The vibe changes palpably when one walks through the gates into the side and back storage lot at St. Vinnie’s. This is where the cars that didn’t sell end up, or more likely the ones that were obviously never going to sell. Still, you’d like to think somebody might want to rescue this once exquisite Mercedes SEL (C126) coupe. What a come down.
Let’s start just beyond the gate where there’s this Chrysler 200 in a tent. Car camping?
Beyond that this victimized Saturn sits, along with the first of several boats. Yes, I can see donating an old boat; they’re not worth much and can be maintenance headaches.
Across from it sits a less than regal Buick.
Another Isuzu.
How about a his-and-her set of snowmobiles? A bit hard to imagine when it’s over 90 degrees out.
A red Chrysler convertible.
Weren’t most of these gen1 Stanzas beige?
What a great Vue!
Two flubbed Taurus shots. I must have been overcome with excitement.
The sole Camry. The rest are still hard at work.
An Acura RL, really. Or at least I think so.
Two more boats. It’s blistering hot here today, so I could enjoy skimming over one of our many lakes and reservoirs in one right now, or better yet, behind one on a pair of skis. I learned that when I was young, and I can still get up on the first go. Muscle memory.
Given its location in the middle of the isle, I assume this Civic runs.
A gen4 Hyundai Sonata.
And another dead fish. That makes four.
Come on; somebody has to want this Escort.
A gen1 Prius. There’s still a handful of these tootling along our streets.
What’s this enthusiast’s minivan doing back here?
Don’t tell me this Corolla wagon is defunct. Impossible. Just needs a a laying of hands on it.
The Accords are seemingly not as long-lived as the Camrys, from the look of things here.
Chrysler’s finest.
The original pint-sized Honda Odyssey.
Saturn and Escort keeping company and reminiscing about their youth.
It looks like it was inspired by the fisheye Taurus.
And all the way out back a battered Outback. And a Chevy pickup. The end of the road.
They also accept old appliances. I bet I could fix some of the simple ones (Whirlpool) in a jiffy.
That’s it. Don’t cry too hard; we’re all going to end up like this, waiting for the end to come. At least they have company. And if you want to save one of these, here’s the website with contact info: Call Toll Free:1-888-227-8223 or 541-607-4541 or contact us online
Here’s Part 1:
St. Vinnie’s Donated Car Sales Lot – Where Tired Old Dogs Wait Hopefully For Another Shot At Life
Most are cars that the owner doesn’t want to sink any more money into. Repairs would be than the car is worth.
As for the appliances, I would strip the buttons and dials off and post them on e-bay. Circuit boards as well. Always someone looking for these as old ones break off or break down.
Paul,
How about putting in a link to part 1 of the donation lot.
This will make it easier to find the story in the next few months or years.
Regards,
3Speed
Done!
If I lived in the area and was looking for an inexpensive project car I’d seriously consider the red Escort sedan or the Blue Corolla wagon, especially if they were manual transmission cars. Let’s hope someone buys them and gives them a chance to be saved.
Your mention of “manual transmission cars” causes me to wonder how many of these back lot cars might be manual transmission cars and if that could be one reason why they’re not front-line sell-able.
Frankly (and sadly, IMO) you’d be hard-pressed to give away a manual transmission car that was not a car that was desirable by someone looking for that particular car. In a situation like St. Vinnie’s where the goal is to get basic transportation into the hands of people who need basic transportation, it’s unlikely that there are many buyers who could drive a manual.
Just this past weekend I was in a fancy place with valet parking on the Maine coast. As I pulled into the valet lot the valet guy took one look inside my window and said “Oh, ok, you can just park it yourself over there.” Clearly he couldn’t drive a standard (and props to him for not attempting to!).
I wondered the opposite. How many of these are automatics and the transmission is slipping or missing reserve? While they might run and move they would all be beyond an economic repair/rebuild.
I thought the exact same thing about those same two cars. Get the transmission equation out of the mix and the rest I can handle. I much rather replace a clutch on a 4 banger than do auto work on one of them. Now work on a Ford C4 is fine by me.
We can take both the Taurus and Mercedes by less than 5000.
I used to often go look at the Salvation Army’s whole city block sized donated car lot that was near my old apartment in downtown San Diego, back in the late 90’s. That photo of the Benz SEC, and Audi A8 from yesterday reminded me of the back row of the Salvation Army’s car lot. I doubt the operation still exists, as the area went from a near skid row to a super high rent apartments with trendy bistros and boutiques type district.
There were always several ratty 280 SE’s and 300 SEL’s 4.5’s reposing on their back lot, sometimes a BMW Bavaria, mixed with early 3, 5, or 7 series, the occasional Alfa Spyder, MG or Triumph. Always there were at least a couple Maserati BiTurbos rotting away. And of course, all types of Jags. Once there was even a decrepit purple and gold Quatroporte, and even a Rolls that had apparently had an engine fire. And of course, most of the cars were just non running everyman’s cars from the 70’s and 80’s.
Usually every single luxury model looked like they sat in a backyard for at least a decade somewhere in the semi desert eastern suburbs of San Diego, all with mice nests, blistered wood veneer and beef jerky leather.
I never did any business with them, but had heard they would put high retial book value on the donation paperwork for any car given to them. I imagine April was their peak month for car donations.
Hi,
Can you provide me with contact info,
as I am interested in the SEC Benz,
Thanks
Call Toll Free:1-888-227-8223 or 541-607-4541
Isn’t the Mercedes in the lede picture like the one that Patrick Swayze drove in Roadhouse?
