Charger shopping, have questions.

[bakerhillpins]

Mods... I dropped this into Charger Disc because its about me shopping for one... move at your discretion.

Hey all, I am starting all the homework involved in locating and purchasing a Charger, Taxes, Title, insurance, storage, and so on. Searching the site has been useful but there is some stuff I must not be using good search terms for. I have been watching the For Sale section and ebay auctions in general for a long time but now that its getting closer to reality I need to figure out how much of my budget is going to get chewed up in overhead.

What I am wondering about right now is shipping and cars that happen to be in pieces. I was watching this ebay auction:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1968-dodge-charger_W0QQitemZ110489796909QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS_Cars_Trucks?hash=item19b9b4812d
and wondered how complicated shipping and in general buying a car in pieces was. Shipping a complete car seems straight forward, but one in pieces or say doesn't run or hasn't been run cuz say brakes are bad.. what kind of hassle (yea the obvious not able to drive up on the truck thing) and expense does that incur? Does any shipper even accept a car this way?

I have other questions but figured I would start here and move on when the time comes.

Thanks
Bryan

[bull]

My only advice at this point is that you make sure you exhaust all your local sale options first before you start shopping nationwide. It will save you hassles and money.

[nh_mopar_fan]

I agree. Shipping a car that is apart can result in parts getting us...lost in transit.

[SeattleCharger]

you don't have to be able to drive car onto truck in some cases, sold my car to guy with flatbed tow truck and he used the old winch, I kept the engine and trans when I sold it,  don't know about nation wide shippers policies, though,
  I wouldn't buy a car in pieces unseen, or even seen, I did that before, bought the car engineless, paid the money, then got the engine from a machine shop dissesembled and cleaned (the guy changed his mind on building the engine, needed money).   I got boxes and boxes of all the engine compartment stuff, a lose trans., etc.     what a headache, and all the engine bolts mysteriously were not at the machine shop or in the boxes, nothing was organized, I basically had no idea what was missing, what went to what, etc,   if I took it all apart myself, it would have been a different story,    unless you are very familiar with everything, and can ensure everything is there and somewhat organized, its kind of asking for it IMO

[bakerhillpins]

My only advice at this point is that you make sure you exhaust all your local sale options first before you start shopping nationwide. It will save you hassles and money.

I would prefer to do it that way, I don't want to limit my options, thus understanding the issues involved in all of the options.

I agree. Shipping a car that is apart can result in parts getting us...lost in transit.

I was wondering how that would be avoided.


I live in NH and am looking locally but a decent car seems to be few and far between when it comes up for sale. I don't mind a project car but would like to avoid something that has to have lots of metal work. (Isn't that always the case.) Not because I would be afraid to deal with it but more of not wanting to have to get involved in that right away.  It would be nice to get a decent driver that will allow me to enjoy the car now and then work on it in the future. Based upon the comments I have pulled from discussions on this site it was better to get a solid car over any other. I figured if I could get a car in pieces but the shell was solid that would be one way to solve that, it was just a question of how to get it to me that way.

I hold a perception, wrong it may be, that the west seems to have a higher % of cars up for sale that haven't been destroyed by salt and moisture. I suppose the cost will level out after you add shipping and plane ticket.

I'm not planning on buying sight unseen, I am expecting to spend the $ on a flight if necessary and hope to also get a second opinion as well. Hopefully from someone on the site.

[bakerhillpins]

unless you are very familiar with everything, and can ensure everything is there and somewhat organized, its kind of asking for it IMO

This was one of my major concerns. Trying endlessly to find each little missing piece as I put her back together would be frustrating if not problematic. It would seem like a stupid thing to do.   

[Brass]

Find out what the co$t range will be in fees and taxes for registering the car from out of state.  The state needs their pound of flesh.  It was almost $2K when I registered mine...  Also, whatever you do, do not use Express Auto Transport.  Capitol is better. 

[Old Moparz]

There's no way I'd consider buying a car that I couldn't see in person, including a parts car, unless I already knew the seller personally. You should at least go look at it, or have someone look for you. I guess it seems that everyone has their own limit set as far as traveling distance is concerned. When I was looking for my Charger several years back, I already owned a tow vehicle, a Ford F-150, & had access to a friend's car trailer. I had hoped to find something close to home but soon learned that I needed to be open to the possibility that I'd have to travel.

I watched ebay & a few other sites, & after a few months of watching cars & prices, decided that as long as I can make it to where the car was located & back home in one weekend, I could have more cars to choose from & possibly get a much better deal. I found my Charger in Corydan, Indiana with the auction ending on a Sunday. I left after work on Thursday, used a vacation day on Friday, & got to where the car was on Friday night. I inspected the car on Saturday morning & got lucky that the seller volunteered to stop the auction if I really wanted the car.

