TheCatSite.com › Forums › General Forums › IMO: In My Opinion › I mentioned that this could happen
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

I mentioned that this could happen

post #1 of 12
8/30/09 at 3:42pm
Thread Starter 
The "Cash for Clunkers" program and its ilk have been fought for years by all the car enthusiast clubs, including SEMA. Why? Because once they're in the program, nothing can save what might be a valuable collector car.

I didn't think we'd hear about an example, but here's one:

Maserati?
Reply
post #2 of 12
8/30/09 at 3:52pm
Oh well, when it comes right down to it, it is just a big hunk of metal like all cars.

Can you tell cars don't really mean a lot to me?
Reply
post #3 of 12
8/30/09 at 4:05pm
Again, this is what I don't get - no one forces anyone to turn their gas-guzzler in for a rebate - so, for all these 'classics', why didn't the owners simply sell to the private, enthusiast market? Did they not think they'd get the same amount of cash for their vehicle?
Reply
post #4 of 12
8/30/09 at 4:56pm
I saw one news report and they showed a BMW that had been traded in.

One man's clunker is another man's classic.
Reply
post #5 of 12
8/30/09 at 5:13pm
I am sorry to be sassy, but I have a 95 Ford taurus. Want it? Did not qualify for the clunker program.

Mrblanche, I all ways read your posts. Dont stop!
Reply
post #6 of 12
8/30/09 at 5:39pm
Thread Starter 
Actually, the Taurus is one of the best cars Ford has ever made. I almost bought one for $1000, but ended up with the Cobalt instead.

I heard on NPR that of the 30,000 different passenger car models sold in the last 25 years, well over 20,000 were not eligible for the cash for clunkers, usually due to getting mileage that was too good.

The best deal I've seen so far is my wife's boss, who traded in some monster or another for a Pontiac Solstice. My bet is that that was actually an investment.
Reply
post #7 of 12
8/30/09 at 8:59pm
And I've said all along that this program is going to hurt people like my 17-year-old son, who want to buy themselves a car for two or three grand. Shoot, my husband has purchased two cars like that during the last decade, out of total necessity...
Reply
post #8 of 12
8/31/09 at 12:06am
I thought it was only the engine that absolutely had to be trashed on a "clunker." And, I guess, probably at least some of the fuel line goes with it because of how they do it. But...maybe I'm stupid, but, what about saving everything else and swapping in a non-clunker engine? It had some kind of mechanical problem anyway which was why the owner got rid of it like that.
Reply
post #9 of 12
8/31/09 at 5:31am
Thread Starter 
The driveline has to be scrapped. The car's VIN is tagged as "non-licensable." Body parts can be salvaged, but the car as a whole cannot.
Reply
post #10 of 12
8/31/09 at 7:17am
While the point of the thread may have merit, having a Biturbo in a "clunkers" lot isn't going to get you any outcries from car aficionados. This was hardly an Italian classic along the lines of other Maseratis like the Bora or Ghibli. You'd have to get a real naive sort paying anything approaching 10k for one.

Rare + Italian doesn't necessarily equal valuable. Coupled with the Biturbo's poor reliability record and high repair costs, the previous owner of this car likely laughed all the way to the bank. Worthy of the scrap heap.
Reply
post #11 of 12
8/31/09 at 7:45am
Thread Starter 
Didn't Maserati make a car for one of the big 3? Maybe the little Cadillac with the removable top?
Reply
post #12 of 12
8/31/09 at 7:57am
Maybe you're thinking of this?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysler_TC

Pretty good memory, though; The Allante' was designed by the Italian stylists, Pininfarina.
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: IMO: In My Opinion
TheCatSite.com › Forums › General Forums › IMO: In My Opinion › I mentioned that this could happen