What cars did you buy for 2-300 bucks back in the day?

[chargervert]

I bought two 68 Chargers for $75,and $80 bucks. The green one had a blown up small block, I replaced it with a 383. The biege one was a 318,I drove it for three years before replacing it with a 440. I paid $350 for the 70 Charger R/T 440 4 speed car in 1981 in the background of the beige car. I still own it to this day.

 

[RT K_line]

I bought this 70 Hemi GTX for $100.00 back when I was at TSTI in Harlingen. I knew It had its original drivetrain removed I got the shell with the 4.10 Dana because another friend bought it to put the drive train which was a 440 auto at the time in his Cuda. I built an engine for my final exam and got it installed and running at school.

 

[Xp29h]

1951 dodge wayfarer businessman’s coupe. $150 bucks! Got it running and sold it! I was 12-14 I think then used the money to get myself in a world of crap when I bought the 69 hemi charger that was hurt! Dad was pissed! lol!

 

[451Mopar]

This would be a war and peace-length post for me.

I posted a bunch Saturday, it was still snowing!

I forgot about the 1976 Cordoba 360 4-bbl fully loaded with sun-roof car I paid $100 for, that I drove around 1989-1991.

 

[Armyvet25]

74 Challenger-$325, 70 coronet-$50

 

[Southbranch]

A friend bought a 1974 Cougar for $150, 351 2V, blue white top, white interior, full power, garage kept. He traded a week later for a 68 442 badly rusted, his father was so mad he chained it to a tree so he couldn't drive it.

 

[mr. b]

63 Impala SS 409 4 speed for 250 in 75 69 road runner 383 4 speed in 77 for 400

 

[440 4 speed]

1970, we bought a 1958 Chev Biscayne (THATCHER WAGON) for 50.00.
About 1964 we had a Provincial Liberal Goverment. Premier was Ross Thatcher. Farmers and ranchers were able to buy purple gas for trucks. This gas had purple colouring added to it. This gas was tax free. Regular gas was about .42 approximately 5 US quarts, or 4.5 litres. Purple was .23 per gallon. Our $ was around .80 US. It could only be used in equipment and trucks.
That’s when Thatcher Wagons were invented. Farmers took old cars. They cut the roofs off behind the front seat cut the window frames off the back doors if a 4 door. Took the trunk lid off, lined the whole thing inside. Built the area behind the front seat and voila you had a truck.
You could license it as a truck and purchase farm class registration on it which was also cheaper. Some would leave the purple out in clear jugs in the sun. This would turn to bronze which was used in cars. Others would add the orange coloured dye that came with margarine to make it look bronze. The police would stop some and suck some gas out of a tank see if the law was broken.
1970 we bought the 58, 283 auto from my wife’s Uncle. It was a smoker, valve seals. Had to give him 50.00 and a bottle of Jameson’s Irish Whiskey. We went to their place visited and I helped him lower the level in the bottle.
Sold it for 150.00 in 1972 on the condition I could drive it to his house across the City, about 7 miles. The guy did valves guides and center drive shaft steady bearing. Still had it 5 years later.
Then in 1972 we bought a low mileage 61 Comet 4 door small 6 3 on the tree. Would not gain speed in 3rd going across one of our bridges.
They wanted around 175.00. I said we can only afford 135.00 because we would need to license it. Said car was nice and they could call if they felt like it. A week later they called.
Called my Father to ask if they would lend us 125.00. They did. My wife faithfully sent him 15.00/per month until it was paid off. At the end he said she didn’t really have to pay them back. He didn’t offer to give it back though!
We sold in 1974 when we got the brother-in-laws 1971 Corolla.
I had bought a carb kit for the Comet. Put in the ad to sell the car asking 175.00. Guy offered me 150.00. I said I will throw in the carb kit for another 15.0, so it went for 165.00.

 

[Coelacanth]

I bought a '70 Monaco 4-door with 383 2-bbl for $200 back in the early 90's sometime. I miss it, that was a great car. Although it exceeds the value of this topic with a lofty price of $430, that was a 1968 Monaco 4-door with 318 2-bbl I bought for a winter beater. I put on a 4-bbl manifold and carb. Compression was so low, it started every time.

