[grivera]

Looking to buy a 65 Catalina near me with no price yet. The good is it has a 68 428 with 6X heads, LB manifolds, performer intake, Edelbrock carb, Unilite dizzy, TH 400 trans. Dual Exhaust appears recently done and very nice with exception of the exhaust tips. Drum brakes all around, supposedly rebuilt front end. Air shocks in rear. It’s got a so/so paint job front about 5-10 rears ago. Interior rear seats are nice, as is headliner and door panels. Front bench has a rear on lower bench/front. The gauge trio is gone and replaced with aftermarket White face gauges. It has a weird dash pad on it and radio opening cut out to install a single sun radio. Trunk pan appears to have been patched in some areas with goop but no holes visible. A couple of questionable rust areas in bottom of quarters. The car looks nice from 20 foot, lots of pitting on plated areas inside and out. Interior is blue and exterior red. The rear bumper is dented and heavily oxidized. Someone put a small single diaphragm brake booster on it with dual chamber master. Engine runs well supposedly recently rebuilt- no details on build but external looks good , trans shifts smoothly, temp remained under 180 during the drive. The brakes suck - very hard pedal likely due to low vacuum. Trying to get idea on value- Anyone?

[mgarblik]

I would need much better pictures and many more of them to really zero in on an accurate value. But I know 65-66 full size cars pretty well and you have described many, many expensive items that have issues. But that is IF and only IF you plan to restore it back to a show car state. I am 90% certain that car never came red with a blue interior so there has been a color change somewhere along the line. The most desirable feature is the 428 engine and the the exhaust manifolds. But completely unknown history of the rebuild. Did they buy a bunch of E-bay engine parts and run a dingleberry hone through the block or rebuild it properly which would cost thousands to do correctly. So based just on what I see in the pics, your descriptions, and all the things you have described, I would place it's value at 8-10K. And that would only be if the frame and floors are in really good condition. Those frames have issues above the rear wheels and back toward the rear bumper. Also frame issues where the body attaches under the A pillar. Lets see what others think? A good dash face and having the dash pad restored will be over 2K just as a tiny example.

[grivera]

Thanks- just the type of info I’m looking for. I hope to have videos posted soon. A few more pics.

[grivera]

Some videos:

https://youtube.com/shorts/G8tBCfjt6-c?feature=share

https://youtu.be/ZMJ0EvA65aM

https://youtube.com/shorts/BNM1fUeAj00?feature=share

https://youtu.be/kUZGG5WOj0U

[1965gp]

As suggested you need to look at the frame. If the frame is rusted through- just walk away. The trunk pan is the first thing to go on these. My 65 GP the entire trunk was gone with the rest of the car being pretty solid.

Agree that red and blue isn’t a factory color combo- use that as a bargaining tool.

What is the goal of the car? Some would be very happy polishing it as is and enjoying it. Some want it to be completely factory correct.

If you want a points judged show car there are probably better options out there.

If you want a car you can work on and enjoy and not break the bank then this could be a good fit. Buy a nice used bumper when you find it, pick up a dash that’s in driver condition when it comes available,, etc. one cool thing about these cars is that you have a nice piece of chrome on the lower quarter to use as a dividing line to repair the rust and repaint it when you are ready.

As far as price goes it’s a tough call. You listed a lot of issues that will turn away buyers. The blue/red combo will turn people away as well. If it had black or red interior I would say 15-18k. But it doesn’t so I am going to say 12-15k. We are in a world where anything shiny you can enjoy right away is 20k.

If I were buying it I would look for a black interior for it (used), put some big wheels on it and loud exhaust. Enjoy it with the patina it has and fix little things along the way.

That’s what I did with this 60 Wagon- I paid 16,500 for this car before the pandemic and it is an extremely fun car- rusted floors, worn out interior and all. Everyone loves it and it’s just a fun ride that I don’t have to worry too much about.

[grivera]

Thanks- appreciate the insight and need to look at that frame. What I could see looking at the body mounts behind wheels looked good. Wasn’t aware of the usual problem areas so will look - hopefully in next couple days.

[HWYSTR455]

Any under hood and under body pics?

That is a perfect candidate for a restomod or pro-tour car.

.

[i82much]

i think it is a four season daily driver, don't worry about a few dings kind of car. snow tires, mud flaps, pep boys floor mats and a pine tree air freshener. maybe some jensen speakers so you can crank up Ozzy and pick up chicks.

[grivera]

Originally Posted by i82much

i think it is a four season daily driver, don't worry about a few dings kind of car. snow tires, mud flaps, pep boys floor mats and a pine tree air freshener. maybe some jensen speakers so you can crank up Ozzy and pick up chicks.

That's funny right there! The stereo system is decent - 6x9's in deck and front box speakers at bottom front of bench seat!

[grivera]

Originally Posted by HWYSTR455

Any under hood and under body pics?

That is a perfect candidate for a restomod or pro-tour car.

.

I'll send you a video

[i82much]

Originally Posted by grivera

That's funny right there! The stereo system is decent - 6x9's in deck and front box speakers at bottom front of bench seat!

have fun if you buy it! i have as much fun in my junky k10 as i do in my far-nicer GTO. there's a lot to be said to treating a classic car like a ... car instead of a piece of artwork!

[1965gp]

That is a really good point most of us forget

[grivera]

I'm no longer considering the car - thanks all for your input and insight into this particular body style. The main deciding factor was the lack of repro parts for this body style. I like my cars more presentable and the pitting alone would drive me crazy. I've been looking at 69-70 Grand Prix models as well. Will post one I'm considering.

[mgarblik]

These car models you are considering, IMO are great drivers. 65-66 full size have fantastic interiors, tons of cool options and are great looking. Good condition lesser models are still available and affordable. Like Catalina models with bench seats and 389 2 bbl. power. They ALL have turbo 400 trans if auto, which is a huge bonus. Only real downside is marginal brakes and single piston master cylinder in 65-66. Upgrades are easy though. 69-70 GP. High production numbers, so reasonable number of survivors. GTO performance and handling at about half the price. A true bargain for a wonderful car. Front disc brakes, crisp handling, cockpit style interior, high quality materials. They really have it all. Need a good cooling system to run one with AC. Possibly consider a 71GP for low compression? Would cost allot less to drive on pump gas without additives, race gas? Good luck with your search. Great cars!