OK, so I have been trolling around the Facebook Groups again, but I think you will find it worthwhile this time. Here are three (mostly) desirable sports cars, all dressed in shades of blue. They include a 1970.5 Pontiac Trans Am, a 1975 Mercedes Benz 450 SL, and a 2000 Acura NSX-T. It is hard to imagine that the Acura is 14 years old, while the others are considerably older. So, which one steals your heart?

I am going to start out with what is probably the least desirable of this trio, the Mercedes Benz. First off, I would get rid of the pimpalicious chrome rims, and substitute a set of silver OEM Alloys. According to the listing:

1974 Mercedes Benz 450SL AMG, Runs and drives great, Convertible, Hard top and soft top included, 105594 miles, V8, automatic transmission, Blue leather interior, Aftermarket stereo, Power windows and locks, Disk brakes.

I’ve got a great car for sale. A classic Mercedes V8 powered convertible just in time for spring. It’s got every thing and is a joy to drive.

Asking price for this AMG Wannabe is $10,000 or Best Offer. See the listing here, and tell me what you think it’s worth…

Next up is the Acura NSX, which leaves me more than a little cold. It may have something to do with the color, or it maybe something else altogether. According to the very detailed listing:

The 2000 Acura NSX-T is extremely rare and hard to find. This example is in excellent condition despite the fact it is a Salvage Title. The Salvage was a result of having been stolen and stripped when it had 17K miles on it. It was not wrecked or involved in any type of accident. Let me repeat that… IT WAS NOT WRECKED OR INVOLVED IN ANY TYPE OF ACCIDENT. Let me rephrase that, it was not crushed, mangled, dented or otherwise touched by any other object. It was simply stolen by tow truck, stripped and recovered. The owner BOUGHT IT BACK from the insurance company and spent a lot of money replacing the stolen parts with BRAND NEW OEM ACURA PARTS. The body is PERFECT on this car. I have restored cars for over 25 years and judge cars at concourse events and I know when a car has a perfect body and when it has been damaged and repaired. This car looks to have a completely virgin body car to me. If any damage has ever been done to this car it was fixed by a high-dollar shop that is perfection oriented. There is NO bondo or fillers in this body anywhere. All the factory welds appear to be in the car when I put it in the air and study it with my high-powered flashlight.

A completely new rebuilt engine was installed within the last 4000 miles. A BRAND NEW Block was bought for the car and built up, including new pistons and crank. Everything was done down by a very reputable NSX Mechanic, at a cost of $11,800 in October of 2012 at 41300 miles. The engine was rebuilt by Fuji Auto in LaPuente, CA. The shop owner’s name is Ka and his number is at XXX-XXX-XXXX and is an Acura NSX Club Member and Mechanic. Feel free to call him about this car.

The car was originally Silver and was repainted Silver Blue. This a very high-dollar repaint where everything was removed and repainted inside and out. The exterior paint is extremely flat with zero orange peel and has a deep mirror-like finish. This was probably a $15K-$20K paint job at a minimum. The Alcantara Leather Seating matches the color of the exterior. Very easy to replace the panels back to black if the blue is not for you. My interior guy says he can dye the seats and door panel inserts at a minimal cost and we can have this done before the car is shipped if someone wants it that color.

The car is in excellent condition and has always been in California. These engines get very good mileage (19/26) and are extremely fun to drive with unbelievable reliability. Here is an opportunity to buy a high-end vehicle at a nice discount because of the salvage, which really should not be that big a deal since the car was not wrecked, and everything was replaced with genuine Acura Parts.

Asking price for this Acura is $29,900, which seems like a lot, even with all the work that has been done to the car. This will always be a Salvage Car, and in about another ten years, that may not matter, but I want to know what you think. See the listing here.

Finally, we have my personal favorite of the three, A 1970 and 1/2 Pontiac Trans Am. The Pontiac Trans Am and the Chevrolet Camaro were sensations when introduced in 1970, and you only have to take a look at this beauty to see why. According to the very detailed listing:

Restoration is 95% complete. Body and paint are truly stunning. Straight as an arrow, minus one tiny ding in the passenger door, that you’d never notice if I didn’t point it out. Two small cracks in the clear coat on the front endura bumper that are barely noticable. Car was soda blasted to bare metal before the Spies-Heckler base/clear was applied, in the original Lucerne Blue. Car was painted 4 years ago in the correct code 26 Lucerne Blue, mixed to PPG specs, and still looks amazing. The photos don’t capture the color accurately, blues don’t always transfer well to digital. Bright blue deluxe interior. PHS documented as being a factory Lucerne blue/Bright blue car.

560 hp 1970 vintage 455, with Edelbrock heads. Over $7k spent on the engine alone. 200 4R auto overdrive trans. The car starts, runs, and moves on it’s own power. It hasn’t been driven yet. The engine is not broken in. Zero miles. Has it’s original 3.31 12 bolt posi rear end. Interior is very nice, and factory correct. Dash was restored by Just Dashes. Armrests are correct, nearly impossible to find. They were upholstered in matching vinyl. Most of the body panels are original to the car. If you know what you’re looking at, you’ll see it has correct fenders. This has been a rust free CA car all of it’s life, there was no rusted panel replacement necessary. You can see in the pics the floors are rock solid, all the factory spot welds are visible at the bottom of the quarters, doors, etc. The trunk pan is solid, although there are a few pin holes, it certainly wasn’t enough to warrant panel replacement. The only body panel not original to this car, is the hood. Wheels are not original to the car. BF Goodrich tires are brand new. Original to the car shaker still in place, with flapper door and solonoids. 2 1/2 exhaust through Ram Air IV manifolds to flowmasters. Sounds amazing, and has a very intimidating lopey idle. I have the majority of the original AC components, including the compressor brackets, which I believe are 1970 only. The headlight and tail light bezels are factory original units, that were rechromed. All the window trim was removed and professionally restored. Still needs some finishing work. what it needs is listed below.

The car needs electrical work. Aside from the car starting and running with the turn of the key, not much else is working. The engine harness should probably be replaced, it’s about a $100 part. None of the gauges are working, they are not getting power. The original dash harness is intact, and uncut. Maybe there’s still a ground that isn’t connected, I’m not sure. I would say the dash harness does not need to be replaced. The headlights are not working. The car has not been aligned since the suspension was rebuilt. The trans leaks oil when it sits for a while. The shifter cable and TV cable need to be adjusted. And finally, the side windows need to be adjusted.

Other parts, that are included, but not pictured: The original blue seat belts. I think one of them is frayed, the others are good, just need a good cleaning. The original exhaust manifolds are included, although one has a broken tab where the head pipe bolts up. I also have the original side glass if you want them, although they are scratched pretty badly. I also have the original jack, but no spare.

Please keep in mind, this is NOT a numbers matching, concourse car by any means. It was built to be a fun driver. You can see from the pics that there was no undercarriage restoration done. I did this car to drive it, and planned on driving it a lot. I have no access to the original engine, please don’t ask. If I did, it would currently be in the car. I’m typically a purist, but the original drivetrain was already gone, so I wanted to have some fun with it, while keeping a stock appearance. I am very well aware of what this car is, and what it isn’t. This is the kind of car that will win trophies at your local cruise night. It’s probably not going to win them at a national show. If you’re concerned that the wheels are not the correct coded wheels, or that the original radio isn’t in the car, this isn’t the car for you. It’s also priced appropriately. I understand very well that this is not a $60,000 car. It’s not priced as such.

So, what is the asking price for this car in its current state? $32,000! And remember, there is still a lot of work to be done. Is this the car for you? See the listing here.