Newbie buying a 90's Roadmaster ?

Searching the hard way...

Thanks for all the ideas Jon, I'll be hunting and pecking away at those ads.

I tried with Google but get tons of old ads from recent years which are long sold, plus a lot of links to forums where people chat about craigslist. So I'm doing it the hard way, starting with locations closest to here.

Yup, I've been on the other two forums and see they are treasure troves of knowledge. But I liked the atmosphere here and wanted to post my search thread with you guys.

Glad you cleared that up. I guess they seem to be seats from a 96 because that year they were all Limited. In 95 there were base and limited apparently with a different seat design. Those Ltd seats sure are comfy, but the regular ones seem to hold up better on the outer edges. That seller said they were like that when he bought it with reported 57k miles. Possible real miles if what you say is exact.

I don't know about values, I heard they were higher yet a few years ago. But whenever pristine cars get rarer prices go up. Insurance prices for younger drivers has also made these a target for hot rodders and baggers, so we can add that to the list of things driving up the prices. Plus higher gas prices and disappointment with SUV prices and mileage does its part too to bump them up.

Since I plan on keeping mine for years, stored winters, it has to be no rust and nice bodywork and paint. The rest is less mandatory. I'm even looking at a no runner which was garage kept. If cheap I'll fix the tranny or engine and get a keeper.

Sure thing Jon, that is a must this year, before it moves to Washinton! I'm only a 5 hour drive away from it this time in NY. If I still haven't found the right one by the end of the month, what a great contact with these cars for the wife and kids.


Vic

 

I hate to give away secrets

but try this for searching on Craigslist. It's nationwide and if you click on the "show results on one page" you don't have to search through each and every place that has a craigslist location. Give 'er a whirl. Also encompasses ebay listings if you want, too.

 

Linky forgoty?

HERE IT IS....

http://www.allofcraigs.com/

 

Finger saving shortcut !

Hi Madbiker and Krash Kadillac,


That sure saves the day - after hours of keying and pasting into each and every subregion the search criteria, I tried this with the unwanted years as words to avoid: MAXI COOL !


Thanks Guys.


Vic

 

Looking at 165K grannymobile RMW

Hi guys,

I'm back here again after getting an email from a girl who's grandma is selling her car, a 96 RMW bought new with her husband, who passed away a couple years ago . She says it was always well maintained and was garaged, but has a broken steering linkage and needs to be towed away. She says the engine runs. Using a battery booster to start it up, maybe I can pass the gears and back out and into the garage to test the tranny even though it hasn't got steering... eeeeek !

The hitch is that is has 165k miles. What should it bring? She was at a wagon meet last week where people there told her to ask for $3k as a high mileage non driver.

That's a lot but I can always make an offer. What can a steering linkage cost? However it doesn't have the towing package as can been seen in this photo and it looks like the AC compressor seized or lost its belt? The car looks straight and we like the color (no accounting for taste).









So what I wondered is whether any of you or your friends bought higher mileage LT1 Roadmasters or Caprices and at what mileage different things start to go bad, even if well maintained. That's before making the 14 hour round trip to crawl underneath and inside. I may be in for a second wild goose chase.

So thanks if you've got some ideas. I know that it's an asking price, and may be negotiable. She says its clean, but maybe her eyesight isn't what it used to be, I know mine isn't and I'll be taking my glasses and camera - this time with a fully charged camera battery.

One came which I'll pass it on for others here case someone is interested - see the end of this post. It is in Windham, Maine and I can PM you the seller's email and/or phone if needed. It is a rarer color rid inside and out, and the red interior didn't pass the wife test. With tan or grey leather the same car might have been a shoe-in.

So thanks for your observations about a higher mile RMW.

Vic

----------------------------------------------------------
http://maine.craigslist.org/cto/1795058987.html
1994 Buick RoadMaster Station Wagon - $3500 (Windham, Maine)
Date: 2010-06-16, 1:03PM EDT
Reply to: sale-gvbwf-1795058987@craigslist.org

All you car people out there will recognize this car. It has the LT1 V8 engine, burgundy red with wood grain, rear facing fold up seat in the back, 115,000 miles. This car was in storage for 4 years. I took it out of storage 2 years ago and drive it all the time. This car is in excellent shape. I don't want to sell this car but I have to. This car lists in Hemmings for 4500-6500. I will sell it to the first person to offer me $3500 as I want to sell it quickly.

I don't have any photos but I can get you some if you'd like. This is some history for you. The car has been owned by two people. The original owner bought the car new in 1994. He drove the car until 2004 and put 105k the car in 10 years. The car was put into storage in 2004 and stayed in storage for 4 years. I bought the car two years ago when it was taken out of storage. Since coming back out I've done all the appropriate post storage maintenance…new coolant, oil, fluids in general plus new tires, replaced the water pump, replaced the drive belts and had my mechanic go through the entire vehicle to make sure I hadn't missed anything. The Buick now has about 114k. I drive it all the time. The car is burgundy with wood grain exterior. The interior is burgundy as well. I bought this for $3500 two years ago. I've put a lot of money into the car. I don't want to sell it but due to a pending divorce I feel I must sell it. I posted the car as the first $3500 for a quick sale. If it doesn't sell I'm going to post it in Hemmings….I know I've underpriced this thing but only to move it quickly.
----------------------------------------------------

 

$3,000 sounds high for a RMW that doesn't drive, and has possible unknown issues. Assuming the body and interior are sound, $1,700 seems reasonable to me.

