whats your thoughts

[Willys 747]

Hmmm...there is a reason it's not already in the wreckers, he won't take pocket change for it and is hoping someone will offer more?  I will have the very same problem soon with two of our past vehicles....I hate what you get from the wreckers so will advertise them at double what the wreckers will offer me then take slightly more..just saying. Sometimes being too cheap doesn't work, don't get me wrong I always try and get things for nothing, but when you see something rare in your area thathas something on or in it you can use, it's usually best to offer a better than peanut price to get it asap!

I would be happy offering the $400 to each their own, start where you like....I also say it was running when parked, the accident says so, no..?  He couldn't drive it any further afterwards now could he? It had to be running when it hit whatever, so therefor it was running when smucked then parked.  How else would it work...?

 

IF it were near me, it'd be in my backyard by now!

 

[Sydney 218]

It's to bad, there are not a lot of smarts around my area. It's a bummer to see this one just going to waste. 

I used to have a ford model T that I had to give up on because I couldn't get parts to restore it. It seems that I'm head back down that same road with my smart. Lol

 

[MikeT 744]

It may have been "running when parked" but the point is it won't even turn over now.  Which goes to say that "ran when parked" and $2 will buy you a cup of coffee.

[Willys 747]

Yes but.....you know it didn't run dry or oil, over heat, maybe but i doubt it, or simply wear out and die, it was in an accident and would maybe still be on the road today if it wasn't?  So the ran when parked doesn't apply here seeing that statement is usually said about a complete car looking like it should have been running when parker but , you never know the truth.  This one was running until it rear-ended the person infront of it....but hey if you wish to continue, feel free...lol.This one was parked wet...lol not dry...lol

 

[Willys 747]

7 minutes ago, Sydney said:

It's to bad, there are not a lot of smarts around my area. It's a bummer to see this one just going to waste. 

I used to have a ford model T that I had to give up on because I couldn't get parts to restore it. It seems that I'm head back down that same road with my smart. Lol

 

It's not a bad thing, it's possible to buy it, no..?

Just because some folks won't pay what just the wheels are worth that doesn't mean you can't pay up for it and own it feeling good about the deal...?
Like I said, It'd already been sitting in my backyeard by now. It's full of good parts that you may require to keep yours running for years to come....bodywork is the smallest part of this equation imho.  Think of all the mechanical parts. Like i said winter wheels, nicer rims? Maybe tires? A better or good muffler? Turbo? Cooler, engine? Just those dash pods fetch $75 each on the web! Seats? computers? airbags? front coils etc?  Maybe windshield? Door glass? Locks? Halfshafts? That scoop for the intake, damn that alone is worth the money! I want one!  Think of the horses that would release...damn!

Now go get it and tell the nay sayers, FU..lol

 

[MikeT 744]

There were 175 of these 450 cdis in Nova Scotia in 2012, so there are plenty of fish in the sea.....

[Willys 747]

6 minutes ago, MikeT said:

There were 175 of these 450 cdis in Nova Scotia in 2012, so there are plenty of fish in the sea.....

Maybe so, but where are they now....he has one on the line, just needs to land it....for the right price, no?

6 years is a long time...lol

Edited October 2, 2018 by Willys

[MikeT 744]

They're still around, just got to find them.

[LooseLugNuts 557]

15 hours ago, Willys said:

I wouldn't say the coils would be busted from that hit

 

neither would I

 

they pop just sitting there in the field

[LooseLugNuts 557]

8 hours ago, smart142 said:

The doors are different, as are the side panels. Underneath is a bulkhead for strength. Drivetrain is the same.

 

 

are the doors actually different on a cabrio?...i compared my coupe to my cabrio this summer and i could see an extra bodyline in the cabrio skin...but the door looked the same 

 

only thing i could see different was the rear window shape but surely the rear window can be swapped

 

 

also i noticed the tailgates were different..along with tail lights and there was something slightly different about the rear bumper skin

Edited October 2, 2018 by LooseLugNuts

[MikeT 744]

The only common body panels are the front and rear centre panels.

[Willys 747]

6 hours ago, MikeT said:

The only common body panels are the front and rear centre panels.

That is what is making repairing the front fender skirt easier, no? Simply seperate the side sections out and slip in a better centre one IF the right side isn't completely destroyed...?  I would bet the workings of the door would also be the same, it doesn't make manufacturing sense not ot incorporate as much from one to the other, parts bin wise, right?
Again that rear trunk tail gate has that hidden cubby hole storage area that I would bet is moldable to make fit into our cars with some work. I like the idea of trying just to see to get the extra storage space. It's something I may buy if i see a ragtop in the wreckers before winter. That is unless it's made of gold?

