I’ve been doing my best to stay off Craigslist, as I need to first fix my nine-automobile “problem.” But this morning I had a relapse, and in an attempt to justify making another poor decision, I wondered to myself “If it’s only $500, does that really count as a full car purchase?” There’s some OK cheap stuff on Detroit’s Craigslist, but it’s rusty. So I want to know: How much does $500 buy around the country?
Check it out: a 1984 Oldsmobile Toronado with a running 5.0-liter Oldsmobile V8 engine, and only 100,000 miles on the odometer. Asking price: $400! That’s dirt!
Sure, it’s rusty. And it apparently needs a carb rebuild and a power steering pump, but $400 (OBO!) looks like a deal and a half.
I also found this sweet 1988 Chevy G20 camper van for sale for $200. Yes. Two Hundred Dollars. It apparently has a cracked subframe, but who knows, maybe a few hours with a cheap welder could take care of that. The welder won’t fix the fact that the V8 engine is torn apart, but apparently the seller has all the parts to throw it back together. Whether it’ll run or not isn’t mentioned.
Okay, so maybe this one’s priced appropriately, even if it is a sweet old van.
But check out this Oldsmobile Intrigue for sale on Facebook Marketplace for just $450. Something’s apparently wrong with it, but the seller doesn’t seem to know. The motor runs, and aside from that dinged front end, it looks decent.
As we’ve established earlier this month, Oldsmobile Intrigues can be cool, so maybe this ain’t a bad deal, here.
Oh, and how about this 1989 Jeep Comanche? Sure, it’s two-wheel drive, has no brakes and apparently “Need[s] rust repair bad.” But hey, it’s a dirt cheap Jeep truck—a great winter beater at the very least.
I bet there are much better, less rusty cars out there for under $500. Show me the $500 goodness that your local Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace is tempting you with.