Rare In North America: 1965 Isuzu Elf In Canada

Pre-1981 Isuzu products are rare in North America (never mind that the Bellel and Bellett were briefly distributed in the western US in the 1960s and the Bellett was locally assembled in Canada in the 1960s), and a first-generation Elf truck is not easy to find.

This is a heavily modified truck, with a Chevrolet V8, four-wheel-drive and a lift kit, but could still be restored by an Isuzu enthusiast. Being in Canada, it is not subject to the 25% "chicken tax" due to the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Find it here in Hamilton, Ontario for $1200 CDN

Cobra Lite: Ford V8-Swapped 1966 Ghia Fiat 1500GT

For possibly less than the price of building a crappy replica of a Shelby Cobra 427S/C with no provenance and no weather protection or turning a Datsun Z-car into a Chevy V8-powered wannabe Ferrari 250GTO, you can have a real Italian exotic car with full weather protection, provision for effective air conditioning via bulkhead-mounted or "short pack"Vintage Air climate controls, American small-block V8 power and styling remarkably similar to that of a Cobra with a fastback (or the related AC Aceca), many parts available (stocked or special-order) from Bayless Fiat, C. Obert & Co. (Fiat Plus) and Re-Originals, and all the hard work has been done by the seller as far as the bodywork and conversion to a Ford 289 small-block, C4 automatic (can and should be swapped for a 4- or 5-speed manual) and 8-inch Ford rear axle go, but it needs some trim, all interior, all engine details, and general finishing work to finish.

Find it here in Denver, Colorado with no price listed.

Catch the Short Bus: 1947 Ford Vanette school bus project

This well-used "1947" (most likely 1948 or 1949) Ford school bus, which appears to be an unknown builder school bus conversion of a Ford F3 or F5 multi-stop truck with a Vanette body, is a worthy project for someone wanting to restore a school bus, someone wanting an advertising vehicle, someone wanting a good camper conversion basis, or a multitude of other uses. The 1940s Ford truck chassis leaves the field wide open for all kinds of suspension, brake, cooling and powertrain upgrades, the spacious body leaves lots of options for interior design, and its modest 17-foot length makes it reasonably sized for use in today's world.

Despite being rusty, the panels and body skeleton parts can all be made easily, the seller has extra dash gauges, the straight-six engine turns over, and most parts are easily available between the Ford aftermarket, the multi-stop truck aftermarket and the huge number of Vanette-bodied Fords still rotting in junkyards.

Find it here for $2500 in Santa Cruz, California

Please Save Me: 1955-56 Powell Sport Wagon Pickup Truck

The Powell Sport Wagon was one of the most unusual post-WWII independent-make American vehicles. The use of remanufactured 1940-41 Plymouth car chassis, Plymouth, Dodge, Chrysler Industrial or war-surplus Dodge military flathead six engines and parts-bin sourcing elsewhere was odd, but made for a very serviceable, dependable and inexpensive to build light truck. 

This truck looks to have lots of surface rust, quite a bit of denting, missing glass and most trim missing, but all the Powell-specific bits other than the front badge and grille bar supports are there, and all the missing Powell-specific stuff can be gotten or helped with through the Powell Registry, which the buyer of this truck should join. Some items are off-the-shelf pieces like 1942-47 Ford truck headlight rings, utility trailer lighting for taillights & turn signals, 1950 Ford 4-door sedan rear-door trim strips for the grille bar chrome, 1940-41 Plymouth or Kaiser Henry-J steering wheels and 1940-41 Plymouth instruments, eBay will be the best place to find those. Using auto parts store-derived license plate mounting & lighting pieces will not be frowned upon, and in fact may well be accurate.

Here is an excellent article on the Powell.

Find this Powell here, near Seneca, Missouri, for $950 (or go here if ad disappears)

This Powell has no title, but will legally have to be sold on a bill of sale, so either a lost-title application with the Missouri DMV, or going through Broadway Title are your best ways to get a title.

Rare Finds: Two Goliath Expresses in One Day

First off, we have a 1959 Goliath Express panel van for $15,999 USD in Los Angeles with no other info given.

Second offering is a 1960 Goliath Express 22-window minibus, one of 3 known to exist according to the Goliath registry. It is incomplete and weathered, but a worthy project, and like the panel van above, likely to be more interesting to Europeans than Americans.

Find it here for $22,500 USD or trade in Ventura, California

As for why Insomniac Garage has posted these high-priced vans, they are extremely scarce everywhere, and a European collector or enthusiast is likely to pay full price for one or both of these vans.

1966 Land Speed Racer Project

This one-off land speed racer is a definite project, and has a later engine than the date of build (appears to have a Fiat 1800cc Lampredi twincam connected to an unknown transmission), details are scanty, but a period pic is provided, all parts are present other than the driveshaft (but some are not shown), and the seller says it won trophies. Finding this car's history would be interesting.

Find it here for $5000 or best offer/possible trade, in Riverside, California

British Oddball: 1958 Ford Thames Forward-Control 15cwt Minibus Project

This rare cousin of the American Econoline has been hacked up, but it appears rust-free and would make a good project van for a Euro Ford or British car enthusiast. But the paint job, Malaise Era Chevy truck side mirrors, spare tire mount and wheels have to go regardless. Has no title, but a bill of sale at the DMV outside of California, a lost title search, or going through Broadway Title would rectify that.

