I thought I got a great deal, turned out to be a good deal. My current 1996 BMW Z3 was purchased heavily modified. It had basically been converted into an M Roadster except for the fender flares. It had a S52, exhaust system, M front brakes, 17" wheels with upgraded tire size, new top, mostly new interior, new Corbeau seats, lowered/stiffened suspension, M3 transmission, new suspension bushings, working A/C, overall most of the mods were fairly tasteful and done right. The guy wanted $7500 and had to get rid of the car because he was moving from Georgia to Alaska. I agreed to his price on a Saturday evening, left a deposit and aid I would be back Monday or Tuesday with the balance. Seller calls me Monday night to tell me the car is sold to someone else for more money. I DON"T THINK SO! After several heated phone calls I agreed to be there Tuesday with the rest of the funds. This was basically an impulse purchase, I wasn't even looking for a car, my father was the one looking. He told me about this car and how good it was, I showed my wife the Craigslist ad and she said we should get it, I'm not going to turn down something like that. I had to arrange funds through the credit union, hence the delay. I finally got the car, 400 miles later it needed a new engine. Something in the oil system failed suddenly and catastrophically, two severely scored cylinders. Another $2500 or so for another S52 and installation and I'm back on the road for about $10k total. Still much cheaper than almost any M roadster out there, but not the steal I thought I had.

I got a '93 Escort with about 150k kms for $100. It ran great, but having spent some time in Newfoundland, it was a bit of a basket case. Still, I loved that car for the year I had it.
Although, the friend I got it off of got the better deal. He had bought it off a coworker for $100, and then swapped out the aftermarket cd player into his own Escort.
I also just got a hand-me-down Hyundai Accent from my parents – it's been well maintained, and it has much lower mileage than my Cavalier, so I guess that's a good deal.

From what I've been told, most things to come out of Newfoundland are basket cases.

So I started looking at lots for used Civics, Corollas, Proteges, and even Sentras. Happened upon a Saturn dealer after hearing rumors of a pristine, recently-traded Jetta TDi wagon being present and available. No dice on the oil-burner, but the dealer talked me into at least taking a new Ion out for a spin. I was NOT impressed, especially even after driving around in 9-year-old Civics and Sentras. BUT, there must be something said about the friendliness and non-aggressive nature of the Saturn dealer, because we ended up sitting down to talk about what I was actually looking for, and what my realistic budget for a purchase was ($13k was my ceiling to spend on a car without needing a third job).

That is good karma right there. Something had to have happened to you after helping out a bud in need.

I got A-Plan? I mean, I met a wonderful woman who would become my wife. Yeah, the second one. She would kick me if it were just the first.

I have plenty of these stories, such as a slew of Honda 350 twins that were just given to me by people who had them and didn't want them. I'd get them running, ride them, use the other ones for parts, good fun. Good little city bikes.
My latest killer deal is a '53 Dodge Power Wagon that I bought for $150.00 Ran when parked thirty or so years ago. All there. I have no idea if the engine is frozen or not. Unfortunately, it needed to be hauled into a shop and put up on jacks and methodically gone through, and I have no access to anything like that. Fixing it in place wouldn't have been practical. I sold it back to the family I bought it from for what I had in it, it had been their Dad's and was their favorite lawn monument. Thought of him when they looked at it. Oh well, it's still there. If they ever decide to sell it again I'm easy to find.

My first car ever, bought a VW Super Beetle for $450. (I was 14, and never got to drive it off of the street that we lived on)
Was introduced to "Recycled Bugs" aka "Parts Place" and J.C. Whitney with that car.
Did a few things to it, including, of course, floor board rust repair, and sold it when I was 15 for $600.

The Jeep I found for 10k w1th 30,000 miles, in six years. Wifey's Vibe I found for 4k. Both are very good and very paid off cars.

Thank you for your help!