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

Wouldn't You Really Rather Have A Buick?: 1977 Buick Regal Coupe

Details are scant on this listing, and the picture is poor-quality, but if the mechanicals, body, top and interior are any good, here is a great beginner's classic, vintage daily driver or lowrider fodder. The car has a Chevy 350 V8, rebuilt transmission & carburetor and is said to run great.

The A-Special and Colonnade body GM midsize cars from 1973-77 are only now starting to be recognized as classics, and are a great alternative to a modern or semi-modern sedan (Taurus, Camry, Avalon, Passat, Intrepid, Sonata, etc.) for a daily driver if you can put up with rear-wheel-drive, fewer creature comforts, somewhat worse spare-parts availability and lower fuel mileage.

Find it here in Corvallis, Oregon for $2200

Low Price, Low Lights: 1958 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia Coupe

The early Karmann Ghia, known to enthusiasts as a "lowlight", is a scarce find, especially at this price.  It needs an engine and a full restoration, but all of that is easily accomplished due to the abundance of reproduction parts. Being a prairie car, it will have little rust compared to Great Lakes and Northeastern cars, and the car has unknown paperwork (presumably a title) included.

Auction only has 18 hours left at the time of writing, but knowing the eBay Salvage & Parts Cars section and the lowlight Ghia's desirability, it will most likely be relisted.

Find it here in Omaha, Nebraska, on eBay, with bids starting at $1575 USD

Forbidden Fruit: 1990 Mazda Carol Kei Car

This kei car may be the only one of its kind in North America, and at $1750 CDN, with 86,000 kilometers, it seems like a great deal for those who can legally import a 1990 car or who live in Canada. The automatic transmission/660cc engine may make it sluggish however.

Find it here in Vancouver, British Columbia for $1750 CDN

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)

One-Off Oddball: 1966 Chevrolet Corvair Limousine

This car, originally built and stretched by 3 feet in the 1980s, is offered by someone who is trying to clear out their projects. It appears to need side glass, interior work, a paint job, a vinyl top and some body work, the seller appears to be a Corvair enthusiast, and offers to complete the restoration for a new owner at the cost of time and materials. The car runs and drives, but needs the restoration completed.

Accessories for completing the interior can be found here, for a more modern look, or can be found on eBay if one desires a vintage look, and find it here for $1600 in Post Falls, Idaho (go here if ad disappears)

Deal Of The Decade: 1986 Honda CRX Si, $300

This front-yard find is advertised as a 1986 Honda Civic, but eagle-eyed car people will notice that it is a CRX Si (early CRXs were also badged as Civics, much like early Toyota Tercels were also badged as Corollas), and it is rare to find a CRX Si of any kind that has not been riced to death or hooned. This one looks restorable, could use some paintless dent repair, a going-over with a clay bar or compounding/buffing, some badge replacements and most likely interior TLC, it is said to need a cylinder head too, but between being a decent-looking early Si in stock condition and its price range, it is a very good project car. $300 doesn't buy much in the world of cars these days, especially enthusiast cars, but this Si has even more potential than the 1985 Toyota Corolla AE86 project also posted today and needs less work to be a functional car. A buyer's guide to the 1985-87 CRX Si can be found here, and gives an idea of what to expect with this car, and a forum for 80s Hondas can be found here for the lucky buyer of this car.

Find it here in Eugene, Oregon, (or go here if ad disappears)

Malaise Era Mopar: 1976 Dodge Royal Monaco

Those who know our authors' tastes will know that we love Malaise Era cars, and I am a Blues Brothers fan who grew up around a friend of the family's 1975 Dodge Coronet four-door, so I had to post this Monaco. It is a 1976 Royal Monaco with the police speedometer installed but not working (proper wiring included), already has steel wheels, and with the proper paint scheme, vinyl top, hubcap and extra chrome delete, a pushbar made, the woodgrain trim painted to match the interior, regular Monaco badges, and an 8-track stereo installation (check eBay before buying at a wrecking yard or thrift store), this is an excellent Bluesmobile clone project, or just have the dash wiring installed by a specialist, put the rear-view mirror back up and drive as-is.

Those who are interested in building a Bluesmobile have all the reference they need and more here at the Blues Brothers Central Bluesmobile forum, and you can find the car here in Oregon for $1500, (or go here if ad disappears)

Orphan in Need: 1951 Frazer, $750

Normally when one thinks about an "orphan marque" classic car, they think Nash, Hudson, Studebaker or Packard... few people muster up thoughts of a Frazer. The marque was built alongside Kaiser cars by well-known industrialist Henry J. Kaiser, and all cars that he produced were very ordinary in engineering, using parts derived from other companies or that were inherited by Kaiser Industries' purchase of Graham-Paige's vehicle business in 1946.

Frazer was ostensibly a competitor to firmly entrenched favorite higher-end cars such as Packard, Cadillac, Lincoln, Chrysler and Hudson; it also duked it out with imported upstarts like the Citroen 11CV, Rover P4, Jowett Javelin, Sunbeam-Talbot 90 and Mercedes-Benz 170V. 

The company originally had high sales in the years immediately following World War II, but with the other American brands producing a superior car at a similar price, with more attractive styling by 1949, Frazer sales plummeted quickly. Even the elegant taillights that had hints of Cadillac to them, dramatic chromed grille piece and opulent interiors wouldn't save Frazer's bacon, and the marque was quietly withdrawn. Its sister marque Kaiser only lasted a few more years in the US before moving production of Kaiser passenger cars to Argentina.

Few Frazers survived into the 21st century, especially 1951 models, and this very restorable 1951 sedan  can be yours for only $750 in Topeka, Kansas. (go here if page disappears).

Nightmare Project: 60s Daimler Sovereign in Eugene, Oregon

Our first nightmare project is this 1960s Daimler Sovereign in Eugene, Oregon. (go here if page disappears). While the idea of owning a stately British luxury sedan once favored by the Royal Family may seem appealing, the appeal dies once reality slaps you in the face and you realize that this is merely a badge-engineered Jaguar 420, possibly the most boring Jaguar ever made until the XJ40 came along. Suddenly the rare classic you once found appealing becomes appalling.

Engine? No 2.5-liter Daimler hemi V8 under that bonnet, you just get the regular Jaguar XK straight-six, and this car has the wretched Moss 4-speed transmission too. And... this Daimler doesn't run. Cosmetic condition is another big thing, and that Jag lump doesn't matter if you're a red, white and blue-blooded 'murrican who "doesn't want to work on no furrin' motor, just stick a Chebby smallblock in that there car". But look at the car. The paint looks like a $49.99 Earl Scheib special left outdoors for a long time, the front of the car is barked up, there is evidence of bondo and the driver's wheelwell looks like it's got cancer.

Sure, it looks cool, but do you really want to restore and own this?

What could possibly go wrong here?

And that interior... just so shameful. The black rubber dash with only a little bit of wood and Triumph TR250-style gauges is a travesty, the passenger's door panel looks to have been misshapen by water leaks, the Malaise Era fake Nardi steering wheel belongs in a dumpster, and the whole interior is giving off a certain vibe reminiscent of a flood car.

Conclusion? Run away like the devil is chasing you, and don't look back, unless you want to waste the cost of a finished SP250 with chassis stiffeners, reliability upgrades and a factory hardtop on what might have been the worst Daimler ever made.