I agreed to his more than fair price, but wished I had brought the cash & trailer to save a trip. The following weekend I went back to get the car with my wife & daughter, who was about 4 years old at the time. It turned out to be a great weekend with the family, & my daughter had a blast staying in hotels. I've done this several times since for other cars & major parts purchases, & don't regret any of it. To some it may seem like too much driving & a big expense, but for me it's piece of mind knowing that I have the option of passing on a POS & getting ripped off.

My Charger turned out to be a rust free shell that had almost no parts included with it. I already had a complete car that was a basket case & used as a parts car, so it didn't matter that I was missing things. If I was looking at a car that was apart & didn't have a complete car in my possession, I would never let someone ship it to me & hope it was all there. People can forget what is supposed to be included with a car, misplace things, lose things, or purposely mislead to make a sale.

I did have a member on this site look at a '70 Sport Satellite on the west coast that I had considered before I got my Road Runner. I had a spending price set in my mind during the auction, but the bidding went way higher than I was willing to spend. I was glad this person looked for me since it would have been a plane ride & a disappointment being outbid on it. It gets discouraging when car hunting, but the best thing you can do is exercise patience & wait for the right car to come along.

[HITMAN 149]

I live in NJ... got my R/T from a guy in baltimore MD... car was on ebay... i drove out there to scope it out, on the way home from one of the carlisle shows & made him an offer.... uggggg he said NO he wanted the auction to run, cause he thought he'd make more on it than what i offered him... soooo after an agonizzzzing slow week of waitin for the auction to run, (of which i knew his reserve!! hehehe) i ended up winning the auction. so i took the ole dodge ram out to Baltimore with a buddy and his empty car trailer & GOT ER DONE!!!! lol

i tooo was looking at cars alllll over the US!!! and was contemplating several plane flights!! ohhhh what a pain in the asss that would of been... along with trying to get the car looked at by 3rd party inspection places.. (which ive heard are a rip off?!?!?) anyways thank god my R/T was within like 4-5 away!!!!
so thats my story!!! lol
GOOOOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!
   

[bakerhillpins]

Find out what the co$t range will be in fees and taxes for registering the car from out of state.  The state needs their pound of flesh.  It was almost $2K when I registered mine...  Also, whatever you do, do not use Express Auto Transport.  Capitol is better. 

I have an inquiry going at our local registration office. I hope it doesn't turn into 2k. 

There's no way I'd consider buying a car that I couldn't see in person, including a parts car, unless I already knew the seller personally. You should at least go look at it, or have someone look for you. I guess it seems that everyone has their own limit set as far as traveling distance is concerned. When I was looking for my Charger several years back, I already owned a tow vehicle, a Ford F-150, & had access to a friend's car trailer. I had hoped to find something close to home but soon learned that I needed to be open to the possibility that I'd have to travel.

I have a lot of options available to me on the east cost as I have family in central NY, central PA, and Baltimore area. So visiting and buying in those areas make life much easier for obvious reasons. Also in South Lake Tahoe CA so I could even get out there to look at something relatively easily and with limited expense. It could be stored easily for short periods of time so I guess I just need to figure out how to search craigs list in a more efficient manner. I am not afraid to travel and I don't plan on trying to travel around an ebay auction. I got burned in high school when I was into Jeep CJs and so I take things a lot slower now. But there are never any guarantees.

along with trying to get the car looked at by 3rd party inspection places.. (which ive heard are a rip off?!?!?)

Yea, the whole 3rd party inspection process is a bit of a bother for me. Even if I simply used them to check it before I traveled out to make a final decision. Ive seen and been in situations where the 3rd party wasn't impartial (they got a kickback from the sale). There have been several cases here where folks have helped out others with this (mainly the guys from other countries). Is there an etiquette for asking for help with this? In general how to folks feel about this process?

[Dans 68]

There's no way I'd consider buying a car that I couldn't see in person, including a parts car, unless I already knew the seller personally....

Words of wisdom. 

Dan

[stripedelete]

Regionally (ie east of the Mississippi) there are allot of independent truckers hauling rebuildable salvage everywhere.  They don't care if it runs.  You can probably find a salvage auction site that can get you started on your research.  You could crate and freight pieces parts or stick them in the car.  Of course therein lies the rub.

