Madman's Shed of the Week

[Madman]

11-17 May 2008:

One owner wonder.



As you may recall, the SOTW from three weeks ago was a 1999 VW Jetta Wolfsburg Edition, one of the last MK III Jettas made before the mid-year switch to the MK IV model.  Well low and behold, I've found another 1999 MK III that looks clean as a whistle and going for peanuts.

It's a 1999 Jetta III (Vento) GL 2.0 8 valve (115 horsepower) Automatic in black with 130,747 miles.  Kit includes keyless entry with alarm, tilt steering wheel, powered central locking, power windows and new tyres!  Sure, it's a relatively basic Jetta but at least it is a genuine one-owner car.  I'm not sure if the single owner was indeed a little old lady who only drove it to church on Sunday but I can dream, can't I?

A local purveyor of all things shed related has this one on offer for $2,900.


Cheers,
Madman of the People

[MrH]

I had to do it for a couple of years with our Cutlass Cruiser.  The novelty wears off very quickly and then turns into car sickness.  It's not that cool.

No new "real" wagons today outside of Audis and MBs have them in the US. 

What Audi wagon has rear facing seats?

[CJ]

11-17 May 2008:

One owner wonder.




As you may recall, the SOTW from three weeks ago was a 1999 VW Jetta Wolfsburg Edition, one of the last MK III Jettas made before the mid-year switch to the MK IV model.  Well low and behold, I've found another 1999 MK III that looks clean as a whistle and going for peanuts.

It's a 1999 Jetta III (Vento) GL 2.0 8 valve (115 horsepower) Automatic in black with 130,747 miles.  Kit includes keyless entry with alarm, tilt steering wheel, powered central locking, power windows and new tyres!  Sure, it's a relatively basic Jetta but at least it is a genuine one-owner car.  I'm not sure if the single owner was indeed a little old lady who only drove it to church on Sunday but I can dream, can't I?

A local purveyor of all things shed related has this one on offer for $2,900.


Cheers,
Madman of the People

I just detailed a 1998 Jetta just like that one today.  I ran out of clay bars and didn't get to do that today.

[Madman]

18-24 May 2008:

Back to where it all began.


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For those of you who are new to the SOTW thread, this all began with a BMW 7 Series I found in my local area being offered for little more than change found inside the sofa.  From that point, I decided to make a weekly showcase featuring the most promising looking "shed" I could find that particular week.  Over the last few months, I've uncovered a huge variety of vehicles, most of which suit my somewhat eclectic tastes.  (The number of Volvos featured here will confirm that!)  Sedans, coupes, convertibles, wagons, roadsters, minivans and SUVs have all, at one time or another, been featured as a Shed of the Week.  We've seen the Sheds range from the good, the bad and the ugly.  Well okay, it's mostly been bad and ugly!

Now the SOTW has come full circle.  Back to where it all started, with a BMW.  Feast your eyes upon this 1993 BMW 325is 4-speed Automatic Coupe.  Black with tan leather and an equipment list as long as your arm: air-con, alloys, power operated windows, mirrors, locks and seats, cassette stereo, ABS brakes and sunroof.  189,000 miles on the clock and a steal at only $2,999 at a local beater lot.  E36 Coupes don't come any cheaper than this.  Well, not ones that still run, anyway!


Cheers,
Madman of the People

[CALL_911]

Why are all the cars automatics?

[Cookie Monster]

Why are all the cars automatics?

He's an unthusiast.

[Madman]

He's an unthusiast.

No I'm not!  I'm just a cheap bastard who can't find any manuals going for shed money.  I post them when I can find them.  Anyone remember the five-speed Toyota Previa?  I must have unearthed the only one of those damn things in existence! I sure as hell never seen another one.

Don't worry, manual sheds are on the way.  They can't hide from me forever!


Cheers,
Madman of the People

[Vinsanity]

that black 325 is a pretty good deal. I'd pick it up if I had a reason to

[hotrodalex]

that black 325 is a pretty good deal. I'd pick it up if I had a reason to

I might even pick it up without a reason!

[Madman]

25-31 May 2008:

Supercharged, mid-engine, rear wheel drive. It could only be an exotic sports.....



.....minivan!  Ha-ha, fooled you, didn't I?  Hey, wait, where are you going?  Come back, it's really not THAT bad!  Okay, it's a minivan.  It's not going to stir the soul of the enthusiast lurking inside all of us.  But sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and do the whole practical family-man thing.  And, as minivans go, the Previa is one of the less horrible examples of the species.

