My late husband had a '77 bronze cruising wagon. When he passed away October 1997, I gave the car to his dad. Well now he has given it to my daughter and her fiancee. Unfortunately these two cannot afford to fix the car, so they decided to post it on Craig's List here in Phoenix. They are asking $2000.00 for it, and have not received any offers as of yet. The car does not run, and needs tires. It is in decent condition, and even has an 8 track in it :o I myself had a '72 runabout that I loved, until my nephew was rear ended it in. No it did not explode, but it was toast. My question is this, are they asking too much for the car? My concern is that my daughter has allowed sentiment over rule sense. I am a realist, and know that it is not in the class of the mustang, etc. Please help with any info you may have, so that I can relay it to them. I figure they will listen to Pinto enthusiasts rather then mom. Thanks. ::)
An appropriate price relies heavily on the condition of the vehicle as well as the overall condition and desirability. You have stated that the car does not run and needs tires. These two facts will drive the interest down a lot more than most would realize. Are the tires bald, flat or missing? What does it need to get it running? Has it been sitting for a long period of time without being started or driven? I am going to assume that the car is an original AZ car. (If you look at the door decal there is a section called "DSO" and if it has the number 75 after it, it is a true AZ car.) Typically in an AZ car, unless it spent most of its life in a covered parking spot, the interior is not in the best of shape from being exposed to the very high UV levels there. I lived in Tucson for 22 of my 30 years, so have a little bit of insight into that. Also in AZ, the paint has a tendency to fade rather quickly, especially with metallic paint colors. It does have the rust-free going for it, as well as the more desirable Cruisin' Wagon body style. Unfortunately the ad does not have any pics or I would be able to get a better idea of the condition. They could always put an OBO in the title, and see what kind of offers you get. Take your time if there is no rush to sell, and just see if you get any good bites. Good luck!
For all on Fordpinto.com, here is the link to the ad:
http://phoenix.craigslist.org/car/274683038.html
Thank you for such a quick response. The tires are flat, and it is originally a California car. I was with my late husband when he 'found' it ;D It is at my oldest son's home, and he is wishing it to be out of there. I am hoping to get over to his house later this week and take pictures of the car. You are so right about the Arizona sun. I am a native myself and am well aware of the "OUCH" of the summer months and the damage the sun does to cars. Especially with all the pollution we have now, oxidation is a real issue here. I myself am a realist and think they should be asking $500.00 OBO, but, well, kids. Again, thank you for your response, so now I have something other then my own personal knowledge. Something that I do have a lot of, but kids generally do not want to listen to 'mom' and realize that she can be a pretty smart one.
It took me 30 something years to realize how smart my mom is... Yours will figure it out eventually. Dependng on the actual condition of the car $500 OBO soulds in the ballpark
I was able to take some pictures of the Pinto in question. I have more, but with limited space, I picked a good one. Upon better viewing of the car, body and interior is in decent shape. The paint of course has oxidized, but the headliner is still intact. I honestly have no idea how long it has not run. My daughter insists that because it is the cruising wagon, that it is valued close to the $2000.00 they are asking. She says they have had 'replies', but I she did not say if there were any solid offers. So anyway, hopefully they will take me up on the offer of the pictures to put with their ad they have. I do want to say thank you for being so kind, and to offer your suggestions. I know it is difficult since there are things even I do not know to be able to give answers to. I do know for sure though that my son wants her to get it off of his driveway ::) And here I thought as they grew closer to their 30's things would get easier. Boy was I wrong :lost: