Caprice engine swap?

[kevm14]

The real score, if you want to take a chance is this:
06, 125k, $9999
https://norfolk.craigslist.org/cto/6066339399.html

I did have a long, wordy ad up here for a while, but I've shortened it so that you just get the basics.

2006 Cadillac STS-V
500 ish crank HP
Supercharged 4.4L Northstar V8
Auto trans
124k ish miles

Runs, shifts, and drives great. Pretty fast. Daily driver, so miles will keep going up. Rare car. Cold air intake, exhaust, brakes, and wheels/tires are aftermarket. It's not perfect, but it runs and drives great. Been my daily for 3+ years, only selling because I have a project I'm itching to get started on.

CEL is on for gutted cats, I have a scanner (or bring your own) and you can check the codes yourself.

Take it home on the 20s, but you'll also take home the factory wheels (front tires need replaced), factory air intake, and engine cover as well. Engine cover won't fit over the CAI without modifying, and I didn't want to mess with it. Also engine covers are terrible for heat soak. Arrangements can be made for you to pick up the OEM stuff at a later date.

This is the last time I'm dropping the price, and I'm not budging a penny. You won't find this car for less than this anywhere. NADA and KBB don't reflect that you're getting two sets of rims, and don't account for rarity, but even so I'm pricing it better than both.

Charles Barker Toyota has a 2007 right now with 90k miles, they want $16,900. If you can deal with a few more miles, you can save a boatload of money for the same car. Only better, because you're getting two sets of wheels, intake, exhaust, and brakes already done.

I'm not looking for trades of any sort, cars or otherwise. I'm not looking for help selling, and I'm not looking for some sort of crack deal, payment takeover, or anything else. Come at me with bank check or cash, or don't come at me at all. Email is good, text is better, if you call you're going to voicemail, and I'll call you back at my convenience. Lien is held by Navy Federal.

Thanks for looking!

I wish I could stretch my $6k to $10k. I don't know that I could justify two Vs though that is kind of cool I guess. Though it is not really a $10k car because I guess it needs cats, or programming. Navy Fed lien is interesting but not surprising for the area (Virginia Beach).

By his own screenshots, it is priced at KBB private or NADA trade-in depending on which you look at.

It is obviously quite possible to just tune the rear O2 codes right out:
http://www.cadillacforums.com/forums/4- ... c3-v8.html

$500 buys HP Tuners and everything you need to turn the codes off. It comes with 8 credits and it's only 2 credits for a specific vehicle/VIN. And then you'd have HP Tuners, and an additional 6 credits.

I have visions of videos about "I bought the cheapest STS-V on CL and here's how it went."

I wrote him an e-mail. Here it is:

Good afternoon,

I assume the STS-V is still for sale as it is up on CL. Fellow car enthusiast here. Have a 2005 CTS-V in fact. I bought my CTS-V under similar conditions (higher mile, bottom of market) back in 2010 and it actually has worked out extremely well for me. So I am not afraid to do it again, though the STS-V is an order of magnitude more complex. I have a couple of thoughts for you:

- History of car (owners, where it has been as far as you are aware). Including your history and experience.

- Could you take additional pictures? Driver's seat bolster is one key area. Really looking for cosmetic or other wear/tear flaws (i.e. shocks) just to understand what I am dealing with. It looked nice to me from what I saw. I can suggest more specific pictures after I hear back from you.

- I am not local but not afraid to travel for the right deal/car. I am not specifically looking for an STS-V (actually I was looking for an STS, among other options). I would actually be looking at it as a daily driver myself. Sell me on the car. I already know it is the cheapest STS-V around. But let's pretend it is not. You said it drives and runs well. Keep going. Would be curious to see that long winded version of your ad.

- The gutted cats - they are bolted on but just gutted? Sounds like a job for HP Tuners...

- Looks like the tint will be too dark for the inspectors in my state (35% min) so I need to assess all of those items (i.e. what does it take to get it on the road legally).



