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Jan 23, 2014 20:34:26 GMT
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... After a long chat I wrote a note ... By the way I was shocked that the car had a MOT and was taxed. I had some traveller types with a flatbed knock on the door a couple of years ago to see if I wanted rid of "that old car that's parked around that back of the house" Granted it looked like scrapyard fodder but it was a trusted daily Sierra ( a mate had borrowed it for a few months and had just returned with a new taxdisk as a thank-you for letting him use it ) Odd that I still get passers by asking when I'm going to fix up "that old car on the drive" so I can use it again It's my daily Hunter - and it's not getting upgraded to "nice shiney museum piece" One "expert" even checked the taxdisk as he didn't believe it was a runner Moral? At least check the tax disk before assuming it's been abandoned to rot (or check DVLA on-line before you knock on the door)
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Jan 23, 2014 21:16:39 GMT
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Also, if the car isn't obvious from the road then explain how you've seen it; its better to have spotted it whilst cleaning the windows next door, working on the church roof or from a passing aeroplane than have people think you've been wandering about on their property looking what you can nick if they hadn't answered the door.
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Jan 23, 2014 22:05:57 GMT
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I have had a few people knock here when I had a mk2 escort, they were polite, and I was polite too, telling them no its not for sale. I had a bloke knock asking to buy my cortina, he was so drunk he couldn't speak properly, but still friendly "I love cortinas mmmmmmmmmmm can I buy it?" haha.
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Jan 23, 2014 22:15:18 GMT
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as said above be polite, even if they wont sell keep calling back every few months and soon you will be regarded as a sort of pain in the friend and they might sell :)this technique has worked for me a few times i did once put a note on a 205 gti in a block of flats,got a call the next week from someone with a completetly different car saying they would sell it ! i suppose they got sick of all the people asking about the car.funny nobody has ever knocked on my door regarding all the projects in my front garden ?
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Jan 24, 2014 11:23:50 GMT
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I am viewing something tomorrow that is the result of me leaving a note. I didn't have the bottle to knock so dropped a note through his door. 3 days later he called and said whilst it's not really for sale, he would be prepared to consider it after a while. I kept texting him and he has now put a new MOT on it and I am viewing tomorrow - hoping I can afford it!
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96 E320 W210 Wafter - on 18" split Mono's - Sold :-( 10 Kia Ceed Sportwagon - Our new daily 03 Import Forester STi - Sold 98 W140 CL500 AMG - Brutal weekend bruiser! Sold :-( 99 E240 S210 Barge - Now sold 02 Accord 2.0SE - wife's old daily - gone in PX 88 P100 2.9efi Custom - Sold
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Jan 24, 2014 12:07:20 GMT
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i do this sort of thing a lot, be thoroughly nice and enthusiastic,don'tat any point put down what they have and start telling them it needs this that and the other and will cost this much - like youre doing them a favour andthey'recausing you problems by taking it - thats not negotiation, its just being a c**t. give them a polite offer with clear intentions and if they say no still be real nice and a good sport about it - they may change their mind in the future or remember you for something else. be the nicest bloke ever and it will see you well in these situations. i have found you need to be super nice to people you approach to buy from and hardball the hell out of people that try to sell to you. ^THIS^ Every time. Anyone remember that little Bedford Rascal I had? I'd been walking past that poor little van for a good couple of years and knew, by the moss on it and completely flat/split open tyres, that it had been stood there even longer. I kept thinking about knocking and asking if it could be for sale? Eventually I plucked up the courage (wasn't actually difficult to be honest) and knocked on the door. I was polite, courteous and as complimentary as possible. It helped that I was genuine and sincere with my comments. There will always be a bit of cynicism from the owner to start with due to a complete stranger calling out of the blue at their door, but I found by talking about how I'd walked past it numerous times, feeling sorry for it and actually, falling in love with it, he started to warm to the idea of selling it. I made it clear that I really loved this particular van because of the colour, how I'd love to give it a new lease of life and how I could imagine it looking when back on the road. I also asked if he had any interesting stories about it etc... Basically, made the owner feel that there was someone who was passionate about his car and that it would be cared for and pampered, as well as being interested in his own relationship with the car. Despite the owner having said lots of people had knocked offering to 'take the van away' he never felt comfortable about it because he got the impression they were just looking to scrap it or run it into the ground. I was the only one who'd shown a genuine interest and he was over the moon to sell it to me, even though his wife had previously said he'd never sell it because it was his pride and joy! That was a great day and I can say, hand on heart, that knocking on that door was one of my fave car purchases ever. Four years later, I returned with the van, now legal, on the road an looking a lot healthier, to show the owner. He was absolutely beside himself to see it looking so good and running so well, he said it was a long time coming, but had been worth the wait. He actually got quite emotional about it, so did his son, who apparently used to be ferried around in it as a toddler and as he grew up! I can tell you now that doing this was well worth it. VERY well worth it. Get knocking on those doors people...