Let's start with that supercharged engine.  When Toyota introduced the Previa at the dawn of the 90's, It's 2.4 litre 16 valve four-pot was deemed sufficient enough to do battle with the anemic four cylinder Chryslers of the era.  But then Chrysler upped it's game by shoe-horning a V6 into the Caravan/Voyager twins and Toyota was faced with a bit of a problem.  You see, the Previa's mid-engine layout made fitting a V6 impossible.  Turbocharging wasn't a viable solution either, because the tight confines of the engine bay introduced turbo cooling issues that were too difficult to overcome.  The only solution left was a belt-driven supercharger.  Supercharging bumped horsepower up from 138 to 161 and fuel economy was rated at a still respectable 18 MPG city and 22 MPG highway.  Not bad for a seven passenger family bus.

This 1997 Toyota Previa DX S/C (in beautiful Garnet Red Pearl) comes with air-con, dual air bags, tilt steering wheel, automatic transmission (sorry, Toyota never made a supercharged Previa with a manual) speed-sensitive steering and an AM/FM stereo.  It has 196,000 miles on the odo.

This van listed for $24,878 eleven years ago.  But thanks to the wonders of depreciation, a local beater emporium will sell you this fine example for only $2,900.  They may even knock off a few bucks for the mis-matched wheel covers.


Cheers,
Madman of the People

[the Teuton]

Some say Toyota put the engine in the most inconvenient place imaginable because they knew the van was indestructible.

[Pancor]

Some say Toyota put the engine in the most inconvenient place imaginable because they knew the van was indestructible.

I can't say anything bad about 'em, but what an interesting setup with a shaft running forward to drive the accesories and an engine "hatch" behind the front seats.  Odd for sure!

[CJ]

HOLY CRAP!  BUY IT!

[TBR]

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.jsp?ct=p&car_id=243288873&dealer_id=62483121&car_year=1992&model=740_MODELSCLASS_SERIES&num_records=25&systime=&make2=&start_year=1981&keywordsfyc=&keywordsfyc=&keywordsrep=&keywordsrep=&engine=&certified=&body_code=0&fuel=&awsp=false&search_type=both&distance=500&marketZipError=false&search_lang=en&make=VOLVO&keywords_display=&color=&page_location=findacar%3A%3Aispsearchform&min_price=&drive=&default_sort=priceDESC&max_mileage=&style_flag=1&sort_type=priceDESC&address=75901&advanced=&end_year=2009&doors=&transmission=&max_price=&cardist=116
Thoughts Madman? Anything in particular I should ask about/check in person? And, how expensive would a set of factory hub caps be (those are horrible).

[CJ]

Heh.  I saw that car last week on AutoTrader.  It's dumpy looking with those hubcaps.

[CALL_911]

Heh.  I saw that car last week on AutoTrader.  It's dumpy looking with those hubcaps.

You're only scoffing because you have a 940.

[Madman]

1-7 June 2008:

Probing for a deal on a Ford?



To all of you who are clamouring for a 5-speed manual SOTW, here you go!  Yes, it's Ford's embarrassingly-named Probe.  Thankfully, plans to introduce other variants named after medical instruments (the Mercury Scalpel and the Lincoln Catheter) were never implemented.

Our subject for examination this week, however, appears to be in rude health.  It's a 1996 Ford Probe SE 2.0 Coupe with the aforementioned manual gearbox.  As you may recall, this car was really a Mazda with a Ford badge transplant.  Although I think the Probe looked a bit sportier than the rather lumpen Mazda MX-6 which donated it's organs to Ford.

Okay, I'll quit with the medical puns!

The Mazda-sourced 2.0 litre 16 valve motor was good for 118 horsepower, 26 MPG City and 33 MPG Highway.  It ran on regular unleaded, too.  This one has air-con, some rather tasty three-spoke alloys, rear spoiler, a cavernous cargo hold and split-fold rear seats.  With only 140,000 miles under it's wheels, this Probe appears to be sporty (especially in black, as shown above), economical and practical.  A nearby beater merchant is asking $2,650 for this one.


Cheers,
Madman of the People

[Cookie Monster]

Finally a semi decent shed!

[hotrodalex]

Finally a semi decent shed!

What was wrong with the 3 series from 2 weeks ago?

