Great Cars Available…Get It Before It's Gone. Check the date of the post. If it is a few weeks old, it is probably too late.

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Bug Me: ’66 Volkswagen Type 1 Beetle

VolkswagenIf you have been a reader of Mint2Me for a while, you already know we like rally cars. We created one out of a “grocery gettter” Mercedes-Benz 230S and it continues to perform well on the road and at car shows. On occasion, we think about what our next project might be and it is split between a ’65 Mustang K-Code Notchback and a VW Beetle. So here it is, my friends, the perfect candidate to make a really cool rally car for not a lot of money – a ’66 VW Beetle. VW RallyAnd not just any Beetle, one with service records from the day it left the dealer. The current owner is one of the most talented Ferrari mechanics in the country. He loves it and wishes he could keep it. But alas, priorities force the sale. The paint looks great in pictures but it is acceptable. It is the correct color and you won’t know it isn’t concours-ready covered in mud. 20150616_160757We are telling you, this is the cheapest way to get into any event and have a blast. Mechanically sound with some cool period Empi accessories, you can steal this at $10,000. Maybe a rally car isn’t you thing? Drive it to the station in any weather just like the Doyle Dane Bernbach commercial. Call me like now at (203) 917-2354.20150616_160632

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Sky Blue: ’78 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ40

IMG_6879The Toyota Land Cruiser is one of the few 4-wheel drive trucks coveted by collectors. Patterned after the Jeep and Land Rover 4-wheelers, the Land Cruiser proved that Toyota could produce a tough multi-purpose platform and not just econoboxes. In production for a quarter century, the FJ became the “go to” vehicle in remote areas of the world. In standard form, they are capable of climbing mountains, crossing deserts, and, well, doing just about the impossible. Read More

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Better: ’69 Jaguar XKE OTS

69 Jaguar Series 2  fr

If you prefer a beautiful Jaguar that is easier to live with than an early Jag, the Series II E-types are the cars you should look at. US Government regulations caused the loss of the trademark covered headlamps, forced the repositioning of the tail lights, toggle switches were abandoned and one carburetor. But Jaguar took the opportunity to make it a little bit better while they dealt with the new rules. Therefore the Series II cars were cured of one of the E-types biggest problems and that is overheating. Jaguar enlarged the air intake and installed some cooling fans effectively taking care of the issue.

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Lively One: ’62 Ford Galaxie 500XL Club Victoria, 1 of 1

1962 Ford Galaxie G-Code

Before there were muscle cars, there were cars with muscle; big bruisers with lots of horsepower and lots of sheetmetal. Today’s featured car is one of those big bruisers. In 1960, Ford, trying to catch Chevy in the sales race, introduced an all-new car. The Galaxie versions were the top of the line, and for 1960, it was a model series instead of a sub-series of the Fairlane 500. Ford was responding to Chevy’s Super Sports and supported the big Galaxie with an ad campaign called “the lively ones”. Despite being an all-new car, Ford’s rival still outsold them by 215,000 cars. The 1961 Galaxie was reskinned from the glass house down and lost the distinct look of the 1960 cars. Read More

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Early bird: ’53 Volvo PV444

1953 Volvo PV444

Most of us know about the virtues of the vintage Volvo 544 but this one goes back farther than most of us here in the US are familiar with. I did say most of us because I, a former owner of a ’53 PV444, know more than most. I found mine in the desert outside of Palm Springs, California.

Our PV444 found in the California desert in 1986

Our PV444 found in the California desert in 1986

It was sitting behind a ramshackle house, surrounded by old refrigerators and wood pallets. The tires were flat so the belly was resting on sand for many years. The owner sold it to me for not a lot of money and I gave him explicit instructions. I would send a truck to pick it up and have it transported to the local Volvo dealer to see if they could get it running and prepare it for shipping to New Jersey. Read More

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Giugiaro’s Alfa: ’86 Alfa Romeo GTV6

86 Alfa Romeo GTV6

Motor magazines have quoted the Busso V-6 engine as one of the best sounding engines ever. The British Classic & Sportscar noted it as “The best sounding engine, this side of a Maserati V-8”. If you’ve ever heard one at full chat, it is a very cool sound. We really like these Alfas after years of not really liking the way they look. But the Giugiaro design is now appreciated and has become pretty neat to look at. If you look carefully, you’ll notice some details that were first deployed in the Montreal like the scallops over the headlights and the tail light cluster. Read More

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’67 Mercedes-Benz on a winter test run…

Auto Turismo Sport's Shop on a typical day. A '68 Porsche 911S in the foreground and a Ferrari 275 GTS on the lift. Our Mercedes is is in the background.

Auto Turismo Sport’s Shop on a typical day. A ’68 Porsche 911S in the foreground and a Ferrari 275 GTS on the lift. Our Mercedes is is in the background.

