All posts tagged Grey Market

RHD 1982 Volkswagen Polo For Sale

by Aaron on February 17, 2012 in Volkswagen with 1 Comment

I am a sucker for imported cars.  Somewhere in the rat trap that is my mind this equation exists, Euro stuff>Stuff we can get here.  It can be anything, if it comes from Europe is has to be better, right?  I mean why else would we be paying $1,000 for this?  OK, that I actually get.

Anyhow, here we have a 1982 Volkswagen Polo.  The owner states it is the only one in the states, which is, um, false.

Exhibit #1.

Exhibit #2.

I’ll forgive the seller’s enthusiasm, this is a pretty neat car.

1982 Volkswagen RHD Polo:

From the seller -

“let me start off by saying the car runs and drives 110% very well kept never sleeps out side and turns heads everywhere…

i have all documentation clean New Jersey title in hand

i also have all dealer service records from points of origin

i am asking for best offer so don’t be shy make a offer that is respectful and you just mite be the proud owner of the only polo in the US from what i no

the car has 81000 miles on it every thing is original the only mods that i have done was..

1. side exit exhaust

2. 15″ bbs rs

3. music

it has a 1.3 liter motor and 4 speed Manual trans.”

As great looking as this car as this is, and it is beautiful.  It is packing a 1.3L mated to a 4 speed transmission.  That is going to be sluggish, like Zastava slow.  I can think of a lot of other cars I would rather drive for $10k.

But, it’s imported so by all means I completely understand the cool factor here.  Now, about that Jamon…

~Aaron.

 

Reader Ride: Guards Red 1982 Porsche 911SC

by Aaron on January 12, 2012 in Porsche with 1 Comment

Update 2.13.2012:The owner reports this car is now sold. Congrats on the sale! -dc

You can buy a worn out SC all day long.  Bad paint, worn interior, and a shot motor.  Something like that could run you about $13k.  You would have a 20 footer that would smoke like a refinery, but hey you saved a few bucks.

Or, you can spend a little more and have something like this…

1982 Porsche 911SC:

From the seller -

“1982 Porsche 911 SC Sunroof Coupe, Guards Red, Black leather

Approx. 97,000 miles, (replacement speedo installed, I have broken one)

Southern car, only one season in New England garaged, never driven in bad weather.

I believe I am 3 or 4th owner.

Have records back to 1990 or so, all indexed in a spreadsheet.

Car was a Euro Delivery, driven for 3-4 years in Belgium, have all records for Euro service.

Orig. owner’s manual with services performed in Belgium

Improvements include:

Top end rebuild 10,000 miles ago

Carrera chain tensioner upgrade, head studs

SSI stainless header, heater boxes

Pop off Valve

Momo Steering wheel

Fuchs 16″ with Black petals

Lowered to Euro ride height

New Yokahama S Drives

Updated AC compressor

Respray approx. 8-10 years ago, looks like a glass out job. Paint 8/10, nice 10 footer.

Full leather interior redone 10 years ago, in excellent condition, including headliner, new dash top.

New fuel pump

New clutch cable

Replaced heater hoses with Aircraft Scat silicone

I looked for a 911 for a year; probably saw 10-12 cars before this one.

Previous owner was Porsche guys, owned 5-6 before this one, drove it sparingly for 7 years.

I purchased in the Fall of 2010.”

Rebuild, re-spray, and newer interior would be reason enough to consider this SC.  Records, recent maintenance, and a knowledgeable owner is just icing on the cake.  As mentioned above you can always find something cheaper and dump a bunch of your own money into it.  Or, you can find a car that has been loved and just drive it.  $18.5k is no bargain but a good value if you are looking for a turn key SC.

Best of luck to the seller.

~Aaron.

1980 Mercedes Benz Euro 380SE AMG very early

by Evan on November 13, 2011 in AMG, Mercedes Benz with 3 Comments

This is a very early W126 380SE, perhaps the earliest in the country.

The W126 wasn’t available in the states in 1980 so this car is a grey market model so you get the nice flush headlights.

