I still miss my first car, a white 1981 VW Rabbit Pickup, and can easily recall the smell, the feel of the golf-ball shifter, and the way it liked to be tossed into corners. It doesn’t surprise me that they (along with what seems to be every funky, cool 80s German car) are slowly rising in value. There are pristine examples out there, both original and restored/modified, but the vast majority are survivors that have experienced some swaps and exploitation of the interchangeability of 1980s VW parts. Mine was certainly such a truck, and today’s 1983 example has been kept alive with a healthy appreciation for the OEM+ school of thought. It’s running a 1983 GTI engine, transmission, Snowflakes, and instrument cluster – nothing crazy, but if you like the GTI, you’ll have just as much fun (if not more) in this little hauler. Mk3 GTI seats are a nice upgrade, and overall the little Caddy looks decent and functional even with some like the bed showing age and use. It definitely makes me nostalgic, but does nostalgia make a piecemeal minitruck worth over five grand?
Month: February 2015
The E46 M3 is a car that truly needs no introduction which is nice because I can get right down to brass tacks. The market for this car is a very curious one to follow. On one end of the spectrum you have high mileage examples with aftermarket parts and evidence of having spent many a weekend at the track. These cars are tempting for many an enthusiast who has always dreamed of hunting apexes with a high revving inline six and doing so with a bit of style. At the other end of the spectrum you have cars like this one that are very clean and are either stock or have been modified with OEM approved parts. These examples come at a premium and I’d say that’s fair given how desirable these cars are when well taken care of.
Having covered only 48,000 miles in 11 years on the road, this particular M3 appears to be in fantastic condition. The Carbon Black over Cinnamon Leather combination is a very sharp look for this car, classier than the usual Silver or Grey over Black. I drove an Emerald Green over Cinnamon Leather model earlier this week but the leather had been poorly cared for and had cracked badly in many places. However even in that rough condition, that interior really made it stand out in a sea of other postings, so much so that I drove an hour to go see it. Makes me appreciate the fine job this owner has done maintaining these seats and the interior overall. Almost completely makes up for the bird poop damage on the roof.
Click for details: 2004 BMW M3 On Craigslist.com
10 Comments
Earlier this week, I wrote up dueling 5-cylinder automatic wagons in the “beige-off” between the 1986 Quantum Wagon and 1987 Audi 5000S Avant. The net result of that write up, effectively, was that if you really want to dive into the ownership pool of one of these wagons, most would prefer the more desirable versions of the car. For the Quantum, that meant the Syncro version, and unsurprisingly for the Audi that meant turbocharging and quattro all-wheel drive. In both cases, that raises the complexity factor a few notches – but there are still examples of these long-lived wagons making their owners happy today. I spent a few years with a 200 Avant, and loved many aspects of it; however, I came away saying there was only one way I’d get into an older Audi Avant again – if it was one of the limited run, 3B 20V equipped 1991 examples. Outwardly, you had to be a sharp eye to spot the differences. Some of them were quite subtle; for example, there were no badges outside of the front and rear rings and a subtle “quattro” grill badge on the ’91 200, unlike the previously badged 10V examples. From the roof down, there were no differences other than that until you got to the fenders, which were subtly but notably flared. The wheels were still BBS mesh wheels as they had been in 1989 and 1990, and though they were still 15″ in diameter, they were now 7.5″ wide instead of 6″. Those larger wheels also hid a new brake system dubbed “UFOs” by enthusiasts; the floating rotor design that was engineered to haul the heavy Audi down from triple digit speeds. And triple digit speeds it was now quite capable of, with a healthy 50 horsepower boost over previous 200s thanks to 10 more valves and electronic fuel injection in the new “3B” 20 valve turbocharged inline-5. Mated only to a manual transmission, less than 200 of these coveted Audis were imported at a time when they were both expensive and Audi was nearly on the outs with the American market:
CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1991 Audi 200 20V quattro Avant on Craigslist New York
8 Comments
I’ve chosen to feature this car almost purely out of curiosity. The Soft-window Targa is one of those cars where the design, from an aesthetic perspective, leaves me cold, but from a functional perspective I always find very intriguing. These cars are sort of an engineering peculiarity; only existent for a few years as Porsche’s answer to the need for an open-top vehicle that would also meet safety requirements the Soft-window Targa is pretty much exactly what it sounds like: a Targa where the window section behind the roll hoop could be lowered to create an airiness more akin to a cabriolet. These provided a variety of open-top motoring options between fully open and fully closed and with the integrated roll hoop they were sure to meet the increasingly stringent safety standards that Porsche worried would render the cabriolet obsolete. I just hate the look. With the rear window down these have always looked like something jerry-rigged in someone’s garage and no matter how interesting I think the design is I just can’t get past that. C’est la vie. Available for both the 911 and the 912, here we have a Burgundy 1968 Porsche 912 Soft-window Targa, located in California, with a stated 12,703 miles on it.
CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1968 Porsche 912 Soft-window Targa on eBay
Comments closed
If you’re a fan of the E36/8 BMW M Coupe, you’re in luck this week. Here’s a Dakar Yellow example to compliment the Estoril Blue example we featured at the beginning of the week. This example comes to us from our reader Colby who is seeking a more practical daily driver. Many would balk at the idea of giving up an M Coupe, but with these cars squarely in the crosshairs of collectors and investors alike, using one on a daily basis is a consideration one doesn’t take too lightly these days. With under 60,000 miles on the clock, this is one that would certainly benefit from some preservation, but could be enjoyed regularly, as well.