Opinions on a Olds 88 for sale and a RMW

Hello all. I haven't posted here for a very long time. About 3 years ago( or so) I bought a decent 96 RMW for a decent price, 3 hour drive each way. Eventually the car reached its end for me where I didn't have the funds to replace the rotting floors and a complete exhaust system,amongst other issues,I sold it to help fund my solo motorcycle trip to Alaska( on a Hayabusa btw!!!)

Now I am on the lookout again because I loved that wagon,and my neighbour has a 1987 Olds custom cruiser( 88) for sale. I don't have any pics to post,sadly, but I will try to describe it as best I can.

Body is good shape, has been sprayed,not every year,but close enough, shows some painted over bubbling on rear pass side at the back ,above rear wheel wheel. Not awful. No other really visible rust that I could see.

Otherwise,body solid with very good undercarriage,new/ newer exhaust. Color is blue with wood grain. Umm....but he has Mack tacked over all the wood grain. Curious.....but the body is solid.

All power windows work,as does all the instruments inside,pwr antennae,rear pwr,window,heater,ect,ect.

The car starts beautifully,with nary a hiccup,and run strong,smooth and quiet.pedal to the metal going uphill,shifts when it should and drives straight and true. Engine compartment looks clean with no surprises.

The headliner is flopping, not terribly but enought to look somewhat downmarket when you are inside. The interior is in good condition, no tears, rips or worn spots.


Mileage unsure,probably has rolled over.
He is asking $2000, I will offer 1700, thoughts on pricing for this car as I have described it ? I already offered 1500 but he turned me down. I had been looking for a car of this era originally before I bought the RMW, but was unsuccessful,everything,well, the very few I found were pretty rotted out.

Are the mid to late eighties wagons becoming scarce? Does pricing reflect the perceived " hard to find " aspect of these cars? ARE they getting harder to find?

Next up is a 1992 BRW, body very good condition,has been sprayed every other year,body very solid. It seems like a lower model than my old one, interior doesn't have any lovely wood grain details or anything and there are some knobs and whatnot that need to be repaired,slipping pass window, stuff like that.

Interior needs a really good shampooing,but is in good shape,no tears or rips,or worn spots. Wood grain is in good condition with the usual peeling on the trim.

Ok,the bad.....needs an engine. Tranny is apparently fine. Car will be drive able to my home about 30 kilometres....I hope....it's a one owner car. Owners son in law is asking 800 for car, I would offer 400/500 at most.

Then there is the crap shoot of trying to find a good engine to drop inside,how do I know what I am getting? A whole other can of worms and I am sure members here have a horror story or two about doing that sort of thing.

My BF has a hoist installed in the garage and can install a engine without a problem,he is a motorcycle mechanic. I am not sure what a ok price would be for a good used engine. The price seems to vary quite a bit.

So,here you go,I welcome comments and opinions on these two cars,especially the 87, seems like less of a headache....thanks!

 

Out of those 2, I think i would take the '87 Olds......

The headliner is a problem with all the box wagons. I'd be surprised if it wasn't hanging. I had mine done a couple of months ago for $385. Pics in my gallery section.

Not sure what the engine is in that Olds - could either be the Olds 307 (same one as in mine), or it could be the Chevy 305, which actually puts out a bit more power.

 

I will get back to you on the engine that is I. There. What do you think of the price point for the olds? Well, from what I described anyway,give it your best shot.

 

$1,700 seems to be in the ballpark, but then again, I'm only going from your written description. I suggest that you look in our Station Wagon Auctions, Craig's List, etc.... section where we post wagons we see out in internet land for sale. Quite a few GM box wagons posted up recently. That should give you an idea of what's the going rate for these.....
http://www.stationwagonforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=16

 

Thanks, and yes, I have looked in the forums,CL and kijiji ads the price seems quite good I thought considering most seem to be in the 2000/2500 range and not without small " idiosyncrasies" .....or even medium " idiosyncrasies" plus it sure is handy that I can walk to the sellers house in about 5 mins.

 

That's pretty convenient. Mine was 2,000+ miles away and a SWF member was nice enough to look at it for me - our Mod and my friend, Silverfox.

 

I think that pricing on these cars mostly reflects desirability. Late '80s vehicles, wagons or otherwise, are still not really old enough yet, by most definitions, to be anything other than old used cars. They're just barely 25 years old, the usual definition of an "antique."

As far as hard to find, they're no more harder to find than any other vehicle of that era. It depends on production and survival rate. Production of Custom Cruisers was on a steady decline at that time.

1986: 21,073
1987: 17,772
1988: 11,114
1989: 8,929
1990: 3,890 (last of the boxy body style)

1991: 7,663 (first of two years of last generation)
1992: 4,347

With production in decline like this, it was no wonder that 1992 was the CC's last year. You want a rare wagon, get a '90 Custom Cruiser. Production was barely more than 1/7 of what it was just four years earlier.


The Old Cars Price Guide puts the value of an '87 Custom Cruiser in #4 condition (runs and drives, but needs complete restoration) at $1,100. In #3 condition ("car show" but not showroom), the value listed is $2,480. Based on your description, I'd say the condition of this car is somewhere between, so the $1,700 to $2,000 price you and the seller are haggling over sounds about right. It's probably reasonable of him to reject the $1,500 offer, and it's probably reasonable of you to consider a $1,700 offer as fair.

 

Hope this turns out for the good, but with not a single picture of the car, it's impossible to give a real value...... even with pictures the real world value is what some one is willing to pay, no matter what any book value says..... this site has seen it go both ways at times, low book value and big $ spent, and the other extreme.......

Try and get some pictures if you can... it help$ a lot

 

I have no comment without pix. Period.

 

If the 87 is as you say and you feel it's nice enough I'd offer the $1700 and wait. By the way welcome back. But without pictures it really is hard to give an honest answer.
Well actually that was my honest answer!

 

I do realize what I am asking members to do without pic. I am going to ask the owner if I can bring it home and hoist it up for a peek underneath s then I will take some pics and post me up.

A post without pics is useless and frustrating!!! I know!!!!

 

:confused:No not useless. At least you posted. Frustrating----- Perhaps!
But a few pictures might get you off the hook!

 

PIC HEAVY WARNING

 

Please don't take offence, none meant but just from the pics you have provided I'm not seeing a car worth $1700.... $500 maybe.....

 

Oh boy. So...the owner redid the wood with shelf paper I take it? Never seen a factory grain come off like that. What about the interior? Oh...and the air cleaner is upside down in case you didn't know. No biggie, I guess, but, I always wondered why people do that. Replacing the wood grain, if you wanted to, is no easy task and it is almost impossible to find a matching grain with all the exterior and cosmetic parameters met. Does it run REALLY good? Shift perfectly? If so it may make a decent daily driver that is going to get uglier as the rest of the grain peels away and the rust begins to show.
If the interior is great, it runs great and shifts correctly and all you want is a driver....$1000 would be my top dollar. If you want a wagon to restore I would keep looking around unless you can get it for around 7 or 8 hundred.