 

Vic,

The gold woodie you looked at first didn't look too bad to me, The steering wheels all lose there color there unless you have a real low mileage cream puff. The drivers side carpets all wear in the same spot, pretty much the same way in the Roadmasters and Caprices. The limited seats come apart in that spot quite often, I actually prefer the non limited seats myself. The wood surround trim pealing is another Issue that is common with these cars. A friend of mine removed all of his trim, stripped it to the bare aluminum and polished it.... looks very nice. http://gmlongroof.4umer.com/paint-and-body-f30/trim-removal-and-polish-from-other-site-t508.htm
I looked up the Yoko tires that were on it and it is a heavier tire, both in load (109) and weight. The rims are kind of cool I think, just get some passenger tires for them and I'd be willing to bet the ride will improve dramatically. Stock Roadie wheels are pretty easy to find if you look in the right place and ask around. The rusty stuff on the front wheel lip would be a clue that the previous owner didn't keep up on stuff like you said, but no rust on a car top to BOTTOM is a big deal if it is truly rust free. Bottom line is that you need to drive more of these cars so you know how they should and more importantly, should not feel. A properly maintained LT1 B body wagon will smoke a 4.6 Ford Panther. A non driving RMW is not worth more than $800-1,000 at BEST, unless it is an exceptional car to begin with. I would walk away from that one, Light Adriatic Blue, with wood, 150,000 miles, a dime a dozen car IMO. Give the GM Longroof Forum a second chance, the info you got here is pretty good, but 95% of the other site is all '91-'96 GM wagons, and a TON of info already on there with no need to ask. I hope to meet you at WF'10 in Geneva NY., Don't forget to sign up, I'll be there.
http://gmlongroof.4umer.com/forum.htm

Mike

 

Too long a drive for too iffy a car

Thanks Krash KadillaK, I concur.

I was thinking of an offer of $2k if it's picture perfect. A no runner won't get her better than that. With those miles at at here asking others are selling running cars and are open to offers. She can choose to wait for better bids but that would be my best. I'd have to get it towed and fixed and arrange for a second driver. Without the tow package I am less motivated, and don't want to face a $2k tranny replacement off the bat.

I get kind of soft hearted with older folks. I even once bought for a hefty price a painting which I new wasn't worth it from a couple in their nineties. I recovered and they got by a bit better I imagine. Sometimes out of the loop and imagine they're sitting on a pot of gold. But an old car isn't going to quietly sit nailed to a wall, it requires devoted attention which must be deserved in payback from your pride and joy. Either that or it should be a relatively trouble free work horse. I hope these wagons can be both.

I am even hesitant to drive 2 full time shifts to look at a non running car with inflated seller expectations. She says bring your offers but had people there all weekend and made no sale. So either it's not as nice as she imagines, or she won't talk price.

The people she met last week at a car show talked her up telling her they're worth a fortune. Of course they'd say that, since they had theirs in show condition and wanted to confirm their self worth and insist on the value of their own cars (7 RMWs by her account). They must have been thinking of concourse condition since they're into the car shows. Not running, this one can't make such a claim: I've never seen a show winner arrive on a tow truck. Amusingly none of them came by to see it showed an interest in buying it. She must have been actively marketing it there.

I'll let you know if I head down there. Otherwise, I'll take a break until the end of the week and get my other cars fixed...

Cheers,

Vic

 

wrong-o there skippy!!!

i have a 1996 base wagon to prove you wrong!

limited seats are pillow style, custom (base) seats are rolled style. both were available in cloth or leather!

 

And I much prefer the rolled style, personally. Don't know which you have, Ian, but, if you have the non-rolled I meant no offense. I just have my reasons for my preference.

 

Fixing up the other cars...

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the seat lore, it is a real mystery area to me. I'm used to the Ford panther platform and instead of spending days driving to see So-So cars I'm getting back to fixing those I've got. Small stuff I'm doing myself on a couple but the bigger job is being tackled by a friend who is a seasoned mechanic with a lot of help from the guys at the Crownvic.net forum and the MercuryMarauder.net board. If you're curious, here's where it's at, this week the engine maybe will go in.

http://www.crownvic.net/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=2082412&fpart=1

So you will see that I like the early 90's cars, the one getting the transplant I bought new and kept nice. I'd like to find a RMW in similar shape, not perfect but with everything there and nothing too messed up to fix.

So let me know if a nice one comes around. I would keep it cosmetically stock but would probably do the same as for the project car, improve the engine's breathing with a cold air intake, remove some exhaust backpressure and get a good tune. Back in 1993 I was hesitating between a Caprice wagon and the Crown Vic, but it was 50% more money and that was money I didn't have.

A neighbor used to park across the street for years in his stunning Bermuda Blue Roadmaster Estate with blue leather and woodie delete. It was a grand spectacle but that's a rare setup that would be pretty hard to find. So I guess that explains where I'm at. Not rolling in dough (no 8 grand RMW's please) but seeking a nice drivable keeper with the right stuff.

Thanks again for all your support, and I'll try to start the patient route. I began sort of rushed because of that first seller talking up his oversold car oblivious to its load of issues. Now it's not a hurry. But if something nice comes up with an LT1 and the tow package, give a loud holler!

Vic

 

http://cleveland.craigslist.org/ctd/1808339608.html

http://newjersey.craigslist.org/cto/1797861525.html

http://lakeland.craigslist.org/cto/1798630425.html

http://flint.craigslist.org/ctd/1813386900.html <<<< This is the one that I thought was gone but it is back. My feeling is that this is a good one.

 

Did you see the link to the 1A2 I posted?
Or is too Capricious?

 

The '96 caprice wagon in Lakeland Fla. is very nice looking. I bet that wagon would fetch big money on eBay, only 485 or so Chevy wagons made in '96, plus no wood and the gray is really nice looking, wish I had $4,500!

 

Yeah, 200OZ...I try to find unmolested cars and one owner cars. I believe the number of Cappy's made in 96 is 463 or so. I have one and there is some discrepancies regarding the number but I think I'm close with 463. It's under 500 anyway.