Weekend Quickies - Saturday, November 27, 2010

1973 BMW Bavaria - How about a Bavaria you could easily use as a daily driver?

This car has the engine and fuel injection system from a grey market 1986 535i. It has a 5 speed transmission and updated brakes.

White is not my favorite color on a Bavaria (although, oddly, I think it looks great on my E36), but still, if this car were on the east coast instead of the west, it's a car I'd consider buying.

Located in Culver City, CA, click here to see the Craigslist ad.

1970 DAF 55 - What a cool little car. What an unusual car to see in the US.

There are some neat, advanced and unusual engineering features in these cars. DAF was the first car company to use a CVT transmission. Final drive to the rear wheels was transmitted by rubber-composite drive belts. The engine was an 1108cc Renault engine, an engine most often seen in the rear of the R8.

In 1975 DAF was bought by Volvo and the brand was eventually discontinued. (The Volvo 300 series cars, introduced in 1976, were designed by DAF and had a CVT transmission)

This DAF is right-hand drive. The seller says it runs and drives great, but needs tires, some minor bodywork and some interior work.

Located in Lomita, CA, click here to see the Craigslist ad.

1968 Opel Kadett - As I've written before, my very first car was an Opel Kadett station wagon. It was not exactly the hippest car to have in high school, but it got great gas mileage and the fold down rear seat was handy on dates.

The seller of this one writes very little about it. Based on the pictures, it appears to be in nice shape.

Located in St.Joseph, MO, click here to see the Craigslist ad.

1972 Mercedes-Benz 280SE 4.5 - The 280SE is a really interesting car. Sold in the US for just 1 year, it's a short wheelbase 280 stuffed full of the long wheelbase's (280SEL) 4.5 liter V8. Lighter and nimbler than the 280SEL, the 280SE 4.5 performed and handled like few other sedans of the early 1970s did.

This car belonged to the sellers grandfather. It's not perfect, but it's pretty decent. The body is missing a chrome strip and the interior has some mismatched front seats. BUT, the rebuilt engine has just 80K on it and there appears to be little rust.

There are quite a few Benz-heads who feel that the 280SE 4.5 is a future collectible.

This one is priced at just $1650.00.

Located in the Pittsburg / Antioch area of CA, click here to see the Craigslist ad (which has a lot of large pictures).