And once the "little lady" is finished with her plans, you'll be able to add this to the list:

 

I have many it got away stories. The one I wish I would have kept was an '87 LX Mustang coupe. It was originally a 4-cylinder car, but I bought it with no engine or trans, but it did have an 8.8 rearend. The car was perfect, gray with now dents and all the glass was in the windows, no cracks. All it needed was a paintjob. I had a c4 trans built at a local shop. A buddy of mine installed 4.10's for me. Had a 351W with a set of early model heads ready to be built. I tell ya, about another $2,000 or so and I would have had me a 7.XX 1/8 mile car ready to go. I had a full interior in perfect shape from a '92 GT. A guy came by one day and offered me my money back out of it. I went and bought the girlfriend (now wife) and engagement ring. Maybe someday I guess.

 

Edit: Sorry, double post. How did that happen?

 

This freak had a Black over Red 1976 455 T/A locked in a shipping storage container. Had not been licensed in many years. It was mint and he wanted like $6,500 about seven years ago. Decided to get a Z28 instead. During the three year resto on the Camaro I grew to hate the car.

 

How could I forget about to ORIGINAL one, that got away...

After 8 months in the Desert, I had ordered my red 1991 Camaro RS, V8 through AAFES Auto Sales... Credit approved, allotment set up, it's a done deal- $216.00/month for 60 months. Due to pick it up in Phoenix, AZ on July 15, 1991. (I wanted a burgundy or teal green one, but because I ordered it in late May, GM wasn't accepting any more custom orders, I had to choose from black, white or red... (Ain't that a b*tch?!)

Anyhoo, I arrived back in the states on June 14th, 1991. I had already put $1,000 down in Dharhan, and had to pay the final $750.00 to complete my transaction. Everyone who had gotten back in April already had their new cars, and the parking lot looked like a dealership. I was still walking... (That was gonna be a LONG 30 days.)

So, I called AAFES to see where to send that $750.00 They said, "Our records indicate you owe us $1,250.00." I think I said, "I disagree" but, it may not have come out that politely. I got my contract, and we went line by line. Sure enough, the guy had given me $500 in rebates they didn't want to honor. We went rounds, and they were like- "We don't work on commission, so you have 1 of 2 choices. You can send us the extra $500, or you can cancel the deal." I'm back in the states, I've reenlisted (A credit blocker was to be a 1st termer, re-enlistees are "career" soldiers), and I have money in my pockets. I think I said, "I'll cancel the deal", but I may have said something about something sexual they could go do with themselves... (Classic case of letting emotion and assumptions take over my thinking...)

Well, as luck would have it- I STILL could not get credit approved here in the land of the Big PX. I ended up getting a 1991 Chevy Cavalier (Which I hated), no cassette, just AM/FM radio, 5-speed, and no AC. The Camaro I ordered was loaded, except no leather seats, and it had the 5.0 L (305 cu. in) 170 HP V-8. I let a sure thing get away over $500.00 and principle...

That was the first one to get away from me, over a stupid decision...

 

Wow, those old 5.0L from GM were only 170hp? No wonder the Mustang of the same era kicked its ***. 225hp/300tq will do that to you. Hell my Focus has 136hp, thats not much less than an old IROC of the day...

The one I let get away was the car that I sold for an ex....

It was MY car, but I sold it because we had planned on getting married and somehow she convinced me that we would need a "family car." It was a 1988 Mustang LX 5.0 hatchback. I had that car for about 2 or 3 years, and I had put my heart and soul into it. The only problem? No A/C in the hot southwestern desert where I live. Anyway, I added a throttle body, K&N air filter, short throw shifter, Flowmaster exhaust, upgraded to a 3.55:1 gearset, did some window tint, etc..

It was the first car I ever really dumped money into and I loved it. It got 25+ MPG on the highway and around 18 in town. I drove that car everywhere (one time over 3000 miles in 6 days) and it NEVER let me down. And then like an idiot I sold it. The guy I sold it to bought it for $1500 with 189k on the ticker, and he told me shortly after he got it that he had fixed some things up and added A/C that the car was stolen from him, and found stripped out in Thousand Oaks, CA. I'll never get that one back....

Here's a few pics:





Here's one more pic of the day they took my baby away from me. The buyer hired a transport company to come pick her up, and I got to drive her up onto the truck. It was the last time I ever drove it....



God I miss that car! :'(

 

Damn. That's harsh.

 

Oh no, don't go out there thinking that... Bad things could happen to you.

The Camaro put it's foot in the "stock" Mustang's butt (performance wise) in 1991, and never took it out. The 305 in the Camaro RS V8 had 170 HP, but the one in the Z-28 had 205 HP (Still less than the 215 the Ford 302 was pumping out, albeit with near equal torque). I say "215" because in 1992 Ford ended up re-stating the 5.0's HP, and marked the numbers from 225 & 300 lb ft, down to 215 & 290 lb ft. What was ironic, GM's "Quad-4" 4-cylinder engine of that era had 180 HP.

