Cars that I'd.....

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Maybe my personal favorite: the Fiat Pininfarini Spider 2000 Turbo.
I know it's a Fiat, but this model is very reliable, also great looking and lot's of fun to drive around with. The best part; Models in great condition are selling for just $10.000 - 15.000
 

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Well my latest Money Pit purchase is this 1960 Jaguar Mark 2 Sedan, 48,000 original Miles, 3.8 liter Automatic, LHD.
My Wife has always wanted one, and I told her I would look for one for her. But finding one that met her wants, and wasn't either a rust bucket or restored out of our price range took about 10 years.
Her requirements were only that it had to be Left hand drive, and it had to be a Automatic trans car. Also it could not be Blue, Green, or Black, and had to have either a Red or Tan Interior.
A few weeks ago this "ran when it was parked in 1985" due to a rear brake issue the the owner had bought the parts for, but never got around to installing. It has more rust than I would like, but it is all original with a very nice red leather interior, and all the interior wood is also in nice shape.
I did manage to get the engine running (and it runs very well at idle) after cleaning out the carbs, and installing the cleaned and sealed gas tank, and putting in a new Battery. 40lbs of oil pressure at idle, no smoke or weird noises. But I think the transmission is toast, it leaks oil from just about every imaginable place.
Here are a few pictures. It was originally Sold in White Plains NY, and came to MI in 1968, the previous owner purchased it from the daughter of the original owner in 1977. It has some rust in the front fenders (wings) and the left rear 1/4. Also 2 of the 4 Jack pads are rusted. But the trunk floor and floor boards are solid. It has a cheap Earl Scheib Paint job from the 1970's. But it is presentable.
After purchase I found out it is a very early model with some features that were replaced by more modern features in late 1960 or early 1961. The left had mounted gear selector and the right hand mounted turn signal lever were swapped, the recessed sun visors were replaced with versions that you could turn to cover the side windows, and the Oil Bath air cleaner was replaced with a replaceable paper version.

What do you all Think? Am I nuts? This is my 1st British car sense I sold my 1955 TR3 in the late 1970's, and My 1st Jaguar ever.
 

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Be prepared. Years ago my sister owned one. One by one every electrical system failed. $$$$
 
As far as the 190SL is concerned, Google "Rosemarie Nitribitt".
 
This is my 1963 Ferrari 250 GTE 2+2 Series III that I owned for 20 years. It was a pleasant car, easy to drive, reliable, and attractive. I restored the car and rebuilt the engine before I sold it to a collecter in CA after Enzo Ferrari died and Ferrari values skyrocketed.
 

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Until fairly recently, British cars didn't have electrics.
They had various "black boxes" where Gremlins lived, with the role of these creatures being dedicated to finding anyway they could of allowing the electrickery to leak out, normally on a pitch black country lane, in the middle of nowhere, when it was p*ssing down !
Things are much better these days though, as there are very few "British" cars, and they all use parts from anywhere but Britain !
 
Thanks for all the good wishes and advice. I know I am going to face the usual issues of reviving a long idle classic. But I have fond memories of riding in my fathers 1963 series 1 E-type coupe, listening to sound of that straight 6 rev. The engine in the car we bought is almost the same, 1 less carb, and a bit less compression. So I have hopes of replicating that pleasant noise.

I remember struggling with the very simple electrical system of the TR3, I found that most of the issues were caused by the very cheap connectors they crimped onto the wires, that corroded very fast and very hard. After I had replaced all the connectors by cutting off the original ones, stripping the wires back to a clean spot, crimping on new better quality connectors, and cleaning all the grounds. The systems I worked on were trouble free for the 5 or so years I owned it. I also applied dielectric grease ans shrink wrap on all the new connections.
Not saying the rest of the electrical system was world class, but it seemed to function as well as any other 1955 vintage system ever did. They do make Alternators with both positive or negative ground to replace the stock generator. And most wear parts are at least available, if more expensive than I am used to. On the good news side I do have a good friend that has restored several 3.8L & 4.2L E-Types, so at least for the engine and Carbs I have support.
The 1st Electrical gremlin I need to sort out is the Stock Electric fuel pump is not working. Hopefully it is a wiring issue, but I am prepared to have to replace it after sitting 30 or so years. Then on to changing all the fluids, belts, & Hoses. Probably recore the Radiator & replace the heater core just for piece of mind. Hopefully I can post some driving pictures by this fall.
 
manta22 said:
Be prepared. Years ago my sister owned one. One by one every electrical system failed. $$$$
Click to expand...

A freind of ours owned one in the early 80s and it started running like a bucket of sh-1-t and he spent a fortune trying to fix it. Taking it home one night he was stopped at the lights when the car beside him honked and signaled wind your window down. The driver then said I can fix your engine for $100 - no fix no fee. He followed him to a nearby auto electrician and the guy went inside and came out a minute later with a new fuse. Installed it and the car ran real sweet again. Aparrently the fuse box was prone to corrosion and whipping the old fuse in and out a few times then replacing it was the cure. Same for a number of other electrical issues.
 
Would love to own a VW Samba 23 or 21 window bus but my wife would kill me if I has a second mortgage on my house.

I have a 1973 VW Thing in sunshine yellow, but I am getting a little bored of it...

...wouldn't mind having a 1987 Buick Grand National with T-Tops...and if we are dreaming a GNX.
 
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