Malaise-o-naise: 1977 Ford Mustang II

This next car comes from tipper Zach who writes: It was <not> the best of times.  I don't know what you'd do with this thing.  A modern ecoboost monster of some sort?  Cram a 302 in and just saunter?  Grab the drivetrain from a Prius and don't amaze your friends?  At least you can feel that 'wind in your hair' with the sunroof.  And probably feel some water when it leaks, too.  Snazzy white vinyl tho! You are correct Zach!!  My favorite part of this car is the fact that the interior looks surprisingly intact with its clock forlornly stuck forever at 10:56.  Find this 1977 Ford Mustang II offered for $1000 in Chickaloon, AK via craigslist.

Beetle Based: 1969 Porsche 917 Kit Car

Why have I been featuring so many kit cars these days?  Is wanting to drive a home built car that looks like a crappy version of something awesome a lesser known symptom of coronavirus?  I thought I was coughing from the fumes from this leaky Volkswagen engine, but maybe its the COVID??  Is it social distancing if I leave a big gap in traffic because I'm uncertain the brakes are gonna work on the first pump?  Find this 1969 Porsche 917 Kit Car offered for $13,999 in Encino, CA via craigslist. Tip from Rock On!

Cheap Driver: 1995 Toyota Celica

Its been a strange recovery from the 2008 automotive crisis.  First off, the $1000 drive-able cars that used to litter craigslist/autotrader have all but disappeared, and the bottom of the heap Honda/Toyotas cost $4k.  Blame cash for clunkers for a huge number (710,000 by some accounts) reduction in cheap/running/driving cars from the marketplace, followed by slow sales in 2009, 2010, 2011...anyway, cars for $1k are usually total piles of junk in 2019...but you can find an occasional diamond in the rough. Find this 1995 Toyota Celica offered for $1200 in Boulder Creek, CA via craigslist.

Phone Dials: 1986 Porsche 944

I know, I know.  I hate to be a pessimist.  I hate to be yet another voice on the internet that laments how all the cheap fun cars have been purchased by stamp collectors who've inflated their values to the detriment of everyone but the wealthy elite who can afford them.  And the collector car market really is a zero sum game, because it wouldn't make a bit of difference if the bottom fell out of the Ferrari GTO market except that I would own/drive one...so I'm not going to say that you should buy a Porsche 944 while they are still affordable, because, by all accounts, they will likely be affordable until flying electric cars are given out with every Wild Stallions album, but in the meantime, you'll have to shell out a few bucks if you want a Porsche that only runs on starting fluid. Find this 1986 Porsche 944 here on eBay offered for $3000 buy-it-now located in Chico, CA with 5 days to go.

Death Kart: 2000 Dodge Neon-ish

Just because you could drive a vehicle on the street does not necessarily mean it is "street legal"...or does it?  Does driving it around and having your local fuzz laugh at your mean it is legal or just tolerated?  Street tolerated does have a good ring to it. Find this 2000 Dodge Neon-ish thing offered for $1195 in Sparta, GA via craigslist. Tip from Matt C.

Truxury: 2002 Lincoln Blackwood

I try to avoid craigslist postings without pictures, because it doesn't make a good story to write about a car without photos...but some of the best deals are from terrible advertisements. Find this 2002 Lincoln Blackwood pickup offered for $5,300 in Cape Coral, FL via craigslist.  Tip from Dascpcu.

Pre-Brick: 1967 Volvo 122S Amazon

The Volvo 122S Amazon went into production in 1956 when fenders were bulbous and cars were slow, but somehow it managed to survive the axe through 1970.  Total production exceeded 667,000 vehicles and the "sporty" 2-door model proved the most popular.  Find this 1967 Volvo 122S Amazon offered for $800 near Seattle, WA via craigslist.  Tip from Zach Z.

Articulating: 1962 Dyna-Mite

The Dyna-Mite was a small articulating 4X4 built by Dynaco out of Tucson, AZ for farm and industrial uses.  Find this 1962 Dyna-Mite offered for $1,500 in Homer, AK. Tip from Zach.

Cheap Speed: 1998 BMW M3

The E36 generation BMW M3 was released in 1995 with a detuned US spec engine (remember when the Europeans got the good stuff..?) and a fabulously nimble chassis.  Magazine pundits and BMW fanboys alike raved about the steering feel and I can't imagine the prices on these things can continue to be as low as they are.  Find this 1998 BMW M3 offered for $7,300 in South Los Angeles, CA.

