Ohlgren

I find that feature on this site amusing. Usually it just creates a few giggles at the expense of 'Ve*tte owners, but I see how it could upset the unaware.

I did not expect to like it. I actually think it looks pretty cool. Nicer than the rusted block of iron that makes up the gate on my car.

WOW!! You told me things were a bit worse when you started than you were letting on, but I never suspected it was that bad. Makes this thread all the more impressive! My hat is off to you sir!!

I think I finally found a decent local shop to rebuild and tune the carbs on my Jalpa. I figured I had better get my butt in gear if i am going to join you on any significant drives. I hope to be ready for adventures within the next few weeks.

There are also some scary disclaimers and rules on collector car policies. They have many disclaimers to keep costs down. I would check your policy carefully if you do any major modifications or special events. I always get annoyed by that stupid Liberty Mutual Insurance commercial. "Did you read you whole insurance policy?".... yes I did you idiot! I recommend everyone give their policy a looking over at least once.

Thank you all for the candid assessments. I hope to be buying another car in the next couple years so I really appreciate this info.

"Finish"..... He is a Jalpa owner and "finished" is not a concept typically applied to our cars. Kerplop hasn't even been able to drive his car in order to find all of the things that are in store for him after the motor runs. Rest assured we will have plenty of reading for ages to come.

Yeah..... The thought of a noble used car salesman is down right comical. I have been snaked before. If you want to pay top price for a car, and make a bunch of other people money in the process, by all means share your barn finds here. It seems to me that one of the aspects of car collecting in hunting down rare cars and getting them for a deal.

I am pretty sure I met the guy and saw the car at Concorso Italiano in 2013. It was not in such amazing shape at the time. It looked original and like it had been enjoyed. The owner was super nice and spent some time talking with me. I think he had had it for a while in 2013. I remember talking to Al Burtoni's shop in 2000 and they were offering a Miura P400 for $85,000 (running and in good shape). These crazy prices are a new trend. I can't fault the guy for getting a good deal on it. If he bought it in 2011 or 2012, the going rate for a rough non-running S model would have been around $300,000 at best.... no? If he bought it in the early to mid 2000s, he could probably have gotten it for under $100,000. His current value is based on crazy price increases and a superb refurbishing.

I would love to drive mine out there for the initial start up. I Thought it might be fun to have the two there for the maiden voyage and to do some comparisons. Not sure if it will work out, but one way or the other, after you get yours on the road, I would love to meet somewhere and compare the two. Mine is not exactly stock, but I am curious to see how your injection system and changes compare to a carburetor fed car.

Yeah.... They love that game.

I bought crinkle paint at my local car part store (Baxter Auto Parts). It was easy to find and I think it was for engine use. My boxes were in rough shape and I didn't bother to strip the boxes before I touched them up. My crinkle is a little uneven and if you look close, you can see a very slight gloss difference between new and old. You saw my engine, and I bet you did not notice. I was told that my inconsistent crinkle is easily solved by using a heat gun as it dries to dry the paint evenly. The paint goes on smooth and crinkles as it dries. The top surface layer dries at a different rate than the under layer, creating a crinkle effect. You can control that with a little heat. You might want to try a little practice piece before you do the boxes. (Based on my experience, squirting it on and watching it dry might give inconsistent results....) Message me if you want more info.

Which rims are they? The five circular hole style or the standard style?

You are keeping the air boxes? I expected you do drop them and go with the open Euro setup. What led you to keep them (if that is the plan)?

Sorry to hear about the trouble. Surprising how many stories you hear like this in the exotic car world. I have been having no luck finding a decent local mechanic. Fortunately I am only trying to get little stuff done, but I cannot find a competent mechanic to save my life!

Here are a couple from the road. I had big ambitions of filming the trip and shooting a ton of pics. Only got a few and these were my favorites.

