Some of us are aware...
For Sale 1979 Dodge Magnum xe 14k mile survivor MI $6k
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Carmine
Old Man with a Hat
I feel the need to chime in here... First of all, I have no idea where more/less base model Magnums are selling for over $6k, but I want to live in that world when I decide to sell this one (also with original paint) that I paid $1700 for last January. Granted that was a deal, but I expect a perfect car for $6k and this green one was not.
What (who?) ate that hood pad? It used to be there, a few of the clips tell that story.
Dirty carpet and a few cig burns for good measure.
Be ready to pull most of that interior out and dye it, it's yellowed pretty bad.
Dent (hard to see I admit)
Underside wasn't rotted, but still had the spiderwebs from 16 years of being off the road.
Little dents and scratches around the car.
and some rust...
Most of the wheel lip moldings had dings, this one was crunched (and panel scraped).
The bottom 5" pretty much looked like this. Not junk, but it has to be dealt with quickly.
Grille was nice until somebody dropped a basketball through it. The repair (glue) would fall apart if you touched it. And the headlight covers need some polishin'.
Then you have the OEM exhaust that I don't picture lasting much longer. A 37-year-old set of Firestone 721's that shouldn't be driven on, and a flipper-seller that fails to show (twice) for a test drive. I think there are better cars out there.
What (who?) ate that hood pad? It used to be there, a few of the clips tell that story.
Dirty carpet and a few cig burns for good measure.
Be ready to pull most of that interior out and dye it, it's yellowed pretty bad.
Dent (hard to see I admit)
Underside wasn't rotted, but still had the spiderwebs from 16 years of being off the road.
Little dents and scratches around the car.
and some rust...
Most of the wheel lip moldings had dings, this one was crunched (and panel scraped).
The bottom 5" pretty much looked like this. Not junk, but it has to be dealt with quickly.
Grille was nice until somebody dropped a basketball through it. The repair (glue) would fall apart if you touched it. And the headlight covers need some polishin'.
Then you have the OEM exhaust that I don't picture lasting much longer. A 37-year-old set of Firestone 721's that shouldn't be driven on, and a flipper-seller that fails to show (twice) for a test drive. I think there are better cars out there.
moparnutcase
Senior Member
Thanks for chiming in Carmine! I believe my offer was way more than generous considering what has to be put into the car($$$$) and not a "lowball" offer as fury fan states. Try finding out the facts before you offer an opinion on price. Having seen some more pics would you be willing to pay $4500? (fury fan). Even my offer may have been too high. Just remember a fool and his money are soon parted.
The wheels in the car of the post are Cordoba style; they are not GM wheels - wouldn't fit even if they were, wrong bold pattern.
Seeing those detail photos of the car sure reaffirms the need to look at cars in person before plunking down the money. I wouldn't even buy it having seen the problems with it, even at $2000. Especially given the way the jerk is avoiding letting you drive it. And noting that the seller avoided showing the grille in the posted photos - tells you a lot. That is 14K miles? Jeesh!
commando1
Old Man with a Hat
Me want badly.
300rag
It's Not Going to Shift Itself
fury fan
Senior Member
Time-out here on your 'finding facts' thing. Lots of folks were offering opinions that it looked like a great car, and then you say that you're considering the car and it has some cosmetic issues (biggest being the 3" of surface rust). And you said you offered 500 less than he was 'seeking'. And I said the seller should've taken 5500 on 6000, and also needed to be available for test drives. Then you clarified that he was willing to go down to 5000, and that's the number you were 500 further below. At that point I said 4500 on a 6000 starting price is a big gap and apparently you got offended. And then you posted the pics that Carmine took and added more details. Don't get mad at me for having an opinion that didn't agree because of info that you hadn't yet shared.
Yes, if those pics were posted earlier I would've felt differently about 5500 on this car -- but they weren't. Someone thought it was a good buy at 4500 even without a test drive (and aside from the broken grille pics I would agree with that also). Then you say you're worried about how the car was awakened. You seem to be worried about this car every step of the way, so perhaps it's just not the car for you?
IMO the biggest problem with this car is the broken grille. Most of the other cosmetics (even that surface rust) can be handled economically with a few weekends of elbow grease and be brought to a presentable condition for a 37-year-old car that was not fanatically preserved. It ain't priced like a Carlisle tent car, and the majority of the $$ it will need is maintenance items that you need to put into any old car anyway, to ensure you are making safe and reliable -- so that doesn't really count. If you can do this work yourself you'd be OK with the investment; if you have to pay shop rates, well, frankly almost any late 70s Mopar would be a very poor choice for purchase/investment.
