<VV> Need Advice About My Possible Purchase

Tue May 14 16:02:09 EDT 2013

Hi AConnolly,

First, welcome to the wonderful world of VV.

Please forgive me if I am stating the obvious in this response  but this is 
for both you and to others on VV generically.

$500 is probably a good price for a car that is "all  there."  This also 
depends on what model the car is.  If nothing else,  it can serve as a parts 
car.  However, I don't know your situation.   Things to consider .... Do you 
have lots of room to store a potential parts car  along with your primary 
car?  Do you live somewhere with real winters where  the cars must be stored 
inside or is outside OK?  Will your wife, parents,  neighbors, township 
nazis, etc. be tolerant of your long term project?   Some townships have policies 
against non-running, non-registered,  non-insured cars.  

Are you an old hand with Corvairs or at least with classic  cars?  If not, 
you should seek out someone who is knowledgeable about  Corvairs or at least 
old cars to look at the vehicle with you.  Look at it  pragmatically.  We 
all tend to look at a car and see its potential as a  restored treasure but 
sometimes overlook the effort and cost it will require to  restore it.  I 
have looked at many, many cars over the years and am often  enthusiastic about 
what I have seen.  However, I learned to stand back and  do a mental 
assessment.  I.E., the interior that is in "fair condition" is  something that you 
will probably replace eventually.  Interiors in fair  condition tend to 
deteriorate quickly in a daily driver.  It costs the same  to replace a trashed 
interior now as it costs to replace a fair interior a year  from now.  If 
you can do the work yourself and consider that to be free,  the cost in 
dollars will be limited to parts but that can be significant by  itself.  If you 
(or friends) can't do body and mechanical work "for free"  the restoration 
can get very expensive.  My point is that you might be  better off spending a 
few thousand for a running street car in good shape.   You can start 
enjoying the car immediately and probably  save money.  The choice is between 
buying a derelict and bringing it up to  snuff or spending more for a car that is 
already up to snuff.

Next, you say you will be looking at the car this  weekend.  Can I assume 
you haven't seen it yet?  The description  you gave us is minimal and I 
assume it came from the owner.  In  almost all cases, owner/sellers are 
optimistic in their description of the  vehicle.  This could be due to human nature 
or outright dishonesty.   "Minor rust" could mean terminal cancer.  The fair 
interior could mean that  the top of the backseat is crumbling due to sun 
damage but the seat bottom  is OK and the passenger seat is almost perfect but 
the driver's seat gives  you a goose with wayward springs.  Bottom line; 
the interior could be  called fair but still must be replaced completely.  
Keep in mind that  surface rust or even cancer on a fender is relatively easy 
to fix but that same  rust around a windshield or backlight could be a HUGE 
expense.  What  appears to be surface rust in that location could mean cancer 
under the  trim.

200 miles is a very long distance to drive.  Is that 200  miles one way or 
round trip?  Do a calculation on the cost of the  inspection trip alone.  
Additional cost to consider is the second trip  with a tow vehicle or having 
it moved professionally.  

You say that you won't have an opportunity to buy another  Corvair any time 
soon.  Are you located that far out in the boonies?   Even if this is the 
case, give us your location, there may be someone on this  site that is 
"close enough" and can advise/accompany you or maybe even sell  you your first 
Corvair.  Even if nobody is close enough to accompany you,  they may be able 
to steer you to a running vehicle within a reasonable radius of  your 
location.

Perhaps the most important advice; get more information before  you make 
the 200/400/800 mile trek.  

- Does the owner have clear title?  If not, you could  have a bad nightmare 
making it legal in your name.  Is the title in his  name or is he skipping 
title from the previous owner.  That is legal in  most cases but in some 
states you could be faced with hundreds of dollars in  fees/fines if the title 
was signed and dated years ago and not officially  transferred within a 
specified time.  If it is in his name, has he kept  current with registration?  
You could end up paying registration fees for  the past 10 years.

- "Minor rust" is too subjective.  To some, this means  truly minor surface 
rust.  To others, this is qualified with the knowledge  that the vehicle is 
almost half a century old.  In the owner's mind,  "minor" could include it 
being a "Flintstone car."  I have looked at cars  that were described as 
"fair" but were horrible.  The owner responded with,  "What do you expect for a 
50 year old car?"  It was in fair condition for  its age in his mind but a 
POS in my mind and we were both correct because it is  all subject to 
perception and opinion.

- Have the owner take MANY pictures and send them to  you.  If he refuses 
or if the pics seem to be taken from "artistic angles"  decline to visit.  If 
it was a trip of only a few miles, you could  look at the car just for the 
experience and the chance to chat with a classic  car owner but 200/400 
miles is a large investment of time and  gasoline.

- Some people will tell you anything to get you there to look  at the car.  
They know you will see the flaws but they think they might be  able to go 
into "heavy sales mode" and get you to buy the car anyway.  You  are the one 
spending all the time and gas on the road and they have little  investment.  
They don't care if they piss off someone who lives 200 miles  away.

Finally, where are you located?  If you are too far from  civilization for 
it to be convenient to casually search for a Corvair, you might  consider 
taking a "car search" vacation to find your dream car.  The annual  convention 
would be a great choice.  Another great choice would be the Fan  Belt Toss 
event in October.  It is held every year in Palm Springs, CA and  there are 
always cars for sale.  I am sure more than one person here on VV  would be 
happy to help you find the right car that won't drain your wallet after  you 
buy it.  The Belt Toss only runs from Friday afternoon to mid Sunday  with 
Saturday as the primary day.  This will leave you plenty of time  to see some 
of the sights in SoCal for a week vacation.  Believe me, "minor  rust" in 
SoCal (and other dry climates) has a very different meaning than the  same 
term in places that have real winters.  Of course, the cost of the  vacation 
might eat into your Corvair purchase budget.  However, there are  many events 
around the nation that might be closer to you.  You could also  plan to 
visit a local club meeting or two.  I am sure you would be welcome  at any 
meeting and if you schedule ahead, some members with cars to sell might  bring 
them to the meeting. 

I hope I haven't dampened your enthusiasm to own a Corvair in  the near 
future.

Good luck

Doc

1960 Corvette, 1961 Rampside, 1962 Rampside, 1964 Spyder  coupe, 1965 
Greenbrier, 1966 Canadian Corsa turbo coupe, 1967 Nova SS, 1968  Camaro ragtop

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In a message dated 5/14/2013 6:36:35 A.M. Pacific Daylight Time,  
virtualvairs-request at corvair.org writes:

Message:  1
Date: Mon, 13 May 2013 18:38:33 -0400 (EDT)
From:  AConnolly44 at aol.com
Subject: <VV> Need Advice About My Possible  Purchase
To: virtualvairs at corvair.org
Message-ID:  <b7797.47a99fb0.3ec2c569 at aol.com>
Content-Type: text/plain;  charset="us-ascii"

New member.  Great site!  Hello, I am  buying this 1964 Corvair  this 
weekend.  Issues w/ it:  not  currently running but does turn  over, minor rust 
around the typical  areas, interior is in fair condition, no  keys.  Goods:  
all  original, and it's only $500.  Is this a good  purchase?  I  will be 
looking @ it this weekend, and my friends keeps  telling me it's  not worth 
it.  Should I make the 200 mile trip down?   I love  Corvairs and won't have 
an opportunity to buy one anytime soon.   Pic  below.  Thanks in advance.   
:o)