I know it's quite old

"sm70- why not Duesenberg?" (sm70-whynotduesenberg) 07/30/2017 at 11:00 • Filed to: None

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But I didn’t see it until now. This is a !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! to Tavarish’s old “You should buy an old Bentley Continental for the price of a Mirage” articles.

As someone who is now on his second old luxury car “for the price of a used Honda,” those articles always struck me as misleading at best. Of course I’m beating a dead, pointless horse, as he doesn’t write those pieces anymore.

djmt1 > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 07/30/2017 at 11:11

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Coincidentally he now owns one of those but in AMG spec. Also he plans to manual swap it...

gin-san - shitpost specialist > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 07/30/2017 at 11:13

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As the comment says, unless you have excellent technical abilities or just plain enjoy wrenching for the sake of wrenching, it’s going to be a frustrating ownership experience.

farscythe - makin da cawfee! > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 07/30/2017 at 11:27

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im on my 5th crappy old beater for the price of a midrange tv

dogisbadob > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 07/30/2017 at 11:31

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Hi

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 07/30/2017 at 11:32

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You really need at least 2 of the following traits to own a car like this, enthusiasm, money, patience or mechanical skills. Maybe even all of the above.

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > dogisbadob 07/30/2017 at 11:33

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The worst car in the history of the world.

dogisbadob > Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies 07/30/2017 at 11:34

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at least it doesn’t cost $1000 a month to keep running :p

It’s a nice reliable alternative to an SL or other luxury European roadster

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > djmt1 07/30/2017 at 11:49

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The commenter or Divorce?

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > gin-san - shitpost specialist 07/30/2017 at 11:51

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It’s more than just enjoying wrenching. Just because you work on an old Chevy pickup or slammed Miata does not mean you’ll be able to cheaply or realistically work on any of the cars he suggests, if you can even work on them at all.

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > farscythe - makin da cawfee! 07/30/2017 at 11:52

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Nothing wrong with that, but I’m assuming that beater isn’t an F355 with 87k miles and a flood title.

djmt1 > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 07/30/2017 at 11:52

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Tavarish.

Alfalfa > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 07/30/2017 at 11:53

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I always felt like the criticism of these articles was silly, as I feel most Jalopnik readers know that these cars take a lot more to maintain. They all seem a little tongue-in-cheek to me.

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > dogisbadob 07/30/2017 at 11:54

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I have the same response to this that I did when someone suggested I buy a Tahoe instead of an LX. Yes it will cost less to maintain, but I wouldn’t care because I wouldn’t want to own it in the first place.

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > djmt1 07/30/2017 at 11:54

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Of course he has

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > Alfalfa 07/30/2017 at 11:55

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But he never presents them as entertainment. Of course nobody’s going to think it’s a good idea, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t trying to convince anyone.

djmt1 > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 07/30/2017 at 11:57

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Oh and did you know he bought it for $8,900.

I mean he really wants you to know he bought it for $8,900.

farscythe - makin da cawfee! > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 07/30/2017 at 12:01

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you assume correct.. my current crappy beater is a $400 fiat panda with a slightly bigger spare engine in the shed (my rule is if the fix is more than i paid for the car i trade it in)

dogisbadob > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 07/30/2017 at 12:04

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A Tahoe probably wouldn’t be cheaper to maintain than an LX, though!

Toyota makes the best cars; that’s just how it is. The tuff truck with luxury and prestige that the LX is, to the most reliable big luxury car the LS, to the #1 luxury car the ES is, to the best family car in teh Camry, all the way down to the economical and reliable Yaris.

Now, the SC isn’t my favorite Toyota, but it’s still the best, most reliable car in its segment.

If you can only afford to have one car at a time, it should be a Toyota!

6691 zapS > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 07/30/2017 at 12:14

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Would there be any difference between what he does and my Dad trading someone for 740il and then when something goes wrong buying a BMW part then youtube for installation procedures?

Is it a condition that might be hiding that is the concern? (My Dad knew the history of the car of the first/previous owners.)

4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30 > farscythe - makin da cawfee! 07/30/2017 at 12:58

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Fiat Pandas are excellent

farscythe - makin da cawfee! > 4muddyfeet - bare knuckle with an EZ30 07/30/2017 at 13:11

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cant speak for the new ones... but the old ones are damn near bulletproof (if you can keep the rust at bay)

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > djmt1 07/30/2017 at 13:25

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I don’t subscribe to him believe it or not.

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > dogisbadob 07/30/2017 at 13:28

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They do indeed make the best cars, from a practical objective standpoint. Some of there cars also manage to capture the ever-important emotional aspect, while some severely lack in that department.

Also:

http://oppositelock.kinja.com/my-lexus-has-cost-almost-as-much-to-repair-in-the-first-1796307054

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > 6691 zapS 07/30/2017 at 13:31

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Just be wanted that parts are expensive and the repairs may take more than just watching a YouTube video to master.

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > 6691 zapS 07/30/2017 at 13:31

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Just be warned that parts are expensive and the repairs may take more than just watching a YouTube video to master.

fintail > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 07/30/2017 at 14:19

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And something everyone forgets: time. I am at work for 50 hours a week. I also like to exercise, eat, complete errands, and sleep. I aint got time for 10 hours a week of wrenching in a quest to try to look rich (when nobody in the know is fooled).

His Stigness > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 07/30/2017 at 20:09

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Even if you’re a technician with the ability to work on a German V12 you still shouldn’t buy them. I was talking to AMGTech about buying an S65 and he said don’t ever do it. He said they’re a nightmare, and even having access to all the equipment will still mean many thousands of dollars in upkeep. He went on to say if I had my heart set of being an idiot to set aside $6,000 for repairs, and that’s after finding a pristine example.

So, even if you’re a master tech with all the tools, don’t buy one. Not unless you have so much money you don’t know what to do with it, and you hate yourself.

I still want one =)

NJAnon > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 07/31/2017 at 00:59

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Of course it seems appealing. That you could pay way less than half on luxury performance cars or some other car that is exclusive? Thats right at the border of too good to be true but doesn’t step over the line. or rather one foot isn’t over the line & the other is?

You can get insurance on anything. of course you gotta do homework.

The rule still stands regardless of how many times Tavarish puts $8,900 in his youtube video thumbnails: don’t go into a buy blind. If Tavarish wants to buy a car with 800 sensors and wires crisscrossing everything that have to be periodically looked over and he’s willing to put up with the headache then go ahead and let him. He saw there was an element of fixer upper in the car but was still within his tolerances probably.

6691 zapS > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 08/01/2017 at 15:05

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Well the BMW was family owned, the people in question didn’t factor in the cost of parts and consumables. Dad has always wrenched on cars. He was Mechanical engineer by trade.

6691 zapS > 6691 zapS 08/01/2017 at 15:07

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Reminds me I need to write about him surveying down in Mobile, Ala. in the 50's. (Sneks that can swim)