Car is done. What now?

[Igglybob]

Hello there,

I drive a '96 318ti, and it's been great, but I've come to the end of the road, I think. It was my first car, and as a result, I did not maintain it right in the early years of owning it -- though I have gotten better about it. It was autocrossed several times, had more high-speed impacts with cones than it should have, and did a track day once, which of course isn't exactly great for wear and tear. It's suffered through rear strut mount failure, valve cover gasket leak, window regulator destruction, and on top of all of those common failures (and more), I regularly tow a ~1000-lb karting trailer with it -- believe it or not, it does work, and they do make hitches for the ti, but that's another story.

But, after a cracked radiator left me stranded far from home yesterday, I think it's time to reconsider. This comes one day after an AC compressor failure, and another coolant hose failure from a couple months back, which led to the car overheating and this certainly isn't good for the longevity of parts.

So the choice I face is this: do I fix it and try to sell it, try to get rid of it as-is, or part it out? Parting it out I really don't want to do because I don't really have the space to do that. I don't have a good working area or a garage.

If I fixed it to the point where I wouldn't feel guilty selling it to someone, here is what I would have to do:

• Repair AC compressor (clutch is bad, is my best guess)
• Replace several coolant hoses (to prevent further failures)
• Replace window regulator
• New belt tensioner
• New oil pan
• New tires
• The interior needs... a lot of cleanup work.

This is at least $300 worth of work and probably a full week's worth of work (I'd do most, if not all of it myself).

So... I'm looking for anyone's advice. What could I get for it? Is anyone even buying cars these days? Would it make a good shell for a track car and should I advertise it like that? The only advice I'm not looking for is on poor maintenance habits of days past, because I've already heard enough from myself on that one.

[dahamler]

Depending on how much money you want to make off the car you could sell it as a shell or part it out.


Do you have any pictures of the car, what color is it?

[Igglybob]

It's black. It could use a wash. Here is it earlier today while towing (it doesn't rub in the back but I did pack it a little tongue heavy that time). Could use a car wash but otherwise pretty clean.



Here's another one from a couple years ago where I found a muddy road. Different rims, same car.



It's just another black ti, nothing too special about it. Could be a good project for someone. I'd like to make around $2000 or more off of it, if possible, but... I have no idea what the market is like. I need to do more research there, but I'd love to hear advice on that too.

I guess the mileage is helpful too. Rolled over 183k on the way home today.

[dahamler]

The car looks pretty good and the market for the Ti seems pretty strong due to fuel costs. I think you could ask for $2500 and get easily if you got running well (new radiator, etc.)

I just bought a 1996 Ti with no engine for $1300 delivered from Jacksonville FL.

Just be careful if the car overheated the M4X heads are notorious for cracking.

[jca]

Just me, but I would either sell it as is or fix it up and keep it. You'll never re-coop the cost of repairs if you sell it. The only way to get that money back is to drive it out of the car over time. If you don't trust the engine anymore, it's probably time to sell it as is. It would be for me anyway. I've never done it, but parting out a car would seem to take lots of time space and effort. Whatever you choose to do, good luck!

[Igglybob]

Hey guys,

I never actually responded to this for a while but thanks for the advice. I'm going to patch up the ugly bits and pass it on to the next owner. Here's what I got to replace it:



On the list to be replaced (for the ti) is window regulator, oil pan (it leaks), throwout bearing, rear hatch cover, tires, and a few front end bumper components. It'll be a long and tedious process, but I couldn't sell that car as it is, with it needing so much work, and be able to sleep at night. Also, I'm thinking about pulling the hitch off of it and selling it to someone else on this forum (I didn't know they are hard to find), but I wouldn't mind some thoughts on that before I commit either way.

Thanks again for the advice so far! I've always thought it's great that this community exists, and even though I seldom post, here is where I come for information on the car.

[familytruckster]

That is sexy.

[dahamler]

Waiting for the for sale thread!

[vsonix]

nice!

[Igglybob]

Originally Posted by familytruckster

That is sexy.

Thanks!

Originally Posted by dahamler

Waiting for the for sale thread!

It'll probably be a month or two. My time is pretty limited, so it's slow going, but I'll get all this done sooner or later.

[pdxmotorhead]

The question is, if you can work overtime at work the same amount of time the car would take, which makes more $$

Dave

[Igglybob]

Originally Posted by pdxmotorhead

The question is, if you can work overtime at work the same amount of time the car would take, which makes more $$

I'm a grad student. They only give us a few pennies every other year and occasionally free pizza, so I'm actually probably doing better working on the car and increasing its value.