 

[Nxcoupe]

Ok, let's give it a go, what the heck.
I bought my first real mopar, 70 RoadRunner, 440+6, 4spd, 4.10 dana, air grabber, black, black bench interior, flat black stripe on the hood, gold dust trail down the side, gold stripe across the back, 44k original miles for 350, he originally told me 325, but before I came to get it on Friday, he said he had put a set of points(dual point) in it and it would be 350 now. Of course I agreed. After that first one, they just came in right after another. 70 RT Challeger, 440 six pack, 250, complete minus six pack and air cleaner, had a 4 barrel. 71 cuda, 340 4 spd, shaker, rubber bumpers, leather interior, 2 fender tags, roller, 300 or so. 72 Demon 340 auto, bench seat 250. 70 panther pink road runner, 383 column auto, white interior bench seat, 50 bucks, roller, bought it for crush value off the back of the wrecker on it's way to the yard. 70 road runner, Hemi orange, 4 spd, air grabber, black bench, running and driving, 350. 70 cuda, 340 auto on column, bench seat, B5 blue, light hit in passenger quarter, 300, out of the junkyard, running and driving, drove the wheels off that one. 68 Road Runner, roller, 383 4 spd, bought for like 100 bucks, it was in primer, black interior. Did some trading with Wayne Brewer for some pistons, crank, had a block, ended up putting it together and it was an animal. Lots of fun and loud as heck. 70 Challenger vert, 318 3 speed on the floor, purple, black interior, 250, drove it home. 71 Cuda 340 auto, lots of quarter rust, 350, parted that one out, too bad too, it was tawny gold, that green/gold metallic looking color, fenders and grille were mint. 71 Demon 340 auto, retractable accordion sunroof, very rare, hemi orange, black interior, side stripes, hood scoops, bought as a rough roller, but no real rust 350. Rob Wolf called me and asked if I was interested in saving that one, so off I went to Louisiana. I ended up restoring that one and it was in Mopar Collector's guide in the 90's(?), centerfold. Too bad it was black and white pic, it was a beautiful car when I finished it. Head hurts from trying to remember that far back. More later as my memory catches up.

 

[Triplegreen500]

Hoo.

Let's see.

My wagon was $500 (72 Satellite)

Jeep DJ5 mail jeep, $25. It was the campus car, start with a screwdriver. Need it? Help yourself, just top off the tank when you park it. We all pitched in for insurance 2x a year (whopping $100 a year).

68 Beetle, $17.50. Rusted so bad that when you sat in the driver seat, your head slammed into the door window when the floor flexed. But...$17.50! Ran like a champ, and my buddy grabbed the fenders and welting (all perfect) for a 69 he was restoring.

68 Newport sedan, 383/3 on the tree manual. White with blue interior, and a blown head gasket. Gave the guy $100 for it because that's what the scrap guy was gonna give him. Put a head gasket in it, got it running, drove it around the block a couple times, sold it to a buddy who needed a car for $550. Made a couple bucks, had something to do for a few days, and another classic lived on for a little bit.

71 SSP, green on green (of course), 318/auto, moderate rust. $300. Tuneup, Vice Grip Garage finish "restoration" (wax and buff what was left of the paint), fresh(er) tires, drove it for a year or so then sold it to a girl who needed wheels for college, for $500. She ran that thing all through school (4 years).

65 Barracuda 273/auto, silver with black interior. Rotting in a barn. $150. Moved it to my barn where it sat for another 5 years or so, then a buddy "had to have it" for a grand. Not sure if it ever ran. No idea what - if anything - he ever did with it.

72 D200 2wd 360 727 4 door long bed, $500. Copper with black interior. Loved that truck. Drove it for a few years, hauled all sorts of crap with it, pulled buddies home after their junk died....finally succumbed to the rust worm though.

77 Adventurer 100 shorty van, light blue in and out, 318/auto. $200. Parts hauler then parts storage. Sold to a coworker who needed wheels and a place to stay (temporarily). Then he got a place to stay, and some other coworkers sprayed "fRee kAndY" on the passenger side to celebrate his not living in it anymore. Drove it for nearly 10 days that way before he knew it was on there...

85 D300 2wd SRW 360 auto 4 door long bed ex-USAF truck, $600. Bought to replace the 72 after it fell apart. Nice truck, pulled like a champ, pass anything but a gas station. Buddy was relocating and needed something to pull a 5th wheel so traded it to him for a motorcycle and some parts. He took it west (Utah, I believe) and I think he still runs it.