Not the Riviera everyone is thinking of… the other car that he hid in the barn.
Hard to kill a Toyota, but I guess it’s possible, and here’s the proof.
I once came across a young woman sitting after hours in Florida mall parking lot in a forlorn old, dead Camry. Someone else had tried to help her and determined there was anti-freeze in at least one of the engine cylinders.
After a few days, I went back to find her gone. Someone sitting nearby in a semi told me that mall management had actually paid to have her and her car towed to whatever destination she wanted (within reason). Frankly, I was quite impressed with management taking that route, rather than just calling the police, having the car impounded, the driver cited, etc.
The Mercedes SEC coupe was my Holy Grail car for many years. It was the best personal luxury car template. I finally drove one, it had a few problems, but it was pretty old by then. That kind of let the air out of my tires. It pains me to see that one sitting in the lot, it looks like the body is in good shape. I know the heartbreak that awaits anyone who buys it, though it would be an amazing car if properly refurbished. I was mauled by a couple of old Jaguars, so I know enough to stay away!
They’re a better car than just about any Jaaaag – mechanically at least. What tends to kill them is broken timing chains and engine fires; there are plastic guides around the timing chain that break sooner or later if they’re not replaced (they break and jam in the sprocket, which breaks the chain; the chain itself is almost never the cause), and there are several components on the K-jet fuel injection system that are prone to leak, leading to an engine fire if not addressed.
There’s lots of little stuff to go bad if it’s neglected too, but nothing obscenely expensive to repair, and mostly stuff a guy can fix himself if he’s mechanically inclined. SEC’s are really picking up in value, but probably not enough for a true basket case to be worth fixing up (even running and driving). Still, they’re rare enough that one like that pictured will be worth something someday, even if it’s not economically viable right now. I hope somebody brings it back to life, even if it never fully regains its original glory.
Finally, I think they’re probably the best 80’s luxury coupe money can buy. Unbeatable style, comfortable, reasonably quick, and even good handling with some bigger rims and more aggressive shocks and springs. It’s hard to find a really good one, and be ready to pay new car money for it, but so worth it.
That was a nice Escort. It would be awesome if it was a manual.
We had a Saturn VUE their second year when they arrived without the unreliable CVT transmissions. A cute plastic box with a rattly L81 Opel V6 engine. We discovered that it was not a good car for couples with lots of infants. The rear seat was incredibly uncomfortable riding alongside the babies. We also discovered that even if you only have one infant at a time, you need a car large enough to carry parents, infant, grandparents and often an aunt or two. You need enough cargo space for infant clothes, diapers, feeding supplies, bottle supplies, Pack-n-Play, Snap-n-Go, and stuff for grown ups as well. Today, we barely squeeze in an Explorer followed by a Focus – not including grandparents, who follow our auto-train in another Focus. We just returned from Door County and there was absolutely no room. There is a reason families need large SUVs.
The VUE was my wife’s favorite vehicle until her current Explorer. I bought it for her as a suprise Christmas gift, knowing that we’d soon have a family. However, within a couple of years, having kids gave us a bigger surprise – we needed a van.
The last year on this generation had Honda engines. That – I would have liked. The entire time I had our car, that little Opel engine worried me. It sounded rattly and loose since new.
Like I posted yesterday, I am glad St. Vinnie’s is not in my town or I’d be there every other day seeing what arrived.
My god who travels with all that? When we moved east coast to west coast, in 1966 via a 1964 Ford Galaxie, there were five of us. Parents and kids 12, 10, and 8 in the back seat. The trunk carried what we all needed for the 10 day trip. The only thing in the back of the car were two goldfish swimming in a styrofoam box between my legs. I wouldn’t give them up and those two made it later to San Diego in 1968 and were still alive and well in my backyard fishpond in 1972.
As for looking at a lot like that I just came back from visiting my engine shop. I can wander the place and view all the cool engines the owner is working on from 4 bangers to straight 8s. Old tools. Old paper oil cans. Typical shop with stuff scattered to the four winds and yet he knows where everything is. He is handling my 410 block and Continental Y112.
Oh boy, an original Odyssey! Unless someone failed to change a timing belt or unless this one has over 300k miles on it, this may be the best car in the whole place.
After the Isuzu picture in yesterday’s installment, it is clear that the one shown today is not St. Vinny’s first Rodeo. 🙂
I like the commentary, “Chryslers finest” lol
The Toyotas beat Honda in the cockroach battle. I still see a noticeable amount of 92-96 Camries and the next two generations are probably half the 20 plus yr old cars I see. But the smallish 94-97 Accords seem mostly gone and the 98-02s are not nearly as prevalent as the contemporary Camries. Interestingly the only other late 90s midsize car I see is the Century like the one here. I attribute that to the age of original owners and prob better built than anything except the Toyotas/Hondas. The Old school A predecessors were the ultimate in cockroachdom but it seems a lot of the survivors are gone since 2020
Probably correct, but there is still a silver 2000 Civic 3-door round these parts in excellent condition. Given the usual rear-arch tinworm susceptibility , it is surprising.
Most will probably have succumbed to Rice Boy and his friends and met a fast and furious end. Cannot envisage that happening to a Camry.
It is a shame about the SEC, really. But yes, the borkage potential and the cost of M-B parts has probably done for it.
Amazing, so many project vehicles, I wish I knew where the So. Cal. version of this is .
All those appliances ! why not just scrap ’em out .
-Nate