What made the Camaro RS fun, was it had torque- and lots of it. But, yes- today's (2001 - Present) Nissan Altima would SMOKE the 5.0 Mustang and Z-28's of the early 1990's. Where GM had it's ace in the hole, was with the 1990 IROC-Z, and the later 1991 & 1992 Z-28 was with the 5.7L 350 cu. in. V-8. Serving up a Mustang neutering 250 HP, and 350 lb ft of torque... The Camaro (when equipped with the 5.7L) was too much for the 5.0 Mustang to chew. You'd need a Saleen to match it. Sure, a modified Stang could probably still run with the 5.7L, but in stock form, no way Jose'.

Then in 1993 the new Camaro Z-28, and GM didn't offer the V-8 in the RS. The Z-28 had the 275 HP, 5.7L LT-1 V8, and the factory Mustang GT, in terms of performance, never out-ran a stock Camaro after that. The performance numbers were far better for GM, albeit in what had become (to me) an uninspiring package... I kept waiting on it to grow on me, but- it never did... Even when Ford updated the Mustang in 1994, it was still a 5.0L 215 HP V-8, replaced in 1996 by the 4.6L 215 HP V8. It wasn't until 1999 that Ford pumped the Mustang up to 260 HP, but- by now the Camaro had 300 HP.

So, while it's true the 170 HP V-8 Camaro RS of yester-year was asthmatic and anemic by today's standards, in 1991, they were fun to drive, if not the same kind of fire-breather the 205 - 250 HP IROC-Z / Z-28 305's and Ford's 215 HP 302 was. For $16,000 it was hard to beat, and with a few tweaks here & there, could easily have been at 200 HP. But, HP isn't what made pony cars fun, it was a live rear-end, and torque... Goo-gobs of low-end torque.

I didn't like the big wing on the Z-28; so even with the Z-28's performance advantage, I preferred the looks of the '91 RS over the '91 Z-28, and would have chose it instead.

Everything was weak back then though:

Circa 1991:

Ford Mustang..................... 215 HP
Ford Mustang (4 Cyl)..............78 HP (That's right, 78 horses, but could still spin the tires! )
BMW 325i...........................190 HP
BMW 540i...........................225 HP
BMW M5.............................270 HP
Nissan Maxima.....................185 HP
Ford F-150.........................170 HP
Chevy 454 SS.....................230 HP
Chevy Camaro RS (V6).........140 HP
Chevy Camaro RS................170 HP
Chevy Camaro Z-28.............205 HP
Chevy Camaro Z-28.............250 HP
GMC Cyclone.......................280 HP
Nissan 240 SX.....................140 HP

I've said it once, and I say it again... Today, is the golden days of sports & sporty cars...

Only three vehicles above (M5, Cyclone & Z-28 5.7L) could run 0-60 in under 6 seconds. Today, there are SUV's (Cherokee SRT-8) 4.7 seconds, and sedans (Altima SE-R 5.7 seconds) that would embarrass everything up there.

In fact, I read yesterday, that the new "HEMI" that many say is not as good as the old HEMI, in 5.7L form, matched the 426 Hemi in specific output (461 HP) when using the old SAE standards for HP calculations.)

 

Have had many get away.

Here is the last one.

2003 lightning, three in the city all reduced almost 10 grand.

They listed for apx. 39,000. Canadian. being the last years model ford would not write a lease, best sense when self employed with tax laws.

So i wenr home next day wtf I guess i will buy it. all gone....


So now when the 04 were getting low on stock and the rumors that they would not be making any more for several years, I went for one at full price.

still love the truck

 

agreed!

 

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not my Belle!

 

For me, it was a 1969 Mustang. Big surprise, eh?

It was a Sportsroof Deluxe, with factory center console, fold down rear seat with a rear opening door for access to the trunk from the backseat, a 351W, FMX Tranny, factory limited slip 9" rear, and GT style wheels.

I've never found another one like it. They were extremely rare with that package. Most people just opted for the Mach 1.

I need to go cry now.

 

I had a 99 dodge 3/4 ton 4 x4 with the cummins 5spd. I had put in some new injectors, computer and boost controller..it was pushing 300 horses, 600ft lbs of tq. Top speed 125-130 I loved that truck. Had to get rid of it and get something with cheaper payments...

 

In 1988 I was 20 years old. I had found a 70 Plymouth Superbird with a Hemi and hemi k-frame. It was not an original hemi car, but at the time the hemi was worth about $2500 and the k-frame was worth a over $1000. The car was $4500. I didn't have the money and asked dad to borrow it. He said no way Needless to say, the car sold quick. It's probably worth well over $100,000 today.

Desperate for a musle car to call my own. I found a 1971 GTO Judge (one of 357). It was brown (copper) with pink stripes. I payed $900 for it. Joy turned to despair as I found out the engine wasn't original and the frame was broken. Overwhelmed, I sold it to a guy who had just bought and crashed an original green '71 Judge 4-speed that I couldn't afford at $3500.

It all still makes me sick today, as I have been priced out of the market, but I'm not sure I could drive a $50,000+ car without anxiety. I do have a '89TTA Indy Pace Car and a couple of other cool cars, but rare original musle cars still give me a tingle

 

I loved this car but had to be the practical one and trade it in, the upkeep and restoration was taking its toll on the finances back when we couldn't afford it. Sniff, sniff