• Here’s baT Auction Success Story: BMW Z3 1.9 Goes High & Dry

    Byjustpastevehicles

    Last year, BaT member mlc66 and his wife completed the High & Dry Rally in the 1998 BMW Z3 1.9 that he won from burtsmith1600 in an October 2024 BaT auction. He recently wrote to us all about his experience:
    At the start of 2024, I promised a friend that my wife and I would join his vintage car tour across California and Nevada that fall. October came around and it was two weeks from the start of his “High & Dry Tour” and, unfortunately, my 1998 Subaru Impreza “STI” conversion was woefully short of being ready to run. What should I do? After a short budget negotiation with my wife, we hatched a plan to buy “an interesting old car” specifically for the event. We set the budget at no more than $10,000 and compiled a short list of “interesting” cars with three pedals, which included Miatas, MGs, Triumphs, and an assortment of BMW E10s, E21s and E30s. Ultimately, I placed the winning bid on a 1998 BMW Z3 1.9.

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    Holiday Insanity, Movie Cars, and Plymouth Connoisseurship You Should Know

    Byjustpastevehicles

    Happy Holidays to one and all! Alex, Randy, Beck, and Tyler discuss Hanukkah gifting strategies, holiday road trips in order of escalating insanity, movie-adjacent cars, wood paneling connoisseurship, ghosts of American car brands past, drift missiles, stalker Eagles, and generational headlight trauma.

  • A Look at yesterday’s comments of note

    Byjustpastevehicles

    A few of the comments that stood out to us yesterday:

    “In 1979 a friend of mine’s brother bought a new first year RX-7. I had the opportunity to drive it. My car was a 1200 cc Corolla. By comparison the RX-7 seemed so fast and handled like it was on rails. In retrospect they only had about 100 hp, but I thought I was in a fire breathing racecar. Fun times!”

    21

    JWHBOOMER commented on No Reserve: 18k-Mile 1985 Mazda RX-7 GS 5-Speed

    “I’d have this strange compulsion to get it running, but that probably illustrates my OCD more than my actual knowledge of this listing’s current value and purpose. To be honest, in all my years I’ve never known anyone to have an outboard motor on display in their home. Motorcycles? Sure. Bikes? Of course. Even Ferraris, Lamborghinis, and Shelbys, oh my. Dead center of the living room on most occasions. But an outboard motor? Whoa. And one this cool? Double Whoa.
    ;^)
    GLWTA”

    10

    sludgo commented on No Reserve: 1937 Evinrude Elto Pal Outboard

    “I’m having a stroll down memory lane this morning. My mom owned this 914 for about 33 years. She loved this car and enjoyed thousands of miles behind the wheel. She ran it a few times in the late 70’s and early 80’s in Corvette/Porsche rallies. I cruised the Puyallup loop in it back in high school. Got beat in a drag race against at Mustang. I can share some vintage photos of the car if the new buyer would like them. GLWTA I will be watching fondly. By the way it was originally bronze.”

    16

    Badhamm commented on 2.3L-Powered 1975 Porsche 914

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    Here’s baT Auction Success Story: Unleashing the Wolf

    Byjustpastevehicles

    This Success Story comes to us from BaT member SRA59, who won this 2016 Wolf Racing Cars GB08 SM from jcarson72 in an August 2025 BaT auction:
    When this BaT listing first appeared before me, it felt like fate. It was for a 2016 Wolf GB08 SM featuring a carbon-fiber tub, a sequential gearbox, and a look that screamed with purpose. The auction page was alive with dreamers and bench racers, but I wasn’t one of them—I was hunting for keeps. The final hour of bidding was a blur filled with heartbeats and refresh clicks. My palms were slick against the keyboard as the bidding climbed. The Wolf had lived its life on circuits I’d only watched online, but I could already envision it unloading under the Texas sun at MotorSport Ranch in Cresson, Texas. It was like hearing the starter drop the flag on a brand-new chapter of my life once the timer hit zero and the listing was marked “sold.”

  • Yesterday’s comments of note You Should Know

    Byjustpastevehicles

    A few of the comments that stood out to us yesterday:

    “In the fall of 1975, Fort Stockton had a way of educating you whether you asked for it or not.
    That afternoon, the freshman left Jim Bowie High School—“Home of the Fighting Knives”—with his head full of Health & Human Anatomy, a class that had spent the better part of the day explaining things nobody had ever explained to him before, using charts that looked like they’d been drawn by a committee with a grudge. The bell rang, chairs scraped, and every boy in the room walked out…”

    91

    CaptainMyCaptain commented on 1976 Lincoln Continental Mark IV

    “Had mine for almost two years, absolutely love it (V6, manual, sport suspension with Goodyears). Some people may be put off by a sports car that can lose a 0-60 battle with a modern high-end SUV, but that’s not the type of person that owns a Lotus long-term. These cars talk to you and let you know how you the inputs you make create the overall experience. I wanted this car because I wanted engagement.
    Think about marksmanship for a moment – you’re at the range shooting 800 yards with a…”

    24

    mkg.elm commented on 2024 Lotus Emira First Edition V6 6-Speed

    “In 1984, I was 13 years old and my parents were finally considering other cars to replace their old GM boring 4 door sedans. We went into the Nissan dealership and there was a 50th anniversary 300ZX which looked exactly like this one. Compared to what I was used to riding around in at the time, the Z was a spaceship in comparison. So cool and I didn’t really know what a turbo was, but I knew I wanted one! The dealership had it roped off to keep drooling kids and teens like me aways from…”

    13

    ViperNC commented on No Reserve: 17k-Mile 1984 Nissan 300ZX Turbo 50th Anniversary 5-Speed

  • Question of the Week: What’s the One Vehicle that top Describes Your Taste in Autos?—WINNER’S UPDATE

    Byjustpastevehicles

    WINNER’S ANNOUNCEMENT:

    We’re back to announce the winner for our Question of the Week, where our victor will accept a $25 credit for a hat or T-shirt from the BaT Gear Store and the acclaim of their peers.

