New car and best way to dispose of the old one

So my g/f's car (highly desirable '99 Galant ES) suffered a balance shaft belt failure @50k that caused it to jump time resulting in valve damage to #1. Tear-down didn't reveal any smoking guns -- no bearing, pulley, tensioner failures, etc. Lesson learned: don't use non-OEM (in this case, Gates) timing components.

Now I've been trying to get her to upgrade for years, but it is the first and only car she's ever owned. She bought it brand new, drove it for 16 years, and was deeply attached to it. Now that is over. So, for the first time in my life, I went new car shopping.

We initially were looking used, but thanks to Mazda Motorsports' s-plan pricing, we were able to get a great deal on one of the remaining '15 Mazda 3s in the area. Owner loyalty and dealer cash incentives that stack with the other discounts helped a lot too. So, a big kudos to Mazda for their motorsports programs even for AutoX level enthusiasts.

Now, I need to make a decision what to do with the old car. It's not worth me fixing - I'd spend more on parts and gaskets than I'd get for private party or scrap value. I'd love to see someone turn it into a Lemons racer but I don't think a 4g64 FWD/auto Galant is very in-demand. Should I just have it scrapped? Donate it to some charity that'll have it scrapped instead? I've never had to deal with a non-running car sale before so I'm open to ideas here.

Throw it on CL as-is and see what you can get for it.

Be prepared to deal with the crazies that you get on CL.

I would go the charity route, just to avoid the crazies on CL. But you can try CL first to see how it goes. Unfortunately, no matter how many times you put in the ad "not running", some will still ask how it runs.

If you/she are itemizing deductions on taxes, the $300 charitable deduction you'll get might be worth more than the hassle of trying to sell.

It only had 50k on it?

CarMax will pay you something for it.

Charities wouldn't take my ls400 because it lacked a motor. Ended up taking it to the scrap yard. It's a 3800lb car less 475 for engine. I got a whopping 22$ for it. Steel scrap is hyper low...

Hrm, not really wanting to deal with the CL crazies if it can be avoided. She does not itemize so the charity route wouldn't have any tax benefit.

It does have an engine -- I'm not pulling it or anything, but it's far from a state where it'll run. I have no trailer or tow vehicle so it'd have to be picked up by whomever eventually gets it.

The car had about 170k on it. 50k since the last timing belt change. I replaced the t-belt, b-shaft belt, all the pulleys and tensioners so it is disappointing that the aftermarket part would have failed 10k before it was due for replacement again.

I bet it'd make a sweet mid-engine v8 challenge car for next year, and the price is right!

Regarding the Mitsu...

Bargain basement ebay parts - one used valve (hit the forums or your friendly machine shop), lap it in, toss it back together, sell it for $1k. Just bare minimum parts. Remember - it only has to leave your driveway. Heck, it would run without the balance shaft belt just fine.

Toss it on CL for $400 and wait

Armitage wrote: So my g/f's car (highly desirable '99 Galant ES) suffered a balance shaft belt failure @50k that caused it to jump time resulting in valve damage to #1. Tear-down didn't reveal any smoking guns -- no bearing, pulley, tensioner failures, etc. Lesson learned: don't use non-OEM (in this case, Gates) timing components. Now I've been trying to get her to upgrade for years, but it is the first and only car she's ever owned. She bought it brand new, drove it for 16 years, and was deeply attached to it. Now that is over. So, for the first time in my life, I went new car shopping. We initially were looking used, but thanks to Mazda Motorsports' s-plan pricing, we were able to get a great deal on one of the remaining '15 Mazda 3s in the area. Owner loyalty and dealer cash incentives that stack with the other discounts helped a lot too. So, a big kudos to Mazda for their motorsports programs even for AutoX level enthusiasts. Now, I need to make a decision what to do with the old car. It's not worth me fixing - I'd spend more on parts and gaskets than I'd get for private party or scrap value. I'd love to see someone turn it into a Lemons racer but I don't think a 4g64 FWD/auto Galant is very in-demand. Should I just have it scrapped? Donate it to some charity that'll have it scrapped instead? I've never had to deal with a non-running car sale before so I'm open to ideas here.

Just curious. What makes the 99 Galant ES so desirable?

joking

Clean it up very well. Slap the engine back together so it appears fine. Take great photos. Write an ad that makes no mention of the bad engine. Put it on Craigslist with a price that is a bit higher than high retail.

Wait for a scammer.

When they pull the scam, let them arrange for a shipping company to come and pick up the car. Help the driver load the non running car onto the trailer. Laugh as it drives away.