Well, recently I was with my dad driving down an old backroad, tring to avoid some traffic, when I spotted what looked to be a 1968 RS/SS camaro! It looked like it had been sitting for a long time. It had a vynl(sp.) top, and had a spoiler on the rear deck lid. I wanted to talk to the owner, but we didn't have time. I've passed by the camaro a lot since then, and it is eating me up- I want to talk to the owner but don't konw what to do/say... :confused:
It is mostly there, from what I can see. Any Suggestions?
Thanks,
Levi

Go up and knock on the door and ask if by any chance that old rusty camaro is for sale. If he's not already been pestered to death, you just open the door for a reply and go from there. Go slow, compliment the area they live in, how the weather has been, just not to appear to be overly excited, (while your guts turn inside out). See where it takes you and go with the flow. Have a ballpark idea what you might be willing to pay for it 'if' it checks out to be what it is labeled. It might be a clone, so dont pay for an SS/RS unless it really is one either.
take some pics on the first trip IF they allow you too, and get the VIN and Cowl numbers and post em in the tag section and get ready for a roller coaster time while the owner changes his mind a few times.
Repeating, GO SLOW, act non challant, and good luck, I love these type of discoveries.

I agree. It NEVER hurts to ask :cool:

I agree. It NEVER hurts to ask :cool:


One of my many life mottos is: You don't get, if you don't ask.

Good advice from Jim. Be prepared for a negative reception as well. I had a guy about chew my head off when I stopped and asked about an old Corvette. Some of the words still stick in my head, "Do you see a damn For Sale sign on it". Don't let the thoughts of any verbal abuse hold you back as most folks aren't like the guy I ran accross.

One of my many life mottos is: You don't get, if you don't ask.

ya just gotta keep askin and someday the result will be a huge reward.....works the same with women.

I saw a '69 sitting behind a house, I knocked on the door, a guy opened the door and before I could say hello he said the car is not for sale and closed the door. All I could do was laugh and walk away. If I was him I would hide it or cover it up!

Be polite and don't waste the person's time. If you are just dreaming and don't have the funds, don't bother the guy. If you are ready to buy, it might be good to have money with you. Odds are if the car is visible you are not the first one to ask. Doesn't hurt to ask......

Good stories.

There was a Yellow '68 Coupe near my gf's house in Berkley all last summer under a cover. This past spring it was uncovered, of course I said I'd stop by and ask them about it... within a week it was gone for good. Would you think I stopped by... NO. My loss :D

Thanks a lot everyone for the advice- I think i will go and politely ask him. I will post what happens (if anything). Thanks Team Camaro!!
LEVI

Thanks a lot everyone for the advice- I think i will go and politely ask him. I will post what happens (if anything). Thanks Team Camaro!!
LEVI
Cool. Take some pics if possible :D

This reminds me of a place where I used to see a lot of old Chevy trucks parked. They were all 1967 through 1972 body style and most were in real good condition. I finally got the nerve up to go in and see one day only to find a big sign on the door that said NONE of the trucks are for sale so DON"T ASK!!!!!

LOL I never went back and those trucks are all still there, rotting into the ground.
:clonk:

I came across a corvette in a barn about 10 yrs ago, It also was a 68.
The barn it was in, looked like you could push it over with ease. So a couple days later i stopped went up to the door and asked about it.
A real nice old lady proceeded to tell me her son bought it right before he went to Viet Nam and she was expecting him home from there at anytime.You will have to ask him if its for sale,But i dont think so cause thats all he talk about before he left was that car.
Let me tell ya, I walked away from there with a lump in my throat and eyes watering up.
By the way: The car is still in the barn and leaning over on to the car.

Ha ha ha, I know that story where you approach someone and before you can say anything they look at you and say " NO ITS NOT FOR SALE" and all you can do is laugh !!

Back to the story , Yeah go knock on that door !!!! :thumbsup:


Regards, Kurt

I know of a 68 ss convert thats been sitting outside for about 9 years I have tried to buy it many times but he wont sell ...but at least now he covered it up with a tarp..I will keep trying

I used to go by a 69 SS350 conv sitting in someone's front yard and I finally stopped to ask about it. Other than the almost heart attack from 2 very large dogs on chains(very big chains too), I eventually spoke with someone and she said "he's saving it for his son". The next day there was a cover put over the car and I believe it's still sitting there with a cover over it. But it never hurts to ask, but watch for big dogs!