49 Coronet, straight six, Gyromatic semiautomatic trans with column shift. Black with naugahyde interior (damn I loved that smell). My "gangster" car. GF at the time got it for free from someone, not running. Gave it to me, I got it running, cleaned it up, tires, muffler, drove it around all summer having a blast, then some old timer "had one when he was younger" and made me take a grand for it.

78 Volare sedan, triple green, /6 auto, factory AC. Spotless. 36k miles. Coworkers grandma's car, she quit driving and gave it to him, his HOA got on his case cause it was sitting. "You need this car" he says to me. I don't need another car. "How much is in your wallet?" $14. "You bought a car!!" Dropped a battery in it, fired right up, interior was mint, turned on the AC idling in a 90 degree parking lot and it blew 34 degrees out the vents. Hmm ..ok, I bought a car. Muffler, tail pipe, cop wheels, tires...drove it for 2 years, great mpg, lots of fun. Mowing grass one day a guy in a PT turbo pulls into my driveway next to the Volare, asks if I want to sell the Volare. Of all the cars in the driveway at the time (D200, satellite wagon, the 49, my 91 Daytona turbo, 89 Shelby CSX, my old YJ, the SSP, and my turbo Spirit), he wanted the Volare. His kid just got his license and needed something "not fast" and "solid". Told him it was my daily driver and I didn't really want to sell it...he whipped out $4000 cash. "Um. Lemme go get the title." Never should have sold that one, that thing rocked.

I've lost count of how many 2.2/2.5 turbo mopars I bought for $200-500
... Daytona's, Spirits, Shadows, LeBarons, Lancers...always had 3 or 4 of them around. One racer (most were running in the 11s) and 2 or 3 parts cars. I could do a head gasket, in the pits, with hand tools, between rounds back in those days. 11 second runs at 35+ psi boost? "Head gasket" = "11 second fuse".

Then, after my divorce, I got my 92 XJ for $400 from the local power company. My Daytona and wagon were stored, I had 3 motorcycles and a YJ, and I needed something to drive with doors and windows because winter was coming. 380,*** miles on it with a dead miss. Tuneup, no change. Compression check, 0 on #1. Didn't even twitch the needle. Figured head gasket....nope. Pulled the head and saw the end of the rod. No piston. Dropped the pan...found it! Well...most of it. I think. Pulled a piston out of another 4.0 I had behind the shed, put new rings on it, did new rods and mains below (no measuring, just got some standards and slapped them in), high volume oil pump, and slapped it together with just a ball-hone in #1. Rapped like a bitch at startup, for about 2 seconds until oil pressure hit then ran like a champ. Never burned or used a drop of oil. Drove it that way for eight years and another 100k until the floors rotted out and a brake line blew. Parked it, a buddy wanted to build a trail rig so he came up from TN, handed me $800, and towed it home. Far as I know he's still wheelin' it through the woods to this day.

 

[Cranky]

Hoo.

Let's see.

My wagon was $500 (72 Satellite)

Jeep DJ5 mail jeep, $25. It was the campus car, start with a screwdriver. Need it? Help yourself, just top off the tank when you park it. We all pitched in for insurance 2x a year (whopping $100 a year).

68 Beetle, $17.50. Rusted so bad that when you sat in the driver seat, your head slammed into the door window when the floor flexed. But...$17.50! Ran like a champ, and my buddy grabbed the fenders and welting (all perfect) for a 69 he was restoring.

68 Newport sedan, 383/3 on the tree manual. White with blue interior, and a blown head gasket. Gave the guy $100 for it because that's what the scrap guy was gonna give him. Put a head gasket in it, got it running, drove it around the block a couple times, sold it to a buddy who needed a car for $550. Made a couple bucks, had something to do for a few days, and another classic lived on for a little bit.

71 SSP, green on green (of course), 318/auto, moderate rust. $300. Tuneup, Vice Grip Garage finish "restoration" (wax and buff what was left of the paint), fresh(er) tires, drove it for a year or so then sold it to a girl who needed wheels for college, for $500. She ran that thing all through school (4 years).

65 Barracuda 273/auto, silver with black interior. Rotting in a barn. $150. Moved it to my barn where it sat for another 5 years or so, then a buddy "had to have it" for a grand. Not sure if it ever ran. No idea what - if anything - he ever did with it.

72 D200 2wd 360 727 4 door long bed, $500. Copper with black interior. Loved that truck. Drove it for a few years, hauled all sorts of crap with it, pulled buddies home after their junk died....finally succumbed to the rust worm though.

