Help me sell/get rid of my falling-apart 1978 Cadillac DeVille.

February 1, 2006 12:53 PM

I have a 1978 Cadillac DeVille sitting in my driveway. It needs a new starter and rear main seal (so they say). I don't really want it, but want to get rid of it for the most money possible. What should I do?

The car was from my grandpa, who was its only owner. He died, and I inheirited it, and drove it from Virginia to Arkansas last November.

I don't like driving it, as it's super huge, and older than I am.

Also, I'm in the market for a new car, as I have no transportation, and take the bus to work. But having no car at 22 puts a stranglehold on my personal life.

posted by chota to work & money (13 comments total)

You could always advertise it in the Auto Repairables section of your paper. "78 Deville: Needs starter, has oil leak...." etc.

Assuming the body is in nice shape, that car is a great candidate for being "pimped." It'll sell.
posted by peewee at 1:37 PM on February 1, 2006

A running car will sell for at least twice that of a non runner. Don't sweat the seal, it just means it'll leak a bit of oil, but change the starter. If you have any mechanical ability at all you should have no trouble, it's only held on with 3 bolts.
posted by Mitheral at 1:55 PM on February 1, 2006

(caveat: I am unfamiliar with your particular vehicle. ) The starter should be fairly easy to replace. The guys at the auto parts store can fill you in and probably sell you a book on how to do it. The rear main seal could be a royal PITA to replace, depending. Mitheral thinks it is easy, but these things always seem a lot more complicated in practice, especially if you don't do much work on cars. Worse, sometimes major parts need to come out or you need special tools. You might try some engine oil stop leak products first. They go into the oil and purportedly rejuvenate old seals. I have seen them on the shelves but have not tried them. Personally, I would either junk it or sell it as is, unless it is otherwise in very good shape. The years between the mid 70's and the mid to late 80's were GM's nadir for quality. It is a Caddy though.
posted by caddis at 2:22 PM on February 1, 2006

As it is the begining of tax season, I feel compelled to mention that you can often get a tax credit far greater than you'd ever get in cash, for donating the vehicle to a local charity. In many cities there are groups that specialize in accepting junk-cars as tax-deductible offerings.
posted by nomisxid at 2:37 PM on February 1, 2006

Not anymore you can't.
posted by caddis at 2:47 PM on February 1, 2006

To amplify on caddis's comment - while there are still charities that accept cars (google on car donation "Little Rock", perhaps), the tax laws changed recently. The tax benefit now is most likely to be for the actual value of the car itself, not an inflated value as in olden days (aka 2005).

Given you're 22 and taking the bus to work, it's quite possible that you don't even itemize on your federal tax return, in which case a charitable deduction is worth exactly nothing to you.

You might start by posting (no charge!) a for-sale ad on craigslist for Little Rock. Pick a reasonable number ($200? $500? $1000?) and add "or best offer", in case you don't get anyone willing to meet your price. (Don't accept anything less for at least a day or two; then get back to whoever offered less; don't give a someone offering less the "right" to raise his/her bid if someone else offers more.)
posted by WestCoaster at 3:37 PM on February 1, 2006

caddis writes "The rear main seal could be a royal PITA to replace, depending. Mitheral thinks it is easy, but these things always seem a lot more complicated in practice, especially if you don't do much work on cars."

I wasn't saying the main seal is easy (it's a major undertaking), I was saying that anyone buying a 30 year old caddy isn't going to worry about a little oil leak like that caused by a rear main seal. It doesn't effect drivability and therefor isn't worth the trouble of replacing on a car you just want to get rid of for the best price in the most cost effective manner.
posted by Mitheral at 3:39 PM on February 1, 2006

Fix the starter first. If a potential buyer can't start the car, they don't even know if it runs, of what else might be wrong with it. I would think you could get a junkyard or rebuilt starter plenty cheap.
posted by LarryC at 3:51 PM on February 1, 2006

They sell books about fixing cars at autoparts stores for pretty cheap. The starter will be under $100. It's a good idea to have a friend who knows about cars come over and supervise. Or, you could just give him some money to do it. You seriously need to fix the starter before you sell it. If the seal isn't pissing oil, it shouldn't matter much. If the car isn't rusty as hell and the interior is in decent shape, I'd clean the car up, armor-all it, shine the wheels (think "ghetto fabulous"), and slap $1000 - 1500 obo on it. But it needs to run. Honestly, there are a lot of people who like that era of car, and if it runs ok and is in decent shape you should have no problem selling it.

MUY IMPORTANTO: disconnect the negative terminal of the battery before you mess with the starter. Never allow any tool to touch both terminals of the battery simultaneously, and never touch the positive terminal (or a tool touching it) to any other surface of the car.

Batteries emit hydrogen gas and will explode.

If you jack the car, USE JACKSTANDS and chock the wheels if you are on any kind of hill. They may be worse ways to go than being crushed to death by a 78 Caddy, but it's still not my idea of fun.

So, if you take the above safety precautions, it's not that big of a deal to change a starter, especially if you have experienced assistance.
posted by tcobretti at 6:19 PM on February 1, 2006

You can get money for this piggy. Those two problems aren't a big deal to someone who wants to 'pimp it out' so to speak, and yea, it is definately a candidate for that. We recently sold an old honda that was a complete piece of shit for $1500. I'm thinking you can get 3 or $4000. (considering that it was your grand pa's car and isn't too ratty.) Good luck!
posted by snsranch at 6:48 PM on February 1, 2006

You should put it on Craigslist.com. I always see classics on that site and they always seem to sell fast because they do not get reposted, but you never know. Good luck!
posted by Gabe014 at 6:52 PM on February 1, 2006

I just checked the bids for DeVilles 1975-79 on eBay. For an original condition, I'd say that $3 to $4,000 isn't a bad starting point, but you might expect offers around $2,500.
posted by MrZero at 5:35 AM on February 2, 2006

Thanks for the advice!

I'll get the starter replaced, shine it, and list it on craigslist.

Also, thanks to caddis and WestCoaster for the hint about charity.
posted by chota at 6:27 AM on February 2, 2006