Fair price for 05/06 P71?

I just found out about a couple of these cars up for auction nearby. I don't need one, but I'm tempted to offer a somewhat lowball bid.

What's a fair-price for one of these?

HUGELY dependent on miles color and condition. IMO; as much as 7-8k, as little as $3k

Thanks!

I haven't seen the cars yet & have no info, but that gives me somewhere to start.

I wouldn't worry about high miles, just means it idled slightly less (or at least you can tell yourself that). White is much cheaper than any other color. Two colored ones like white and black are cheaper still. Solid black, grey, or blue, be prepared to bring the most $.

I don't mean to offend anyone, but I still don't understand the appeal of these tanks. Sure they're somewhat heavy duty (and heavy in general), and cheap, but so are Mustangs, which are many other more capable cars. I've especially always found it a little strange that so many people on a board like this one are into these cars. Help me understand, paleeez.

bravenrace, Have you ever bought a car for under $3K that can drag race, autocross, and road race competitively right out of the box? These things are tough as nails and are great road course beasties with factory coolers on everything (trans, power steering, oil) and heavy-duty everything ("cop shocks, cop brakes"). Ever had a full-size car that seats 5 6'+ adults in total comfort plus 6 golf bags in the trunk on top of the full size spare? 25-30 MPG on the highway with a V8! Not to mention trip times are drastically shorter since people tend to move the heck out of the way. It's not that great at any one thing, but at it's price point it does a heck of a lot for pennies!

Check my ride page: http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/reader-rides/121/

To the OP: Right now in my area 03-04's (which are nearly identical to the 05-06's) are coming up on the auctions (Oregon retires the cruisers at 120K). They're going for $3000-$3500. Keep in mind these are Highway Patrol cars (so less idling and less abuse) that are a solid dark blue. As others have said good solid non-white colors go for more $$. I'd think an 05 could be worth around $4K.

Do these REALLY get 30mpg on the highway? I REALLY think having one would be neat, and 2k4's can be had for super cheap here, but 30mpg???

P71 - I can think of any number of cars in that price range that would drag race, autocross and road race as well or better in my opinion. For instance, do you think a stock P71 would beat a mid 90's Z-28 in any of those events? Would it beat a Mustang GT in any of those events? A second gen Turbo RX-7? I'm pretty sure I could trash one on an autocross course with my stock Civic si. All these cars can be had for as cheap or cheaper than you guys spend on these cars. And I know it's just an opinion, but I think they're pretty fugly and boring in comparison. You have me on the amount of people they will hold, and stuff they can hold in the trunk, but I have a truck for that. Again, I don't mean to offend anyone that likes these cars, but I just don't get it.

bravenrace wrote: P71 - I can think of any number of cars in that price range that would drag race, autocross and road race as well or better in my opinion. For instance, do you think a stock P71 would beat a mid 90's Z-28 in any of those events? Would it beat a Mustang GT in any of those events? I'm pretty sure I could trash one on an autocross course with my stock Civic si. All these cars can be had for as cheap or cheaper than you guys spend on these cars. And I know it's just an opinion, but I think they're pretty fugly and boring in comparison. You have me on the amount of people they will hold, and stuff they can hold in the trunk, but I have a truck for that. Again, I don't mean to offend anyone that likes these cars, but I just don't get it.

Owning/driving a retired cop car isn't for everyone. I think of it like Jazz music, doesn't interest me much, but I see the appeal and understand the art.

njansenv wrote: Do these REALLY get 30mpg on the highway? I REALLY think having one would be neat, and 2k4's can be had for super cheap here, but 30mpg???

I got 32MPG last tank, all highway. Filled up, got on the freeway (gas station was at the exit), went 70 up and 65 back, filled up at the same station. Mileage drops fast with in-town driving and full-throttle bursts...

bravenrace,

All of those cars are 20+ years old. We're talking about a 5-10 year old car that has ice cold A/C, cruise, and was well taken care of. I have owned many Camaro's, Firebird's, RX-7's, and even a Mustang, and while they are all great cars for performance, NONE of them make a good daily driver without spending a LOT of money on restoration (shocks, springs, bushings, tune-ups, brakes, etc) or spending more than $3K on a really nice one.

The draw of this car is that it's really just a daily driver that can also do all sorts of racing with no modifications. A stock Turbo II RX-7 (other than being more expensive) will get dusted at the drags and long road courses. A Z/28 or T/A would beat the snot out of the P71 but the doors would fall off and you'd have to grow a mullet.

They are not for everybody, but they are a super cheap way to jump into the "fun" pool and still have a nice DD that's OK on gas and ridiculously cheap on insurance. Plus it'll tow a car trailer that you can use for your Miata/RX7/E30/Camaro.

