What would you pay????

[FleetMaster]

Car in question is a long stored 1948 Frazer Manhattan. open clear title.  Engine free, no brakes, not run in at least 10 years.  Interior could remain as a survivor car.  Rust through in rockers, rear wheel arches, fender lips etc.  Some rust through trunk floor.  98% complete.  Grill and related fair or less.  About an hour drive from me.  I think $1500.00 is generous from what people are asking in newsletter and comments i have seen in this forum, he feels otherwise based on asking price.  Thoughts or comments?

SK

[54manhattan13]

I would think $1,000.00 would still be a lot to pay for the car in the description.

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

Without seeing a lot of pictures it would be unfair to both buyer & seller to put a price on an unseen automobile.

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

Again, is the car a condition 1,2,3,4,5 or 6?  Price guide figures are worthless to this exercise unless the potential buyer knows what he or she is looking at so a proper evaluation of the vehicle can be made.  No pictures, no tag information (body tag on firewall & door post serial number tag only; engine ID tag tells us little until the rebuilding of the motor takes place).

[FleetMaster]

Condition is 5+/4- AT BEST on a 1-6 system, as you note with all KF engine is a crap shoot until opened. Not accessible for pictures until next week due to owner travel, lighting poor at best.  Holes through rockers and wheel arches- some big enough for a hand to pass.  Front grill and most pot metal green haze and light pitting.  Bumpers spot rust tired or missing chrome.  Basically straight body.  Badges VG.  Interior some moth damage.  No brakes, mechanically appears complete.  And to a point, using the original description in my first posting you can place the vehicle in a category in the provided price guide.  As to pictures, i have seen and worked on cars with enough filler to float that in pictures look like best in show.  Everything has to be considered in making a value determination- then adjust for local or regional demand.

[Roadmaster49]

Without seeing a lot of pictures it would be unfair to both buyer & seller to put a price on an unseen automobile.

Not really. Maybe for a more presentable car, a restored car.  But this is a $500 to $750 car if the potential buyer is within 500 miles (which adds approximately a $1.00 or more a loaded mile). 

[carbuff1941]

This is a $500.00 car at best.  To get this car "road ready" will cost at least $1500.00.  If the engine turns out bad then you are looking at another $3000.00 to $3500.00 just for the rebuild.  I have one similar to this one and it needs new wiring almost everywhere, the whole brake system rebuilt, new or used tires.  Also needs the generator and starter rebuilt, many switches are "stuck", horns don't work, parking, brake and back-up light housings are all rusted so bulbs can't be easily removed.  Most of the weather stripping is hard and worn out and the windshield leaks due to worn gasket.  Either the seller doesn't know all that's wrong with the car or knows and doesn't want to deal with it himself.  Ten years sitting around inside or outside is not good for any car.  Body work and paint would cost at least another $3000.00.  This is why it is better to buy one that someone else has spent the money restoring or bring back to life.  I'm one of the carzy ones.

[Roadmaster49]

There are still thousands of project cars in America. Few of them actually get crushed. Many owners feel like they have a gold mine in a car, when they don't. 

If a person was so inclined, and the national search tools were still available - you could locate 100 KF cars or more a week for $500 to $10,000 representing true bargains or over priced junk.

The notion of scarcity used to get me to buy a lesser car for a greater price.  The 'gotta have it' mentality. Now I'll pass as you should on this car.

[kaiserfrazerlibrary]

Potential buyers of any older vehicle (not just K-F or Willys cars) should take the time and resources to do their homework before diving seriously into the marketplace.  Sure, from time to time something will pop up locally to you from an estate sale or (worse) someone finally abandoning a money pit and offering their 'treasure' at a price reflecting what they have in it and a profit to boot.  Learn about what you want first so you can look at something and have some idea of what restoration costs (leaving out what work, if any you feel you could do) would be. 

Remember too, the less of the vehicle you see, the more the description is limited, the more likely it is that this will need major surgery costing $$$$$$$.  Be armed with information; the KFOCI HANDBOOK CD is a good source of information on vehicles so you don't have to dig far to get material that will be useful. 

[FleetMaster]

Car is coming home as part of a package deal.  From my view i have $1000 tied up in this part of the purchase.  All of the feedback has been appreciated.  Later in the summer will advise of mechanical condition and the ever present quest for a crack free block.  Noted as running when parked and engine is free now.

Scott K