Welcome back to Mercedes’ Marketplace Madness! As you know, I love picking up dirt-cheap cars and motorcycles and then telling you lovely readers about the dumb things that I do with them. Since I’m shopping all of the time, I always have an evolving list of vehicles I want to buy. Here’s what I’ve been obsessed with lately.
Spring is heating up and my fleet is getting thinner. I just sold my trusty Triumph Tiger. I’m also selling one of my Volkswagen Passat TDI wagons and maybe one of my Smart Fortwos. It’s practically a fire sale! I’ll soon be flush with cash from these sales, which means I will be replacing one or more of those vehicles with something new. This week’s list features some rides I’d love to own.
Here’s what I’m looking at this week!
1989 Dodge Shelby Dakota – $12,000
Recently, I said one of the worst vehicles I’ve driven was a 1991 Dodge Dakota. That specific truck remains a low bar in the long list of vehicles that I’ve driven, but perhaps the Dakota deserves another shot. There are Dakotas I do like, from the convertible to this rare collaboration with Shelby.
Carroll Shelby spent much of the 1980s hot-rodding Chrysler products. Famous vehicles from this time include the Dodge Omni Shelby GLHS, the Dodge Daytona Shelby Z, the Shelby Lancer, and the Dodge Shelby Charger Turbo. All of those cars were front-wheel-drive and all of them were awesome in their own right. Shelby got back to hot-rodding a rear-wheel-drive vehicle when his company partnered up again with Dodge, this time for a pickup truck.
Sold for just one year in 1989, the Shelby Dakota took a short bed first-generation Dakota, tossed out the 3.9-liter V6, and shoehorned in a 5.2-liter LA V8. This engine makes 175 HP and 270 lb-ft torque. It reaches 60 mph in about 8.7 seconds, not bad for a pickup from the 1980s. Just 1,500 of these were made and at the time, they were the only way to get a Dakota with a V8. The engine would return two years later in 1991.
This Dodge Shelby Dakota is a survivor with 116,000 miles. It has clearly been used as a daily driver and shows wear like a little bit of rust, some paint fade, and a poor paint repair. With that said, the other Shelby Dakotas for sale are twice the price of this one. It’s $12,000 from the seller in Carmel, Indiana.
2003 BMW M3 Convertible – $12,500
Here’s a car I’ve wanted to own ever since I played the first Need For Speed: Most Wanted. Sure, this is an M3 convertible and not the GTR from the game, but my heart skips a beat whenever I see one of these in real life. I’d choose the convertible so there’s nothing between me, the winds of a cool Midwest day, and that exhaust note. Here’s what BMW has to say about the M3’s origins:
The BMW M3 was not an attempt to produce a sporting flagship for a volume-produced model range; instead it originated from the idea of developing a racing car for motor sport that would also be available in a road-going version. The selected category of racing was Group A production touring cars – as seen in the German Touring Car Championship (DTM) that had succeeded the German Racing Championship (DRM). The Group A regulations stated that for a racing car to be homologated, at least 5,000 road-legal units had to be sold within 12 months.
The E46 M3 was launched in 2000 and is powered by a 3.2-liter S54 straight six making 333 HP and 262 lb-ft torque. That power is punched out to the rear wheels via a manual transmission and is good for a sprint to 60 mpg in about 5 seconds. This example has 144,650 miles but presents in good condition. It’s $12,500 from the seller in Reseda, California.
1971 Honda CB350 – $3,000
I’m happy this motorcycle is out in Delaware. I just sold my Triumph and this green beauty would be in my stable right now if it were closer.
As Old Bike Barn writes, in the 1960s, Honda was perfecting its four-stroke engine design. The 1961 Honda CB77 Superhawk showed the world that Honda’s four-strokes had a combination of sporty performance, easy rideability, and the reliability that Honda is now known for. When the CB350 launched in 1968, it was an evolution of the concept. The new bike was stiffer with bigger brakes and a shorter wheelbase. And the engine? It’s an overhead cam unit that makes 36 HP around 10,500 rpm. Basically, this vintage machine is the epitome of slow-bike-fast all the way back in the 1970s.
The CB360 was a hit, with Honda selling over 300,000 CB350s in a five-year run. Many of these machines are still around today, including this one before us today. This 1971 CB350 has been through a near-total restoration and it shows. It’s $3,000 from the seller in Middletown, Delaware with 8,000 miles.
