little to buy quality.
So your friend will need a lot of guidance. One of the first things I think of if I'm going to spend money on a car is and what if I have to bail on this car because my health or financial situation changes, or if I leave the planet in my wife has to sell it. Resale value is important.

Two-Door performance model mopars and Pontiacs, mustangs, Camaros, chevelles, as long as they're good cars and are bought right are a safe bet. If you buy wisely you're probably never going to lose anything on it. There are a lot more buyers.
Buicks, Oldsmobiles, Fords that aren't mustangs, or anything with four doors, have a smaller following, are harder to sell, and increase your likelihood of taking a bath on it. Any disassembled project is most likely going to be a loser.

I have sayings that I use about buying and owning cars. "If you buy dogs you own dogs.'' "If it's hard to buy it's easy to sell, if it's easy to buy it's hard to sell." "When you buy the best, it only hurts once."
Good luck to your friend.

I agree.buy the best car possible.

Even if getting a loan to make it happen


2nd....do not buy rust

I've seen some decent buys out here for an early mustang.
Some v8s.
But mostly 6cyls.

I looked at solid 67 mustang notchback last month.

289 car. Red with red interior. Paint could have been better. But was a solid no rust car
Asking high teens

80's Mustang are still reasonable, great small cars with performance.

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1989-ford-mustang-ssp/

And there are deals on newer Mustangs

https://www.toyotaofmelbourne.com/a...SIuThu7LsD0NYvh3aTtRr_DORMMaAs8KEALw_wcB

***Edit: Ignore the above, you're not going to get much for $5k, those days are gone.

This is what I think may be the case. It's not a daily driver and they aren't hard up for cash, so waiting on that one person willing to pay. I couldn't stand to do that. When I'm selling something I just want to get it done.

He is not going to get a loan. His wife is against it so he's got to be on a budget. You married people know what I'm talking about lol. But seriously, he's got three young kids, a mortgage and all that stuff so he's got to keep it around $5k ish.

I have advised him to not buy rust. Buy something that may not be mechanically perfect, burning a little oil, that kind of thing. I told him metal work will eat him alive, but mechanical stuff we can tinker with over time. His price range being what it is is why I told him to avoid the popular models including Mustang GT's.

I've also told him this

Unfortunately, so much of the rust free stuff is out west. We're in FL.

Here's one example. Does this look like a $9k car? Nope. IF IF IF it were a running car it could be, but this is a project and he doesn't want a project. He's not prepared to take on a project nor does he have the money it would require even if he spent half on this project.

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/390181836978595/?
"Clean Title
71,000 Original Miles
Great Project Car
Make an Offer might not turn it down.
Comes with 318 Engine (not currently in car)"

$5,000 is gonna be a tough price point to pull off, especially for a V-8.
Might be something like an early Mustang or Cougar or Fairlane/Torino/Comet; possibly an early Firebird, '68-'72 Nova, but even a basic Chevelle would be really hard to find at that amount.
For Mopars, maybe an early Dart or Valiant; maybe an early B, but that's also very hard to get for $5,000.
B-O-P from '64-'65 might be out there.
Agree, a "mechanic's special" would be easier on the wallet than needing body and paint work.
He should probably start cruising neighborhoods and auto repair shops looking for abandoned or gotta-go-away cars, that kind of thing.

It is looking like it's nearly impossible but I think it will just take a lot of time. I've searched Comets, Falcons and Fairlanes too. If he'd go for a four door he could swing it, but he's looking good for 2dr. I guess Starsky and Hutch and then Gran Torino jacked the prices by $10k on those cars lol.

So far, I can't even find a solid A body two door even with a 6cyl that's in his price range and not a project. I probably could convince him to drive it with the slanty and eventually swap in a V8 when he can afford to.

Look at this mess priced at $8k

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1743107406516031/?

near me there is an 84 5th ave, old m-body for 3500, runs and drives but still needs work. interior is ok, has a little body damage, but overall good car. used to be a 1k or less car, but such is today's car market.

94 camaro with a corvette motor, stick shift. only 3300, but it won't start now. paint and body look good. no interior pics.


that is another thing I noticed. stick shifts are lower on the price now. since new buyers can't drive a stick I guess.

Green thing needs a zero removed from the price, and even then that might be generous.

Somehow I just knew it was going to have a black spray bombed engine compartment.

Focus on a solid shell with all the panels/floor pans/frame/trim and interior intact. WAY easier/cheaper to put together engine/trans/suspension stuff than trying to do paint and body. Some of those "little" trim pieces cost $$$$$$ to find and purchase.

Under budget

https://www.facebook.com/share/18UCWSCXmc/

all of those have been up in price for years now.. hell 80's cars are way up in price.. not a good time to get into to classic cars if you don't want to spend 15+K.

The low end of the market is terrible up here in the Northwest. The same cars are on Facebook Marketplace for months and months and they keep dropping the price. Good cars are getting good money though.