? What should I expect to pay for a decent driver in SoCal ?

[KaptKaos]

I've been doing some research in anticipation of buying an '02 (non-tii). I review CL, evilBay and others regularly checking out the cars and their asking prices. It "seems" like I should be able to find a mechanically sound driver, with limited rust issues in SoCal around $3500 - $4,000. Likely the car will need cosmetics (interior, paint, etc..) and maybe tires and/or brakes. Does this seem to be reasonable?

Also, I did a check of the completed auctions on eBay for '02s, and noticed something odd. It seems like on eBay there are a few cars that sold for less than $2k and were rough project/parts cars. Then between $2k and $4k there were several cars that sold, and then above that it seemed like there were a lot of "reserve not met" cars. This makes me think a few things. First, are the cars over valued? Second, the number of "drivers" seems to be a small group, should I expect that as I look for a car?

Any insight is appreciated.

TIA

[BarryA]

met" cars - there are always going to be folks with an inflated idea of what their cars are worth, as well as cars being offered for sale by people who are actually buying and selling as a business in some form or another. They usually have overhead to meet and/or need to turn a profit, resulting in higher asking / reserve prices. A good example of the latter are cars being sold in the SF Bay area by Evan Esterman (think I've got the spelling right) - Evan used to operate as Bimmer Bros with a web site offering cars for sale, but seems to offering individual cars one-at-a-time more recently.

Second, there aren't a huge number of '02's around serving as daily drivers (at least if you count them as a fraction of the total vehicle population) so you're not selecting from a universe of several thousand cars (or maybe even several hundred) in the greater LA area. I'd guess that in any given month, there are maybe two-three dozen for sale between Ventura and San Diego that fall between the extremes of parts cars on one end and garage-queen / weekend driver / show cars on the other.

If you haven't already broadened your search to include the BMW CCA Roundel, bimmers.com and Roadfly classifieds, you might want to try those sources as well as checking with some of the SoCal vintage BMW specialists like Jack Fahuna at JF Pro, Rob Torres at 2002 Haus, Peter Sliskovitch (sp?) at Coupe King and Carl Nelson at La Jolla Independent to see if they have customers with cars for sale that might fit your needs.

It's always somewhat of a crap-shoot (not to mention time-consuming), but it doesn't hurt to check Craigslist on a daily basis, either......

[KaptKaos]

Thanks Barry. I will add those resources to my search.

Is my price range reasonable? I have a friend selling a red '02 right now (on CL) and he's asking almost $10k, but that car is in almost show condition. Dual DCOEs, perfect interior, great paint, good seals etc.... I don't want something that "nice" as a DD.

In all honesty, I will platoon the '02 with the 914. So it won't be a DD, but more of a few days-a-week driver

[Anthemavm]

I am looking for a great look 2002 in LA, want to tell me about his car?

[KaptKaos]

I am looking for a great look 2002 in LA, want to tell me about his car?

I can't send you a PM on the board, so here is the link:

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/wst/car/642442722.html

[KaptKaos]

Lots of views, not a lot of input. Did I say something wrong?

[Guest Anonymous]

hard to answer, I would think that a decent one would go for a couple grand more than that. with a few dents, parts missing and stuff leaking out of it and smoke coming out yeah 3,500

[jmon0261]

I think $3,500 is pretty reasonable - Just take your time looking and the right car willl show up. I paid $3,500 for my 73 and I was getting a decent car with a lot of nice expensive parts. Of course now I have more than what your buddy is selling his car for, into mine. My goal is to have a nice driver with most of the good update mods for it. My nephew painted it and did a very good job.

If you could get a strong runner, with decent paint, rust free body, with a 5 speed, and some performance upgrades. I think you will be happy. I think to get a good deal on a well set up car you get into the 4-7 k + range.

Good Luck !!

[ray_]

No...

... you should pay what you can bear.

What if you see a car that is selling for $4000 and you think it's worth $3500?

The guy right behind you may have that extra $500 available, so, you then missed it.

Cheers,

Ray

Lots of views, not a lot of input. Did I say something wrong?

[KaptKaos]

I know the 5 speed is a popular upgrade. I don't need that to start, but am comfortable adding it later. I can do a lot of the work myself as well, so some things I can "economize" on.

Thanks for the advice. Anything else I should look for?

[citizenchan]

When I was living down there from 99 - 05, I looked into buying an 02 in 2004.

It was priced at $3000. Chamonix. Had cancer around the sunroof, rockers, and surface rust around the trim.

You'll need to take your time finding a good runner for $3500 down there imo. I wouldn't expect it to be completely sorted out.

[jmon0261]

Here you go Joe-

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/car/645632152.html

[KaptKaos]

Here you go Joe-

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/car/645632152.html

Joseph,

That's exactly what I am looking for too!

I, unfortunately, need to wait until my insurance is sorted out from my smooshed Jetta, but I will keep an eye on this one.

Thanks!

[InkaSteve]

That's exactly what I am looking for too!

I, unfortunately, need to wait until my insurance is sorted out from my smooshed Jetta, but I will keep an eye on this one.

Don't wait too long, that looks like a pretty good driver, pretty good price..

[KaptKaos]

That's exactly what I am looking for too!

I, unfortunately, need to wait until my insurance is sorted out from my smooshed Jetta, but I will keep an eye on this one.

Don't wait too long, that looks like a pretty good driver, pretty good price..

Tell me about it! It's outta my hands. The insurance companies are squabbling and I am stuck in the middle.