1997 Lotus Elise S1 – $35,000
The Lotus Elise is revered with car enthusiasts for its pure driving thrill. These look like nothing else and drive like nothing else. The Elise is also known for being a feat of engineering. I’ll let Lotus explain:
It was rightly described as the world’s most advanced sports car when it made its debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 1995. Famously named after a grand-daughter of Romano Artioli, the then chairman of Lotus, it was built on a futuristic epoxy-bonded extruded aluminium chassis. Designed and developed in-house at Lotus, it was a genuine innovation that rewrote the rule book on lightweight automotive engineering.
Power for the Elise came from Rover’s 1.8-litre 118bhp K-Series engine, transversely mounted behind the two seats. Given the car’s exceptionally light weight, it meant a swift 0-60mph time of 5.5 seconds.
The reviews were stellar; this was a new generation of light, agile and pure performance car that thrilled the enthusiastic driver. It racked up numerous trophies, including several ‘Car of the Year’ honours, and was even shortlisted for the Prince of Wales Award for Innovation.
This car was imported from the UK and comes with full service history documentation. The seller says that this example’s Rover 1.8-liter four has been tuned by LAD Motorsport. It’s now making 160 HP, has shocks from an Exige, a close ratio gearbox, and more. It’s $35,000 from the seller in Austin, Texas with 39,400 miles. This is one of the few cars I’ve featured on Mercedes’ Marketplace Madness where the seller lists a timing belt change, which was done at 38,496 miles.
1997 Toyota Caldina GT-T Turbo 4WD – $13,495
This pretty white wagon seems to have almost everything you’d want in a car. There’s a sizable hood scoop, a long roof, a turbocharged engine, and healthy power. What you’re looking at here is the second generation of the Toyota Caldina. This is the Japanese version of the European Toyota Avensis. We didn’t really get either of these cars here in America, but they’re now old enough that you can import them!
The original Caldina made its debut in 1992. Back then, the Caldina was a mid-size wagon and van with a few traits in mind. Toyota touted its “Sophisticated and sporty styling” as well as its largest in-class cabin and luggage space. Toyota also advertised its “Sky Canopy” sunroof, performance, and safety.
In 1997, the top of the Caldina line was the GT-T, which came with a turbocharged 2.0-liter 3S-GTE four making 256 HP. That power goes through a four-speed automatic to all four wheels. As a result, this is a wagon that reaches 60 mph in just 6.5 seconds.
This example is said to be stock, save for a turbo timer. It’s $13,495 from the dealership in Villa Park, Illinois with 88,000 miles.
1962 Chevrolet Corvair Monza – $14,995
David Tracy has successfully convinced me that I need a classic car in my life. As I search Marketplace listings, I keep finding myself gravitating toward Corvairs. The great thing about these is that you can get a decent one for under $10,000 and minty restored examples like this one are still under $20,000. I once wrote a snapshot about its history:
The Chevy Corvair was an innovative compact family car that had a cool trick up its sleeves. Instead of having the engine housed up front like the typical American car of the day, Chevrolet crammed an air-cooled flat-six powerplant in back. An American take on the popular little rear-engined imports from Europe at the time (Volkswagen wasn’t alone), the Corvair had independent suspension, unibody construction, and seemed like the car of the future. It was an instant hit and as Time notes, Chevrolet moved over 26,000 of them in the car’s first two days of sales.
Though it was big compared to genuine imports like, say, the Renault Dauphine, the Corvair was still a pipsqueak by American standards. To prove just how durable the Corvair really was, Chevy sent a trio of Corvairs, a duo of Suburban Carryalls, and a fuel truck on an epic road trip.
That trip saw the family cars traversing roughly 60 miles of treacherous mountainous jungle, swamps, and rivers in the Darién Gap. Three Corvairs entered the Darién Gap assisted by two Suburbans and a fuel truck. The trucks didn’t make it through and one Corvair ran out of fuel. Two mighty Corvairs made it through. Their only modifications were recovery hooks and skid plates. They still rolled on regular street tires!
The Monza is an upscale trim of the Corvair and this one is said to have lived in the desert all of its life. Plus, it has seen a restoration! Power is coming from a 145 cubic-inch flat-six. This is making either 80 HP or 102 HP if it’s the optional unit. It’s $14,995 from Collectors Dream Cars Las Vegas LLC in Boulder City, Nevada with 11,886 miles.
