Need advice on how to buy a certain Charger

[StevieRT]

Alrigt, I'm a new guy here but  I have been kind of watching these boards on and off for the last couple years. This is a long story and I apologize in advance. I was driving around last fall by a buddy's house when I notice a few blocks over a car sitting under a cover that looked to be in the shape a charger. Naturally i went and took a peek one night and sure enough, a 69 Charger, which from my buddy explained to me has been there for at least 7 years. I go to the house last fall and find an old couple in the yard so I ask them if they wanted to sell their charger and they replied it's their sons and he wants to sell it before the "snow starts blowing". I ask if i can take off the cover and look around and they said sure. I didn't get to pop the hood but the guy said it had a 440, i jotted down the vin and sure enough its an original 440 R/T car. It is painted this ugly ass green and seems to be in not too bad of shape, but it does need restoration and has some rust around the rear window channels and tail panel. Quarters seem solid though but the guy didnt want me looking around too much so I couldn't get a very good peak at much else. Also the interior looked to be there but somewhaat messed up. BTW this car is parked in the middle of this kind of crappy looking neighborhood which is all tiny duplex homes, the car is parked out in front on the driveway in front of the 1 car garage. Anyways, I gave my # to the guy and tell him to have his son call me ASAP and he says no prob., I'll give your number to my son. Well now the snow is blowin' so I go back and say to the guy I stopped by a few months ago and asked about your sons charger, does he still wanna sell it? He says ya, I give him my phone number again, and still no call. I have been busy in school but now I am out for summer and interested in this car again. I am only 21, and look 18 so this guy probably doesn't take me seriously but I have money and I want the car. How do you guys recommend I go about trying to get this thing? How much do I even offer because I know money talks? I dont know what to do anymore, this guy is willing to sell but will not call me and he seems hesitant to give away his sons number. What would you guys do? Thanks in advance.

[Silver R/T]

Well best thing to do is show up with cash. Price depends on condition of the car of course. How much do you have saved up. Not to be rude, but I had young kids come in yard offering me anywhere from $1300 to $2500 for my R/T. I just ignored them as I chuckled to myself lol

[StevieRT]

I have more than 5000 but I dunno what to offer this guy. I didn't get that good look at the car but I couldn't belive how good the quarters looked, and how odd the rust was around the rear windown and tail panel. It's not bad just I have never seen anything like it. It doesn't seem in too bad of shape. The interior is there but messed up. I have no idea whats happening with the motor, but it's in the car. Also it has an auto on the floor. I really need to check out the VIN but overall the car is not too bad rust wise. I know its terriible description but how much do I ever offer the guy with charger prices these days? Maybe tom. I'll try to snap some pics of it. Thanks again guys.

[89MOPAR]

 Get the son's phone # from them , and call him directly.   Ask him to meet you at their house with the keys to demonstarte how it runs and drives.
Explain that you will bring "enough money to make a reasonable cash offer ".
Unless he is willing to take what you consider a small amount, insist on a test drive.
No telling how many things could be wrong with a car that has sat for 7+ years.  { go slow around neighborhood...}

[69charger2002]

yeah you have to get the son's phone number.. the avenue of the dad doesn't seem to be working. so bugging him again except to get the son's number seems to be a waste.. you don't know how lucky you are that you are knocking on someone's door with a 69 R/T and getting a "ya" to sell it.. 9 out of 10 you find will say no way, never, i'm gonna fix her up.. you need to pursue that car like you mean it if you really want it.. not once every 3 months.. or it's gonna be gone next time you go.. good luck with it and show us some pics
trav

[Jon Smith]

you need to talk to the owner, he might not want to sell it, his dad might just want it off the drive
everyone who has a charger gets asked if its for sale all the time, most of those people would run a mile if you said yeah and named a reasonable price
you need to show you're serious, if he does want to sell

[THE COLONEL]

Get the son's phone # from them , and call him directly.   Ask him to meet you at their house with the keys to demonstarte how it runs and drives.
Explain that you will bring "enough money to make a reasonable cash offer ".
Unless he is willing to take what you consider a small amount, insist on a test drive.
No telling how many things could be wrong with a car that has sat for 7+ years.  { go slow around neighborhood...}

That sounds good to me.  I would get a hold of him directly.  Get his phone number.

[Silver R/T]

sounds like it would be worth that $5K easy.

[Steve P.]

If and when you do get the owner to the car, ask questions, but try to let him do all the talking. Show enough interest to keep him going, but let him tell you everything he knows about the car trying to sell it to you. If he feels you are leery about it he may just lower the price.  You never know what peoples situations are. He may need  money real bad right now..

By the way, where do you live? You mentioned snow. That normally means salt. Check those frame rails, trunk floors and quarters very closely. Also ask about paperwork and fender tag. The real deal is worth bigger bucks...

Good luck..