I'm with Moparz, patience is your friend.  Also, don't downplay the road trip suggestion, even if it's the west coast, or south west.  With the right attitude, consider it an adventure vacation.  U-haul will tell you what the costs are.   If it runs, get in it and drive it, if necessary, you can always get a U-haul along the way. There might even be a couple dc.com guys along the way.  I've done Washington State to Ohio, Phoenix to Ohio and Wisconsin to Atlanta in some pretty questionable iron.  For me the uncertainty and the inevitable problem solving is a rush.  I can't wait to do the next one (which will be right B4 my divorce). 

As far a taxes and fees, you're going to have to pay the sales tax when you register it in your state.  Make sure you have the paper work your state requires when you buy it.  Temp tags etc, if you need anything like that, are easy to get, just call the DMV from that state (they are cheap).

Good Luck

     

[Brock Samson]

  If you find something reasonably close to me here in the San Francisco Bay Area, I'd be happy to help,..
These Swedish gear heads last week didn't really have enough leads to possible cars and were constrained by a smallish budget and the complications and expense involved in container shipping to Scandinavia and such.

  They were advised by me to treat this as an American Vacation and Fact Finding Trip and to return home and save for a significantly larger budget.
  The Trans Am wasn't that much of a problem as the year Daniel II wanted wasn't too expensive and several seemed to be avail. I don't know if he bought the white one in Vegas as I can't read the language on their website but I suspect not.
  In any case, If you find one in these parts I'd be happy to help in anyway I can. I've helped several folks - two of whom bought cars.

What are you looking for and how much you got?..   

[bakerhillpins]

 If you find something reasonably close to me here in the San Francisco Bay Area, I'd be happy to help,..
These Swedish gear heads last week didn't really have enough leads to possible cars and were constrained by a smallish budget and the complications and expense involved in container shipping to Scandinavia and such.

 They were advised by me to treat this as an American Vacation and Fact Finding Trip and to return home and save for a significantly larger budget.
 The Trans Am wasn't that much of a problem as the year Daniel II wanted wasn't too expensive and several seemed to be avail. I don't know if he bought the white one in Vegas as I can't read the language on their website but I suspect not.
 In any case, If you find one in these parts I'd be happy to help in anyway I can. I've helped several folks - two of whom bought cars.

What are you looking for and how much you got?..  

Thanks for the offer, I hope to be able to take you up on it.

I don't want to box myself into any particular car as I consider myself open minded about the purchase. However, the best match to my present ideal car would be a 68/69 in dark blue with a 440, console auto/4spd, no vinyl top, tail stripe, white interior, disc brakes.   Obviously, the closer to that the better but as long as its got a solid core to start with I am open to just about anything. I.e. 383, Red/Black/Gold (open to several colors), vinyl top, black interior, etc. Numbers matching, build sheet, and/or a true R/T (would be cool) are nice but far from a necessity, as in the end those options are likely to just raise the price.

I do know that I don't want a Green interior. Yuk, and it sounds like a major PITA to change interior colors. A blue interior is marginally acceptable but it would have to be really nice. Oh yea, I don't want anything that has a custom interior, or any customizations for that matter.  

Not sure that posting the pocket book size is a good idea from a buyers perspective.   Ill PM you and you can tell me if I am off my rocker.

[Brock Samson]

 welp, the dark blue all by it's self is a problem as less then 10% of chargers were that color let alone the rest of the particular colors and options.. finding a no vinyl top is doubtful in dark blue impossible, I know a console shift isn't that hard but you're asking for an R/T with a white interior and disc brake car. a very tall order... nice combo, very very rare. and i suspect pricey...
But I will keep my eye out for you.
at your price point you'll do best looking for a basically unmolested car. and do her up as you'd like her.
   

[HITMAN 149]

i agree with brock....
it's so tough to be choosey as if you were ordering the car new in 68!! we allll wish!!!! id look for a decent car for decent money & make it your own!!!! my r/t was green on green YUK!!! (no offense to any of our green guys out there.. just not my bag baby!!! lol) it was already in the process of going Black when i got her.. so i lucked out!!!
goood luck!!
-john

[PocketThunder]

I think the 68 you found on ebay is just about what you are looking for.  Maybe spend a couple days to fly out there, buy it, have the guy help you put it back together, (at least put the engine and tranny back in) and box up the rest and put it all in the car and then meet the shipper to see it being loaded up yourself.   

I did the fly out to california and purchase a car myself and it was a great experience and i got a great car out of the deal.   

[Dans 68]

...I did the fly out to california and purchase a car myself and it was a great experience and i got a great car out of the deal.  

 I flew out to Texas to see and ultimately buy my '68; made new friends and got a great car also.

