Coffee Brake: Tales of a Tailgating Party

Welcome back to another edition of DT's Coffee Brake, where the pants are loose and the shoes are tight.  Today I am turning the mic over to K2 Mystery Car who is going do a guest post about tailgating. 

Tales of a Tailgating Party by K2 Mystery Car

As hardcore enthusiasts, we are the knights of the road. We follow a creed that pledges allegiance at the altar of the automobile. It’s our duty to uphold and demonstrate this creed. We are the few, the proud, the gearheads! What do you do when you've got somebody trying to ride in your trunk, trying to inspect the condition of your rear bumper paint? I like to employ various legal and less than life-threatening strategies for rascally road rapscallions, and today we discuss a few.

15k: $1 Per Mile: 1980 Porsche 928

The Porsche 928 is a fantastically complex and cool classic grand tourer from Porsche's era of experimentation in front-engined sports cars.  The pointy headed product planners in Stuttgart envisioned that the Wolfgang Möbius designed 928 would replace the aging rear-engined 911, but the 911 has more lives than a family of cloned zombie cats -- and it watched as the 928 pulled an Elvis over the years (fatter, louder, capes, etc).  Find this 1980 Porsche 928 here on eBay bidding for $9,800 reserve-not-met with a buy-it-now of $15,900 located in Miami, FL.

5k: Ultimate Creeper Wagon: 1980 Ford Diamond Motorhome

This next feature comes in as a tip from Andy L, and his tip was long enough for an entire post -- so here it is,   This is an ad for a Ford 1980 Diamond Motorhome offered on craigslist for $4,000 located in Crete, NE.  Unlike other RVs designed to provide an optimal view of nature and let in sunlight, this one only has a few portholes.  It looks more like a work van from the outside, but has all the necessities for an extended stay on the inside.  Yes, this camper is designed to deceive onlookers. (Words and link by Andy L.)

 

5k: Rare Wagon: 1991 Audi 200 Turbo Quattro Avant

 Audi never built that many of the Audi 200 Turbo Quattro Avant, so finding one in good shape for a decent price is unusual, so I didn't expect to see another so soon after the example posted here in Dec of 2014.  The C3 body style Audi 200 was built starting in 1982, but it wasn't until the last and final year of production (1991) that Audi installed the latest 20-valve turbo engine known as the 3B mated to 5-speed gearbox and Quattro all-wheel-drive.  Find this 1991 Audi 200 Turbo Quattro Wagon offered for $5,950 located in Bozeman, MT via craigslist.  Tip from Oldsmobuick.

Thursday Twister: What is a Wagonback

This next Thursday Twister comes as a suggestion from Kaibeezy (DT resident logo guru and idea man), and it is a bit more twisted than the average twister. In a normal Twister, we ask for readers to identify cars that contain certain identifiable costmetic features (pop-up headlamps, forward hinged hood, etc) but today we are looking for cars that contain an undefined, but unmistakably odd-looking and noticeable feature -- the wagonback.

20k: Shoot All The Brakes: 1994 Jaguar XJS Lynx Eventer

For years the British motoring community was caught between two paradigms.  Buy something sensible like a Vauxhall hatchback, or throw caution to the wind and buy a V12 powered Jaguar luxury coupe as an expression of your awesomeness.  This was the choice for years until a small engineering company called Lynx decided that the motoring masses should have their yorkshire pudding and eat it too! Lynx starting building shooting brake conversions of the XJS (now known as the Eventer) in 1982 and did not stop until 2002.  Find this 1994 Jaguar XJS Lynx Eventer offered for $25,000 via craigslist, located in Chicago, IL.

5k: Low Cost Super 3.5: 1958 Triumph Custom Ford Power

What do you get when you combine a '58 Triumph title, a custom frame, a Ford Pinto 2.3 liter 4-banger, and finish it to look vaguely like a Lotus Seven?  I don't know, but it sure seems like a steal at this price.  Find this "1958 Triumph" Custom with Ford Power offered for $3,500 near Columbus, OH via craigslist.   Tip from Justin.

10k: Survivor: 1966 Chrysler Imperial Crown Convertible

 The Imperial was a high end luxury automobile from Chrysler that was so exclusive it spawned its own brand.  The Imperial name had been used since 1926 to identify Chrysler Corp.'s top end luxury cars, but in 1955 Chrysler spun off an entire brand to compete with Lincoln and Cadillac.  During the second generation (1957-1966) the Imperial sat on its own unique (unshared with plebeian Chrysler offerings) body-on-frame platform, featuring a stylish wrap-around windscreen and more steel than an Sherman Tank.  Find this 1966 Chrysler Imperial Crown Convertible offered here on eBay currently bidding for $7,300 with a few hours to go, located in Scottsdale, AZ.