1992 Lamborghini LM002 – Inquire
This pick was inspired by our weekend writer, Rob Spiteri. He wanted me to find a Laforza SUV, but at the time I found exactly zero for sale. Weirdly, I did run into not one, but two of these Lamborghini LM002s for sale, and they might be even better. We even have a reader who has the LM002 right in their username!
Here’s what Lamborghini has to say about its creation:
Born out of the Lamborghini LM 001 project and the previous Cheetah, the Lamborghini LM 002 was the first real off-road vehicle to be unveiled by Automobili Lamborghini at the Geneva Auto Show in 1982. Its production started in 1986.
Despite the considerable weight, the performance of the hefty LM 002 was on par with the supercars which Automobili Lamborghini had accustomed its public to. With its powerful V12 engine and all-wheel drive, the LM 002 could climb a 120% gradient and reached a top speed of 210 km/h, with an acceleration of 0 to 100 in 7.8 seconds.
In its retrospective, Lamborghini takes credit for creating the idea of the high-performance SUV. As Lamborghini notes, the LM002 traces its roots back to its Cheetah project, which was a military vehicle developed with Mobility Technology International that targeted the same role that AM General’s HMMWV would eventually take. The 4,500-pound Cheetah reportedly went as fast as 100 mph with it rear-mounted Chrysler V8 that made 180 HP. Apparently, the rear engine threw off the vehicle’s balance and its design was at the very least inspired by the FMC XR311.
The LM002 rights a number of those wrongs. Located up front is a 5.2-liter V12 right out of the Countach. That’s making 450 HP and 369 lb-ft and pushing it out through all wheels. This super SUV is properly absurd and I’m not surprised that these sell well into the six figures.
This 1992 Lamborghini LM002 is in France with 21,748 miles on its odometer. Reach out to the seller, Absolut Cars Consulting, to find out its price.
1961 Lloyd LP – $20,658
Here’s a vintage tiny car from a brand you may have never heard of. Of course, if it’s an old and quirky car, chances are our friends at the Lane Motor Museum know about it. Lloyd is no exception:
The origins of Germany’s Lloyd go back to 1906. Norddeutsche Automobil und Motoren GmbH (North German Automobile and Engines) was a German automobile manufacturer, created and owned by shipping company, Norddeutsche Lloyd. In 1906 it signed an agreement to build Kriéger-type electric vehicles which were sold under the name Lloyd. In 1908, automobile engineer Joseph Vollmer joined the company and designed their first gas-engine car. The 14/35 PS had a 3685cc 4-cylinder engine, but few were made. In 1914, the company merged with Hansa to become Hansa-Lloyd Werke AG. Most of their cars were sold as Hansa, with the Hansa-Lloyd name attached to commercial vehicles only. The company was integrated into the Borgward group after the purchase of Hansa by successful industrialist Carl F. W. Borgward in 1929, and Lloyd was dropped as a marque.
After WWII, during the demand for affordable cars, Borgward wanted to expand the range of medium-priced cars being produced.
In the years before the Lloyd 600, the company’s vehicles featured bodies of plywood draped in vinyl-covered fabric. This saved money and resources as steel was in short supply after the war. Other cost-cutting measures included sliding windows. The Lloyd 600 was built with metal body panels and power comes from a 596cc two-cylinder making 23 HP paired with a manual transmission.
This 1961 Lloyd LP is fully restored. It’s $20,658 from Gassmann GmbH in Germany.
2008 Dodge Magnum Daytona 392 Swap – $11,000
The Dodge Magnum came from a fun time of experimentation from Chrysler, and it’s a vehicle from that time that remains tantalizing today. Riding on the LX platform, the Magnum had a sibling with the Chrysler 300 and later, the Dodge Charger. The top-of-the-line Magnum was the SRT8, which came with a 6.1-liter Hemi V8 pumping out 425 HP.
Perhaps the only thing that made the Magnum less appealing was the interior filled with the hard plastics of the era. Well, that’s where this Magnum comes in. Someone went through the work to swap over the powertrain and interior of a Dodge Charger Daytona 392. That means this Magnum has the same glorious long roof, but a more modern interior. Check it out:
The swap also means 485 HP and 475 lb-ft torque on tap from a 6.4-liter V8, better than even the Magnum SRT8. The seller states everything works as it should from the backup camera to the launch control system. So, think of it as a modern Charger in a Magnum suit.
