since my camary is over 200k miles i know i'll need a new ride soon, so im thinking of getting an older car and add alot of new technology and maybe a good engine

i like older cars like in the 80's, and i wanna put a navigation system with a nice stereo system
also bluetooth for my phone
and if its worth it a nice engine

anybody ever done this?

4/6/2008 9:53:18 PM

Nothing that cubic $$$$$$ wont fix.

4/6/2008 10:01:22 PM

^haha, exactly

yeah, hundreds of thousands of people have done it. i think you're going to have to be a little more specific about what kind of car, what you plan to do with it, your skill levels, your budget, etc. before we can give much advice.

keep in mind that unless you just want a project or have very specific goals, you're usually better off buying something that someone else has already completed.

4/6/2008 10:23:30 PM

im not looking for a project, i just like older cars but with new technology and a good engine

maybe i wont mess with the engine but i'd like to put in as much cool technology in the car

whats so hard about that?

heres a potential car..

4/6/2008 10:30:07 PM

lolerskates

4/6/2008 10:54:46 PM

Ah, the RWD 80's Chrysler products (that's a Gran Fury if I'm not mistaken?)

I like your style. Always thought one of those would make a very interesting sleeper, though I was picturing a late 70's LeBaron or mid-late 80's Fifth Avenue.

4/6/2008 10:56:52 PM

Get a Lotus

4/6/2008 11:01:01 PM

^^nah, that particular car is a diplomat and probably a cop version. the plymouth fury, dodge diplomat, and chrysler 5th avenue were all basically the same. just different options/trim levels.

^^^^correct, there's nothing particularly hard or mind blowing about adding electronics. if you're talking about adding modern technology like fuel injection, suspension, overdrive transmission, etc. then you're getting into a lot more.

if you don't care about any of that, still keep in mind that a lot of older vehicles are going to require some level repair and reconditioning of their stock mechnicals, body, or interior to be a reliable and comfortable daily driver. they also might require more frequent maintenance and repair than newer vehicles. parts could also be rare or hard to find for the more uncommon models. something like the diplomat you posted won't have that issue though.

4/7/2008 12:44:10 AM

keep in mind, 80's interiors are mostly sharp-angled, brown-colored, green-lit, ugly POS's

4/7/2008 9:38:23 AM

I don't disagree with you about the sharp angles, but hell, there were more colors offered back then than now. Of the 80's (+/- a year in each direction) cars my family owned, we had 2 burgundy, 2 dark blue, 1 medium blue, 1 tan, 1 black, 1 tan/black, 1 gray. No ugly browns. And if you're complaining about green led's, my 2003 car has green lighting on the radio and a/c displays.

The ergonomics do tend to be shitty. On the plus side, the seats tend to be comfy.

4/7/2008 11:39:35 AM

could I interest you in one of these....



[Edited on April 7, 2008 at 7:16 PM. Reason : dammit]

4/7/2008 7:15:18 PM

^lol, that car sucks, i will be the laughing stock, even with GPS navigation
naw i need a more universal timeless car

4/8/2008 1:41:29 AM

4/8/2008 3:14:33 AM

^^In a classic Eldorado? Naw, you won't be the laughingstock, you'll be a pimp.

Though the convertibles were about ten times as pimptacular. (I *will* have a late 70's Eldorado convertible one day...)

^The new find, eh? Looks like it's in nice shape...must respect the fuselage styling! (Though you need to do something about those tiny stock wheels...)

[Edited on April 8, 2008 at 4:45 AM. Reason : sd]

4/8/2008 4:42:07 AM

ivan lets put a big blue light on top of that thing and chase the bandit from texarkana to atlanta

4/8/2008 8:13:52 AM

lafta check out http://www.pro-touring.com. Kind of along the lines of what you want to do.

4/8/2008 11:43:07 AM

get an old caddy

that would be sweeeeet

be sure if you dont get a caddy to get a convt though, adds pimpness

4/8/2008 12:09:42 PM

i dont know, im still not sure yet, im now thinking of maybe getting a newer car, like a honda del sol
or a mitsubishi eclipse, im undecided

4/12/2008 12:47:19 AM

^^^^haha, i had forgotten they used a lot of the C body mopars in that movie. they used a number of B's also.

72 dodge manaco here. my dad had a 2 door 70 with a 440 magnum. to buy it, he sold his 66 coronet that he special ordered with the 426 (wedge, not hemi). i'll bet he kicks himself for that. sadly, it's not the worst one he gave up.


haha, here's a 72 chrysler newport on top of a 73.


i'm not thrilled about the newport front end. i'd love to score a hideaway lights front clip from an upscale monaco. or even the regular base polara front is an improvement. the current one just screams impala too much.

[Edited on April 12, 2008 at 3:07 AM. Reason : .]

4/12/2008 3:06:06 AM

Quote :

"haha, i had forgotten they used a lot of the C body mopars in that movie. they used a number of B's also. "

I thought they were Pontiacs.

4/12/2008 8:28:19 PM

they were i think, but i believe jake and elwood had a shit ton of mopars on their ass...

4/12/2008 8:43:56 PM

4/12/2008 8:46:55 PM

late '50s Chrysler Imperial

4/13/2008 1:12:07 PM

one thing to consider is weight

lots of mods and $ can be put into one of those older vehicles to get it to act or look a certain way. but without significant mods to steering, braking, and suspension (along with all of the other mods needed just to make those mods) you are going to be putting alot of money into something that likely will not handle the way you envision.

eh?

4/13/2008 1:36:04 PM

the solution is to change how you envision it handling. i mean, look at the cars we're talking about here.

4/13/2008 1:40:22 PM

Quote :

"I thought they were Pontiacs."

a lot were, and buford's car was. a good chunk were mopars also, remember they had a pretty large share of the law enforcement market until the m body (gran fury/diplomat/5th avenue) was dropped.

Quote :

"they were i think, but i believe jake and elwood had a shit ton of mopars on their ass..."

yep. the bluesmobile was an early 70's monaco hardtop also.

4/13/2008 10:40:21 PM

4/13/2008 11:24:32 PM

Quote :

"'m not thrilled about the newport front end. i'd love to score a hideaway lights front clip from an upscale monaco. or even the regular base polara front is an improvement. the current one just screams impala too much."

Agree there. The first couple times I saw a Newport of that era (there was at least one around Greensboro when I was in HS) I was convinced someone had put Impala hardware into the front clip of a Chrysler, and I could not figure out why.

4/14/2008 2:22:49 AM

you need a pinto dragster

4/15/2008 8:43:07 PM