Here’s an update on the SCM collection. Some months ago, I asked your advice as to what we should keep and what we should sell. You were not shy with your suggestions.
This is what has gone: the SAAB Sonett went to an SCMer in Florida and the BMW 633 went to an SCMer in Seattle. John Darack, a longtime SCMer in Massachusetts, had asked for “first dibs” on the Volvo 1800ES if we ever wanted to sell it, so I shot him some pics when it was done, and he snapped it up. (He was looking at a Porsche 356 as well, and his story inspired my June Shifting Gears column.)
I wasn’t actively marketing the Lotus, but I got a call from an SCMer on the East Coast who had been looking for one. I described ours, and he said, “I’ll take it.” In some ways the Lotus was my favorite car, primarily because it simply never gave me any grief. (After all, it is a Toyota with a plastic body). But I rationalized that of all my cars, it was a “commodity” — if you do a search for Lotus Elise, plenty of them come up for sale. And selling it released funds to finish the Giulietta Sprint, and to put another car in our garage — more about that below.
Buy Our Rangie!
The next vehicle to go will be the 1989 Range Rover Classic. It’s a terrific rig with good history, visually excellent and mechanically superb. 1989 is a special year for these: the last year of the exposed door hinges and the first year of the 3.9 liter engine. It was also the last year before airbags, electronics and air suspension all came, and not to good effect. It has an ARB front bumper, a metal timing gear replacing the trouble-prone fiber one, a 2-inch lift kit, rebuilt suspension with Bilsteins, ARB rock sliders that also work as steps, seat heaters, Disco cupholders, upgraded stereo, nearly new BF Goodrich All-Terrain tires, CB radio and more. At 160,000 miles, it is running strong.
We bought the Rangie from an SCMer in Los Angeles two years ago, and it has been a fantastic family hauler, off-road and on. But we are going to focus on using the D90 for off-road, so the Rangie can go. We’re asking $7,500 obo. Contact me here for more information. See the gallery below for more Range Rover photos.
Sell Us Your Alfa Super!
It’s not possible for me to sell all these cars and not buy something, and I’ve landed on the family car of my dreams: an Alfa Romeo Giulia Super. Sharing mechanicals with the GTV and the Duetto, they offer crisp handling with the bonus of a usable back seat.
This past weekend, guru Bill Gillham loaned us “Hooligan,” the Super he has owned for 27 years and put 350,000 miles on. I took the family to the Blossom Festival in Hood River, OR and I got unanimous thumbs up from Wendie and nearly-6-year-old Bradley concerning its comfort and fun factor.
I’m looking for a good driver with no apparent issues, not a show car. If you’ve got something, contact me directly.
What We Have Now
So what’s left in the SCM / ACC garage? The 1964 Nova wagon, the 1957 Isetta, the 1972 BMW 2002 tii, the 1967 Alfa GTV, the 1965 Alfa Giulia Spider Veloce, the 1958 Alfa Giulietta Sprint and the 2000 Porsche Boxster S. Oh, and don’t forget the 1984 Land Rover D90 200tdi.
Should more cars be for sale? Or have we right-sized enough? Let me know in the comments below, and let’s get the Rangie gone and a Super here.
KM