Aston Who: 1999 Ford Mustang Custom

Aston Martin was founded in 1913 by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford in a workshop when they hacked up a 1908 Isotta-Fraschini to go racing.  So the idea of hacking up another car to create an Aston Martin has some kind of precedent and might end up being a good thing.  Key word might. Find this 1999 Ford Mustang Custom offered for $3,500 near Miami, Florida via craigslist.

Ready For Something: 1998 Chevrolet Corvette

The C5 generation Corvette is a formidably fast sports coupe that is only a few door dings away from being ready for the race track...or a good freeway speeds sandwich between a UPS truck and a Lexus LX470 to make a good 24 Hours of LeMons car.  Find this 1998 Chevrolet Corvette here on eBay bidding for $2,550 with a few hours to go, located in Plainville, MA.

Bumblebee and Creamsickle: Two 1974 Porsche 914 Limited Editions

The holy grail of Porsche 914 collecting isn't the 914-6 like you might think...no, the 914-6 is great, but too expensive, and it isn't the Bumblebee or Creamsickle.  In 1974 Porsche released the Can-Am inspired Bumblebee and Creamsickle as limited edition cars for North America with production of less than 1000 in total.    Find these two 1974 Porsche 914 Limited Editions offered for an undisclosed price in Denver, CO via craigslist.

Your Own Beat-up: 1987 Ford Tempo AWD

By Matt -- In the 1980’s, Ford USA was in the process of putting together an FIA Group B rally program to rival the RS2000 project from across the Atlantic. With an all-iron single-turbo 2.8 liter V6, four driven wheels, and a tufted velour front bench, the homologation Tempo was planned for a limited production run of 500. Ford, not able to make the close ratio dog-leg 5 speed transaxle and locking center differential live in rally conditions, abandoned all but the homologation special, with all performance-oriented features deleted except the AWD system. I hope you’ve enjoyed this completely falsified, revisionist history. Find this 1987 Ford Tempo AWD with absolutely no racing pedigree, for sale in Denver, CO for $750.

What The Bleep? 1984 Chevrolet Blazer

When someone shows photos of a horrible pile of parts and says "with great tires but the rest needs work" those had better be some nice new tires.  Looking at these tires, I'd hate to see what the seller considers bad tires, but just take a look for yourself.  Find this 1984 Chevrolet Blazer offered for $800 in Highlands, TX via craigslist.  Tip from Vance.

Half-Price Day: 1970 vs 1973 MG MGB GT

It must be half price day at a local junkyard, because I'm feeling the need to post a spattering of projects today...or I'm beginning the slow but inevitable slide into the senility that comes from long term exposure to toxic chemicals.  Next up, we've got these two British 2+2 fastback GTs -- one is a 1970 MGB GT in primer offered for $3,500 in Los Angeles, CA, and the other is a red 1973 MGB GT offered for $3,400 in Whittier, CA -- both via craigslist & tips from FuelTruck.

Xtra Junkyard Swap: 1989 Jaguar XJS Convertible w/ SBC

by Matt -- Today’s LS swap is the small block swap of the 90’s. Back in the day of the Trapper Keeper, every third rear drive import that needed a head gasket got a 350 out of whatever conversion van was sitting in the yard. Often times, the SBC (small block Chevy) was only a marginal performance improvement over whatever came out but at a fraction of the cost repairing the bricked ‘furrin’ motor. Here we have an XJS sitting on some wires and you guessed it, it’s small block swapped. Find this 1989 Jaguar XJS Convertible w/ SBC offered for $2,800 Savannah, GA via craigslist.

Fox Body of the South Seas - 1989 Nissan Skyline R32

by Matt -- The R32 Skyline is rapidly making its way in droves to the US now that’s it legal to do so. Since this one lacks papers, one can assume that just maybe it was jammed in the back of a container and ignored by a crooked longshoreman. So why not slide in at the bottom of the market and see if clutch kicking and slamming into guard rails is really your thing? Find this beat-all-to-hell, titleless, yet somehow still strangely intriguing 1989ish Nissan Skyline R32 in Raleigh, North Carolina for a likely very negotiable $6,999 via craigslist.