2022-11-28 10:44:21 | pauls writes:

Ebay item 11/28/22

www.ebay.com/itm/185674570195

Opening bid $1,500 no bids buy it now price $4,900, 6 days left in auction, seller santacaferacer 119k miles.

Seller's description:

I picked this car up because the previous owner parked it after it wouldn’t start. She had purchased the car a year earlier in working condition from a seller who clearly maintained it along with all prior owners as the 2 inch thick stack of receipts dating back to 1976 attests. She bought the car because it was “cool” without being a classic car enthusiast in the sense she doesn’t know the inner workings of cars!

I have been able to diagnose the issue in that the two fuel pumps are not getting power. These cars have a circuit connected to the ignition and the tank switch so it’s possible the fault is there. No guarantees! However, the car fires up and runs on starter fluid so it’s definitely a fuel delivery problem. 

I’m getting too old to be wrenching on cars anymore and have down sized to just motorcycles. So it’s up to the next owner to dive into this sold project.

The engine:

I hate fuel injection and was so excited to find a carburetor V12 that has half the plumbing of the later cars. The engine bay is fairly clean and unmolested. Nothing looks rigged. I have the battery on a trickle charger in my garage. The oil looks healthy. I added a bunch of fresh ethanol free gas along with a fuel stabilizer to each tank so that it won’t be necessary to drain stinky old gas down the the road. It’s only been inoperable for around 6 months.

The body:

Very straight car with a small ding on hood (someone closed hood on something I’m guessing). Passenger rear taillight area has a very shallow dent as well. Very hard to capture on the camera. The car has been painted once in its history as some area of overspray are visible under the hood. I couldn’t detect any bondo not to say there isn’t any but there’s always the chance! The floor pans are solid and the rockers ever so slightly show the star of a few bubbles but so much better than many Jaguar I’ve owned in the past. I don’t see them requiring replacement or major work. The worst rust spot on the entire shows up passenger rear door corner sill. A visible pin hole. Paint has flaked off the right rear corner of back window but no holes. The window seals are dry rotted in areas due to our intense dry climate and sunshine. This has causes some headliner separation and stains on both rear roof pillars. The paint has patina but you could definitely drive it as-is until a paint job is in the budget. Oh, and the underside of doors are good!

The interior:

The leather seats are supple and great with no serious wear or tears. The dash has a few splits but I’m including a nice used dash pad that I sourced on eBay. The wood looks great with minimal checking to the clear coat. The previous owner had the heater and air conditioner fan separately wired to an aftermarket switch which is just hanging there. No new holes in the dash. I as wondering if whomever did the work caused the fuel pump circuit to fail. The drivers rear door pull handle has splits in the upholstery. The cabin smells like leather and no cigarette smell inside. All the glass is intact.

Tires and rims seem straight with 50% life left in the rubber.

It’s a worthwhile solid project. You will have to have a way to transport it where the shipper knows they can’t drive it on a trailer. A winch on a trailer is ideal. I picked it up on a uhaul car trailer. Santa Fe is a great destination to combine pick up and a vacation or long weekend! Our ski area is open!