Caprice engine swap?

[kevm14]

Still no pics from Norwood guy. To show interest, I told him I could come Sat afternoon, but that it would be nice to have additional pics. Plus, additional pics prove he has the car. Would be nice to get a pic of the VIN...or maybe I should do that myself if the car is real, and maybe run a Carfax (or someone else's report) from my phone on the spot.

Some conflicting thoughts on this whole thing...

I haven't checked out a single one of these, but the pros of a $1,200 version are that I have less to lose, theoretically lower expectations, and generally less stress over problems. With a $4,000 example, I may get something that was better taken care of more recently, but my expectations for the car's condition, reliability and everything else would go up proportionally. With a car like this, it seems like going full apathy may actually be a better plan overall, even if the risk is that the $1,200 car is more likely to have issues, hidden problems, etc. (the "shoot yourself in the foot" argument).

My retort to that argument is, these cars come with a service history a mile long and well into the 5 figures. Maybe there is a sweet spot for cost of ownership, but not sure where that is. For example, if I found a mint 42k mile example for $9,500, do you really think that would be $5,500 less costly to run over ~3 years than the $4,000 well kept example with 120k? Or $8,300 less costly over 3 years than the $1,200 example with 200k? I prefer rolling the dice than solidifying my cost (it would most certainly be the opposite if I were a business, but I am not), even if you could ALSO make an argument that the $9,500 example could be sold for, say, $7,000 (but minus maintenance/operating costs).

There may also be a mileage sweet spot but that would vary with the particular ownership attitude. My example would be that by 200k, things have gone wrong and were fixed. Yeah maybe it's on the original engine and trans which has certain implications, but common issues, you'd think, would have been fixed. Like massive oil leaks, suspension problems, broken electronics, etc. These cars aren't like Japanese cars where you run them to 200k with only oil changes, and then stuff starts to go wrong so you toss them. It's more like a ship - a more steady maintenance cost over the life of the vehicle (and an owner who has the will and the means to keep it like new - and more likely somewhere that is truly qualified), and somewhat from the beginning, which isn't a bad thing for a buyer such as myself.

[bill25]

It is tough to plan for minimizing cost to own a car that can even have 25K of "maintenance" needed. Sure there is BMW dealership fluff in there and you would be doing the repairs yourself to an extent, but after the Volvo I never want to own a car that is known to constantly need work.

My take:
for 1200 or 1000, how much is stuff worth on the car that if you parted it out, would you only really lose 500 or less? Even if you drove it for a month and had a catastrophic failure, how much are you really losing? I wouldn't put any real money into it to avoid the 25K plummet. Just be ready to cut your loses if something major happens.

[kevm14]

Like I was saying to Bob last night, $25k is like 10+ years of not just repairs to keep it on the road, but everything the dealer recommended, every maintenance item, and anything necessary to keep it perfect. It adds up quick at dealer prices.

Your point on cutting my losses is well taken. I would evaluate that frankly at each dollar I put into the car and hopefully make sound judgments. Generally I'm not well equipped to operate that way, so it will take extra thought and hand wringing (my favorite).

[bill25]

Your point on cutting my losses is well taken. I would evaluate that frankly at each dollar I put into the car and hopefully make sound judgments.

That's the best you can do. At least you know what to expect and have a plan. Are you looking at this thing or what?

[kevm14]

Still no pics. Beginning to wonder what is going on. I broke the news that I could look at the car tomorrow afternoon to try to move this along but no reply.

[Adam]

Still no pics. Beginning to wonder what is going on. I broke the news that I could look at the car tomorrow afternoon to try to move this along but no reply.

Craigslist users are showing their true colors.

I've only performed three car transactions from Craigslist: I bought my green Tercel, bought my Caprice, and sold my green Tercel.

[Bob]

How about this? http://charlotte.craigslist.org/cto/5426563064.html I know it's not a V12, but it offers all the uncertainty that comes with a 7-series.

[Bob]

Still no pics. Beginning to wonder what is going on. I broke the news that I could look at the car tomorrow afternoon to try to move this along but no reply.

Craigslist users are showing their true colors.

I've only performed three car transactions from Craigslist: I bought my green Tercel, bought my Caprice, and sold my green Tercel.

When I read this post, I immediately thought that I must have done quite a few craigslist car transactions in my time. After going through my entire list of cars, I think only my 2002 Civic Si was a craigslist deal (both ways). Everything else was either a new car purchase, enthusiast forum, Uncle Henry's (Maine's craigslist before there was craigslist), word of mouth, Autotrader or eBay.

In addition to the Civic, I have assisted with the purchase of a 2006 Accord and the sale of a 2008 Kia Rondo through craigslist. Both of those deals were okay, although the Accord was moderately sketchy.

[Bob]

Some reading on the XJ8. 1998 had some significant changes, including a ZF 5-speed replacing a GM 4-speed and a power upgrade. It now runs 15.0 @ 94. Not too shabby for the time period.

http://www.motortrend.com/news/1998-jaguar-xj8-l/

[Bob]

Kevin, this sounds like your type of car!

Respectable in their own right, the XJ8 L’s 0.80g skidpad best and 61.4-mph top slalom pass don’t quite do justice to its real-world potential. Although its supple ride is more properly biased toward grand touring than backroad bashing, this stretch cat tracks remarkably clean and true through corners, exhibiting only modest body roll in the process. Capable of being hustled through some pretty heavy-duty serpentine stretches at a remarkably brisk pace, it remains largely unruffled under all but the most outlandish trailing-throttle/trailing-brake maneuvers.