We are getting there. It’s been a long slog getting the Mercedes-Benz 230S roadworthy. It sat for such a long time, the fuel putrefied and fouled the entire fuel system. That meant taking the tank out, boiling and relining it. We double lined the tank and it took over a week to cure. We had plenty to do while we waited. It has been at Mint headquarters for 2 weeks now and we have mounted the Cibie Super Oscars, and made prototypes for some brackets and a center control console. We are spending time getting miles under our belt and making a few repairs in the process. Yesterday, we mounted a new fuel pump from Mercedes-Benz Classic Center – thanks Tom Hanson – and our new sisal cocomats from Cocomats.com – thanks Drew.

 

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How neat is it… : ’72 SAAB Sonett

SAAB Sonett III

A bunch of SAAB engine designers and enthusiasts formed a limited research-and-development team to build a small sports car, with a total budget of only 75,000 kroner. It became known as the Sonett, a name derived from the Swedish phrase Så nätt den är – How neat is it. The Sonett 1 – only six were made. The Sonett II had better success building 258 units. They felt they were limiting the market by using the 2-stroke engine so plans were rushed into play to adapt Ford’s V-4 engine for the next version.  Read More

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SOLD! Recently Serviced: ’79 Ferrari 308 GT4 Sunroof

Ferrari 308 GT4We featured this wonderful Ferrari 10 days ago. The 308 GT4 is a Ferrari model that has been flying under the radar for sometime but recently been recognized as a great buy. To quote Donald Osborne, contributor to Sports Car Market Magazine, “The dynamic qualities become apparent as soon as you drive one. It is a superbly balanced car, with responsive handling, and considering it comes from the mid-1970s, enough power to entertain. The long wheelbase gives the GT4 an excellent ride, and the seats are quite comfortable for long trips.”  Mr. Osborne holds to the theory that when you are looking for that special car, buy the best one you can afford. This Ferrari, at 27,000 miles with a recent service, could be that car. Contact the seller by clicking here.Ferrari 308 GT4

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SOLD! Red Head: ’86 Ferrari Testarossa

Ferrari Testaross

Enzo Ferrari and Sergio Pininfarina were cut from the same cloth. They both enjoyed referring to the styling of their creations using female descriptive terms. In this case Red Head refers to the color of the cam covers on a particular series of engines. The cars those engines were shoved into were forever known as a Ferrari Testarossa. When development began for the successor to the Berlinetta Boxer, Ferrari set out to cure some of the problems they experienced with the mid-engine supercar. The Boxer’s cabin was not a place you wanted to be in on a hot summer day. Read More

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Pennsylvania Survivor: 1968 BMW 1600

It has 40,375 miles on it but the clock doesn’t work anymore so I think we’ll pass. NOT! This is one of the best preserved early BMW 2-doors we’ve encountered since we began posting. frontppOkay, it had 1 repaint in the original Florida Green so it it is not all original but let’s not argue the point and miss this opportunity. It is a fully documented 1600 with great original paperwork, keys you name it, it is original. rearThe veritable little elderly lady’s pride and joy. Read More

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Creased Trousers: 1964 Buick Riviera

64rivierablack01The legendary coachbuilder Sergio Pininfarina said the new Riviera was “one of the most beautiful American cars ever built,” adding that it “marked a very impressive return to simplicity of American car design.” Sir William Lyons, the founder of Jaguar and a respected designer, called it “a very wonderful job.” Raymond Loewy said the Riviera was the best-looking American car. And we credit GM’s Bill Mitchell for the design who humbly said, “I just put the crease in the trousers”. Read More

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SOLD Baby Blue Blitzen Benz: ’67 M-B 230S 4-speed

I love M-B Fintails that is why we have one here at Mint2Me. Why, you might ask, do they refer to this model as Heckflosse or Fintail? Let’s ask Wiki: Mercedes Benz Fintail (GermanHeckflosse) is a nickname given to several Mercedes vehicles produced from 1959 to 1972, which included tail fins for aerodynamic stability. Though never officially designated as such (they were designated Peilstege, marking the end of the car in rear view mirror). The Fintail series replaced the Ponton series.CAClassixFinnieclose This one is a fascinating, totally rust free 2-owner California black license plate Benz. Read More

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SOLD Teutonic Terror: 1972 BMW 2002tii

German / Preferred / 32 Comments

David E. Davis’s seminal BMW 2002 review brought the brand to the attention of American enthusiasts. In it he states unequivocally that the BMW 2002 is “most certainly the best $2850 sedan in the whole cotton-picking world.” The German newspaper Auto Bild called it “the whispering bomb”. And that referred to the 2002 back in 1969. This California Bimmer is a 2002tii. I fear what Auto Bild might have called this one. Okay, I like the color although the interior may be a little too much blue for my taste. But I wouldn’t turn down this one for monochromatic-ness if that is a word. Its got everything including a sunroof (mine didn’t and I missed it) and A/C (a Cali necessity). And if it all works, as it should, this could be the one to catch.

IMG_0327

And this is a fully documented California car with a good amount of paperwork to support continued attention to maintenance and subtle upgrades. The seller states it is a 5-speed and although nice to have on highway cruises, it didn’t come that way. But that, like the blue interior wouldn’t turn me away. Read More