[Gotta-Qik-C7]

What was wrong with the 3 series from 2 weeks ago?

It was OK also.

[Madman]

8-14 June 2008:

The shed-hunting odyssey continues.


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And what an odyssey it has been!  And what an Odyssey this is!  A 1995 Honda Odyssey LX, to be specific.  In these days of four-buck-a-gallon go-juice, a first generation Odyssey looks like a very shrewd buy.  Four cylinder minivans may be thin on the ground these days, but go back a decade and you were really spoilt for choice.  It's really not fair to call the original Odyssey a minivan, though.  With it's normally-hinged doors and car-like handling, this Odyssey was more of a tall Accord station wagon than the lumbering school bus the Odyssey later became.

This dark grey (or is it blue?) metallic example has the 2.2 litre 16 valve engine (140 horsepower, 20 MPG City and 24 MPG highway, in case you were wondering.) and four speed auto.  Air-con, cruise control, tilt steering wheel, power windows and locks, fabric upholstery, ABS brakes and cassette player were all standard-issue items on this rig.  Oh, and don't forget the fabulously clever third-row "Magic Seat" that folds flat into the floor.

Miles are undisclosed, but Hondas are known to run like clockwork for mega-miles.  Gotta keep an eye on that timing belt, however.  A local dealer wants $2,700 for this one.


Cheers,
Madman of the People

[Cookie Monster]

[hotrodalex]

Those are great for delivering phone books. 

[Madman]

15-21 June 2008:

Overambitious seller meets the real world.



I've been keeping an eye on this one for several weeks now.  It's an absolutely mint 1992 Volkswagen Jetta GL (last of the MK II shape) with 1.8 litre 8 valve engine (105 Horsepower!) and 5 speed manual gearbox.  The teal green paint is in perfect condition, interior looks like brand new and even the original wheel trims are unscratched.  Incredibly, it only has 103,821 on the clock.  This has to be the nicest MK II I've laid eyes on in a VERY long time.

Evidently, the selling dealer seemed to be quite impressed with it, too.  When this car was first listed, he was asking a ridiculous price of $3,995!!!  Either this guy was smoking crack or he seriously thought somebody was going to pay nearly four-large for a 16-year-old Jetta?  I've seen plenty of newer Jettas that looked just as good going for the same money or less.  Well, after a couple of months collecting dust on this dealer's forecourt, reality finally seems to have set in.  They're now asking $2,692 which is still too much, but I think after this car sits unsold for a few more weeks the seller will be willing to come down to a more realistic figure.  Knock another grand off this car and I'll take it.


Cheers,
Madman of the People

[TBR]

I love the look of MKII Jettas. Can you get them as a GLI with the 16V engine?

[Madman]

I love the look of MKII Jettas. Can you get them as a GLI with the 16V engine?

Yes, they made them.




Cheers,
Madman of the People

[Cookie Monster]

IMO MKII was the best looking Jetta made.

Nice find, if it were $2k, I'd love to buy it.

[Madman]

22-28 June 2008:

Don't tell me any Saab stories, just give me the facts.


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Manual gearbox fans, rejoice!  Two weeks in a row I have managed to uncover the coveted transmission of choice for all of us Do-It-Yourself aficionados.  This time, it comes attached to a burgundy red metallic 1996 Saab 900 SE 2.3 litre 16 valve (150 Horsepower).  It has 154,000 miles under it's wheels and everything works as it should.  There's no timing belt on these engines (chain driven cams!) so that's one less maintenance headache to worry about.  Also, the seller says the water pump was replaced last year.  Goodies include power windows and door locks, cruise control, dual airbags, sunroof, air-con, keyless entry, tilt/telescope steering wheel, heated front seats, rear window wiper/demist, ABS brakes, daytime running lights and security alarm.  This drivetrain combo gets a rated 20 MPG City and 28 MPG Highway on regular unleaded.  Seller claims he gets "29+ MPG around town" but this figure seems a bit inflated.

The seller also says there are some small hail dents on the hood/bonnet but claims they aren't very noticeable.  He also mentions a small scrape on the right rear wheelarch but it's not visible in the photos.  Beige cloth interior is in good shape and all services have been done.  Seems to be worth a punt for the price which, by the way, is $2,850 from a private party.


Cheers,
Madman of the People

[the Teuton]

I think that Saab is overpriced, but it's a really nice shed.

[2o6]

Take around $700 off the price, and I'd buy it.