 

[Leadwing 565]

If it were more local and I had the space, like Willys said, "it would be in my backyard" by now.

[Chopper 264]

On 02/10/2018 at 2:09 AM, Willys said:

Hmmm...there is a reason it's not already in the wreckers, he won't take pocket change for it and is hoping someone will offer more?  I will have the very same problem soon with two of our past vehicles....I hate what you get from the wreckers so will advertise them at double what the wreckers will offer me then take slightly more..just saying. Sometimes being too cheap doesn't work, don't get me wrong I always try and get things for nothing, but when you see something rare in your area thathas something on or in it you can use, it's usually best to offer a better than peanut price to get it asap!

I would be happy offering the $400 to each their own, start where you like....I also say it was running when parked, the accident says so, no..?  He couldn't drive it any further afterwards now could he? It had to be running when it hit whatever, so therefor it was running when smucked then parked.  How else would it work...?

 

IF it were near me, it'd be in my backyard by now!

 

I sispect the real reason its not down the breakers is human nature - hes to lazy ass to do anything about it.  Occams razor.

 

450s arent common over there, so I doubt his neighvourhood, or even town, has enough 450 owners to start a bidding war and elevate the price.  At this present time its only 'worth' what hes been given for it, which so far would seem to be nothing. 

 

Seek him out and have a chat - if his town isnt knee deep in spanner willing 450 owners seeking a spares car then a friendly chat could prove fruitful.  If not then it can stay there for as long as he likes.  Ive a neighbour with a rotten Dolonite Sprint in his front garden.  And i mean rotten, lacy as hell.  Its wort a few hundred at best in that state, probabky the glass is all that can be salvaged now, but hes convinced its worth thousands and is refusing to part with it until a wealthy, and presumabky stupid and blind, Triumph enthusiast spots it and offers him tens kf thousands.  Ive only been here 9 years, but my next door neighbour tells be this guy has had the car since the early 80s, and nearly 4 decades on is still clinging to hope.  If it were worth much more than scrap it would bave gone long ago.  Ditto this 450.

 

In the UK 450 theres a far larger potential market for 450s, and even straight and undamaged runners can change hands for as little as £400.

[LooseLugNuts 557]

On 10/2/2018 at 10:47 AM, Leadwing said:

If it were more local and I had the space, like Willys said, "it would be in my backyard" by now.

 

same here

 

in my backyard and id probably be slowly scrounging up the parts to get it back into service ....after getting it running and hearing the engine of course

 

pretty rare to find a wreck with a bad engine though...like i mentioned before ...it was obviously running when the accident happened...for someone to say the engine is garbage just because the starter isnt working is ridiculously naive

[Sydney 218]

i talked to the owner again yesterday,  he assures me that the car ran until it was parked.   he was going to fix it but gave up because he could not source a used nose cone and headlights.

he parked it where it is now  (sitting on grass) before last winter, because he didn't want it in the way in his driveway.

so its been sitting and not running for about 10/11 months.  (mabey a bit more)

its pouring rain here today,  so i plan on going back this weekend and see if i can't get it to at least turn over.

i might even be able to come to some sort of agreement and see if he will let me take it home to diagnose whats wrong with it,  before i buy it...

 

[Leadwing 565]

1 hour ago, Sydney said:

 

he parked it where it is now  (sitting on grass) before last winter, because he didn't want it in the way in his driveway.

so its been sitting and not running for about 10/11 months.  (mabey a bit more)

 Be aware that sitting that long on grass (damp environment), it is probably going to need some work on the brakes as well as the alternator.

[Sydney 218]

9 minutes ago, Leadwing said:

 Be aware that sitting that long on grass (damp environment), it is probably going to need some work on the brakes as well as the alternator.

yes,  i am figuring on the alternator being seized.  i'm hoping the not much else.

 

[Willys 747]

My cousin in England can buy just about anything for nothing which over here would be thousands of $$$ and he pays like 500 pounds for it, it's frig'in crazy!   For some reason things hold there falue better over here, even scrap things!   Just like your neighbor, and his Triumph....Jeep guys are the same.....a completelyt rotted wreck will cost you almost what a runing vehicle would cost you if the right year.

