Auto Auction Estimate Game!

Near the NMS-North HQ is the Norfolk Naval Base, and once a quarter they just HAVE to get rid of any automobiles that have been abandoned. They do this by selling these vehicles "as is" in a live auction. If nothing else, I'm a sucker for free entertainment, and it's always fun to hear the auctioneer and see how the crowd reacts to various trucks, cars, sometimes a trailer, or even a boat. There is no reserve on these vehicles, and I've seen them go for as low as 50 bucks, and some of them don't even sell at that price. If you are handy, and have your own truck and trailer, you could probably buy any of these for 50 bucks and at least get your money back by selling it to a junk yard or your local Pick-N-Pull type place.

The other fun part is the fantasy of actually buying a car at a huge bargain. So far I've only bought the one Mustang at a bargain, but until we get it running (hopefully next weekend), it's not quite in the "huge" category as far as bargains go. So far it's in the "could just about break even by junking it as is right now if I had to but who who wants to do that" category. With a few fuel pump arriving soon, we'll see if it fires up soon.

Back to the auction! We'll take a guess at the selling price before the auction on Wednesday, and then report later on how well we did. At the last auction we had a bad hair day and were off on more than we go right, so maybe we can do a little better this time.

Here's the list of vehicles from the auctioneer, Gene Daniels Gene Daniels Auctions  The auction is open to military ID card holders only. I think the top sellers will be the Toyota Tacoma, a Dodge Ram, and a 2007 Mustang GT. Some car brands for sale that you can't buy new anymore include Isuzu, Saturn, and Oldsmobile. Marks that start getting into the luxury crowd include an Acura TL and a Lexus. Most unusual vehicles in this auction are some small school buses, so there's something for everyone!

2007 Mustang GT. Body looked good, but like all these cars here, they just might have been in the big storm last year, which means possible flooding.

Heck, maybe it's really great, let's get things rolling here and estimate it selling at:

$4,500

Oohhh, an old 95 Jeep Cherokee.

Looking a bit, um, rough.

Plus, on the negative side, there are some other Jeeps, and some sweet looking other pickups in this sale.

I'm going to say it's not a hot seller, but someone will take it home for:

$200

Great looking paint on this 2006  red Ford F150.

The tail gate was missing the top piece of trim, but other than that seems to be in reasonable shape. Tires weren't very old either.

Hard to say, but let's go with:


$1,200

Oh wait a minute, looks like it has been sitting for a long time.

Was the engine underwater?

Heck, let's back off that estimate to:

$1,000

Sorry for the terrible photo here, but it's another Jeep, this time a 92 Cherokee.

Uh, boy is that out of focus!

Let's just throw out:

$400

There are about 4 Mitsubishis in this sale, which doesn't mean much, but here's the first one.
2001 Galant

Hmmm, front bumper and paint looking rough, passenger mirror not in good shape.

I don't feel the love for these, so let's just say someone will scrap it, so it will sell for:

$100

EVERYONE knows the 94 Ford Ranger! They usually run forever, and this one is RED, so it's worth more! Let's say: $500 Ford Ranger #2, from 1989. Other than the cool front bumper guard cow-catcher, I'm going to say it may not sell at all. However, that wouldn't be any fun, so make it: $125 94 Honda Civic. The  hood works. A little damage. Call it: $500 If you can see the lettering on the rear, this is the rare 96 Toyota "AMRY", obviously a Camry that needs to buy a consonant from Vanna White. $500 Ford, uh, Focus. From 2004. Didn't look too close, so, no clue. How about: $600 Dang, 95 Jeep Cherokee #3. Someone always wants a Jeep, in this case it's going to cost them: $400 Honda Civics have been around forever, and this one has some racing in its past. Not sure if it has a future, but someone likely wants this 89,  for $100 96 Acura TL. Not the newest Acura, but not the worst! There is also a nice recent red Honda Accord coming up, so I think this one goes for only: $700 Honda Civic, 01. much newer than the racer special we just saw two cars ago. Uhhhhhhh, How about... $800 Again, I apologize for this ridiculous out of focus photo of a convertible 05  Mitsubishi Eclipse. This one has seen better days, so maybe its another junk yard special for: $100 The red on this Jeep Liberty from 2004 really pops, but, the passenger window also popped out, and it looks pretty wet inside there. Lets guess: $1,000 98 Chevy S10 pickup. Well, if you don't like Ford Rangers and Jeeps, maybe this is your thing. Make it your wild thing for: $200 OK, fun time! A 2005 Toyota Tacoma PreRunner, nice blue paint  job, as long as you don't mind the rusting metal on the roof! Seriously, the rest of it looks pretty good. Here's the rear view, and overall it looked pretty reasonable. I'll go out on a limb and predict this is the top seller at auction: $6,500 Right in front of the Tacoma is this big 2003 Dodge Ram truck. Passenger window missing, but it sounded like it was down in the door. This could go for some big bucks too: $5,000 94 Chrysler LHS. When was the last time  you heard those words put together? Let's say $125 and move on. 2006 Mitsubishi Eclipse. Could be a bargain, but I think someone will bid it up to $1,000 Mitsubishi Galant, this one from 2003. I'm not your Mitsu expert, so this is a total guess, let's say around: $500 Mitsubishi Eclipse, 2001 vintage. Visible damage, doesn't have a key. Maybe someone needs it as a parts car for: $400 There are 3 of these GMC buses, and I'm thinking of going into the PARTY BUS BUSINESS! Just send me a couple thousand and we can be PARTNERS! GMC Bus #2. These looked like they had just come out of service for the Navy, looked to be in good shape, and still had painter's tape over anything that used to say "NAVY" on it. Yes, you might even want to just send me a blank check, so I can buy all three buses, and we can be partners in the Virginia Beach PARTY BUS BIZ! Comes complete with seats, doors, windows, etc. I'm really lost on what these things might go for, but there has to be someone out there that needs 3 buses. Maybe $15,000 takes all three? This red Honda Accord looked to be in pretty good shape, other than possibly being a flood vehicle. Let's give it the benefit of the doubt and say: $4,500 96 Oldsmobile Cutlass. The Cutlass used to be pretty cool, but that would have been more like 69, not 96. It has a key! Take it home for: $800 99 Ford Escort in exciting silver! Over the years Ford made millions of Escorts, so here's your chance to buy one! Try it on for size for:  $300 Hey, it's a Chevy motor starter kit, great for the kids! I wonder what it goes to? OOOOOHHH, I love yellow trucks! My brother in law has a great yellow truck like this. Well, sort of like this. His yellow truck actually runs and has options like WHEELS, and a HOOD.Comes with extras, like the basketball backboard! BUT, this yellow truck has the rare carburetor the front seat option! YOU CAN'T FIND THAT ON ANY OTHER TRUCK MADE IN AMERICA TODAY! $50 This poor Lexus is a 2001 IS900 according to the info sheet. The driver's side of the vehicle is in pretty good shape! Take a chance, let's say for $450 98 Saturn SL. Here is a great opportunity to buy a car from a brand that isn't around anymore, both this and the following Isuzu Trooper. Take it away for only $450 I always liked the Isuzu Trooper. I Don't remember when Isuzu stopped selling in the US, but its been a while! This one was pretty rough, so maybe: $300 A Nissan 350Z, in a nice bright blue color! In addition to the rear damage, I think this one was all wet inside, so even though it has a free basketball in the trunk: $500 Nissan Z motor