to purchase a '65 or '66 Wildcat convertible, a typical "dry state" car with burnt paint and worn trim but no actual rust through. Running, driving, but needing a full cosmetic resto. Seen a car over here in the UK but its RUSTED. Thinking I'm better to import one from California/Texas. What would I pay for one?
Alistair, Check with sites like Click logo :Smarty: But remember that the golden days of cheap cars like that are over, even now the US$ is so low..... If you need help getting a car like that over to Blighty, just let me know.
If I have to import it will have to wait. I'll see what the eBay one goes for as a guide. Thanks. the one I saw is also on eBay http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=4537658498&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT Spoke to the seller, needs LOTS of welding, has HAD lots of welding. I think I'll pass.
Alistair, That's not too shabby mate, and remember it's one of only 2790 made for that year. If the interior is okay, and that Nailhead is running A1, shifting fine, I really don't think 1,6500 (Ooops, just went up to 2,401.19 ) is too much money for a car like that. Just swap the doors and wings and she'll be apples. Still much cheaper compared to shipping a car like that from N-America to Blighty. What other welding besides the wings and doors was there to do since it has MOT until June ? "Road Tax: 9 Months Remaining" What's the story with that, isn't a 1966 motor road tax exempt ?
Email exchange goes like this: Q: "What is the rust like? How are the lower front fenders, door bottoms, rear quarters, rear wheel arches, etc? I guess the front fender supports will be rusted? How about the trunk floor? Body mounts?" A: "Bad rust in all the places you mentioned, plus loads more. Boot floor is made up from series of plates welded over one another over the last few years. Its a real mess" I've seen badly rusted American cars and its not pretty. Getting hold of body panels is real hard here, or just prohibitively expensive. I've been after a fender and trunk lid for my '66 for 2 years and I can never get anyone to ship out to the UK or they just want $500 for a used fender in the first place... So I'm repairing mine. Its getting too expensive for what it is for my money. IMO. Might pay 3000 for it, then $500 per panel for like 5 panels plus a few hundred in shipping... then the import duty and other taxes. Ouch. I saw a really quite clean looking '68 Electra convert struggle to sell for 4995 a while back. I don't know what he took for it in the end. Importing is what you got to do if you have a specific model in mind. You get screrwed on the duty and taxes now (they won't accpet most buicks as "collector cars", so you can't get the import tax rebate any more) but you get what you want and you get Southern State cars with little rust compared to the stuff over here which is falling apart with rot. Even though pre-1973 cars are Historic, you still have to get and display a tax disc for them, but the disc comes free.
Alistair, Next time you need body panels from dry state Arizona, just mail me. No stupid prices like you mentioned above. Only set back is that you have to collect them from me, here in the Netherlands. But you can always combine that with visiting a big American Car meeting on this side of the Channel. :TU:
