It seems like every kid wants to be a social media personality. Before that, every kid wanted to be an actor, and before that, every kid wanted to be a rock star. Fame, fortune, trashed hotel rooms, exotic cars, and cushy residuals … the high life of days gone by was more than just a name in lights, it was a dream. A dream somewhat lampooned by Joe Walsh in “Life’s Been Good,” even if Walsh seemed to have his own tendencies. What does this have to do with cars? Well, the song mentions two, and now it’s time to see which one’s best.
Like many aging rock stars, some Maseratis and limousines from the ’70s have seen time take its toll. Shiny paintwork weathers, gleaming chrome tarnishes, deferred maintenance piles up, you know the drill. [Ed note: to his credit, Sammy Hagar kept this particular Ferrari in tip-top shape – Pete] However, when I found a questionable example of each up for sale locally on Facebook Marketplace, I knew what I had to do.
Admittedly, yesterday’s cars were ones you’d more likely have seen at the record company office than parked out front of an A-list rockstar’s mansion. A Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham D’Elegance and a Dodge Colt, two very different ways of living life in the ’80s.
Unsurprisingly, the torn-up seats and ran-when-parked status of the Colt meant it didn’t stand much of a chance against the monolithic Cadillac. A $4,200 Fleetwood Brougham D’Elegance is both physically and metaphorically a lot of car for the money, especially in black. Splash the cash, get yourself a black coat, white shoes, and a black hat, and you’d look like a certified time bomb. Anyway, Rancid’s the wrong decade for today. Time to truly solve the Joe Walsh conundrum the only way we know how around here.
1973 Maserati Indy – $20,000 Canadian
Engine/drivetrain: 4.9-liter V8, three-speed automatic, rear-wheel-drive.
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Odometer reading: 30,000 miles.
Operational status: Who knows?
Right, time for the first side of the equation, a Maserati. Not a boxy Biturbo or an early Quattroporte with the wretched DuoSelect gearbox either, a proper classic with styling by Vignale. In 1969, Maserati launched the Indy, named after its success in the 1939 and 1940 Indy 500. With two-plus-two packaging, a V8 up front, and sharp looks, it was a serious continent crusher for runs from Bern to Monaco.
Of the roughly 1,104 Maserati Indys made between 1968 and 1975, only about 900 came with this, the full-fat 4.9-liter V8. Pumping out 320 horsepower, it could propel this big grand tourer to a top speed of 165 mph, heady stuff for the early 1970s. Mind you, this particular Indy is equipped with the three-speed BorgWarner automatic transmission, and if that doesn’t temper your expectations, just look at the barn find state of this thing. There’s no mention of whether it runs or drives, but judging by the deflated tires and missing gear selector, it probably doesn’t do anything close to 185 at the moment.
Rust? Check. Dents? Check. A slightly complex high-pressure braking system from Citroën and an interior in need of complete restoration? Check and check. Look, there’s a reason why a nice Maserati Indy goes for between $40,000 and $90,000, while this one’s listed for $20,000 Canadian. You’re going to need to put some serious work in. Still, if you’re exceptionally skilled in the garage, this is a gorgeous ’70s Italian grand tourer you might be able to afford.
1972 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow 10-Passenger Limousine – $19,995
Engine/drivetrain: 6.75-liter V8, three-speed automatic, rear-wheel-drive.
Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Odometer reading:
Operational status: It runs.
Then again, maybe you want to own a limo and ride in the back? Well, this 1972 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow is certainly classier than a stretched Hummer or Town Car. We’re talking about Rolls-Royce’s first unibody car, a machine that sold in the tens of thousands over its long 15-year production run, elongated like Laffy Taffy.
Measuring an incredible 24 feet long with a wheelbase the size of Delaware, the seller claims this Silver Shadow is truly one-of-a-kind. We’re talking dual moonroofs, gold trim, a full Sony audiovisual system, the works. Sure, the 220-horsepower 6.75-liter V8 probably won’t make for brisk progress, but this machine will certainly make a statement. What’s more, the seller claims it’s recently received new points and rebuilt carburetors. It’s always nice when a project fires right up.
So, what needs to be done to get this ship-sized Roller in fighting shape? Well, some bodywork and trim repair is needed, but the biggest obvious issue seems to be the state of that interior. Some of the leather is looking pretty haggard, but the seller is including 10 yards of faux-alligator with the sale. Not real alligator, that’s cruel. That being said, the low resolution of the photos in the ad make it hard to judge just how much bodywork is necessary.
