[Caleb]

This may sound weird but whatever.
Anybody have advice on how to ask your neighbor for a car they have just rotting away?

Bought a house a year ago next month and noticed neighbor has a 93 Mustang. Blue. Convertable. Stick. 5.0.
She lives alone with about 4 poodles. Drives a Compass if that tells you anything.

Thanks in advance.

 

[dDUBb]

Ask nicely. :tongue:

Ive had many cars donated to me for free .. if you come across as a nice, helpful person .. ask if there is anything you can do in exchange or what the actual story on the car is. If its just been sitting there, its for a reason.

 

[Bangster]

Ask about it, it is likely belongs to one of her children. Sometimes they would be grateful to get rid of it, but usually the person it belongs to is going to return someday and has all sorts of plans for it (even if they never do).

 

[jco1385]

I'll ask her for you

 

[Raymondo112]

Even if you are not sure how to ask you can always type up a letter and explain that if she is willing to get rid of it you are interested, and leave her your telephone number, if you get no response then try asking in person, worst thing anybody could say is no, and tell them if they ever change their mind to call you, and you would be happy to take it, I have had people tell me no and call me a week latter asking if I was still interested. So it is always worth it to inquire if you want it.

 

[CometGSR]

I would totally do this if you want a Mustang. I kick myself for not offering money to a neighbor who had a 1985 LTD LX with the 5.0L HO. I am sure it needed everything, but it would have been a super cool project.

 

[Caleb]

UPDATE: Talked to her yesterday. It's an '87 LX Convertible 5.0. She's the original owner since 1987. Has 155,000 (she first said "55,000" then corrected her self lol) Car means a lot to her and said she'd only give it up to someone she knows will take care of it and bring it back to its glory days.
It's all original except for (her words, not mine): "The way the freon is delivered has been modernized."
She said years ago a guy offered her $9000 for it, but was literally too big for it after test driving it. More recently she tried to sell it in its current state for around $3,000.
So hopefully we can work something out..

What does everyone think would be a decent offer?
Also what type of things do I need to look for on a 26 year old 5.0 with (supposedly) 155,000 miles?

Thanks.

 

[Trunk Monkey]

Depends a lot on "what its current state" is...

Probably 2 to 3K ...

If she has all the original paperwork, owners manual, build sheet, window sticker, bill of sale, invoice, etc. all the better! There's a pretty good chance that she does have most of that stuff. You should ask her for any relevant paperwork she has with the car.

 

[XR7-4.6]

Yup, if it's in excellent condition with no intrusive mods(or comes with a trunkfull of the original parts) and some uncommon options it could probably be worth up to $3k, maybe even $4k. Although Fox verts don't seem to have the kind of demand coupes/hatches demand today.

 

[_95badbird]

running or not?
running, 3k max, not, 1500 max.

 

[94 Thunderbird XX]

....ask if there is anything you can do in exchange or what the actual story on the car is. If its just been sitting there, its for a reason.

Ask about it, it is likely belongs to one of her children. Sometimes they would be grateful to get rid of it, but usually the person it belongs to is going to return someday and has all sorts of plans for it (even if they never do).

Sure could always just ask, but after this one incident there's certain cars I'm leery about approaching to ask about.

Quite awhile back I used to drive by a small farm out in the country every day and there was what I could see either a 68 or 69 Charger always just sitting there next to the barn. Never moved in the 3-4 years that I drove past it. Finally I stopped in to ask about it. Guy comes to the door and as soon as I mention the car he gets a disgusted look on his face....apparently he was quite sick of people stopping by to ask about it. But he told me it was NOT for sale, will NEVER be for sale, and can just sit there and ROT for however he cared.
He then told me his son bought the car and drove it only a few months before he went to Vietnam. I guess I don't have to tell the rest of the story about him not coming back. His dad was damn bitter about it and would not allow anyone else to take the car to love it and drive it as his son would've. But.....at least he moved it around back and out of sight after that. I wonder if its still there; all those years parked in the weeds there can't be anything left.

