308 on Ebay

I know they are looking for mid 30's on it. Interesting that they don't show an engine pic........the rust although minor on th drivers side door is strange for 18k miles, looks like it might have been a ding that was neglected, the wheels have some curb rash. I called them when I was looking for a 308. I think for mid 30's it should be pretty close to perfect.

0.02

 

Miles really has no correlation to rust....Rust in 308's can usually be related to driving and storage conditions...it's Alabama...so probably more humid than most enviroments...and may have been driven in rain more often. Bottom line, even the 84-85 308's which some basic corrosion protection, can rust just the same.

 

Hugh,

I agree............I just thought that for 35k ish it should be pretty pristine.

 

Agreed, for $1k they could fix all that stuff, and have no "excuses". I don't understand some dealers...they refuse to spend a dime to make a car more "saleable". Just a quick wash, buff, shine and cover the entire interior and engine compartment in Amourall...yikes!

 

As a rule of thumb, the older any car is, the more $$ you will have to put into it. The earlier 308's had some small quirks that slowly got worked out over the years coupled with the fact that you have carbs to deal with up until the end of '79. The carb sound is more "throaty" but the fuel injection is somewhat more reliable (so personal preference). They started with some limited rust proofing around '83 or so and in '83 they started the 4 valves per cylinder fuel injected Quattrovalve engine which added 25 h.p. over the 1982 model (vs. 2 per cylinder injected in '80-'82) and 16" wheels (which look much better than the 14's). The interiors of the 80's versions are slightly different and in '83 they added the rear spoiler as an option. They stopped production of the 308 in 1985 and in '86 started the 328. The 83's-85's are the 2nd most valuable 308's (behind the '75-'77 fiberglass carbed cars). Then the '78-'79 and finally the '80-'82's. In my view, I would get an '84 or '85 for reliability or a carbed version for the more aggressive sound. Good luck in your search!!

 

Can't argue with the advice here...but a couple small errors:
Older cars don't necessary cost more to maintain, that is a very general statement, it is really dependant on the owner...some cars have been neglected and have deferred maintanence to be sure. (I had a carb 308 and currently a 328...costs have been similar)
The limited rust proofing started with model year 84'
The rear spoiler was essentially "standard" with the QV in North America, optional in Europe. It would be very unusual to find a QV in NA without the rear spoiler.

Also consider that many cars are far from original anymore, so many early cars now wear 16" QV wheels, rear spoilers and other stuff. So be sure and check the ID plate in the door jam, until you are comfortable identifying cars by cosmetic features.

 

Dave, I only meant that the older a car is, the older the gaskets, seals, weatherstripping, etc. are. Not that they are inherently more expensive to fix. Thx for the correction on the rust proofing...I knew it was '83 or '84.

 

I live in Birmingham and own an '85' Euro 308 GTS QV. If you would like for me to take a look at the car.......send me a PM.

 

I've been told by someone considering that car that CARFAX shows previous mileage in the 30K's, which doesn't jive with the 18K miles they're showing now.