Update on the '04 Boxster:
I cleaned out the interior and removed the seats. There's a decent market for the frame parts and electronics, so I took 15 minutes to strip them down.
I didn't have much hope for the engine. It's filthy and there's grimy oil coating the sides and bottom - not dripping, but not a good sign. I checked the filter for debris and had a look at the oil. It was surprisingly good. The oil has plenty of miles on it which implies to me that they didn't just change it to cover up a problem. The filter was clean with no signs of metal, sealant, or plastic bits.
Tomorrow, I'll check the engine serial number and see if it appears to be a replacement or original to the car. The last couple years have been rough, but there are signs that the car was well maintained in the past.
The '04 Boxster: The engine number does show that it's a Porsche factory replacement engine. I still have no way to know when it was installed, or how many miles are on it, but at least it's not the full 192k miles.
Nothing has happened for over a month. The Dung Beetle has been useful around the yard. It runs and drives forward and back, but the shifting is unpredictable. It shifts hard and sometimes sticks in gear -or out of gear. I have not put any time into the dark blue bug at all. I want to work on fun and creative projects, but we are short handed at work and it's been extra busy. I can barely keep up with regular maintenance on the fleet (and some idiot though it would be easy to add five motorcycles to the garage this summer, all of which had to be caught up on maintenance).
There are events happening in October that I want to attend. An engine swap or auto to manual transmission swap is not likely to happen by then. So, a week ago when I saw a 2000 New Beetle for sale in good running condition (they say) with a manual transmission and the 1.8T engine and title in hand (they say), I tried to buy it. The seller agreed to meet me in a city that was about an hour drive for each of us. I thought we had a deal, then I got a text, "Sorry, we just sold it. The buyer is picking it up as soon as we get the title for it." Okay, maybe I didn't want that one anyway.
Today, exactly a week later, I have a text from the seller. "Car is back up for sale the guy couldn't come up with the money." *It wasn't really a lot of money.* They can't drive it to meet me now because the rear brakes are "squealing really bad". I am going to drive a couple hours with Tow Pig on Tuesday to most likely buy it. I expect that the sellers have some secrets that they would rather not reveal, but I'm looking for a Gambler; I expect that I have some secrets about what I'm willing to accept. If it somehow sells before I get there, I will not be upset. I will consider myself saved from another bad decision.
Yesterday evening I received a text from the seller, "So that car is gone. Good thing you didn't buy it, the motor is shot." ...Um, thanks.
I'm really lucky that someone else bought that one first. I've learned that there are three types of 1.8T Beetles for sale; Highly overpriced ones that run and drive well, but have bad interiors, Automatics that have a bad transmission, and Manual ones that have a bad engine.
I may have to change platforms for October, but I do plan to continue with Dung Beetles when 'project time' permits or when a ratty, low priced, unicorn bug is available in my market.
There is a local '02 vert with no title, says good engine and trans for sale for $400 I saw on marketplace
Also, the one you fortuitously missed out on sounded like it came with some serious political considerations. (Not sure what "good tyranny" looks like)
Oh hell no. Mrs AAZCD started getting mad when I replied to this ad and she is miles away and didn't even see me doing it. Is it time for me to move away from those nasty Beetles and try to be happy with the Answer? I don't know. This looks sad enough that I kind of think it could work.
1.6, beat up like that? That's $1200 too much
So this is probably too nice and too expensive for a Gambler car, but I thought of you when I saw it.
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/185972156878770
slowbird said:
So this is probably too nice and too expensive for a Gambler car, but I thought of you when I saw it.
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/185972156878770
Wow, I'm amazed at the tire selection. Which BF Goodrich tires model does this Beetle run?
Heading out to look at the Miata now. I'm not feeling 'Full Price', but could seriously get it. Just took a trailer load of junk to the dump, so it's okay to get a little more junk.
In reply to AAZCD (Forum Supporter) :
Looking forward to seeing this 
fusion66 said:
In reply to AAZCD (Forum Supporter) :
Looking forward to seeing this
I read through the forum thread about that car last night: https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/build-projects-and-project-cars/another-lifted-miata/124095/page1/
It looks like a fun build.
slowbird said:
So this is probably too nice and too expensive for a Gambler car, but I thought of you when I saw it.
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/185972156878770
That Beetle looks nice and it says in the ad that it has been a Gambler 500 and HooptieX car. It is too nice for my taste. Not to disparage anyone else's concept and work, but for me a Gambler 500 car should be more of a damaged or discarded car that is brought back to life. ...and "brought back to life" more as a zombie, living-dead than restored to original condition with a lift.
------
There was a barn. Can I call this one a 'Barn Find'?
It runs and drives fine. The air conditioning works. The tag just expired in the end of July, so there's no penalty fee to transfer it yet. It has had a few minor accidents, but does not appear to have any significant damage beyond cosmetics. I made an offer and the seller is relaying the info to his daughter (owner) to make the deal. She has the title in Oklahoma City (3 hours drive), so she will mail it Monday and we plan to close the deal when it arrives.