Mid Week Match-Up: $1k Driver

It's Wednesday, so that means it's time for another edition of Daily Turismo's better than eating tofu game also known as Mid Week Match-Up! Time to get cheap. Cheap and dirty.  It is almost impossible to find a running/driving car for less than $1,000, but what if your budget is $1500?  Most of the cars you find in this price range won't pass inspection (for rust or smog depending on your state) but perhaps you can find something that you would be willing to drive every day for about $1500. 

5k: It Ain't Easy Being Green: 1970 Pontiac Firebird Esprit

In the mid '60s Pontiac (with John Z DeLorean at the helm) was in the process of designing its own radical pony car called the Banshee. GM upper management was afraid that the Banshee would cannibalize sales from the Corvette (which was likely given its performance specs), so they pulled the plug on the Banshee and offered Pontiac the opportunity to sell a pony car on a platform shared with the Camaro...which became known as the Firebird.  Find this 1970 Pontiac Firebird offered here on eBay currently bidding for $5,500 with 3 days to go, located in Gardena, CA.

5k: Dumpling: 1964 Volvo PV544

 The PV544 was the first modern unibody vehicle to come out of Volvo after the smoke cleared from World War II.  It was a rugged and versitile car, powered by an early version of the legendary B-series inline-4 and a privateer PV544 driven by the legendary "Flying Sikh" Joginder Singh won the 1965 East African Safari Rally.  Find this 1964 Volvo PV544 offered here on eBay currently bidding for $1,625 reserve-not-met with 2 days to go, located in Upland, CA.

10k: Thunder Road: 1949 Ford Custom

 Forget Furious 7, if you want to watch a great movie about cars that isn't full of CGI, bad acting, and sweaty dudes in UnderArmour t-shirts, pick up a copy of the 1958 Thunder Road starring Robert Mitchum (who sings the campy title credits song) as a returning Korean war vet, his son James Mitchum playing his younger brother who gets into running moonshine, and Gene Barry as a sympathetic revenuer out to catch the good ole boys before they die in a crash or get shot by rival gangs.  But the real stars of the movie are the tricked Shoebox Fords, a '50 & '51 Custom with '49 grill, and this next feature is pretty close.  Find this 1949 Ford Custom here on eBay currently bidding for $10,000 with a few hours to go, located in Lansdale, PA.

10k: Orange Is The New Black: 1976 BMW 2002 with E30 M3 Engine

Update 24-Mar-2015: This BMW 2002 with E30 M3 power is can be found here on eBay with bidding at $9,200 with a few hours to go.  It looks in the same condition from the previous listing 9 months ago, but is located 75 miles away from a new seller (??) who likely decided it was too much of a project.

5k: Cat Scratch Fever: 1975 Dodge Tradesman 100 Van

There is an old saying: That guy has the best job security in the world because no one would ever want his horrible job, and the automotive corollary is: The ultimate vehicle security is a car so horrible that no one will ever want to steal it.  This next vehicle isn't horrible per se, but does the exterior have enough primal fear factor to keep would-be thieves at bay?  Find this 1975 Dodge Tradesman 100 Van here on eBay currently bidding for $4,584 reserve-not-met with $6,000 buy-it-now located in Crown Point, IN with a few hours to go.

10k: Supercharged: 1967 MG MGB GT

 The MGB has been a frequent visitor on these pages, so much you might think we've gotten out of hand, but this next one is just too good to pass up.  Another V8 swap? An MGBcamino?  No, this one is a little more subtle, and while it looks just like your average MGB GT from the outside, it has a surprise under the hood.  Find this 1967 MG MGB GT with Moss Motors blower offered for $9,500 in Malvern, PA via craigslist. Tip from Fuel Truck.
 

10k: Super Sized: 1964 GMC Suburban Custom

 The sixth generation Chevrolet/GMC Suburban was sold from 1960 to 1966 as full sized extended length sport utility vehicle. The Suburban name is actually the longest running automobile nameplate in production in the history of the world, with the name first used for the 1935 model year.  Today's example has been modified by Armbruster-Stageway (first established in 1880 in Arkansas to build stage coaches for pioneers heading west) who added a few sets of doors and stretched the wheel base considerably and then opened the top for the ultimate safari/tour vehicle.  Find this 1964 GMC Suburban Custom offered for $9,500 in Marysville, CA via craigslist.  Tip from Chebby.