So, which side of the “Life’s Been Good” spectrum do you stand on? Would you rather restore the rare Maserati or ride around town in a Rolls-Royce limousine?
Top graphic images: Facebook Marketplace sellers
There are some good (and terrible) cars in the background of that Maserati ad.
There’s what appears to be one of the many Meyers Manx clones.
There’s also a rebody kit on a 90’s-00’s F-body that looks absolutely hideous (yeah, the taxi yellow one).
The good news is that both of these make the TTC Subway look the better option, even at full-tilt Saturday night vomit comet level.
Look Toronto residents, I know you’re probably underwater on your mortgage and desperately need the money, but both of these have at least one too many digits in the price.
Raccoon bachelorette party in the Rolls!
Two cars, three high-pressure engine-powered braking systems. LHM’s nicer than brake fluid, so Maserati.
Its less then 15k in real money. That somehow makes it better. The Maserati is interesting but the rolls not that I would want to deal with any part of it but could probably do a killing on weddings and proms. The regular ones are hard enough to modify into something that can be used as a car so I can only imagine the money and headaches that would cost. Plus you can find a regular one for under $5k. Photographers are saying AI is killing their business but I bet 10 years ago a photographer might have thought long and hard about using the rolls as prop.
Both of these cars are worthless shit piles! ????
I am assuming a universe where time and money are irrelevant, but I have to pick one.
I would chose the Maserati because I would at least enjoy the fruits of my labor.
10 yards of faux alligator? That’s like trying to sell a car on 4 bald tires by saying “I’m including a bucket full of rubber“ and expecting that to be a plus.
Agree. Still, that’s the most valuable component.
I’d rather have a Maserati as a project that I never get to than that nasty Roller.
Yeah the Maserati will be nicer to look at on blocks in my backyard while I search for some replacement part that was produced in the dozens in 1972.
Plus I feel like if I told car people I have a Maserati, but it is broken down, they’ll just nod in understanding. The Rolls might be expected to be operational.
Do they not know how to take care of cars in Toronto? I am not tempted in the slightest by either one of these. Although the little Sony TV in the back is kind of fun.
Look, there’s a reason why a nice Maserati Indy goes for between $40,000 and $90,000
That’s a coincidence, because this car will need $40,000 to $90,000 in restoration.
I chose the Maser anyway..
If the question was “would you rather take either of these OR a urine-soaked, bed bug-infested mattress” I’d ask what size is the mattress.
I really like limos and I really like an old Rolls, but this Roached Royce is Grand Canyon levels of crack in the pipe. Not that the Maser is much better, but I’m ignoring the tariffs and going with the $14,500 price as a way to say that saving $5K is the best anyone could hope for in this motley matchup.
At this price and in the condition these are in both are a big nope. Since that’s not the game I picked the Maserati because if they were both in good shape it would be a hell of a lot more fun.
I appreciate that you play the game as well..
A garage sale unicycle priced at $30,000 would be more practical and economical than either of these.
I very rarely do this, but fucking neither of them. Especially not the 20 grand Maserati-shaped pile of rust and mouse droppings.
HA!!! This is the neitherest neither that’s ever been neithered.
I guess I’ll spend my fake internet money on the Roller, but holy hell!
These are both junk.
Jeeeeeesus….. no way you’re getting $20k of scrap metal from either of those, but you’d get more at the junkyard for the Rolls, so I went with that. Honestly, though, neither is worth more than $500.
Faux alligator in a Rolls… international crime against style.
Rolls could make a good RV….
You couldn’t give me either of those!
Same as yesterday – I wouldn’t touch either of these with your 10 foot pole.
Either of these make yesterday’s options feel like a great deal
The Maser seller describing it as “about 95% complete” (maybe 95% completely gone?) had me voting Rolls, but honestly neither.
I think a better poll would be “which one would you pick if they were free and came with $20K in the glovebox?”
I’d do the rolls, based on the assumption it’s got more metal to scrap.
If you’re lucky, at least you’ll have a GM 3 speed auto box someone might want…
IF the limo starts then game on. I regularly see a white limo with Jamaican flags on the front fenders driving near my neighborhood, I am not sure what the owners deal is, or what he is always doing at the local library, but maybe I can use the Rolls to befriend him.