That car imho is worth seriously chacing, but I would settle on a price before showing him it can run....a non runner is always less money...lol.

[LooseLugNuts 557]

lots of parts if you make a trip to ontario

 

maybe the east coast has a parts yard search tool similar to what we have here in ontario....plus there is tons of junkers who are not in that system

 

http://search.oara.com/inventory/retail.htm

 

 

 

[MikeT 744]

I'm still not sure what parts the OP wants/needs.  It seems to me that a coupe would be a better thing to look for, for starters.  There is a proper way to store immobilized engines and this one would not have had the benefit of that.

[Willys 747]

I don't know either....but.....when he does require parts he has them easily at hand and doesn't need to go hunting for them....imho. That's the whole point behind buying a parts vehicle...isn't it?

It's why I bought my second Smart, but as I said, I found out it was too good imho to wreck just yet. So now I also am hunting for that parts bin we call a parts vehicle, just incase I do need something. Better to own it when you do not need it for a small price than go hunting when you're desperate for parts and you must buy it at all costs....no.?   It's just how I see it, is all......?
Also if he does get the engine running, it simply needs to be fogged like any other engine and left with good anti freeze in it to stop freezing....should be fine even if left in a snow bank in an oil rag...?  So in a car should be OK too...?  I'd simply spray the entire thing with rust check after the fogging and call it a day.

[Sydney 218]

38 minutes ago, MikeT said:

I'm still not sure what parts the OP wants/needs.  It seems to me that a coupe would be a better thing to look for, for starters.  There is a proper way to store immobilized engines and this one would not have had the benefit of that.

I started out looking for a starter. Lol. But like Willys says. If I get this as a complete parts car, and it's as good as it looks. I will have a lot of usable parts. 

Computer, SAM, rims, engine (mabey), etc...

[Sydney 218]

2 hours ago, LooseLugNuts said:

lots of parts if you make a trip to ontario

 

maybe the east coast has a parts yard search tool similar to what we have here in ontario....plus there is tons of junkers who are not in that system

 

http://search.oara.com/inventory/retail.htm

 

 

 

There are not a lot of smart cars where I am from. I have actually only seen one around here for as long as I can remember. Mabey because we do not have a MB dealer. I called all the local scrap yards and none of them have ever had a smart car for parts, untill I found this one...

[Willys 747]

3 hours ago, Sydney said:

There are not a lot of smart cars where I am from. I have actually only seen one around here for as long as I can remember. Mabey because we do not have a MB dealer. I called all the local scrap yards and none of them have ever had a smart car for parts, untill I found this one...

There is the answer, just as I can't find one before they get to the damned scrap yards...lol.   Once it gets in their hands everything is 10 times the cost of what it would be if you bought the entire car for as much as $500 or so.  What is a running engine worth, the computers? Wheels?  It all adds up very fast to now make that initial cost , literally a cheap as chips buy.   I paid $1000 for my second Smart, simply to get a running engine. I was OK with that.....I know what rebuilding engines costs, even between a running engine to a damaged one, there is a difference which sometimes stops folks in their tracks from rebuilding said engine. Having a running spare engine, it allows you time, time to think about what to do after you have swapped out the dead engine for the used running engine....to decide IF you wish to actually want to do a proper rebuild and keep your car in excellent running condition....imho.    

IMHO...there are two types of owners in all motorized vehicles.....one simply wants to buy the vehicle and drive/enjoy it, then you have the other side, the people who want to drive and enjoy their vehicle but also enjoy the art of repairing it and keeping costs to a minimum.  I fall into the latter for sure. I'm too cheap to spend massive amounts of money on something that will depreciate 30% the minute you drive it off the lot, so to speak. THAT simple issue burns me to the core. Yes I fully understand the concept of owning it from day one, knowing it's complete history etc etc, been there done that 5 times up to date IF I recall correctly. But buying a secondhand good used vehicle for pennies on that initial dollar is a far better feeling. It allows you to spend the rest on another vehicle, or toy or whatever. For those of us who do not have a set of deep pockets or bank account. Can I afford to buy new, sure....but i can't mentally afford to.   lol   BUT after saying all that, I spend huge on modifications and getting everything I can to achomplish the initial goal, so in the end probably spend close to the intial price if you add it all up from start to finish...maybe?  I've said it many times before, I'm a sick modder who can't leave anything alone...I am always looking at how I can either make the thing better, different or more capale in a different way.