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awoo
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,505
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Jan 24, 2014 12:27:12 GMT
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^^^ what a nice story
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J1MMY
Part of things
Posts: 953
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Jan 25, 2014 23:00:18 GMT
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Bruce, I need your address so that I can post love letters in the hope that one day I can get you to part with a certain vehicle... I have been considering knocking on the door of house in front of which is a serviceable (but certainly unused) Manta which is on my drive to/from work. Reading this has definitely inspired me to man up and make the first move!
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Your opinion is invalid, I've seen your wife.
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I used to be on the receiving end of the knock on the door a few years ago, it was when my Mk2 polo had Ronal Teddy Bear wheels on it. Before I had them, and after I replaced them, no-one knocked on my door for the car, so I can only assume that the 3 people who knocked were only after the wheels and not bothered by the car.
they only got a polite no from me, as the car was my daily driver, at the time I found it amusing that somebody would want my car, bearing in mind how bad it looked.
As people have said give it a go and show interest, you've got nothing to loose.
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Clement
Europe
ambitious but rubbish
Posts: 2,095
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Once I was at a friend's place basking in the sun contemplating our prides & joys, his 1200 Beetle and my mk1 Cortina. A guy in a truck passed by, saw the cars, reversed, stopped in front of the house and asked... if we had anything we wanted to scrap. Buzzkill
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blug
Part of things
Posts: 510
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interesting subject, I have done in the past, with mixed results... and its only gonna be one of 2 answers, if you're polite and courteous theres always a better chance. I know of a story that has only just happened, regarding a rare 80s vehicle( don't wanna say in case the new owner comes on here...) the car in question was off the road a air while and apparently had loads of people knocking on about it , I didn't know it was where it was ,I would have myself.... however, not that long ago the owner just rang the scrap dealer to get rid of the car as he was sick of people knocking on asking if it was for sale, the scrap dealer turned up, put it on the flatbed and took it back to the yard , they put it on ebay and the thing almost made £2000 incomplete..... the guy who owned I must of known what it was as hed had it from new, so he either didn't need the money, or had been annoyed at all the knock ons he got or maybe timewasters......... don't know..... however theres 3 cars near to me that I will be knocking on the door about in the near future... ther not anything special,buti do think they deserve to be saved...
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formerley MK1 EDZ.
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`state
Yorkshire and The Humber
Posts: 1,215
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Ive had afew lucky finds after knocking on doors. First was a vespa 100 smallframe. In the town I grew up there was a real tat horder that had allsorts of tat kicking about in his garden and garage. Think 20 lawnmowers and invalid buggies ect. When he died his son turned up in a nice tidy mg and word got about he was going to clear the place ready to sell. I deceided to pop round one Saturday afternoon on my vespa pk and as soon as he saw it he said that his dad had had loads of scooters back in the day. After chatting for awhile he said he was sure he`d kept one so we went down the garden to the bottom shed and there was a very dusty vespa that hadn't seen the light of day for at least 15 years. It had only done just over 2,000 miles! We pulled it out and had a good chat about it and he was in two minds wether to sell it or not. Rather than pressuring him then and there I left my number. Afew days later he rung me and said to make an offer. I said 100 quid and he said it was too low but I could have it for 150. I nearly snapped his hand off!! Walked up there later that day and pushed it home with two flat tyres. After replacing all the tyres,tubes,cables and the bearing and seals in the engine I used it for two years then got a very good offer so sold it on. The others have both been mk1 Astra's. One was a 1.6 sr which was very rare. It had been standing on a drive for years and had massive conifer trees all around it. When the tree`s had been cut down all the branches had been dropped onto the car and left. The roof had rotted right through and the interior was minging. I gave them a knock and the woman said I could have it if I could get it out so after afew hours with a chainsaw we made enough room to push it out onto the road and towed it the half mile home. It gave some very good parts I built my 1.2 up with including all the engine and running gear. The other mk1 find was a bogey green 1300 I used to pass on my to my mates house while at school for years. First of all it was driven by an oldish guy then later his daughter started driving it and it was always kept in good condition. I left a note with my mums house number on it one day but never got a call about it and the family moved so didn't see the car again. After about three years my mum got a phonecall from the people who had bought our house asking to speak to me as it was very important so could they pass my number on. She said yes and later that day I got the call. It was the daughter asking if I still wanted to buy the car as she needed rid of it as it had failed its mot and she couldn't afford to have the work done and she needed a new car asap. She said she`d kept my number on the fridge just in case! I want straight round there and it was still in really good nick. It had failed on the sills and the petrol tank leaking. I did her a straight swop for the mk3 astra I had and drove the mk1 home. We replaced the tank and welded new sills and one rear arch in. Fitted the c20xe I had kicking about and it was one of the best cars ive ever owned. So it really does pay to give them a knock or leave a note as you never know.
