What to expect for under $3000. . . in Georgia

[jrecee]

So spring is here, I have more money, and I'm looking for a 280z now. My ceiling is $3000 for the initial purchase and I'm wondering what to expect in that price range. I was planning on buying one around April-May (once I've got a bit more cash) but a $1500 car caught my eye on craigslist and I figured, hey, I can afford that right now. So I got to wondering if I could actually buy a decent car for that. Still waiting on details from the seller, but is it even possible to get a car that runs and drives decently for that?

[mally002]

There have been two solid drivers sell recently here in knoxville, one was a 76model for $2800 and the other a 77 that went for $3100. The 77 was a very solid driver with only two owners.

As everyone will tell you, buy the best example you can, it won't take long for that $1500 car to need another $1500+.

Good luck, if I come across anything I will shoot you an email.

[SteveJ]

It depends. I bought a 260Z two years ago for $2500. I've put close to $1500 parts and labor into it since, and that's a car with a solid body and not too bad of paint. I'm expecting at least a few hundred more for parts more, and that's without much in the way of customization. I met someone else who lives near Atlanta and uses this board. He bought a 73 240Z for $5000, and I know he's put a pretty good chunk of change into it. However, I would say that he car is worth over $10,000, and my car is worth significantly less.

[jrecee]

I definitely realize that the more you spend the more you get. But at some point I think you have to limit that, because in the end, I could just wait 2 years and go buy one in grade A shape for $10-$15k. But that sort of defeats a lot of the purpose (for me anyway).

But thanks for those prices, I think that reaffirms to me that the $2500-$3000 range is where I need to be looking. That car I saw for $1500 has been dropped to $600, so unless he's crazy desperate, it probably wasn't anywhere near what I was looking for.

If I paid $2500 for the car, another $1500-$2000 getting put into it sounds reasonable.

My requirement is it has to be driveable home, and have as little rust as possible. I've never worked on a car before so I figure if I can't drive it casually when I first get it, I'll probably get discouraged and lose interest. I just want a decent starting point.

[Zedyone_kenobi]

jrecee, I do not really want to be the spoils sport, but its in your own good interest. So, let me say that with 100% confidence a good 3000 dollar car will be save you FAR more than 1500 dollars over a 1500 dollar car.

Meaning that it may take 2500 dollars to get a 1500 dollar car as good as a 3000 dollar car. Patience will reward you for years to come.

Just keep that in mind. There were 10's of thousands of 280z's made. I promise you, that you WILL find another one, and with 1500 dollars more added to your budget the quality of cars will surprise you.

You hang in there!!!!

[d240zx2]

There was an old commercial, Pennzoil I think, that said "pay me now or pay me later."

Of course they were trying to sell oil changes, but the gist of the line is true. Buy a Z for more today and spend less on it tomorrow. Conversely, spend little today and a lot tomorrow.

[jrecee]

jrecee, I do not really want to be the spoils sport, but its in your own good interest. So, let me say that with 100% confidence a good 3000 dollar car will be save you FAR more than 1500 dollars over a 1500 dollar car.

Meaning that it may take 2500 dollars to get a 1500 dollar car as good as a 3000 dollar car. Patience will reward you for years to come.

Just keep that in mind. There were 10's of thousands of 280z's made. I promise you, that you WILL find another one, and with 1500 dollars more added to your budget the quality of cars will surprise you.

You hang in there!!!!

Yeah, I pretty much came to the same conclusion. I was just suggesting that I have to set a limit somewhere on how much I can initially spend. I've been on craigslist, ebay, and classifieds pretty much every day for the last 9 months keeping an eye on prices, and I had kind of pinned $3000 as my pricepoint. But seeing a few cheaper cars I was wondering if anyone had any experience with 280zs in the sub $2000 range. I guess I was just second guessing the amount I was planning to spend and thinking that maybe I could get off cheaper.

I guess I'm still wondering about my other question though. At $3000, what should I expect? As I said, it has to be driveable. I don't care if all it needs is "a new battery", if I can't start it up and drive it home at the purchase price, I'm not buying it.