    Our question this week was: What’s the one vehicle that best describes your taste in autos?

    Thanks to everyone who participated! Even in the midst of the holiday season, you still managed to rack up more than 100 comments. Narrowing your automotive taste down to a definitive example is tough work, so there’s really no wrong answer here. That said, this is a contest at the end of the day, and the 240-Series Volvo earned the most mentions this week. BaT member @PWSchuh was first to nominate a 245 Turbo specifically, but since he’s still coming off an early 2025 win, we’re passing the award to the runner-up—@Sjalabais!

    “You guys at BaT always pick so pitch perfect lead images. I’m baffled by how well you keep answering your own questions of the week, visually.
    Yes, I am a Volvo guy. Everything cubist that looks like a five year old lead the design team goes straight into my heart. Volvo 140, 240, GAZ 24, Toyota Century or, my current only collectible, a 2003 Centennial JS350. Looks like a peak-’80s product, hit the market in 1998.”

    3

    Sjalabais commented on Question of the Week: What’s the One Vehicle that Best Describes Your Taste in Autos?—WINNER’S UPDATE

  • Here’s yesterday’s comments of note

    Byjustpastevehicles

    A few of the comments that stood out to us yesterday:

    “Thanks for all of the entertaining comments and Happy New Year to all!”

    31

    CharlesDawson commented on 1,200-Mile 1987 Buick GNX

    “Whoever gets this car is getting a winner. Early 99 builds are the pinnacle of the analog porsche experience. I have a similar cab as a daily driver and it is simply divine. Despite the fact that these are the lower priced Porsches in market, it simply makes it a genius value buy. The best water-cooled setup, analog pulls and cables, and (for my spec) no nannies. ABS ONLY! You cannot go wrong with these year and this build. I’m heavily biased, but I do think this is the ideal Porsche for daily…”

    16

    BaltimoreBill commented on 1999 Porsche 911 Carrera Coupe 6-Speed

    “Such a time warp, this is so cool, and seeing it on that trailer reminds me of all the old Drag Racing photos i have seen in books, and magazines from back in the day, someone is going the opportunity to get a very cool piece of nostalgia today. I have always loved Dusters, when I was 3 years old, 1973, my parents had an Orange 1971 340 Duster, its the first classic car I remember when I was a kid. I have a picture of me standing next to it somewhere. GLWTA”

    8

    DENWERKS commented on No Reserve: 10k-Mile 1971 Plymouth Duster 340

  • Understanding yesterday’s comments of note

    Byjustpastevehicles

    A few of the comments that stood out to us yesterday:

    “Well… That was one heck of a year on @Bat Thanks everyone… We love this platform! See you in 2026!”

    20

    silverarrowcarsltd commented on No Reserve: 36k-Mile 1994 Porsche 911 Turbo 3.6

    “Checking my HOA rules.”

    14

    ScottNThompson commented on 1945 Cadillac M19A1 Multiple Gun Motor Carriage

    “This Mangusta is a great opportunity! I can say this because I owned it prior to Oliver. My shop Grand Touring (grandtouring.com) has considerable experience with almost every Italian exotic. (Recently, we even had two Vallelungas in the shop simultaneously). I searched for quite some time looking for a solid no stories Mangusta for my personal collection. I was excited to find it and never planned to part with it. Regrettably, I needed to part with it to raise cash when the building next…”

    18

    chuckwray commented on 1969 DeTomaso Mangusta

    “Thank you all for the responses! This car has been in my family since the mid 90’s and one that I fell in love with the moment my Grandfather brought it home. As a kid I use to sit in the back seat and watch him drive it (amazed at how his hands and feet would move) and whenever it was parked I would sit behind the wheel and pretend to drive it myself. When I finally turned 16 he taught me how to drive and although there were many frustrating moments for him and I in this car we both would love…”

    20

    Jackson25 commented on 1967 Plymouth Barracuda Coupe 3-Speed

  • Happy New Year! No Auctions Closing on January 1, 2026 — Explained

    Byjustpastevehicles

    The year 2025 is now in our rearview mirror. As we look back at another in a string of banner years for BaT, we want to take a moment to thank those we owe for our continued success: every member of the hard-working BaT staff and the buyers, sellers, and commenters that make up an enthusiast community that is unique the world over. This place wouldn’t be the same without any of you.

  • Understanding yesterday’s comments of note

    Byjustpastevehicles

    A few of the comments that stood out to us yesterday:

    “Future owner needs to swear on a stack of Plymouth Owner’s Manuals to leave every inch of the drive train original, Love it 👍”

    32

    Mouse51 commented on 1967 Plymouth Barracuda Coupe 3-Speed

    “This car is a dream come true. I’ll be reaching out to the seller shortly. Will look brilliant next to our Charleston!”

    7

    RaboK75 commented on No Reserve: 1953 Citroen Traction Avant 11BL

    “Timeless styling. Always loved the look of the 505.”

    6

    Autostocks commented on No Reserve: 1981 Peugeot 505 Turbo Diesel 5-Speed