William:
Great stories. I acquired my TR6 last spring, after talking
about it for a loooong time.
I started my search in the usual place, the local paper.
I contacted the owner, and asked all the usual questions. I was
particularly careful about rust. He assured me that it was free
from rust and "very clean".
When I arrived, I checked the rocker panels near the
front wings. Both rockers had silver dollar sized holes.
There was another silver dollar hole near the drivers
rear wing. The trunk floor had holes in it. All the emissions
gear was removed, none of the gauges worked. There was no
carpet in the passenger compartment. The tail lights
didn't work. No spare tire, etc.... In short, a great way to
teach your son the virtues of walking.
What happened next stunned me. There was another person
there looking at the car, who bought it, as is, for $4200 (US).
I knew then that I had better be prepared to pay when I found
that rust free car I wanted.
Sigh. I probably paid too much for mine, but so be it.
It was a Texas car with 0 rust, and not *too* badly buggered.
Moral: One person's "clean, rust free" car is another
person's rotted piece-o-crap. Caveat Emptor!
Vance
------------------------------
1974 Mimosa Yellow Triumph TR6
Cogito Ergo Zoom
(I think, therefore I go fast)
-----Original Message-----
From: William Whitmoyer [mailto:wwhitmoyer@samsonite.net]
Sent: Wednesday, September 18, 2002 9:23 AM
To: 6pack@autox.team.net
Subject: RE:The TR6 I *didn't* buy...
Kai:
That reminds me of the 1975 BMW 2002 from California I saw sitting at an
Ohio garage for several long winter months. The owner wanted double what
it was worth (as a rust-free body shell) because the engine had just been
rebuilt...of course, it had 160K total with only the head valve stems/seals
redone at 125K (a common 2002 weakspot). Oh, and these people were fresh
in from LA (sorry, Dick) and had 100% water in the cooling system..the
first 10 degree Ohio winter cold snap...bang...that's why it was sitting
outside this garage all winter. Conversation time: 5 minutes.
<snip>
And I've got more. Bites, doesn't it? I feel your pain in a way only
possible with personal experience. I've had my share of good seller
experiences, but that total is unfortunately much less than the bad seller
experiences. Sorry if this is a little preachy and ranty, but this stuff
ticks me off big time.
William Whitmoyer
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