Sometimes, you check out a car because you’re interested in the car itself. But sometimes, it’s worth looking at a car not only for the car itself, but for its surroundings. While you have to be careful not to harass a seller, a visit to one with a broad collection might yield some interesting finds. And if not, well, the Milano is quite a neat car on its own – hearing that V6 is certainly worth the trip. Check out this 1987 Alfa Romeo Milano for sale for $2000 in Woodburn, OR.
It’s not often a car from the high-tech nineties, whose original sale price was well into the five figures, appears here, but sometimes a chance is too good to pass up. Imagine picking up a contemporary of BMW’s M5, or an AMG Mercedes, in apparently good condition for the kind of money you’d spend on a driver MGB. And yes, a driver MGB certainly has many virtues, but there’s also a lot of fun in piloting a 230hp turbocharged inline 5 with all-wheel-drive and fairly direct lineage to the original Quattro. Check out this 1995 Audi S6 for sale for $4000 in Portland, OR.
As you might have guessed by the 2-week silent period, travel took the place of car hunting (though not entirely – there was a candidate for the RustyButTrusty fleet that needed evaluating, which ended up seeming Rusty but not Trusty). And it’s amazing to see in person how, in spite of a climate that’s not very supportive of the classic car hobby, there are many old cars on the roads of England, even London. Among the cars not covered in this post were a short-wheelbase topless Mini, a Panther, Lotus 7, MGB, Triumph TR6, a pair of Peugeot 205s, and more. But let’s start with ones that were moving too slowly to escape a shooter hindered by a cell phone with a security code, like this Q-plated Land Rover 1/2 ton lightweight, parked on the market square in Newbury, England. Unlike other lettered plates, which correspond to a certain year, Q-plated cars (Q is for “query”) are of an undetermined build year, so this designation is used for ex-military vehicles, former write-offs, and more. The car itself is quite interesting, having been specified as light weight to be airlifted.
Rusty But Trusty 