Find it here in Riverside, California for $3500 or best offer

Early 60s Fiat 2100 Station Wagon Project

This Fiat 2100 station wagon needs a complete restoration, has some rust and body damage, is largely complete, but it does not come with the vintage Oregon plates seen on it and it is being sold on a lost-title form and bill of sale.

This is an ambitious project, or use it as a parts car for another 2100.

Find it here for $750 south of Portland, Oregon

Please Save Me: 1940 Pontiac Hearse Basketcase Project

This rare prewar professional car project (in as-purchased condition in pics, now disassembled and stored inside), needs a lot of tender loving care, but with the rarity of prewar, non-Cadillac/Packard funeral coaches and the availability of stock '40 Pontiac trim, wheels, bumpers, engine and transmission as cast-offs from rodders or through junkyards, it is definitely worth restoring. Its elegant lines and curves are even more compelling. The coach has no engine, transmission, front bumper and possibly other missing bits, but it would be a great project.

Find it here in Veneta, Oregon with "make offer" as price, and here are some great professional car forums for the prospective buyer-restorer of this beautiful machine.

Found on Craigslist: 1949 Cadillac Pickup

I don't usually go wild over cars that have been hacked into pickup trucks, and Cadillacs modified to serve as trucks tend to be funeral flower cars. Not so with this one. It's a 1949 Caddy that was given a 1954 Chevy truck cargo box and the rear of the cab from a early 1955 GMC. It doesn't look like a complete hackjob either, and the work was done when the car was only 10 years old. The whole package really is kind of intriguing.

Photos courtesy seller - Craigslist

The question now is, is this Cowboy Cadillac worth the stratospheric $25,000 the seller is asking? You get a very unique, unrestored classic Frankenstein project. You can find it here if you always wanted a 1949 Escalade EXT, or go here if the ad expires.

SCCA Rarity: 1981 Plymouth Horizon TC3 Race Car

This 1981 Plymouth TC3 was built in 1984 for the Sports Car Club of America's Improved Touring B (ITB) class and won numerous regional championships in Colorado and New Mexico into the 1990s, then was put into storage. Owner has done lots of work, has numerous parts, log books and documentation, has done lots of work, and even says the car could be returned to street-legal (which is a big deal considering the rising values of Malaise Era cars)

Find the car here in New Mexico for $3000, (or go here if ad disappears)

Please Save Me: 1960 Bedford CA Dormobile Project

Bedford CA vans are a rare sight in North America, but here is the very rare Martin Walter Dormobile camper conversion in need of restoration. It has a decent body for a rust-belt vehicle, but needs a total restoration, is missing its bumpers and other things, needs a new pop-top fiberglass piece & canopy made, and the upside is that parts are easy to find in the UK and even service for the camper conversion parts can be had or assisted with via the UK.

It will be a tough project, and it is smaller than a VW bus, but this will be a great way to enjoy the 24 Hours of LeMons, ChumpCar, local oval-track, vintage races, or other auto races, in comfort, if there is a place to park it, and would make an ideal swap-meet rig.

Find it here in Mohawk, New York for $2000 USD or offer, despite the eBay category it's in, there are ways to title it, or alternatively it could be broken up to save other CAs and Dormobiles.

Forbidden Fruit: 1965 Piaggio Ape Project in Canada

The Piaggio Ape (pronounced ah-pay), made by the company most famous for the Vespa scooter, is not well-known in North America, but is ubiquitous in the Mediterranean and the Third World as an inexpensive working vehicle. This Ape has an unknown streamliner cargo bed and has been stored for many years, but is a great project, and can be imported to the US easily. Parts may be tricky (as with many other interesting vehicles), but eBay is a great source, and this enthusiast website is a great source of info on these interesting microtrucks. 

An advantage that the Ape has over a kei truck is that in places where all kei trucks regardless of model year are illegal, the Ape isn't, since it is legally considered a motorcycle. Most states also do not require a motorcycle endorsement for three-wheelers. 

Daihatsu Midget fans in states that say no to kei trucks, the Piaggio Ape (especially in closed-cab form) is for you!

Find it here for $1000 CDN in Coquitlam, British Columbia (or go here if ad disappears)

Project For The Brave: Hurricane Sandy Casualty 1989 Aston Martin Lagonda

(all pics from seller)

This ultra-rare 1989 Aston Martin Lagonda appears to be a casualty of Hurricane Sandy and is said in this Hooniverse article to be the last car imported to the US and a former Greenwich Concours entrant.

Considering the rarity and beauty of the car, it may be worth bringing back to life by a devotee of the marque, but is probably best suited to be a parts car. If one could get it cheap enough and import a tatty or wrecked running Lagonda from overseas as a donor, then it would be a great project, but in any case but parting out, deep pockets will be necessary. 

If the Insomniac Garage staff and their friends were to rebuild this car, then all of the digital dash components, wiring and electrical/electronic parts would be swapped out for items used in the street rod aftermarket, the interior retrimmed in an approximation of the original by a Mexican upholstery shop, the most likely hydrolocked engine/transmission swapped out for a Roush-equipped Ford "Coyote" V8 and a Lincoln Town Car automatic transmission, and all of the rust damage treated with POR15. 

Find this car here at Insurance Auto Auctions, with sale date to be announced.