Value of 1970 T targa

triguy · triguy's Garage

I know this is a common question but I saw this car for sale and it sparked my interest. I know conditioning is everything. It looks like a driver that is not being driven much.

techweenie · techweenie's Garage

Can only give you a range, but $10-12K is my guess if running.

Bad stuff in the photo: aftermarket seats, hood doesn't fit. Wrong lens on turn signal. RS style bumper and flares. Odd wing. Wipers parked on the wrong side. And is that something screwed into the top of the Targa bar?

triguy · triguy's Garage

Thanks for the reply. I just talked to the guy and he is looking for $15000. he says it has not rust. He has the original seats but they need work. It has 2.4 engine and Weber's but sounded a little unsure of the details. Engine was rebuild in 1999 with new pistons etc. I am more of a coupe person so I will probable try to get back to get my 74 on the road.

Thanks Neil

techweenie · techweenie's Garage

The proper engine for the car would be a 2.2 with Zeniths, so with a non-matching engine, it's at the lower end of the range.

Always suspicious of "no rust" claims. Frankly, if this were a '70 Targa that had zero rust, it would be a candidate for someone's collection, after $40K in restoration.

Matt Monson · 02-06-2013, 08:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by techweenie

The proper engine for the car would be a 2.2 with Zeniths, so with a non-matching engine, it's at the lower end of the range.

Only type number will tell us it is non-matching. A 2.2 becomes a 2.4 with just a change in the crank, and is a common performance upgrade that many people do when they rebuild an engine. Same holds true for replacing the Zeniths with some Webers. Could still be numbers matching with a hot rod engine in it.

techweenie · techweenie's Garage

Matt, looking at the rest of the car, do you really think the owner would invest 3X the cost of an engine swap to keep the original case? I don't.

Matt Monson · 02-06-2013, 09:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by techweenie

Matt, looking at the rest of the car, do you really think the owner would invest 3X the cost of an engine swap to keep the original case? I don't.

No, but if, as the potential buyer says, the engine was rebuilt in 1999, a used 2.7l crank would have added $300-400 to the cost of the rebuild and the Webers were probably grabbed for $800 or so. I don't think the current owner was trying to keep the car numbers matched as much as try to build as close to an RS targa as he could on what he had on hand right in front of him.

I seriously doubt the guy went out and bought a 2.4l core to base his rebuild on. I suspect it is more likely he did what I am talking about.

If I was the potential buyer I would be pressing for more details on the engine rebuild. There's a good chance the guy "doesn't remember" because he did it himself, didn't send it off to Walt for pinning and whatnot, etc. etc.

techweenie · techweenie's Garage

I find anecdotal reports of decade-old engine rebuilds, displacement, dyno results, etc. to be of limited value.

Matt Monson · 02-06-2013, 09:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by techweenie

I find anecdotal reports of decade-old engine rebuilds, displacement, dyno results, etc. to be of limited value.

Absolutely, which is why I think the buyer's next step is get the type and serial number along with more details on the rebuild. If the seller doesn't produce a detailed build sheet from a reputible builders, if I were the buyer, one of the first things on my pesonal to-do list would be to reuild the engine again to make sure that it was done properly.