The car has had an interesting past as the owner says it was sold by the the Southern California Police Department. It appears the car has seen some extended time in storage, but has since had some maintenance work, $3,000 worth, to get it back to road worthy status. It has covered 77,000 miles, always questionable with imported cars without good records.  The car has some AMG parts, rims, body kit, AMG look steering wheel. It also has white faced gauges and upgraded front seats, as well as a rear sun curtain. The stereo has been replaced with a more modern unit. I’m not a big fan of white cars, particularly ones with gold accents as this one has with all the gold badging. I do like the monochromatic look though with the painted grille, window trim, and wheel faces.

The ad is pretty weak, the seller doesn’t once mention the model Merc this is. The vin indicates it is a 380SE. Under the hood you can see the compact V8, it is missing a piece of the intake snorkel. There also appears to be an aftermarket alarm siren on the left side. It looks like a little cleaning under the hood could make things look a little fresher.

The oddest thing I notice from the pictures is there appears to be something funky going on with the passenger side panel fit. Maybe this is a photo artifact, but things look a little wavy and I’d want to look at that more closely and judging by the description that comes off as a little inexperienced, I’d want that looked at in person or by an agent rather than by the seller.

The ask price is $7,500 with a reserve. The seller will not get any bids at that price. Maybe a $5,000 car at small time classics dealer lot with an in person transaction as an impulse by. On eBay, even with it being early, under 100K, and with the AMG parts, $7,000 will not be happening for at least a few more years.

Good looking car that still doesn’t seem 32 years old.

1980 Mercedes Benz Euro 380SE AMG on eBay

~Evan

Rare stateside 1978 Mercedes 350SE

by Evan on September 1, 2011 in Mercedes Benz with 3 Comments

Prices of the venerable Merc 116s are continually creeping up. 30+ years later and these sedans still can hold their own. Some may say they fall in no man’s land right now. Comfortable daily driver? Classic vintage saloon? Outside of the 6.9 they aren’t that expensive to fix and are easy to maintain.

The car featured here is a rare bird in the states. The Euro only 3.5 liter V8 is lighter on its feet and had a higher compression ratio than the U.S. 4.5 liter V8. Couple that with the shorter wheel base SE model and you have your self a nice little package. The peppy, compact 3.5 liter unit, most believe is one of the better to have tucked under the wood of a W116. If the car had the manual instead of the auto transmission that package would truly be complete.

This being a grey market car it features the body hugging bumpers. Unfortunately, sometime during the federalization process the car got U.S. headlamps and the owner didn’t switch back in the Euro units.

This 350SE has the velour interior, which was common on Euro cars, even the top of the line 6.9. The sunroof is an interesting option, apparently put in instead of air conditioning, note the single dial climate system. The Becker Monza right below the climate controls wasn’t the best looking W116 radio option, the Mexico I think looks better.

Finding one of these in this nice shape, in Euro trim, in the states, with a measly 57,000 miles on the clock does not happen every day. You’d actually have to do some decent searching to turn up a similar one of these. A no reserve auction with low opening, currently the price is just over $1,500, is a fantastic deal. The seller seems to describe the car as being in great shape, but that price is so cheap it makes me want to check it out in person.

A very nice find that might find a new home for just a song.

Rare stateside 1978 Mercedes 350SE on eBay.

~Evan

One Owner 1985 Volkswagen Scirocco For Sale

by Aaron on June 22, 2011 in Volkswagen with 3 Comments

Let’s face it, I will post even the most sketchy of Sciroccos.  I am and have been smitten with the model for years.  This one seems quite nice, a 1985 one owner import.  Although not as immaculate as the seller would have you believe it does look to be very nice.

1985 VW Scirocco For Sale:

From the seller -

“1985 VOLKSWAGEN SCIROCCO IMMACULATE CONDITION,  ONE OWNER, CLEAR TITLE, IMPORTED FROM GERMANY TO THE U.S. W DOCUMENTATION, 8V , 5SPD, 60969K MILES, VERY CLEAN GRAY INTERIOR, FLASH SILVER METTALIC EXTERIOR,”

While this Rocco is not mint is does show very well.  From the pictures I don’t see any body damage or corrosion to speak of.  The interior looks nice and complete as well. The Auto Check gives this car a very high score which is comforting.

Stock examples of these car are a rare thing.  Bidding on this one is up to $2,500, the reserve is not met.  I have to think the seller is looking for something in the $3.5-4k range.  Just think how much they could have gotten with some better pictures and a more complete description.

~Aaron.

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