In reply to sleepyhead the buffalo :
you must not be that familiar with the current state of 1.6 prices.
In reply to lnlogauge :
What, vintage racing has made the 1.6 desirable?
sleepyhead the buffalo said:
In reply to lnlogauge :
What, vintage racing has made the 1.6 desirable?
Perhaps people have found that they are desirable for *not* racing.
AAZCD (Forum Supporter) said:
sleepyhead the buffalo said:
In reply to lnlogauge :
What, vintage racing has made the 1.6 desirable?
Perhaps people have found that they are desirable for *not* racing.
touche
having owned a '94, 1.8... I'd probably still prefer the bigger displacement, still. But, to each their own. And I appreciate y'all correcting my wrong impressions. assumptions, and automotive inertia.
AAZCD, your previous threads might suggest a certain confidence in bringing this example 'up to snuf'. I offer my heartiest congratulations, and healthiest 'bon chance' to the effort.
AAZCD (Forum Supporter) said:... I may have to change platforms for October, but I do plan to continue with Dung Beetles when 'project time' permits or when a ratty, low priced, unicorn bug is available in my market.
Dung Beetle sold? Parts car too?
Yes, I think so. The out of state buyer plans to pick them up in 10 days. Making plans for the Miata and getting a Boxster ready for HooptieX I realized that although I have had fun with the Beetles, I have done all that I wanted to do with them. There are other projects to focus on and other cars to drive. I offered it to the local Gambler 500 group for $500. Even at that, it got a lot of likes, but few people seriously interested. I had this buyer committed at $500, then offered to let him have it for $250 if I keep the wheels (and put on stock wheels and tires from the junk pile). Crazy low price, but I wasn't selling it to get money. It's about re-homing it and moving on to other things.
The Miata isn't going to happen. I had started a thread with some questions and had ideas about what I was going to do with it, but the seller has not come up with a title for it. He had originally said that the title was ready back in late August. It wasn't. I'm not waiting any longer.
The next Gambler event that I plan to attend (not counting the HooptieX Oklahoma with a Boxster) is in mid October. The buyer of the Dung Beetle will be picking it up Friday morning along with the parts car and whatever parts I want to throw in. I need a suitable car. Mrs AAZCD was never happy about the Miata. The Gamblers are a fun event for us to do together and she thought it would be cramped and uncomfortable for a full day of cross country driving. I suspect that she was right. I was just getting it because it seemed like an easy answer to the question of "What Car?". Not because I really wanted a Miata.
So... A month from now I need a semi-sorted Gambler and I'm not likely to have a lot of time to work on it. It needs to be comfortable, reliable enough that problems can generally be fixed on the roadside with some zip-ties and a hammer, and be cheap enough to fit the Gambler ethos. I presented this COPART 1998 Honda CR-V to Mrs AAZCD and not only did she say "Yes", she is excited about it. We had four or five first gen CR-Vs in the past and they were all good cars that we passed on to family and friends. We drove one back and forth from Oklahoma to San Diego and Phoenix. I know them well mechanically and still have some NOS parts on the shelf. It will probably always have less character than a Dung Beetle, but it will build character over time if it lasts. It only has 179k miles and I've had them over 300K miles, so I expect it to last if I harden it up a bit for mud pits and maintain it well. After Mrs AAZCD said Yes, I did the "Buy it Now" at $1,200 rather than take a chance at the auction. My local comparables on FB Mkt and CL were in worse condition and more expensive. I'm happy with the buy and plan to pick it up tomorrow.
My crv has been reliable, if just very very boring
Doing some browsing on CR-Vs I ended up on Honda-Tech/forums. I hadn't logged in there for a few years. Suddenly I remembered a build thread with a CR-V that was painted with chalkboard paint and kids colored it. It looks like all the pictures are gone now and I can't find them on the web, but it was very cool. LDForget's CR-V build That's what inspired me to do the flat black and chalk on the original Dung Beetle.
I did feel a little regret as I saw the Dung Beetle and parts car departing, but it was good. I proudly told a neighbor that I had gotten rid of two cars and had only bought one.
The new Gambler CR-V is tagged and 'on the road' now. We used it to push the Beetles onto the trailer. I haven't put much work into it yet. Next weekend I plan to put it on a frame machine and with the help of my pretty much son-in-law, do a pull on the left rear to make it right. For the Okie Gambler 500 in October, it's probably going to still be a fairly normal beat up old SUV, but over time it should transform into an awesome Gambler.
...and somehow the "two cars for one" that I was proud of didn't last long. I'm out of room again.
Can't wait to see what you do with thew CRV! Sold my Boxstaer a year or so ago, really missing it.. I bought a lot of little trim parts off you and look forward to all your builds. Best of luck at the October Gambler!
In reply to Billy_Bottle_Caps :
Thanks Billy. I cut down on my number of Boxsters a bit, but expect I'll always keep one (maybe three) around. Here's where I'm continuing with the CR-V and whatever other builds I do along the way. https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/build-projects-and-project-cars/a-gambler-500-cr-v-and-whatever-else-shows-up/187124/page1/