Rust, as I understand, is pretty much the biggest factor for these cars. Should I hold out for something that's totally rust free, or is that a pipedream in my pricerange (and area).

[Zedyone_kenobi]

Nothing is a pipe dream, but I have more questions for you that need answers...

Like how do you plan to use the car? Is this a daily driver, a first car, or a project car

You mentioned you have never worked on cars before, so that is a key point.

You also mentioned something that I think I need to correct. You said you could save up 10-11k and buy a grade A car, but that would defeat the purpose. I assume that means you want a project car. Well I saved up for several years and bought my Z, It cost around what you listed, and I have not stopped working on it since. Every weekend there is another project. Even a grade A Z is a 35+ year old car, with 35 year old rubber, 35 year old electrics and climate controls, and plastic. But buying a grade A or B Z will allow you to enjoy it every weekend while you work on it. You have something to drive around, something to take to car shows, something to admire in your garage. You are working on actually restoring it and making it new or better than new, rather than spending hours of sanding and patching, and rewiring.

Also buying a great condition car means lots of that 'tedious work' has already been done. Which is a huge bonus.

I just want to be honest, and straight forward. Myself along with many others here who are FAR more knowledgeable than I am will be here for you.

What do you expect from the car? Think about it and be honest with yourself.

In the end, the old addage is true. Buy the absolute best car you can afford.

[moonpup]

See if you could talk this guy down $600, then fly out to Phoenix and drive this baby home!

http://phoenix.craigslist.org/cph/cto/1623864409.html

[jrecee]

Nothing is a pipe dream, but I have more questions for you that need answers...

Like how do you plan to use the car? Is this a daily driver, a first car, or a project car

First project car. It would be a secondary around town/sunday drive car.

You mentioned you have never worked on cars before, so that is a key point.

You also mentioned something that I think I need to correct. You said you could save up 10-11k and buy a grade A car, but that would defeat the purpose. I assume that means you want a project car. Well I saved up for several years and bought my Z, It cost around what you listed, and I have not stopped working on it since. Every weekend there is another project. Even a grade A Z is a 35+ year old car, with 35 year old rubber, 35 year old electrics and climate controls, and plastic. But buying a grade A or B Z will allow you to enjoy it every weekend while you work on it. You have something to drive around, something to take to car shows, something to admire in your garage. You are working on actually restoring it and making it new or better than new, rather than spending hours of sanding and patching, and rewiring.

Also buying a great condition car means lots of that 'tedious work' has already been done. Which is a huge bonus.

I just want to be honest, and straight forward. Myself along with many others here who are FAR more knowledgeable than I am will be here for you.

What do you expect from the car? Think about it and be honest with yourself.

In the end, the old addage is true. Buy the absolute best car you can afford.

I guess the basic answer to this is that I'd rather have something to work on now, than something to drive every weekend 4 years from now. At the same time, I'm not looking for a complete wreck that will sit undriven in the garage for 3 years before I can take it around the neighborhood. But I won't be relying on this as a daily driver to get to work and back or anything. The hours of sanding and patching sound kind of fun

I guess I'm looking for something that I can casually drive, but continue working on for the next 5-10 years. I'm not aiming for a 100 point show car or anything, even when it's "done". Does it sound like I'm in the wrong price range? Should I be looking at cars around $5k or up? I'm not completely set in my ways here. I haven't asked a whole lot of questions, most my research consisted of just reading, I didn't want to bother anyone til I was closer to realistically being able to buy a car.

[jrecee]

See if you could talk this guy down $600, then fly out to Phoenix and drive this baby home!

http://phoenix.craigslist.org/cph/cto/1623864409.html

Hmm, looks to be a 2+2 but he didn't mention it. If it was a 2 seater that seems like the type of car I'm looking for. Not sure how realistic it is to find a car used as a daily driver for $3600 on the east coast though. . .

[moonpup]

Maybe not as nice as the other, but a little closer to home....

http://chattanooga.craigslist.org/cto/1624056649.html