 

[Caleb]

that's a shame 94ThunderbirdXX - I was worried about this one being something like that - as the lady lives alone and doesn't have many visitors...
I'm glad she realized what the guy you mentioned didn't realize - it's better in the hands of someone who's willing to PAY you for it and fix it up properly.

 

[Trunk Monkey]

Sure could always just ask, but after this one incident there's certain cars I'm leery about approaching to ask about.

Quite awhile back I used to drive by a small farm out in the country every day and there was what I could see either a 68 or 69 Charger always just sitting there next to the barn. Never moved in the 3-4 years that I drove past it. Finally I stopped in to ask about it. Guy comes to the door and as soon as I mention the car he gets a disgusted look on his face....apparently he was quite sick of people stopping by to ask about it. But he told me it was NOT for sale, will NEVER be for sale, and can just sit there and ROT for however he cared.
He then told me his son bought the car and drove it only a few months before he went to Vietnam. I guess I don't have to tell the rest of the story about him not coming back. His dad was damn bitter about it and would not allow anyone else to take the car to love it and drive it as his son would've. But.....at least he moved it around back and out of sight after that. I wonder if its still there; all those years parked in the weeds there can't be anything left.

Wow, what a story. I can understand the old man's feelings.

 

[ThunderKev]

Dang, I can understand getting annoyed, but he should have realized, a desirable car like that... People will be interested, perhaps let it live on, especially with back story, and perhaps work out an arrangement where he could have seen it fully restored or what not. That's what I would do I suppose...

Though, when I was 15, I did landscaping with a buddy of mine. One of our customers, they had a 95 Contour GL, and a 2000's Honda Civic DX. It was clear the Honda got driven more, and the Contour just sat. When the clippings from the lawnmower got on the Contour, they stayed there.

I asked them one day how come they didn't drive their Ford, and the answer was it had a blown engine, and they wanted to get rid of it, but didn't know how to sell a broken car. The car overall looked great, and I figured I could have fixed the engine, the husband jumpstarted the car, ran like a dream. I couldn't believe it was blown. Well, it overheated, and a mechanic said it had a blown engine and needed a new engine. He was willing to let me have it for $300, and felt bad about charging me that much.

Come to find out, it was a faulty sensor that fed the Instrument cluster, it never had any issues

I would have never gotten that car if I kept quiet. I've been hoping I could strike gold twice... But haven't gotten lucky again. I ended up selling that car for $2000, which I regret to this day.

 

[94 Thunderbird XX]

Believe me, I tried every way I could think of (short of being disrespectful) to get this guy to give it up to someone anyone who would fix it, treat it right, and honor its previous owner with it even if that new owner wasn't going to be me.

 

[Trunk Monkey]

Dang, I can understand getting annoyed, but he should have realized, a desirable car like that... People will be interested, perhaps let it live on, especially with back story, and perhaps work out an arrangement where he could have seen it fully restored or what not. That's what I would do I suppose...

Though, when I was 15, I did landscaping with a buddy of mine. One of our customers, they had a 95 Contour GL, and a 2000's Honda Civic DX. It was clear the Honda got driven more, and the Contour just sat. When the clippings from the lawn mower got on the Contour, they stayed there.

...

He shouldn't "realize" anything. Some people should "realize" where this father is coming from. Some times it's best to leave things just as they are.

Perhaps it's best, in the memory of the father of this Soldier, to let it rot in the last place his son parked it before heading off to war. I can respect that.

He probably intended to do just that except for all the inquiries he got about it based on its visible location. I'm sure he "realized" the appeal of the car but was reluctant to sell it or move it for the reason I mentioned above.

That car may be all that he has left of his sons possessions. You know, a lot of guys never came back in any way, shape or form and are still, to this day, MIA.

He probably finally, reluctantly moved it after so many inquiries just so that he and his son's memory could rest in peace.

To the son of this man: Thanks for your service and sacrifice whoever you are. :usa:

... FWIW my .02 cents ...