Dan

[PocketThunder]

http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/ank/cto/1573862047.html

Here is a blue one you can check out about an hour from me if you are serious i can go look at it for you.

Paul

[nh_mopar_fan]

Don't sweat the state stuff. There's no way in hell it'll cost you anything close to 2K. (what friggin state is that!)

We don't require a new title up here. It's going to be less than $100 with plates.

I've been looking for a 2nd gen for a while now. As someone else said, patience.

[bakerhillpins]

welp, the dark blue all by it's self is a problem as less then 10% of chargers were that color let alone the rest of the particular colors and options.. finding a no vinyl top is doubtful in dark blue impossible, I know a console shift isn't that hard but you're asking for an R/T with a white interior and disc brake car. a very tall order... nice combo, very very rare. and i suspect pricey...
But I will keep my eye out for you.
at your price point you'll do best looking for a basically unmolested car. and do her up as you'd like her.
 

Whoops, didn't mean to suggest that I was trying to find a factory car with those options. I always counted on putting together what I wanted in the end. You asked what I was looking for so I put out what I wanted figuring if I found a car with some of those elements then I would be closer to what I wanted. Besides, I don't wan't it all done for me anyhow, that will take all the fun out of it.  

id look for a decent car for decent money & make it your own!!!!

That was the plan that I had in mind, I just didn't get that point across very well.

[bakerhillpins]

http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/ank/cto/1573862047.html

Here is a blue one you can check out about an hour from me if you are serious i can go look at it for you.

Paul

Thanks Paul,

I'm hesitant to send folks out on wild goose chases unless I am pretty dam sure I want it. My worst fear is to take advantage of the generosity of others.

I think the 68 you found on ebay is just about what you are looking for.  Maybe spend a couple days to fly out there, buy it, have the guy help you put it back together, (at least put the engine and tranny back in) and box up the rest and put it all in the car and then meet the shipper to see it being loaded up yourself.   

I did the fly out to california and purchase a car myself and it was a great experience and i got a great car out of the deal.   

That is what basically prompted this thread. It's a beautiful looking 68 that had options that I could absolutely live with. Certainly seemed like a good shell and more importantly the wife liked the color. Problem was getting it back to the east coast. I can't imagine the guy selling allowing me space to drop the engine back in. Guess ya never know unless you ask.

[bakerhillpins]

Don't sweat the state stuff. There's no way in hell it'll cost you anything close to 2K. (what friggin state is that!)

We don't require a new title up here. It's going to be less than $100 with plates.

I've been looking for a 2nd gen for a while now. As someone else said, patience.

Yea, I didn't think that would be that expensive in NH. Ive been looking for years, its the money part that has only recently caught up to the rest of the process. 

Ill check in just so we don't bid against each other. 

[PocketThunder]

worst fear is to take advantage of the generosity of others.

I think the 68 you found on ebay is just about what you are looking for.  Maybe spend a couple days to fly out there, buy it, have the guy help you put it back together, (at least put the engine and tranny back in) and box up the rest and put it all in the car and then meet the shipper to see it being loaded up yourself.   

I did the fly out to california and purchase a car myself and it was a great experience and i got a great car out of the deal.   

That is what basically prompted this thread. It's a beautiful looking 68 that had options that I could absolutely live with. Certainly seemed like a good shell and more importantly the wife liked the color. Problem was getting it back to the east coast. I can't imagine the guy selling allowing me space to drop the engine back in. Guess ya never know unless you ask.

I'm assuming the guy has a cherry picker there at his place, and it wouldnt take but a couple hours of work to at least bolt the engine back up and put it back in the car so you can ship it home a little easier.  If that were me selling the car i would be more than happy to help out the buyer in that way.  I guess it doesnt hurt to ask the seller what he could do to help you.  If he has EVERY nut and bolt for the car, its worth it to go through a little more hassle to get it home and have a complete car vs buying an incomplete car and spending more time and money searching for parts. 

Heck, you're still in Lake Tahoe right now arent you?  take a day off from skiing and drive down there and look at it while your out west.!   


Paul

[Brock Samson]

 Brian:
  I got ya', no misunderstanding. I just was saying it is pretty nigh impossible to find a particular car with that combo so finding an unmolested car as close to that as possible and tweaking it closer to your preference is the way to go.
BTW: I like that one too...   

Anyhow, good luck! 