Thanks,
-Kevin

[kevm14]

Bob asked a good question that I should have asked. What is the price without the 20s?

Here's a relevant link:
http://www.ebay.com/sch/Wheels/43953/i. ... s&_vxp=mtr

Assuming it was safe to drive back on the worn tires, how about $9k? Of course I'd still need tires. So maybe just keep the 20s, pass inspection on the 20s, then deal with the next step. I don't particularly care for them.

[kevm14]

Surprise. Edmunds private party in Clean is $10,460. Dealer retail is $12,780 and when you consider that most have lower miles, the $15k plus prices seen at dealers fits perfectly into this model.

Trade-in is $9k. So what I think he may be doing is, just continuing to drive it if he doesn't get $10k because in his mind, any less he'd just get when he gets the next vehicle anyway. If he gets $10k before that, so much the better.

[Bob]

Nationwide search for STS-Vs for under $13k on Autotrader. One hit: http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale ... lCode1=STS

[kevm14]

It does look nice.

132k for $11.5k. Clean. Stock. $10k for the silver one with a CEL seems legit.

Service TPMS though. LOL

[bill25]

Couple options with the talk of an STS-V:

1. CTS-V, B/D Body, 5K STS V8 = 11K + 2K + 5K = 18K
2. Nice B/D Body w/money for upgrades/swap, STS-V = 7K + 11K = 18K

[kevm14]

Couple options with the talk of an STS-V:

1. CTS-V, B/D Body, 5K STS V8 = 11K + 2K + 5K = 18K
2. Nice B/D Body w/money for upgrades/swap, STS-V = 7K + 11K = 18K

A little more math.

1. Keep CTS-V, add B/D body ($4k), and add a cheap STS as a daily ($6k). Total additional cash required to complete: $10k.

Pros: I get to keep the CTS-V as the clean, good car. It would be my handling car, manual trans, fun to drive. I get a B/D body, and a daily driver for me that Jamie can drive.

Cons: B/D body has no budget left for mods in this scenario (near term anyway). I only get one garage bay so that clean B/D body is probably staying outside.

2. Sell CTS-V (-$11k), obtain B/D body ($5k + $5k for mods), obtain STS-V ($11k). Total additional cash required to complete: $10k. B/D body goes in the garage.

Pros: I theoretically have the car and a budget for some kind of B/D body build plus starting with a $1k better car. STS-V gives me a very nice daily with an automatic trans that Jamie can drive.

Cons: I lose out on the CTS-V handling/manual car. I was talking about upgrading to a C5Z so this would be a step in the complete opposite direction.

These options are pretty different.

#1 is the more conventional option that I thought I was pursuing. #2 is a bit of a shakeup.

I have to say though if I got rid of the CTS-V, I guess I'd want the black one. But it would see daily driver duty, split with the B/D body in nicer weather. If I kept the CTS-V, the cheaper the better. Though if they did $11k for the black one, and knowing that silver one is $10k + $500 in HP Tuners to program out the CEL....it would be hard to say no to the black one. This is where I'd do a remote inspection and possibly even have it shipped. Possibly.

Let me also add a third option.

3. Keep CTS-V, get STS-V ($11k). Total cash required to complete: $11k.

Pros: I get to keep the CTS-V and get an STS-V for daily duties and Jamie could drive it just like #2.

Cons: Uhh...no B/D body. And dropping $11k right at this moment is going to be a very hard sell. I am currently getting pressure to deal with the kitchen.

[kevm14]

I think this is a slippery slope.

4. Sell CTS-V. Add $11k. Have $22k and start to get close to V2...

But I would have no daily and if it was a stick, isn't a backup for Jamie.

This has gotten out of control I think.

[bill25]

Seems like the limit is somewhere below that.

[kevm14]

If I had a clear goal this would be easier. If I really wanted to upgrade to a V2, I could do something like get a daily now as cheaply as possible, which may be $6k using my requirements. Sell CTS-V before it loses more value and continue to save. Except I don't think this is what I want to do.