77 Adventurer 100 shorty van, light blue in and out, 318/auto. $200. Parts hauler then parts storage. Sold to a coworker who needed wheels and a place to stay (temporarily). Then he got a place to stay, and some other coworkers sprayed "fRee kAndY" on the passenger side to celebrate his not living in it anymore. Drove it for nearly 10 days that way before he knew it was on there...

85 D300 2wd SRW 360 auto 4 door long bed ex-USAF truck, $600. Bought to replace the 72 after it fell apart. Nice truck, pulled like a champ, pass anything but a gas station. Buddy was relocating and needed something to pull a 5th wheel so traded it to him for a motorcycle and some parts. He took it west (Utah, I believe) and I think he still runs it.

49 Coronet, straight six, Gyromatic semiautomatic trans with column shift. Black with naugahyde interior (damn I loved that smell). My "gangster" car. GF at the time got it for free from someone, not running. Gave it to me, I got it running, cleaned it up, tires, muffler, drove it around all summer having a blast, then some old timer "had one when he was younger" and made me take a grand for it.

78 Volare sedan, triple green, /6 auto, factory AC. Spotless. 36k miles. Coworkers grandma's car, she quit driving and gave it to him, his HOA got on his case cause it was sitting. "You need this car" he says to me. I don't need another car. "How much is in your wallet?" $14. "You bought a car!!" Dropped a battery in it, fired right up, interior was mint, turned on the AC idling in a 90 degree parking lot and it blew 34 degrees out the vents. Hmm ..ok, I bought a car. Muffler, tail pipe, cop wheels, tires...drove it for 2 years, great mpg, lots of fun. Mowing grass one day a guy in a PT turbo pulls into my driveway next to the Volare, asks if I want to sell the Volare. Of all the cars in the driveway at the time (D200, satellite wagon, the 49, my 91 Daytona turbo, 89 Shelby CSX, my old YJ, the SSP, and my turbo Spirit), he wanted the Volare. His kid just got his license and needed something "not fast" and "solid". Told him it was my daily driver and I didn't really want to sell it...he whipped out $4000 cash. "Um. Lemme go get the title." Never should have sold that one, that thing rocked.

I've lost count of how many 2.2/2.5 turbo mopars I bought for $200-500
... Daytona's, Spirits, Shadows, LeBarons, Lancers...always had 3 or 4 of them around. One racer (most were running in the 11s) and 2 or 3 parts cars. I could do a head gasket, in the pits, with hand tools, between rounds back in those days. 11 second runs at 35+ psi boost? "Head gasket" = "11 second fuse".

Then, after my divorce, I got my 92 XJ for $400 from the local power company. My Daytona and wagon were stored, I had 3 motorcycles and a YJ, and I needed something to drive with doors and windows because winter was coming. 380,*** miles on it with a dead miss. Tuneup, no change. Compression check, 0 on #1. Didn't even twitch the needle. Figured head gasket....nope. Pulled the head and saw the end of the rod. No piston. Dropped the pan...found it! Well...most of it. I think. Pulled a piston out of another 4.0 I had behind the shed, put new rings on it, did new rods and mains below (no measuring, just got some standards and slapped them in), high volume oil pump, and slapped it together with just a ball-hone in #1. Rapped like a bitch at startup, for about 2 seconds until oil pressure hit then ran like a champ. Never burned or used a drop of oil. Drove it that way for eight years and another 100k until the floors rotted out and a brake line blew. Parked it, a buddy wanted to build a trail rig so he came up from TN, handed me $800, and towed it home. Far as I know he's still wheelin' it through the woods to this day.

Nothing like pulling the head and seeing a missing piston!

 

[Triplegreen500]

Nothing like pulling the head and seeing a missing piston!

Certainly explained the misfire! On the upside...I wasn't pulling my hair out trying to diagnose some hidden problem!!

 

[72redbird]

I've had a few. I bought a 68 Satellite, 2 door, 318 car from an older lady (original owner) for $300. One of the best cars I ever owned. It was my daily driver for about 3 years.
I bought a 72 Satellite Sebring Plus, 383 four barrel car off one of the reservations out here for $25.00 one time
Probably the coolest car was a 72 Road Runner/GTX, Air Grabber car that I picked up for $200 out of a ghost town east of here!
Shoot I almost forgot! The car I have in my picture here I bought for $400!! 72 Road Runner