Help me destroy a junk car and my electoral opponents!

January 31, 2006 2:04 PM

Help me destroy a junk car and my electoral opponents! (Well, actually, I just need help to obtain the car... we can handle destruction...)

A group of friends and I will very soon be campaigning for student government offices at a large state university. We managed to reserve a plaza on campus for the duration of the campaign, and this plaza is often used for "car bashing" -- bringing in an old car and letting people take turns at it with a sledgehammer.

We were thinking this might be something we could use to let people get out their frustrations with our useless SGA as well as get our name out in public. Problem is, we don't know how to get a junk car or how much it costs.

So I ask MeFi: Is there somewhere -- preferably in Northeast Georgia/Western South Carolina/Metro Atlanta (USA) -- that will sell me a cheap junk car that I can get delivered in under two weeks?

Failing that, any general tips on how to win a student election campaign would be appreciated.

posted by SuperNova to grab bag (14 comments total)

There is a $500 geo prism on the Atlanta Craigslist at the moment.
posted by b1tr0t at 2:26 PM on January 31, 2006

I'd suggest picking up the phone book and working your way down the list of local tow companies. You could certainly check out the local city auction of impounded cars, however then you'll still have to pay to get it to you. A tow shop will have picked up derelict cars from apartment complexes etc that they have contracts with and have the equipment to bring it to you (and haul it off). If you can be considered a part of the university then donating it and the service to you could be tax-deductable for them.
posted by phearlez at 2:26 PM on January 31, 2006

Have you considered the insurance implications of giving people a sledgehammer and letting them hit things with it? I realize this answer is not strictly within the scope of your question, but it probably should be.
posted by Kickstart70 at 2:58 PM on January 31, 2006

Whenever we needed a car to bash when I was in college, we went to the nearest junk yard and bought one that didn't have an engine in it for fairly cheap. All junk yards have cars that are rusted out and pretty much useless to them that they would like to get rid of for a bit of cash. Might be better than buying a car that could be fixed and used again only to send it to a junk yard all beat up useless.
posted by Orb at 3:13 PM on January 31, 2006

If you want junk, go to a junk yard.
posted by delmoi at 3:22 PM on January 31, 2006

might want to talk with the university maintenance services as well - someone will have to clean up all the junk once the bashing's over, no?

get your permits before you start bashing anything with gasoline or oil in it.
posted by seawallrunner at 3:35 PM on January 31, 2006

Most areas, there is a point at which cars are worth less than the cost to get rid of them. (Hence cars are sometimes simply abandoned).
So - it might even be possible for someone to pay you to take a car off their hands, but don't forget to find out how much disposal afterwards will cost. Around here I think it's around $200.
posted by -harlequin- at 3:40 PM on January 31, 2006

You don't need car bashing, you need marketing, and votes.

Remember, the whole point of having people pound the car is to get them to remember to vote for you. Sure, some folks might vote for you because of the car-pounding--but consider this: a whole lot of other voters might remember, "Those were the assholes making all that racket during my exam."

You might want to consider a different approach. Perhaps use the money toward a pizza-and-soda giveaway, and print up tshirts with your catchy campaign slogan, like "The flood of change is coming--vote Noah!"
posted by fandango_matt at 4:22 PM on January 31, 2006

Yea, junk yard, but I think they are mostly called "auto recyclers" now.
posted by snsranch at 4:58 PM on January 31, 2006

Or auto salvage.
posted by 6550 at 5:30 PM on January 31, 2006

Thanks for the answers so far. As far as insurance/cleanup type stuff, as I said, this happens quite a bit at our location, so there are policies in place to deal with that.

fandango_matt, thanks for your answer. We figured a car bash would be different from the others, but then so would a pizza giveaway (or anything other than BS flyers). I guess part of asking this is to see just how much it would cost to do the car thing -- if it's out of our range, we'll definitely consider spending the money elsewhere. Also, thanks for the slogan idea!
posted by SuperNova at 7:24 PM on January 31, 2006

Been there, done that. Some tips:
1. Don't tell AAA the car is sans engine. The tow truck guy won't care.
2. The tow guy WILL care if the registration is expired or if the plates are missing. In that case you'll need a flatbed. (California).
3. Kitty litter. Lots of kitty litter. Take photos of the area before and after. A thorough cleanup will get you lots of leniency in front of a judge.
4. Bleeding cars attract kids with zippos. Kick their ass.
posted by ryanrs at 7:30 PM on January 31, 2006

P.S. Post-destruction disposal was about $150. Quote of the day occured when the junkyard tow driver called his boss to explain the condition of the car. "This car is trashed! I can't put it in neutral, the doors are in the way... No, the doors inside the car... Yeah, on the front seat."
posted by ryanrs at 7:46 PM on January 31, 2006

You can get rid of the junk car for free with junkmycar.com. I bought a car for the minimum bid at a police auction for $50. A lot of cars sold for that, but the cars were junk and they had a salvage title...plus you had to tow it yourself. I towed it with a rental tow bar from u-haul.
posted by gearspring at 8:14 PM on January 31, 2006