My advice? Make sure it's something you want. (being a speculator probably isn't going to help). Don't go without cash, have a tow-truck ready (ie cell phone and triple-A). Be prepared to pay MORE than market value, it's often that it's sitting there because no one would fork over the extra $500, and it'll sit until they do. Don't try to steal it, just because it's not for sale doesn't mean they don't have a good idea of what the market is... Also, be careful, dogs are bad, a gun and a testy home-owner is worse!

I've hauled home my share, and most often I get a good deal, usually fair for both parties. But kicking tires, stalling and arguing about an outrageous price are often a one-way ticket out of there! Be persistent but not annoying and be courteous. Having to write down numbers and get back to them is a sure way to increase the price...if you call back they think it's really valuable if you don't you've just laid the groundwork for getting the next guy a really hard time!

Most people are really nice, but let others know where you're going if you don't like the movie Deliverance....

I found my 69 Z/28 in a field with grass all around it...spotted it from a side street...i paid to much ..but had to have it...some i have seen, i waited and missed out...it was to late...be carefull going up to the door, some people will act crazy with you...you are on there property...i know some property owners that will ask questions later...drive by a few times to see, if maybe someone will be out side or a neighbor will be out side, that way you can ask the neighbor about the car ..or more importanly the owner of it, get a feel for the property owner before knocking on the door. I have bought cars this way and i also have had people get upset at me for asking...and Yes i have went back by those people who said "its not for sale" just to see the car rusting away and sinking slowly but shirly to the ground....Good Luck ..Chris

I've often considered dropping a letter of my intentions to inspect and perhaps make a reasonable offer after inspection. My thought was to include a self addressed envelope for their response as well as my tel #'s. I've never done this but I think it might be a possible good approach, at least to avoid a dog bite.

This is a construction machinery in the barn story...
Driving through a construction yard one day, I noticed a machine sitting on the far end of the property....Hasn't been used in a while but worth about $10,000 used......I asked the owner if it was for sale... NO! he said, ok see ya..... A month later I asked him again and he said, "Why do you keep bugging me about that machine?" I told him I needed it for parts, he said "what will you give me?" I was going to offer him $5,000 but I said "Look I'm not playing games here, I got cash, what do you want for it ?" he said give me $1,000.....SOLD!!!!!!!

There was a '68 Mustang sitting beside a garage that my dad always used to stop to try and buy. The owner always said no and wouldn't let him get a closer look at it, but my dad kept stopping every couple months on his way home from school. After 14 years of stopping the owner finally decided he wasn't going to get it fixed up and sold it to my dad. Turns out it was a 428 "R"" code High Country Special of which only 9 were made.

Make the owner an offer he can't refuse


Give me da keys...http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v600/ChevyThunder/00581067824956.jpg

When I still lived in PA fifteen years ago, I used to drive to my brother's lake house every other weekend and cut his grass, as he lives in Buffalo. Every time I drove through this sleepy, little town, I'd see what looked like a late 50's Corvette. In a field, of course. It was a convertible, but at least had a tarp over it. I drove past that thing for five years and kept telling people about what a waste it was, just sitting in the field. I finally stopped one day and an elderly lady answered the door. She said the car belonged to her son, who didn't live in the area, but he didn't want to sell it. I gave her my name and phone number and asked her to have him call me, but of course he never did. Hope that thing's not still sitting there. By the way, he also had a '57 Nomad in the field that may have been too far gone to resurrect.

I know of a possible Yenko in Detroit. I seen it a couple times. This guys has about a half a dozen first gen camaros in a fenced in yard next to a car wash on the west side of Detroit. He was an old drag racer. I tried to buy a 67 Nova off the guy but I got a little nervous when I pulled up to his porch and there was 10 brothers standing on it and I had 5 grand in my pocket. So I left. But I seen the supposide Yenko (Blue) sitting in the corner with a big block in it. Too smart to go back again though.

