Eye rate this caddy

[Poor King]

Found this one a few states over and the desperation to own one is outweighing my ability to make a sound judgement. It is currently not in running condition due to some issue with the cis. However it does come with everything needed to get it going (as they all say). There is a 4 inch hole on the floor and the full interior is coming along too. The bed is the only thing that looks good for its age but I am starting to worry about the rest of the body.

Asides from these pics, it is a cash-in-hand-at-sight purchase 300 miles from home. Bedcap not included.

 

[RabbitGTI]

Rust and perforation on both B-pillars would make me run away.

 

[kjclow]

With the noticed rust, I'd want pictures of the wheel wells and strut towers. If you're willing to do a frame off restoration, it might be worth it.

 

[Mongler98]

Visually 4/10 paint
Probably needs EVERYTHING to pass any form of an inspection, tires, brakes, exhaust.. suspension..
Not running,
Massive rust issues, including holes in floor...
that right there makes this Scrap value +$100. +$200 if there is a CLEAN non salvage title with good clear car fax.
$400 MAX imo
prepare for hundreds in rust repair and weeks of work.
probably needs an engine swap too...
unless you're looking for a project and you MUST have this... WALK AWAY.

a car this needy of parts is going to cost you at least 3 grand just to get it road worthy, and that's a DIY cost.
you can do so much better with $3 grand.. just saying!

 

[Poor King]

The price is $1200 The rot on the pillars is what stops me from entertaining this one. Seems a bit too heavy and I do not want to do a frame off restoration. My intentions were to stop the rust and patch anything else needed patching and drive it as a parts/ tow vehicle. Maybe swap the 8v out of my Gti at the most.

In a turn of events I am also picking a set of wheels 15 min away from this truck so if I do not end up purchasing it, the trip won't be a total loss I guess.

 

[Mozambiquer]

The price is $1200 The rot on the pillars is what stops me from entertaining this one. Seems a bit too heavy and I do not want to do a frame off restoration. My intentions were to stop the rust and patch anything else needed patching and drive it as a parts/ tow vehicle. Maybe swap the 8v out of my Gti at the most.

In a turn of events I am also picking a set of wheels 15 min away from this truck so if I do not end up purchasing it, the trip won't be a total loss I guess.

Main thing is that there is no frame to do a frame of resto on these. I got one with similar rust damage, and fixed it up to be able to drive it (got the truck for $300 with no floor pans) but it's never been 100% I wish I would have done things differently in hindsight, but I still have the truck, but it pretty much needs a front end swap if i want to fix it correctly. I thought about selling it, but my wife wouldn't hear of it, since it has sentimental value for her, since it's what I drove a courtin', and we took it on our honeymoon with a canoe on top. It's the one in my profile photo, actually that was on our honeymoon.

It'll be a lot of work to fix, and whether it's worth it, that's up to you, but personally I wouldn't pay that much for a rusted out one.

 

[Mongler98]

1200 is "I know what I have bs"
It does not run. It will not pass local inspection with any rust that is that bad, and in that condition.
If it ran and had the floors patched and recent tags still valid... yes maybe a grand in that otherwise condition.
Run away don't walk.
Anyone asking that much is going to be dieing though the teeth to get you to buy it. Assume the engine is totalled at this point unless its able to fire up and get proper compression.

 

[Poor King]

For sure I will walk away if the wheel wells or shock towers show any sign of rust. Here's the difference in our pov regarding the car of the price.

The price for a caddy in the northeast: this one is actually fair for it's condition. Check for yourselves and you'll see that you cannot find one in this condition for $3000 in this corner of the state. I do know of a few in Cali that are in better condition but the price will reflect that factor. I am not looking for a perfect example tbh. I don't care how it looks as long as it gets the job done.

But if you can find a better deal in a 300 mile radius please share the link I will consider it.

 

[Mongler98]

I agree with that. Some cars are worth that to those willing to buy one. But 3 grand can buy you a much nicer car that runs now and needs little to get on the road.

 

[Poor King]

Well I went that route roughly two months ago. They are all located in the Midwest or southern states or california.

To tow or ship will cost $700+ and I don't get to do a thorough check of the full vehicle. The closest running condition pickup on The Samba is in SC.

I had to have parts shipped from Estonia and Canada for my other projects. Being a VW enthusiast is starting to get get real expensive up here.