[blackcharger]

either get the sons phone#, or ask where he lives or when he'll be there. The back window rust is normal. Check the frame rails, trunk and floors. How's the grill? Take pics, and post them here. You'll get plenty of help. Sounds like well worth prusuing.

Dave

and welcome to the site!

[terrible one]

On the price, don't focus as much on what it is worth, but what you can get it for. Find out what you would LIKE to pay for it, then start with what you think you can get away with (Have your cash with you) and negotiate from there. You could end up getting it for way cheap, instead of just offering much more than the guy expected.

[limey]

Yeah, it's kind of difficult to do when you want something badly, but you need to make him feel you are doing him a favour giving him the cash. I got my charger last week. I went up there with $22k in cash (it was in UK £,) sussed out he needed the money, waved it in front of him, pointed out the scratch on the rear quarter, the runs in the paint on the rocker panels, the fact that the exhaust hanger was loose and the rear brake pipes would only last another year, and saved myself $2k. Admittedly with a 440 R/T there is this feeling that a vendor can ask for what he wants, but remember everything that is rotted, broken, missing or substandard will need to be replaced. Put the Year one B/E body catalog on your bedside table and start getting a feel for how much everything will cost you, it makes it easier to be harder on the seller.
As the other guys say, locate the owner asap, all it takes is someone to make him the right offer over a beer and the next time you drive past you may see it being winched onto someone elses low-loader...
Limey

[Dodge Don]

Reality check. The $5,000 may not be enough to buy it, completely depends on the shape of the car. However, your words, the car needs to be restored. After you've dumped your $5k you have nothing left. And general maintenance alone will cost you.....not to mention a resto that would run serious coin. Live the dream but know going in your on the hook for a serious outflow of cash to keep her running (if she runs at all today) and/or bring her back to original.

Owning a Charger is amazing.....but there is a fine line between money pit/finances killer and an affordable hobby.

[bull]

I went through the exact same situation. Cruddy neighborhood with a '68 Charger sitting out front under a tarp that belonged to the son who was going to school 300+ miles away. Dad wanted to sell it, thought his son wanted to sell it and wanted it off the driveway so I figured it was a done deal. Nope. Finally got a hold of the kid and he wants it left right where it is in front of dad's house until he's done with school and can start making enough money to restore it. I'm sure the car is still there and will be for the next 10 years or more. I quickly learned you don't have jack squat until the car is in your garage and the title is in your hand.

All you can do is go back to the father, get the kid's phone number and find out from him if it's for sale or not. What it's worth may not be relevant depending on how much the owner knows about what he has. But if you only have $5k you'll have to convince him it's worth that or less. Personally, and without looking at pictures of it, I think he could easily get $8k for an R/T that needs some metal replaced and restoration.

If it were me I'd leave the $5k in the bank and work a second job for a year and a half or two and save up about $30k for one that's finished. That's what I should have done.

[StevieRT]

Wow guys thanks for all the replies. I have some real thinking to do about this whole situation because I have about 2 years of school left, and a 03 mach 1 I need to sell, but i do have indoor storage for the car for those 2 years. The dad at least doesn't seem to know too much about the car but who knows about the son. The cover was on the car this weekend (sometimes it blows off) but no one was home except for the immediate neighbors who were watching my every move so I couldn't get any pictures, but I will try soon. I know the price of these things are through the roof so I hope I have enough. If I were to guess I would say its worth somewhere between 5k-8k but I will have to go back and check it out more. Thanks again for all the help guys.

[Steve P.]

You're more than welcome and by the way, welcome to a great site.. You'll love it here..     

[blackcharger]

as far as the neighbors watching you, since you've been there before and talked to the man living there, I wouldn't worry about taking pictures. I'd even look at the car, but I wouldn't get "too" involved, but I'd look underneath. And if the cover was off, I'd get the VIN and look over the interior.Take the time to note what needs work/replaced, especially any missing parts.

Dave

[whitehatspecial]

Ran into a similar situation with a '63 corvette that was along side this guys house (uncovered/neglected) for years. I was always curious about the car since it was there for so long and no one seemed to be doing anything with it.
Long story short. I finally contacting the owner and he wasn't interested in selling....no way, no price high enough! As someone who appreciates old cars and their owners, I wasn't too surprised by his attitude. I did mention that if I was him he should at least jack the car off the ground (it has 4 flat tires), so the frame wouldn't rot out.
He poo-pooed my suggestion. I left him my card should he ever change his mind. I  mentioned that I have restored several cars and think that his car had potential.
We called me about a year later (he never jacked the car off the ground) and wanted to know if I knew anyone that fixed frames, because his frame rails were totally gone. I wanted to say "I told you so" but didn't and shortly after that the bank foreclosed on his house and the car disappeared.
Some people.....

[limey]

He poo-pooed my suggestion.

Always be wary of a chap who poo poos you......its ironic how often the poo-poo-er ends up turning to the poo-poo -ee for help/advice/assistance
Too much poo-pooiing and you end up up to your neck in sh*t....

Limey