You are entitled to the opinion that your offer is way more than generous, just as I was entitled at that time to think 4500 on 6000 was a lowball offer.
For me, the real problem here is dealing with this guy. He is not available for a test drive and he says the car was never driven in winter in those 14K original miles. Well, then, how did the underside get so rusty looking and the lower parts of the body also look like the effects of salt exposure on Michigan streets? When you go to loosen nuts and bolts on the underside or do much of any work, a rusty environment just makes things so much tougher - not worth it to me. I would rather pay more for a non-rusty car even if it had double the mileage on it. I just don't trust the guy and would move on. Nothing he has said is reliable.
Carmine
Old Man with a Hat
For the record, "I" posted the photos, and all offers were provisional on a test drive... the first which he didn't show up for and the second which he agreed to... and then left the state. (The car is parked at some friend's house on a bed of loose gravel, dirt and broken glass... a great trick to keep people from looking underneath.)
It will never sell to a local for $6k because a local will put their eyes on it. He's looking for an out of the area buyer. Again, $6k should get you a turn-key show Magnum OR one in similar condition to this that is a "GT", E-58, or sunroof/t-tops.
It will never sell to a local for $6k because a local will put their eyes on it. He's looking for an out of the area buyer. Again, $6k should get you a turn-key show Magnum OR one in similar condition to this that is a "GT", E-58, or sunroof/t-tops.
CanCritter
Senior Member
on the lighter side seen this while l had police academy 2on in background...
Dodge Magnum XE in "Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment"
cars about to get burned in this scene...
Dodge Magnum XE in "Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment"
cars about to get burned in this scene...
moparnutcase
Senior Member
Thanks Carmine. It would be so much easier if people would read a post and understand it before commenting
moparnutcase
Senior Member
You are correct,folks were saying it looked nice. I thought the same thing which is why I was interested in it. Obviously the flipper did not show pics in his ad to get a better look at the cosmetic issues. I believe he is certainly trying to hide something mechanically as he had no problem offering up the rust issue, I think it can't be good. As Carmine stated, MY $4500 offer was conditional on him being able to check out the under carriage and test driving it. Short of getting this car for next to nothing, you would have to be a fool not to check it out thoroughly. Obviously the $1500 was not a big gap as the seller CALLED ME the next day to accept it. He then reneged on a second attempt at a test drive the very NEXT day after that. Funny thing is I accepted the same amount less for what I was asking on my '65 Monaco and I certainly did not think that was a low ball offer. If you have more money than brains feel free to be taken to the cleaners. I personally like to know what I am purchasing with my hard earned dollars and momma didn't raise no fool....because like I stated in a previous post .....a fool and his money are soon parted.
Seems to me that if you were to comprehend the entire post we would not be going back and forth....the seller(flipper) is basically a dirt bag trying to pull a fast one and my post was meant more to be a warning to fellow Mopar peeps and not be accused of low balling, which as I think you can clearly see is not the case. This car WOULD NEVER be worth the asking price in the state that it is in. Please read ALL posts by EVERYONE to form a better picture of the worth of the car. I have no problem paying for a car for what it is worth and this one was not worth it, enough said.
that is rust from dampness. the car appears to have been sitting either outside or in a damp garage for a long time. expect problems from the years of sitting unused.
65sporty
Old Man with a Hat
The guy has a number he is willing to accept and your 4500 was above that number. I think he is trying to cash in because it's mopar and believes that makes it worth more. I agree with what your saying about trying to get someone who's not local to buy. Local would find the flaws and price accordingly I believe your 4500 is to high just my 2cents though.
Beep Beep Dave
Senior Member
Personally from the ad and the initial pics I was expecting a better car and the $4500 seemed to be a no brainer, but as more info emerged with those additional pics...it sure isn't the car it is made out to be. I would really be disappointed if I drove out to see that car based on the ad.
Like any 30 year old car it has its pluses and minuses...
Personally because those cars haven't really taken off price wise I would look for a better example and seller.
Dave
Like any 30 year old car it has its pluses and minuses...
Personally because those cars haven't really taken off price wise I would look for a better example and seller.
