Guess what I bought today??!
A SPORT CAR!!
The hoarder (introduced in earlier posts) contacted me 2 days ago and said: "You want it? I'm cleaning up the yard." He must have gotten into a spring cleaning frenzy. Maybe a Marie Kondo Netflix binge.
I said, SURE!
Then he said: "Come get it within 48 hours or it's going to the wreckers. "It's already on the tow bar and hooked up to my truck."
And he wasn't joking. It was.
Only 176k km on it (109k miles).
And it's a runner!
Sitting 5 years -- I just dropped a battery in and it started right up. Drove it out of its own grave, just like an episode of Vice Grip Garage. It runs really well too. It literally sounds better than my Mirage on a cold start.
ZERO hydraulic brakes, though - luckily the parking brake works.
I drove it (carefully) about one km down a gravel road to a friend's place - temporary parking spot.
The floors & rockers are rusted in the usual spots, already repaired once. Same thing with the front control arm mounts (a practiced eye can spot the patches in that pic). I suppose a motivated masochist with a welder might be able to save it (again), but that's not the plan. This is a parts car only.
I think I overpaid a bit @ $375.
The seller himself only paid $300 for it 5 years ago. But he also bought a bunch of parts after he got it home, which I now get to use. Like: new exhaust front to back (the good, stainless kind - that alone is worth more than I paid); brake pads; a good used alternator. The glass & body panels are all good too (original paint). Interior is above average clean.
And now I get to sell the Metro! Maybe I'll break even on that? It was always too nice to be a parts car.