Old Jeeps are a lot more expensive than I thought!

[SIXTO]

I have had an idea that I've been pondering for some time now, and that is buying a old car of some sort that is easy to maintain, kinda cool in order to save money on car payments and insurance. I don't need or want the ego boost from driving a late model car.

So anyway, I've been looking into old VW's and Jeeps ( My favorites). I have it in my head that a 80's Grand Wagoneer would be super cool to have... until I did some research. Apparently, a lot of people think so, cause these things in good shape are going for anywhere between 15-40k! Thats as much or more than their original price! I've found a few for lower, one in particular thats in Alabama.

The other half thinks I've lost my mind, but I get obsessive about these things.

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[mcp1810]

So on the VWs are you looking at the air cooled ones or the water cooled?

[SIXTO]

Air cooled. My original thoughts were a buying a old Beetle. I still might, but right now the wagoneer seems a lot more fun.

[farronwolf]

If you don't mind working on the thing yourself, you would be money ahead to find one that is not in so good of shape and fix it up. There is an endless supply of parts available for Jeeps out there. Of course the Wagoneers don't have nearly as many parts available as the Wranglers.

Good luck in your search. You may want to check out some of the Jeep forums and get some additional info before moving forward. This is one I use Jeeps-Offroad.com Bulletin Board - Powered by vBulletin

[GunnyBunny]

If you're looking at a Beetle, check the floorboards for rust. I work at a Porsche Audi, VW dealership and we got burned by one we took in trade. It looked like new until we took out the mats and found the extra "flow through ventilation".

[SIXTO]

Yeah, thats kinda why I want a Wagoneer. You just dont see a lot of them. I want to keep it pretty much original, I have no need or desire for some huge 4x4. I like my current Jeep for snow and to get me in and out of the bean fields during bird season and to pull my dirt bike trailer. Other than those duties, it will just take me to work and back.

I found some really nice restorations, but I have an issue with paying 40k for a 25 year old Jeep. I might as well buy a new one then.

[farronwolf]

I don't know where you have been looking. I did some quick searches on Autotrader, and have run across several that didn't look like they were in too bad of shape down south here for way under 10k.

This one caught my eye, but is just a Wagoneer, not the GW, but looks pretty clean.

Cars For Sale: Car Details - AutoTrader.com

[Timberline]

just a quick check on Craigslist and I found several in my area. Most were under $2k and the pics looked pretty good for their age. A few in the $3k - $5k range too. Nothing higher than that though.

Check some of the major Jeep boards for a FSJ sub-forum.
There are also several FSK-specific sites with "for sale" sections.

FSJ's are great - I'm mildly in the market for a J10/J20 truck myself... just as soon as I figure out where to park it.

[concealed]

Yeah, I have been looking at older Jeep CJ 7's, but they too are not cheap. Still have not found what I am looking for at a reasonable price. Best of luck.

[SIXTO]

I don't know where you have been looking. I did some quick searches on Autotrader, and have run across several that didn't look like they were in too bad of shape down south here for way under 10k.

This one caught my eye, but is just a Wagoneer, not the GW, but looks pretty clean.

Cars For Sale: Car Details - AutoTrader.com

I like that one! But it does have 175k on it!

I was looking at the complete restorations places. I'm not really interested in that, but they are nice looking. I never knew there was a market for such a thing.

I am looking for a lower milage and in good shape. I know that it wont be perfect, but I want it to look decent and run well. It will be a daily driver. I'll probably end up going to a southern state to get one, most up in the north have been beat due to snow and salt their entire lives.

[Timberline]

I like that one! But it does have 175k on it!

I am looking for a lower milage and in good shape. I know that it wont be perfect, but I want it to look decent and run well. It will be a daily driver. I'll probably end up going to a southern state to get one, most up in the north have been beat due to snow and salt their entire lives.

175k on a 1982 vehicle IS low mileage. That works out to 6,480 miles / yr. when the usually accepted "average" is 12k-15k/yr. Heck, my 98 ZJ has nearly that many miles and still runs like a top.

[Sheldon J]

The old VW's were very underpowered and tended to rust out badly. That is how a bunch of them ended up as dune buggies, 40 HP was fine on a nice light weight chopped dune car but for highway speeds it was not very good. Now you can sup them up but then again there goes the reliability factor.

As to Jeeps, have you thought of a old Wrangler... Mine is a 92" 4 cyl, 5 speed and at over 125,000 is still a very reliable machine, and you can buy parts for any of them from multiple sources regardless of vintage, n they are a hoot to drive.

[atctimmy]

Lots of old cars in CA and AZ. No rusting in the desert. There was a company in Orange county CA that specialized in old Jeeps. Try your best google foo.

[mcp1810]

Beetles are a lot of fun. The last one my parents had was a 1972. Had that kind of funny smelling interior, no A/C, but dad did spring for the AM radio! We also had a similarly equiped 1968 bus. Lots of fond memories.

[GunnyBunny]

That Jeep has a 360 V8 and weighs about 4500 pounds. It can probably pass everything but a gas station. Oh well, if you know what you're doing and are really serious try www.wagoneerworld.com.