Dave
streetmachine
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Seeing the pictures. I would offer $2000 or $2500. Maybe $3000 if I really wanted the car. For a Midwest it's not that bad and quite frankly I know a few derby guys would buy this for $1k or $1500. I was offered a much better Magnum than this at the current price point ($6k) but, it was a 318 car and the same color as my current Cordoba.
The thing is this car has been sitting a long time and it appears to that it needs a lot of work. Looking at tires, fuel system, cooling system, suspension, brakes, A/C, engine/transmission gaskets fluids, and whatever little stuff. I'm wondering if the headlight motor works? I know if you buy a restored motor then that's another $300-$400 for one. Then, if I'm going that far I would get rid of this version of Lean Burn and convert to a 4bbl or run an earlier 2bbl or go fuel injection and then plan on a timing chain with a tensioner as well just from experience.
The thing is this car has been sitting a long time and it appears to that it needs a lot of work. Looking at tires, fuel system, cooling system, suspension, brakes, A/C, engine/transmission gaskets fluids, and whatever little stuff. I'm wondering if the headlight motor works? I know if you buy a restored motor then that's another $300-$400 for one. Then, if I'm going that far I would get rid of this version of Lean Burn and convert to a 4bbl or run an earlier 2bbl or go fuel injection and then plan on a timing chain with a tensioner as well just from experience.
fury fan
Senior Member
Moparnutcase -
This situation between us has getting toxic and we should abandon it, it started out about a car but now it's a tit-for-tat between us, and it could go on forever -- neither of us should give up any further room in our hearts to it.
I believe if you had gotten this car it would've been good for you, and I also believe whatever car out there has your name on it, well, nobody else is going to get it.
So when you find it, start a thread about it and send me a PM so I see it, and we'll both celebrate your good fortune.
This situation between us has getting toxic and we should abandon it, it started out about a car but now it's a tit-for-tat between us, and it could go on forever -- neither of us should give up any further room in our hearts to it.
I believe if you had gotten this car it would've been good for you, and I also believe whatever car out there has your name on it, well, nobody else is going to get it.
So when you find it, start a thread about it and send me a PM so I see it, and we'll both celebrate your good fortune.
I have said many, many times that I would never buy a car unless my eyeballs or a trusted FCBO member here put eyeballs on any car I was interested in.
Ten foot pictures of any car can hide the true condition of any car. Some people, as stated in an earlier post, will try to sell the car sight unseen and the buyer is deeply disappointed with what shows up at his doorstep.
Ten foot pictures of any car can hide the true condition of any car. Some people, as stated in an earlier post, will try to sell the car sight unseen and the buyer is deeply disappointed with what shows up at his doorstep.
fury fan
Senior Member
Ironically, in spite of all of this, I think that car has pretty decent potential (except for that poor grille). It has good interior color, buckets/console, the cool 3-spoke steering wheel, just needs some dye in spots. And it's important to note that nobody questioned the legitimacy of the mileage.
The underside may not be pretty, but none of us would drive it in the snow or rain, so it's not going to get any worse. The surface rust on the bottom of the body wouldn't really require full-blown pro paintwork, and all the other $$/work it might need is to be expected for a car this age/sitting so long. Not really any surprises there, if you think about it - expect to go thru tip/tail replacing all 'spoilable' items. When you're done you have a reliable 16k-mile car. Enjoy it for 5 years, you could put 20k more miles on it even, and you'd still have a low mileage car, and one that's road-ready - I don't think you'd lose much money at sale time.
I don't think we'd find a better low-mileage example around for less than $4500, I think anything preserved to the 'perfection' we want is going to have a 10k asking price. People that have those cars tend to ask big $$$. And at that point I think we'd all be balking at 10k for a non-collectible 70s car (I would, anyway).
The underside may not be pretty, but none of us would drive it in the snow or rain, so it's not going to get any worse. The surface rust on the bottom of the body wouldn't really require full-blown pro paintwork, and all the other $$/work it might need is to be expected for a car this age/sitting so long. Not really any surprises there, if you think about it - expect to go thru tip/tail replacing all 'spoilable' items. When you're done you have a reliable 16k-mile car. Enjoy it for 5 years, you could put 20k more miles on it even, and you'd still have a low mileage car, and one that's road-ready - I don't think you'd lose much money at sale time.
I don't think we'd find a better low-mileage example around for less than $4500, I think anything preserved to the 'perfection' we want is going to have a 10k asking price. People that have those cars tend to ask big $$$. And at that point I think we'd all be balking at 10k for a non-collectible 70s car (I would, anyway).
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