I used to own a 96 Impala SS, so can understand the appeal of a large, rwd, v8 sedan with all the heavy duty bits. The prices of the P71s have made them very attractive to me lately and you guys ARE NOT helping!! I don't know how much longer I can resist the urge....

Sorry, but I see no fun in trying to wield a car that heavy and big around an autocross or road course. But to each his own. My daily driver is a Solstice GXP, so go figure.

Really, trying to talk someone who wants a P71 out of buying one is not any different than trying to talk someone out of a Miata or a Civic or a Pinto or anything else...

It's a preference thing. I CAN see the appeal to the motorsports aspect (it won't be COMPETETIVE, but some folks don't care as long as they're having fun), I love the people hauling aspect...and what hasn't been mentioned is the TOWING aspect. [edit: Oops, towing HAS been mentioned...]

They're built, from the factory, as severe duty vehicles. This can be a good thing. Remember, the factory knows how to make things withstand a warranty period with minimal mantenance...

Just some thoughts.

Clem

It's fun around an autocross course! Just apply copious amounts of throttle for tail-out, Top Gear style driving. Plus you can have 4 helmeted passengers inside with you How is that not fun? (And yes, I've done it)

On a road course (especially long ones like Portland) it actually works really good. These things were actually designed for big sweepers at 100+ all day long. On the track days I've attended I blew Porsche 911's out of the water on the straights and maintained equal speeds through all the corners. Remember a P71 is geared to do 60 in first and 95 in second. A P71 on 255 R-comps would be a killer track car.

Mostly it's just a great DD. Cheap to insure, cheap to maintain, nobody will steal it, and it's comfy. Plus the whole towing thing.

As for fuel efficiency, when I had 3.27's the best tank I ever got was 25.5 on the interstate. Now with 3.73's it's more like 22-23. In town between 17-18. It could probably be better but I can NOT keep my foot out of it. I towed an e30 to texas on a flatbed and averaged 14.5 with overdrive off. Got 19.5 on the way back with the empty flatbed. Enough boring fuel efficiency crap....

I have two kids. I have to be able to take them with me. I have an RX-7 so I need a tow vehicle. It is a long long ways from the best handling car I've owned, but somehow is one of if not THE most fun to drive.

Well, I went & looked at them. They're both white, in decent shape & have 55k & 75k on them. Unfortunately, the have a minimum bid listed on them both too - $4500 for the '05, and $5500 for the '06. They may be worth that much, but they're out of my price range.

Thanks for the info though!

They'll never get that, even with the low miles. Offer them $3K for the 05, they might bite.

If you like road trips I can hook you up with the Oregon guys for a Dark Blue on like mine!

njansenv wrote: Do these REALLY get 30mpg on the highway? I REALLY think having one would be neat, and 2k4's can be had for super cheap here, but 30mpg???

no way not even downhill with a tailwind

mine gets 21-22 highway with the cruise on

unless you have a freak or a broken calculator

Michael's is the fastest on the mods that it has, and gets the best mileage I've heard of. Not typical.

Tighten the nut behind the wheel and do a proper tune up.

You'd be surprised what proper tire pressures, alignment, fresh fluids, and clean filters will do for mileage. Plus fresh plugs and keeping the fuel system clean. Modern EFI cars run pig-rich (especially Fords) until you tune them with a handheld tuner. Intake and exhaust mods let it breathe better as well.

Biggest factor is still driving style. Ease into the throttle, keep the speed reasonable, and no windows down or other craziness.

I can eek 25 out of a carburetored rotary that gets 6 autocrossing! It's all in how you drive.

at interstate speed i'm skeptical that they run "pig rich". In my experience most cars are fairly good at staying right at stoichiometric. I keep 45psi in the tires, running tip-top, recently aligned, rear cats removed. That's still 5 mpg better than I've done with the same rear end.

Do you have a tune? My mileage picked up significantly with the Superchips tuner. Ford likes staying on the rich side, especially with P71's, to keep the engines together for a long time. You hear about more gas-washed cylinders in 4.6's than detonation.

24-25 is what I normally get on the highway running 70-75 with A/C and a little town driving at both ends of the trip. It takes a no-A/C cold winter day and a lighter foot to get 29-30.

I will preface this by saying that I am predominately a Ford guy, however, my tastes have been branching out over the past couple of years. I will always own a Ford or two.

If I were to be in the market for a large RWD sedan, it would be the P71, but, I am in severe hot-rodding mode, so I would opt for an extremely cheap Catera for an LSX swap.

Ooooh! LS1 Catera does sound righteous! Grab some 05-06 GTO brakes for it while you're in there.