A little information is already posted under the "Introduce Yourself" thread. I have a 7 Lemans Safari that is just sitting. There is no chance that I will ever get to fix it up and guess I better sell it rather than let it sit. It's in great shape, no rust other than minor surface, little sun fade on the interior, new headliner, new fuel tank not installed yet, 60,000 miles, V6 Auto, air, ps, pb. There is a lot of rust on the rear bumper and it needs a tail light lens. The help Ii could use is, what is a good asking price and where is a good place to post it for sale in your opinion?? Thanks for any ideas. Larry in Maryland.
I would clean it up real good and put it on eBay. Take good pix and a lot of them and represent it honestly. Cars bring bigger money there ordinarily. It only takes 2 people in the whole world that want it to run the price up.
Is it running? If not it, what would it take to get it driveable? Your potential for getting decent value is a lot better with a running car. It might be worthwhile to invest a couple hundred into getting it roadworthy...then you don't have to sell it as a project.
Yeah....KK makes a good point. I presumed that it is a runner since it has 60K miles. Also...I would INSTALL the gas tank. As KK points out...better to sell it as a good running and complete car rather than a car with parts to install by the buyer. You will get a lot more money if it is complete.
Thanks for the feedback. It's fit for the road tires excluded, good tread but old and starting to crack. The tank I plan to install, I'll go over the carb and give it a light tune but that's about all. I figure anyone who buys it wants it painted and rubber to their taste not mine. It will need a tailight lens to keep the cops away, that I wont fix either as their are a few options as I understand. Find the correct lens and keep it factory or swap a complete bumper assembly I'm told. What fits I don't know, haven't researched it. Asking price is a question though NADA says $3900 thru $10,300 with this one being average at $72000. This seems rediculessly high to me. gott go, have a outboard to work on right now
The Old Cars Price Guide, August 2010 issue, lists the value of a 1978 Pontiac LeMans 4-door, 2-seat station wagon in #4 condition (good running but needing total restoration) at $920. In #3 condition ("car show quality"), it's $2,070. In #2 condition (showroom), it's $3,220. If this is a "Grand" LeMans wagon, those values are each about $50-$60 higher. You might put it on ebay with reserve of $1,000 to $2,000 or whatever you want out of it. Those NADA prices are for vehicles in generally very good condition, which yours is not from your description. A badly rusted rear bumper will detract from the value regardless of other positives as it suggests rust elsewhere that might not be visible. I'd be very curious to know where NADA gets a value of $10,300 for one of these in any condition. The highest value in the OCPG in any condition for one of these, #1 condition, which is considered "better than showroom new," is $4,700. Maybe that's pessimistic, but it's certainly no more pessimistic than that $10,300 value is optimistic. Silverfox is right in that it takes only two people who really want one to drive up the price on ebay. But I think your task is going to be to find that first interested buyer.
Don't know where those N.A.D.A. prices came from. In my experience, N.A.D.A. prices were low (compared to Kelley Blue Book). that's why used car sales managers like it...... Old. cracking tires are unsafe. If you leave those on when you sell it, I'd suggest getting a written waiver of liability signed (that addresses the tire issue). I think the market for that car is in the $2 - 3,000 range, give or take.
You could look at some used tires at a salvage yard, just to make it where people aren't worried about driving off and having multiple flats...or having to flatbed it somewhere. But, then again...it's an added expense for you. You might not necessarily get your money back from the expense, but it may make it more "sellable". Just a thought... About the taillights...I think that the person is correct in that the 1978 taillights are different from the 1979-1983. The 1978 have the backup lamp segment on the outboard position, with 2 brake/tail lamps inboard. The 1979-1983 models have the backup lamp segment inboard and a single tail/brake lamp outboard of the backup lamp...plus, a small running light outboard of that. I don't know if the whole assembly (light fixture + lens) from a 79-83 model will fit into a 1978 bumper. I believe that the shape is ever-so-slightly different...plus, what do you do with the extra taillight bulb, going from a 2-light fixture to a 1-light fixture? BTW, the Malibu, Cutlass and Century wagons, plus the el Camino should interchange. I think that the Pontiac lenses are slightly different, with horizontal ribs going across the lenses, but that is only a design detail. Attached is a pic of a 78 el Camino and a 79-83 Mailibu wagon for reference.
I would say $2000 to $2400 at the most. Considering the V6, that's kind of a negative to most buyers... How is the frame? That's the biggie on these cars...
Thanks for the feed back Thanks TopherS for the tailight info and all the rest of you for the value info. Haven't had a chance to install fuel tank yet but maybe this week. She is rust free frame and all only a little surface rrust on paint chips but the rear bumper is badly rusted around the cut outs. I'll keep ya posted. Larry