It’s $11,000 from the seller in Detroit, Michigan with 66,613 miles. What a Detroit hotrod!
That’s it for this week, thank you for reading!
The Corvair is definitely the one pre-’00s American car I’d consider buying. Just a very cool time capsule, if it weren’t for all the liability suits because they were too cheap to add a sway bar until 1964, maybe we’d have decades of rear engine American cars between the 60s and now.
You had me at Shelby Dakota….
That thing is SWEET!
The 1997 Toyota Caldina GT-T Turbo is really kind of perfect for you as an Autopian and purveyor of weird quirky vehicles. I am mostly drawn to it because of the fact that I have never seen one or even really heard of them, but the the AWD and Hot 260 HP 4 in the nineties is interesting. scary that they mention spun bearings and shattered oil pumps on this engine though on wikipedia. usually that stuff gets removed by the car companies pretty fast.
You probably go with a 67 Corvair convertible. better suspension by then, and the 12V system. also arguably more attractive styling. https://www.countryclassiccars.com/vehicles/303/1967-chevrolet-corvair
CCC had a convertible Dakota sport recently as well. seems like a place you would check out if you had a chance….I say talk David and Torch into a 4 way You Tube Autopian series. You David, torch and Beau get 10K each to buy one car at CCC and drive them from Illinois to California on route 66. if you get one that is under 10K you can spend that on repairs or mods, if you want one that is over the number, you have to pay the difference out of your pocket. in the end a big route 66 party ensues and the cars either become your bonuses for the year or you get to keep the difference from what was spent after the sale. All Youtube profits go to support the Autopian website.
I have a fascination with the postwar German manufacturers that are no longer with us. Lloyd, Borgward, Goliath. Pretty obscure stuff over here, but fascinating.
That Honda 350 looks very nice too. There were a lot of those around when I was a kid, my future brother in law restored one in our basement. Still pretty many around, but they are starting to creep up in price a bit.
A set of 345/60 R 17 Pirelli Scorpion tires for the Lamborghini LM002 will cost over $30,000, so make sure it has good tires!
https://www.longstonetyres.co.uk/classic-car-tyres/lamborghini/lamborghini-lm002/345-60r17-pirelli-scorpion.html
There was a guy that drove one of these to a bar I hung out at in the 80s in NYC, and the thing sounded amazing.
Lloyd! It’s so dang cute.
Lloyd looks like a Pixar Cars car!
Please when you start writing for Autopian??? There is a you shaped hole in this site
AWWWWW. <3
I’ve written here before! I’m the broken one, though. I borked a nerve and then my pinkie got smashed up. Typing with nine fingers stinks, NGL. I need to fix myself up a bit before I throw a bunch of other pitches out there again.
I’d really like that Magnum for my daily – especially with the body being the much more rare, last-year version with the mild face-lift I prefer. I can see why it’s sold already.
The classic I’d want to go with it would be that Corvair. A number of years ago I tried to make a bet with a friend of my dad’s that I could drive nothing but Corvairs for as long as I wanted without issue. He had been trying to tell me (in a very condescending way) that these were rare cars, and you can’t get parts for them anymore, so why would anyone bother trying to keep one around? I disagreed and it turned into the kind of dumb cargument that was mostly to be had in the days before smartphones. I finally said I’d happily buy my first one sometime that week, and drive nothing but Corvairs afterwards for at least a couple of years, but he’d have to pay me $100 for each month I did so. If I drove anything else, I’d pay him $100 for that month. He declined my offer. It’s too bad, I would’ve loved having a Corvair stipend for awhile.
Just for the record, this is the same know-it-all who said I was going to end up spending way more money on electricity for my Volt then I would for gas, so what would be the point? With friends like these…
I am presently shopping for a used car, and that Magnum wagon doesn’t just push my buttons, it sledgehammers them. If it were less than 300 miles from my house, I would be calling the bank this morning.
I’ve always been into Magnums, but never actually wanted one due to the cheap Tupperware interior. So, I 100% get where you’re coming from here.
Yeah, I’m a Magnum owner and that’s a screaming deal. My only concern is what does the underbody look like since it’s a Michigan car. The only thing I would have done is the front end conversion to make it look like the newer Chargers to go with the engine transplant.