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Look at all the plastic people who live without a care.Try to sit with me around my table,but never bring a chair.
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vitessetony
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 1,055
Club RR Member Number: 114
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is it rude to knock and ask?vitessetony
@vitessetony
Club Retro Rides Member 114
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Jan 26, 2014 11:37:54 GMT
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I would say yes, I used to walk past an old boys house when I visited my mums house and he had a mint chevette, never moved but looked very well looked after, like you I was hesitant at knocking on his door and asking him if he would like to part with it.
About a year ago I was walking past the house and the chevette had gone....across the road onto his neighbours drive, the new owner was outside working on it so I went up to talk to him and have a good look at the chevette, it was mint, timewarp condition as they say, zero rust.
The new owner told me he moved in across the road two weeks ago saw the chevette,fancied it, knocked on the door offered the old boy £300 and the rest they say is history.
Gutted, I walked past it for years and missed out through hesitancy. As del boy would say "he who dares rodders, he who dares my son!"
Good Luck, be polite and you could get a bargin!
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skoze
Part of things
Posts: 382
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Jan 27, 2014 17:45:35 GMT
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Once I was at a friend's place basking in the sun contemplating our prides & joys, his 1200 Beetle and my mk1 Cortina. A guy in a truck passed by, saw the cars, reversed, stopped in front of the house and asked... if we had anything we wanted to scrap. Buzzkill Don't even get my started - local scrap washing machine merchants used to come round asking if I wanted to "scrap them old parts" all the time. What, the wings and front panel from the Land Rover you can see me working on...? I'm surprised no-one's asked about that yet actually, having been laid up a while.
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Last Edit: Jan 27, 2014 17:49:38 GMT by skoze
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Jan 27, 2014 18:34:04 GMT
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Knocking and being polite gas so far got me, a Volvo amazon, mk2 Granada, mint mk1 eunos, Nissan laurel again mint. And most recently my new rapido micro pop top caravan (thread to follow). I've asked about many more and been told no. But if you don't try, you won't know. Strangely worked on my wife aswell. She worked in a local art supplies shop, used to go in very shyly, and ended up buying lots of stuff I never needed, but eventually asked her out. And amazingly she Said yes. Have been married seven years now. And now even she tells ne about cars she's seen that look promising, lol.
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Toyota mk3 supra. retro goodness.
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Jan 27, 2014 18:58:16 GMT
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I drive past an old Range Rover, that's slowly turning green,there's also an early LR90 that's been sat on a driveway with its front in the air for at least 3 yrs .... i hate threads like this,its giving me dangerous thoughts .....
I delivered a skip last week, on the drive there was a mk1 Scimitar. looked 'in need of repair' Two blokes there, one of them said to me 'you can chuck that heap of scrap in the skip mate' .. i just laughed and said i'll only take it straight to my place. I was then told 'he'll never get rid of it' we had a chat about the car,so i think if you're polite and more importantly, know a bit about the car in question, (rather than the 'wanna get rid of that old motor/heap/shed etc etc)then you'll give a good impression.
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PHUQ
Part of things
Posts: 861
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Jan 27, 2014 21:16:35 GMT
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Just don't keep asking... My girlfriend's parents are very kindly Marina sitting for me at the moment until I rationalise the fleet a bit (three cars on a 2 car drive I can do, 4 sadly not, at least without a chainsaw), they've had several people knock on the door- which is fair enough, but if someone kept pestering them about it I suspect it might outstay it's welcome, which would leave me in the lurch a bit. It's still in ticket and insured, but not taxed admittedly.
With them being hidden away at the end of a cul- de- sac and the car not exactly prominently displayed on their drive, the attention does worry me slightly too.
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Jan 28, 2014 11:23:40 GMT
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I used to walk past a 62 ragtop beetle for 3 years at uni about 18 years ago,around the corner from our student house. Chatted with the old bloke once but he 'wanted to restore it' (3 inch thick fillered wings, pop riveted ali repair panels). Just before I left I though I'd try again on the off-chance. Pulled up in my daily bug and knocked. The old bloke had died and his wife was interested in selling to someone who'd look after it and the rest was history as they say. Turned out to be 2 prev owners fsh but needed to replace almost everything from the windows down. Still got it. Have had the reverse before - people knocking on our door asking if I wanted to buy their beetle project.
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Jan 28, 2014 16:14:27 GMT
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Have had the reverse before - people knocking on our door asking if I wanted to buy their beetle project. Same here. A long time ago I bought a "project" Mk1 Cortina with full MOT (and fibreglass sills, a gearlever that one day came loose in my hand, lots of "character" ) We live in full view of the road into the village, while I working our where to start on the problems, a bloke I'd never seen before called past and offered me HIS Mk1 for scrap value as it needed work Turns out he lived on the opposite side of the village but I'd never seen his car around Ended up putting new sills onto his and scrapping the original after stripping it for spares. Then ran it for several years - loved that old barge Anyways, back on track...
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