For more stories check out http://www.carsinbarns.com (http://www.carsinbarns.com/)

About a year ago I was looking for a father/son project car to work on. Driving around I came across this guys back yard were he had a '71 & and a '72 Chevelle an old truck, '78 Camaro and a '71 El Camino. All were sitting there for what appeared to be years. I was interested in the El Camino and finally mustered up the nerve to talk the guy. He told me that he had no interest in selling any of the cars and that he planned on restoring the El Camino and had ALL the sheet metal to do it, so I should just forget about it! I said to my son, "That's too bad, becuase if had planed on restoring any of those cars/trucks, he would have at least started by now." I kept passing that guys house and there the cars just sat. About 2 months went by and I passed the house and ALL the cars were gone. Everything was out of there, hub caps, loose trim, everything was gone! Don't know what happend but it was all cleaned out. I just hope he didn't sell all that stuff for scrape weight!

I hate to see American muscle rotting away but it's neat to hear the stories where the owner does sell the car to someone, and they get a a rare car for practically nothing. Those days are almost over, though. (if not already)
Here's a website that you all have probably been to, but nonetheless, here it is: www.carsinbarns.com

Sorry guys- I didnt see that some one else already posted the link that I posted.Nonetheless, its a cool site.

I know of a possible Yenko in Detroit. I seen it a couple times. This guys has about a half a dozen first gen camaros in a fenced in yard next to a car wash on the west side of Detroit. He was an old drag racer. I tried to buy a 67 Nova off the guy but I got a little nervous when I pulled up to his porch and there was 10 brothers standing on it and I had 5 grand in my pocket. So I left. But I seen the supposide Yenko (Blue) sitting in the corner with a big block in it. Too smart to go back again though.
Where about is this at? I'll go check this out!

Levi ,, like everyone has said be very nice and not overly excited acting about the car ,,And the biggest thing that has ALLWAYS got cars bought even when they say NO is having CASH 100 dollar bills in your hand,,
make them a offer and SHOW them the CASH !!! Thats just the way i have bought lots of cars over the years,,,seems like them FRANKLIN'S change peoples minds kinda of sudden,,I even do the samething if I was buying a done car,, guy wanting 12,500,,,,SHOW him 10k $CASH$ watch him go to thinking ,,,,Best of luck on the car !!! Frank

Yeah, I hope that will convince him into selling it :) Like they say, Money talks! But unfortunately the only thing it says to me is "see ya!!" :p Thanks a lot for the responses and I will try to get some pictures if he/she lets me...
I am just wanting to find a first gen thats not overly redicilous in price. Maybe I'll come out on top in this one... Thanks for the support, guys! :beers:

I asked the Trooper that used to chase me down and give me speeding tickets to find my car that I bought in Dec, '66 using my VIN that I had from my order papers. (Wife's ex-third cousin by marriage sorta deal)...

He wrote back a note and a computer printout that said who had it but that it hadn't been licensed in several years so good luck. (I figure the Trooper figured it had been rolled so was gone??)...

Anyway, I wrote the guy a letter and never heard back for like 6 months. He said he was in the Navy and had been in the South Pacific but would be home around Thanksgiving. So I went and met him. He didn't want to sell it then so I said let me know if ever you want to.

Later he wanted to buy a Ditch-Witch for work so asked if I still wanted it and the rest is history..

AND the last time I saw him, he asked if I wanted to sell it back to him.

pdq67

I have a 68 RS coupe sitting in my driveway that needs a lot of work. The car I'm working on is a BB convertible and its in the garage. I am TIRED of people knocking on my door or putting notes on the car in the driveway. Now its covered, but I still get someone coming by every few weeks. Get a clue! If I wanted to sell the car its going up on eBay. As a seller, why would I want to deal with one buyer who's probably going to try to to lowball me on price when I can get everyone in the U.S. looking at the car? So what I'm trying to say is that the person you approach might be kind of rude and they may close the door in your face. Don't take it personally, just realize that they're probably tired of hearing that question "is your car for sale?"

Oh get over it. Put your car behind the house then were it can't be seen. So many owners let their cars rot in their yard thinking one day they will restore it. Yes your perogative but I myself like so many others who have already posted have bought their cars that way.

Dave