 

[GlowBugTDI]

That topper tho!! Haha

 

[nokivasara]

Over here that would be considered as nearly rust free ! We have a lot of salt on our roads so rust repair is something any car enthusiast here needs to do, sooner or later. There's probably more rust on it, there always is.
I find the rust on the B pillars strange, never seen that before.
Look at the A-pillars and around the windshield, they tend to rust under the rubber seal and leak straight on to the fuse box.

 

[JELLOWSUBMARINE]

Maybe you could work with the price to accomadate the long tow. Rust free as you can get I would imagine. This would be top dog on east coast when finished. IMHO well worth doing.

Not sure about your diesel but out west (central valley, in Ca.) its cheaper now than reg.

1981 vw caddy tdi swap - cars & trucks - by owner - vehicle...

Firm on price 1981 mk1 Volkswagen rabbit pickup “caddy” 120k miles on chassis with 2003 vw golf tdi 5 speed motor swap 160k -New larger injectors and balanced -New water pump -New belts -Fluid...

sacramento.craigslist.org

 

[Mozambiquer]

Maybe you could work with the price to accomadate the long tow. Rust free as you can get I would imagine. This would be top dog on east coast when finished. IMHO well worth doing.

Not sure about your diesel but out west (central valley, in Ca.) its cheaper now than reg.

1981 vw caddy tdi swap - cars & trucks - by owner - vehicle...

Firm on price 1981 mk1 Volkswagen rabbit pickup “caddy” 120k miles on chassis with 2003 vw golf tdi 5 speed motor swap 160k -New larger injectors and balanced -New water pump -New belts -Fluid...

sacramento.craigslist.org

I saw that one... It's a sweetie!

 

[nwca]

Well I went that route roughly two months ago. They are all located in the Midwest or southern states or california.

To tow or ship will cost $700+ and I don't get to do a thorough check of the full vehicle. The closest running condition pickup on The Samba is in SC.

I had to have parts shipped from Estonia and Canada for my other projects. Being a VW enthusiast is starting to get get real expensive up here.

I hate to sound negative, but, well, You couldn't do worse from pictures only and would only be out $700 more if you had one shipped to you and it came in the same state (rust/not running).

I'd rather get one fairly rust free and pay $1,000 to ship it... I bought a Cabrio that had a TDI swap from Vermont once, sold it due to the rust issues...

 

[jmodge]

I would think You would be farther ahead taking that money and flying to California, if that one isn’t rusty

 

[Poor King]

I crawled about some. Got up and walked back to my car, then drove off. So fast.

The passenger side shock tower was hiding a nasty secret until I poked my finger right through it. The worst part is the sellers knew and they tried to sell me a rolling death trap. Once I said "no" the father and son were chatting about chopping it up and scrapping it (right in front of me smh). I am no longer interested in a rabbit pickup because I have to take heed on more important matters in life. Tbh I was not in the mood to purchase another project, and you guys are correct about purchasing one in running condition from the lower states (if I was still in the market for one).

You get what you pay, truly.

But the trip was not a total waste. I picked up these sexy centras for the A2 GTI from the next town over. These wheels were the main reason I went to CT today. It was a very beautiful day

 

[nwca]

I worked at a plant once that used two 250 hp motors to move air....We had huge ductwork for this which was covered with foam....For some reason one day I put my screw driver in the foam, kept on going. Saved them a LOT of money as it was really close to imploding, but far enough out we could replace it before it did.

We always wondered how that early in life probing would work out later on in life...

 

[Poor King]

So this one happened yesterday. The seller originally bought it for his wife and turned a wrench or two to make it road worthy. The suspension is in top notch condition. Though it looks better in pics than in person namely due to the amount of dents it has. I mean, every panel has some sort of bend or dent. The floors and motor bay however is immaculate. Not even the slightest bit of rust. Looking at the paint im a tad worrisome about the body and I'll know for sure when the home sprayed paint job is stripped off.


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[JELLOWSUBMARINE]

Nice score. Where did such a rust free truck come from on the east coast? I like the bunny.

 

[kjclow]

Looks like a much better find. Hard to believe anything is that clean.

 

[Poor King]

Nice score. Where did such a rust free truck come from on the east coast? I like the bunny.

PA title. Seller mentioned it was sitting in his warehouse for 4 years because his wife did not like smelling like diesel everytime she drove it.

Looks like a much better find. Hard to believe anything is that clean.

Yeah I'm curbing my excitement until I have it stripped to the bare metal. Thinking for now, maybe a full underbody coating and using some type of silicon for all the rubbers.

 

[Poor King]

Thas y I bought a wabbit pickup

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