[bakerhillpins]

I'm assuming the guy has a cherry picker there at his place, and it wouldnt take but a couple hours of work to at least bolt the engine back up and put it back in the car so you can ship it home a little easier.  If that were me selling the car i would be more than happy to help out the buyer in that way.  I guess it doesnt hurt to ask the seller what he could do to help you.  If he has EVERY nut and bolt for the car, its worth it to go through a little more hassle to get it home and have a complete car vs buying an incomplete car and spending more time and money searching for parts. 

Heck, you're still in Lake Tahoe right now arent you?  take a day off from skiing and drive down there and look at it while your out west.!   


Paul

Yep, still there, but we are packing up today to head home. I had considered that but it just didn't fit well having Dad run off to do car stuff for a day when it was a ski vacation. With my sister living in town I can fly back out if needed.

Even with as nice as that car is, I am concerned with trying to find all the parts. I see complete cars pop up that I get excited about reasonably frequently (every few months) so I am just going to try and control my urge to splurge. When I was young I pulled the trigger way to hastily on a 76' CJ5 and got burned badly. (Not anything like JB666 though) It hurt even more because I was in college at the time. So I tend to err on the side of not doing anything. Heck Troy has his 68 listed again and I have been considering pinging him about it.

[PocketThunder]

Thats right, Troy's car is pretty sweet and its an R/T.  I dont think you can go wrong with that car. 

What are you doing on the internet when you're on a ski vacation!           The lifts should be opening in 30 minutes right now..

[SeattleCharger]

Don't sweat the state stuff. There's no way in hell it'll cost you anything close to 2K. (what friggin state is that!)

We don't require a new title up here. It's going to be less than $100 with plates.

I've been looking for a 2nd gen for a while now. As someone else said, patience.

patience.   If you have an idea what you want be patient til you feel reasonably good about it.  hurry hurry just to have any one and there may be regret,   waiting a month or two or three in return for years of feeling good about purchase is worth it IMO   

[PocketThunder]

blue 69 on ebay.  originally a hillside hemi.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Charger-R-T-clone_W0QQitemZ160404929510QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS_Cars_Trucks?hash=item2558e0fbe6

[bakerhillpins]

Well, finally getting back to this after catching up with the rest of my responsibilities.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Charger-R-T-clone_W0QQitemZ160404929510QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS_Cars_Trucks?hash=item2558e0fbe6

I saw that one and it seemed like a bit more of a project than I want to deal with. 

Thats right, Troy's car is pretty sweet and its an R/T.  I dont think you can go wrong with that car. 

I finally found time to start a dialog with Troy, though its moving slow on my side. He has lots of pics and has been very up front about the car. Anyone with an opinion? http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,63592.0.html

These also turned up locally: All comments welcome.
http://providence.craigslist.org/cto/1628160899.html
http://hartford.craigslist.org/cto/1611563771.html - this is out of my price range though.

Seems that the sudden rush of sun is resulting in a few more for sale posts. 

This also brings up another question about these old cars. What kind of engine/transmission issues should I be on the lookout for? Better yet is there even any way to know? I'm not so concerned about having to fix them as what kind of effort would be required. After all these are 40+ year old cars so there will be issues to deal with.

[bakerhillpins]

Don't know about the rest of you guys but with spring on its way it's time to devote a few more hours to shopping regardless of being swamped with other duties. 

I searched the site and found a few good links on books that I should pick up. Most suggest getting the shop manuals which seem like a logical thing to do  (http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,1801.0.html) and several posters don't recommend "Project Charger" So I will be avoiding that one. I did find a book called "The Mopar Six Pack Engine Handbook" which got 1 hit on a site search and so I was hoping to solicit some opinions on that book since I want to load up my charger with a 6-pack. http://books.google.com/books?id=MMwGX4-jnxYC&pg=PT14&lpg=PT14&dq=440-6+software&source=bl&ots=vU_g2f6MmK&sig=fU7m4h5aaBfX9fR_fgtDCWNFWSM&hl=en&ei=4o2dS8KCFIK88gaP3rGEDg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=9&ved=0CCIQ6AEwCA#v=onepage&q=&f=false Any other book suggestions/recommendations?

Also, now that its warmer I suspect that I will be traveling to take a look at cars. If it isn't obvious by now I am a noob to evaluating old for body and system issues. With that in mind I have never tried the magnet trick to test for bondo and wondered if there are any pointers you guys can provide. Most definitely how the seller might respond to the test and how I should progress to avoid any uncomfortable encounters. Along with that, how might I check the frame, should I bring something to poke at the frame with? When is it toast, besides when it crumbles in your hands.

I found a few good discussions on trouble spots so that will be useful.
http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,12110.0.html
http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,6125.0.html

Thanks all!