I had a great time in Bend this last weekend. It was a great trip and so much fun exchanging car stories Saturday afternoon. Great to get an educational up close look at a Jalpa in mid restoration. We took the long way down, so the Jalpa covered over 400 miles during the weekend. It sure didn't like the altitude, but once I got closer to home, it settled down and idled more reasonably. Still too rich, but much more agreeable than in Bend. 3,600 feet makes a difference. Other than some tuning issues, the car behaved flawlessly. I will try to post a couple pics from the drive later today.

Am I in the minority of hating most of the current car shows? When I do watch the shows, it is usually because an exotic is on it. I usually cringe at the idiots dealing with them. So many of the builds and restorations they show are terrible. Not the kind of inspiration I wish was on TV. I hope that show posted was fake. The idiot in that show is the last person I would want to buy a Lamborghini from. Reminds me of the housing bubble when the airwaves were packed with "flip this house" shows.

Oh the missed opportunities.... I still kick myself for passing on a Miura around 2000. I thought $80,000 was WAY too much money. That Countach I backed out of at $75,000.

Add me to the list. The stuff was recommended to me on this site years ago. I used it on my Jalpa. The leather was getting dry and I was worried about it splitting and cracking. Everything softened right up. I get a lot of comments on the interior of my car. The stuff really does do wonders. On a side note, for kicks, I used it on a pair of suede leather hiking boots I had that were about 10 years old. They had become my work boots and I seriously abused them for years. Leatherique made them look almost new again. I was blown away. I think it is what the stuff can do for really old or damaged leather that makes it so great.

I would bet you are correct about the condition of a used set of replacement heads. On my rebuild, the heads were in really bad shape. I ended up accruing a bunch of extra cost because of all the man hours required in repairing them. They were so pitted the pits needed to be fill welded in order to get the surface prepared for planing. I guess there was a lot of filling needed.

If you had the money and wanted a Countach right now, it would be pretty nerve racking. Will the price keep climbing or come crashing down?

There is no way to be certain and this is PURELY my own speculation. I would think if there was a car market crash, and things settled back to "normal", around $45,000 average price is what I would expect for the Jalpa. The average price for a decent example held pretty steady at around $30,000 to $35,000 for close to 15 years. In that time there was maybe a 10% to 15% increase. The Jalpa just does not have the image to warrant a 6 figure price tag yet. Maybe someday, but I would think it would take at least another decade to get there. (Then again, the current Ferrari Dino prices make absolutely no sense to me.) I could go on about my theories and ones I have read, but they are just my opinions and theories. I have talked to plenty of people who are convinced this upward trend is going to continue and it makes perfect sense to them that prices are going to continue to skyrocket. I get a Sports Car Market magazine every now and then. The magazine is full of theories and speculation on collector car prices. That is probably the best place to get educated theories and opinions.

My humble opinion is that collector cars are in a balloon pattern. If you could buy something today for $60,000 and sell it in 6 months to a year for $120,000, would you do it? Of course we all would. This feels just like all the other bubbles that have come and gone over the years. Fast easy money that seems to just get better and better. I think investors and speculators are inflating prices. I just do not see this continuing. As an owner, I hope it keeps on rolling. Practically, I think the crash will come when sales slow. Once people see prices start to dive, I expect a sell off. There are enough car lovers out there to keep things from crashing too hard, but the current trend does not make sense to me. For Lamborghini, I would think a return to prices from a couple years ago would be the result of a crash. I do not think you will ever see a Countach below 100K again, but I do not think an Anniversary Countach should sell for 350K to 450K. I have talked to many people who do not share my view. It would be great to see the value of my Jalpa go up, but it would also be nice to be able to afford a Countach.

If you are up for it, I hoped to be able to bring mine to you for reference and inspiration. I will try to head your way when the pass clears up this spring. It will be fantastic to have another Jalpa in the area. We will have to plan some local runs when you get up and going. Don't forget, my car is available for you to look at anytime you come to this side of the mountains.