On Mon, 17 Oct 1994 COSTICH_ALAN/HPATC1_01@i3125ent.atl.hp.com wrote:
> Ray Gibbons: Run away! Run away! from that '73 B. But, first,
> tell me where it is.
>
> Alan
Dear Alan,
They always say the rust you can't see is worse than the rust you can see.
If so, the body is beyond reasonable salvage. There is a hole under the
driver's seat you could throw a cat through. There are holes between the
rockers and the interior. All three layers of rockers are gone. The
driver's door won't close because of body sag. The body has surface rust
from 7 or 8 years outdoors. The brake disks are pitted with rust. The
exhaust pipe ends in front of where the muffler used to be; apparently the
rest rusted away. The bumpers are pitted with rust, and the rear one is
u-shaped from when the car was rear-ended. I doubt the wire wheels are
usable; they are rather rusted. Most of the exterior trim is rusted,
weathered, and/or battered. The windshield is cloudy about 2 inches
around every edge. The engine and trans and diff sat unused for 7 or 8
years in the open. I don't know if the engine was adequately protected
against freezing.
On the plus side, one could probably use the seats (tan vinyl), if he
wasn't too fussy. (The rest of the interior is poor.) It does have a
hardtop, but it is badly weathered. The car was originally BRG. It may
well have only 32K miles on it, so maybe some mechanical bits would be
easily refurbished. The engine compartment seems pretty much original and
untouched. The car does not seem to have been messed with much, just
neglected a tremendous amount.
James Howard told me that an od trans is worth $300. But I don't know if
it has OD. How does one tell? I tried to see when I looked at the car,
because I knew OD would be worth something. I gather the switch is
part of the wiper stalk. It does move in and out, but it would whether or
not it has OD, right? What should I look for under the car?
My figuring goes like this: $4000 shell + $500 paint (materials only) +
$2000 bumpers, top, windshield, interior trim, carpets, other
miscellaneous bits that end up costing an arm, + $2500 to refurbish the
brakes, suspension, and engine (if I am lucky, and supposing I repair any
holes in the brake lines with aluminum foil and epoxy for maximum economy
and safety) +$700 purchase = $9700 MGB. That's counting my work for nada.
It would be a damn nice MGB at that point. But for $9700, don't you think
I could go and buy a pretty damn nice MGB already finished? Even if I
have overestimated by $2k, couldn't I buy a pretty nice car for $7700?
I mean, I would like to save this little, lost, abused, rusted to heck,
tired, sagging, bone weary car, too. I am writing all this because I get
the same "Ahhhhh, poor thing..." feeling I get when I see a skinny little
kitten or dog that somebody has abandoned. If many of the parts were
transferrable to a new tub, I probably would bring it home. But under the
circumstances, does it make any economic sense at all? If it does,
convince me and I will either buy it or tell you where it is. Well, even
if you don't convince me, I will tell you where it is.
Ray "Antes de te cases, mire lo que haces" Gibbons
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