PCH, Ice, Rust, och Akvavit Edition: Saab or Volvo?

The V4 Saab '95s are pretty cool, all right; we won't argue with anyone on that point. But try looking at a car powered by a two-stroke three-banger and telling us you don't want one! That's the powerplant you'll get if you buy this 1965 Saab 95 wagon (go here if the ad disappears). Can you believe it? Only $850 for a classic 3-cylinder Swedish station wagon! Now, some folks might try to tell you that a two-stroke engine spews smog like an oil refinery on fire, but pay them no mind- those are the same killjoys who say that lobster-flavored pork rinds are bad for you! This car comes with all sorts of good news: "good motor, good tranny, good outer body, complete minus a gas tank." It's in Tucson, which means that maybe that floor rust in the photo really is the only real corrosion problem. Maybe. Normally we'd suggest swapping in an engine bigger than 900cc, but in this case that would be blasphemy. So all you need to do is fix the rust, fix the unmentioned mechanical problems, find several hundred missing interior and trim components (fortunately, eBay now has a presence in Sweden), and apply a few 55-gallon drums' worth of elbow grease.

Did you know that Volvo made a "Sport" version of the PV544? Yes indeed, the 60s Swedish car that looks like a 40s Detroit car wasn't just stolid Scandinavian business! So knock back the day's 17th cup of black coffee, squint out your ice-encrusted window at the frozen wasteland outside, and make a bid on this 1961 Volvo Sport PV544! This one needs some work, sure, but "The fan will turn so the motor apparently is not locked up" which should inspire a tiny bit of optimism. The rust, however, is another story; the Skåne Steel Silverfish have been hard at work on this car's body. But there's glass, and, uh, the oil on the dipstick "looks clean." Well, fine, this car is a total basket case, but it's a Sport! Drop the drivetrain out of an easy-to-find wrecked 940 Turbo and your sufferings will have been worth it!