I’ve seen the S1 in person and it’s beautiful! One of those in that color hopefully, will be in my garage some day. Unfortunately as I’m prepping for a cross country move, that day is not today.
I have also been considering a proper classic lately, and agree that corvairs are well worth consideration. Especially in convertible!
“Wer den Tod nicht scheut, fährt Lloyd.” That’s approximately means “Those who are not afraid of death drive Lloyd.” but rhymes in German.
That CB350 is be-yootiful. I had a CB360 and always wanted a CB350 for its 360° crank and 70s looks.
That 1961 Lloyd LP is cuter than kitten britches.
That color.
That visor.
It looks like a car that instead of using keys, will only start if the driver is wearing a floral print shirt or dress.
Someone please, import it to a sunny beach town.
That’s where it belongs!
Wow! That 1971 Honda CB350 brings back memories! I dailied one of those exact year year-round in Seattle, rain or shine, for four years. I managed to aquire all of the colored bits to change to a different color at various yard sales, but never did the swap. Great around-town bike, but hand-numbing on a very long ride.I had a crash bar up front and fiberglass saddlebags on back. I dumped it twice, both a low speeds on sandy asphalt, and those safety things saved me. I also made a nylon rain fairing for the front and included a seat cover as part of the kit. Just because I’m here, The throttle cable broke one day on the ride home. I took a piece of string (or shoe lace, can’t remember) and connected each end to the throttle lever running it over the top of the tank. With the string in the palm of my hand I could rotate to contol the throttle on each carb separately or both by pulling up together. Weird ride home.
That Magnum is what it should have been. Also, it’s sort of hilarious that a decade newer interior just bolts right in. People said the LX cars are ancient. Well, if it ain’t broke…
I’m one of the very few that liked the Dodge Magnum. This one even more so. Good work. I remember when every other bike on the road was a CB350. I forgot how pretty they are. Middletown is a scant 1100 miles from me.
As a LaForza owner – just to have it thought of in the company of an LM002 makes me very happy! I love my LaForza and think they are massively underrated. They drive great, are unbelievably overbuilt, and the insane 80s Maserati Quattroporte like interior always makes me smile.
But an LM002 is on another plane altogether. I got to ride in one once and will never ever forget the sound… the low gearing and long pipes made it howl like a tunnel full of superbikes!!
It was crazy and wonderful and perfect.
I lived across the street from the NYC Hells Angels clubhouse on third street , and the LM200 would make them sound like a couple of rental mopeds. Cigarette boats are about the only thing I can think of that sounds like a LM200.
I used to see Malcom Forbes driving his Lamborghini LM002 quite often. Our office was just a few blocks uptown from the Forbes building on Fifth Avenue. It was absolutely striking looking every time I saw it. His yacht, The Highlander, was even more impressive.
Unless the Shelby cred means something to you, this isn’t a particularly good V-8 Dakota. Compromises were made to cram a V-8 into an engine bay that was never designed for it. I’m sure you can get a 2G Dakota with a true factory V-8 for much less in similar condition.
Gosh that Lotus is pretty. British Racing Green with gold wheels is just *chef’s kiss*.
If I had the money…
I thought the same. As soon as I scrolled to that photo, I said to myself, “Self, that is exactly what a sportscar should look like.”
Is it wrong to wish it had a ten top? Because I wish it had a tan top. Still wouldn’t kick it out of the garage for leaking oil, mind you.
I love this Lloyd, looks like something Princes Peach would drive. If it ever gets upgraded to level 5 autonomy, I wont be surprised if it keeps asking me about my day, offering sensible advice and a cup of tea during every trip.
I love the visor on that Lloyd, looks like it’s going to a poker game.
Wow… an LM002 can climb a 120 percent gradient! That makes almost as much sense as the rest of the car.
Think of it as a triangle: 100% is a rise of 1 in a run of 1, i.e. 45°. 120% are about 50°.
54°, to be precise. Which, as someone who works on roofs all day, I can tell you is real fucking steep. The steepest roof I’ve ever worked on was 50°, and that was absolutely brutal.
The CB350 looks really great, and that’s a pretty good price. It would probably be marked $5000 or more if it were for sale at an enthusiast event.
Why did you dump the Tiger?
I’ve decided I want something a bit different, maybe a Triumph Rocket III or a Harley-Davidson VROD.
That’s different all right! Always wanted a Harley XR1200, but a Rocket III would be quite the rocket sled.