81 Zagato - Sell whole or part out?

[OperaHawk]

I'm in a quandry, folks, so help me out with your opinions.

As the 'rebirth' of La Fenice Due (81 Zag SE) nears completion, the question is what to do with Uno, my red 81 Zag. The body is, for the most part, a rust bucket - none of the panels are worth anything unless you love bondo (and you'd be applying it!). The hood and trunklid are pretty good, and the doors would need work, but they're better than some I've seen.

All the seating areas are from the SE - the previous owner of the red one had them redone in cloth, and they're going in the SE. The rears are about the only thing worth getting. Interior pieces are all there, trim is ok.

The engine is the real gem - bored over with a header, and switched to carb. Gearbox is also good - the whole thing made a wonderful growl under power and ran very well. Struts/springs came from the SE and are original (red one came w/Konis; sorry, now on the SE), PS rack has a torn boot but could be repaired. Radiator would need recoring. 2 brake calipers were scavenged for the SE. All five wheels/tires are good.

I know a lot of you are screaming 'part it and keep the good stuff!', but I just don't have the storage space to hold onto it while I meticulously go through it. The guy working on the SE said he'd look around for a place to part it out for me; again, I don't know if I have that kind of money (SE repairs are already $3K and we're not done).

So my wife has suggested that I make the whole car available to sell as a parts car and deal with repairs when they come along (I'd hang onto a few choice parts, but the engine/drivetrain would be complete). Whoever bought the red one would have to tow it away, but it's a worthy parts car.

So, what are your thoughts? I at least expect to hear something from DJ, who almost said he'd whip my butt if I sold both of them and left the fold! ;)

SBJ

[Jim Keller]

Part it

I'ed take it but I have no way of getting it here in any economical form. I could use another parts car......or two! LOL

[Will]

I was just thinking of mentionng you might call Bob Sorrentino (760) 218-3064 and see if he'll haul it up to Keller. He's always "advertising" his freight trips on the Lanciascrpion Yahoo group (that's nearly all the traffic on that group now) and he should owe for the free advertising, plus being a lancisti, maybe tow it on his way for additional fuel costs? I think you guys should call him and prod him a bit- see if you can get him to drag it up to Jim. I actually had to look up the flag to figure you were in NC.

[Jim Keller]

Hum?????

<grin>

[DJ]

Bob is a great guy but you'll likely find that his costs are a good bit higher than other sources. But there are reasons for that that you should understand. It's just that his business model and cost structure really doesn't fit most people's expectations for transportation of lower value items such as used cars/parts.

He does a lot of hauling of high-value items (mostly art pieces) and I would certainly trust him to take really good care of something for me. That's his forte and he has been pretty successful in this line of business.

However, for a parts car or car parts you'll likely find it a good bit cheaper (and likely quicker) to ship via other methods. As an example, I needed to get a NOS VX gearbox (packaged in a factory crate) from St. Louis to Denver. Bob provided a quote of $200.00 door-to-door. However, the pickup and delivery had to fit one of his scheduled trips which was going to take a good while to get it to me. I almost had him do it for me but decided to look around a bit first. Unfortunately, I am not the financial wizard I wish I was and I have the Minister of Finance constantly peering over my shoulder at my expenditures. :(

I ended up going with FedEx Ground. It cost me $54.00 door-to-door and took all of 2 days for delivery. Since then I use FedEx Ground for almost everything I ship. They've taken exceptional care of everything I shipped through them and they are amazingly fast.

All that said, I would certainly give Bob a call to see what he can do for you. He is a really good guy and loves to talk Lancias. Please note that I am in no way trying to trash or criticize Bob or his services. If I had a high-value item that I needed to make sure was transported gently and safely cross-country, Bob would be the first person I would call. Heck, if I had all the money I wish I had, I would use him for all my needs simply to give him the business. I like Bob a lot.

On that note, his daughter recently suffered an equestrian accident and was between insurance providers. Consequently he's been liquidating most of his Lancia stuff including a 16 valve injected 2 liter engine (built by Jeff Davidson), a VX gearbox, a VX super charger w/ manifold and pulley, a set of Cromadoras, and his 1977 Scorpion. Should you have any interest in these items, please give Bob a call and help him out. He's in the Palm Springs, California area.

[Will]

How much does Fedex ground charge to ship a Zagato, DJ? :)

Sorry to hear about Bob's daughter. That's terrible. Hope she's OK now!

[DJ]

Obviously, they won't ship a car for you. But Jim already has a lot of experience with shipping cars and knows where the best deals can be found.

But as wealthy as he is, with that large estate out there in rural Ohio and all, maybe he doesn't really care... :D

I was just trying to point out (and defend) the fact that Bob's services are necessarily the most cost-effective for many of the things we might need.