What's The Best Cheap Future Collector Car?
CNN Money, of all outlets, put together a surprisingly good list of 10 dirt cheap collectible cars, including the Pacer, Spitfire, and early SHO. But we know you can do better. What's the best cheap future collector car?
Collectors tend to look for rarity, desirability, story and uniqueness. Given the prospects for a successful Saab of the future we're going to say the original Saab 900 16V Turbo three-door (especially SPG) is going to be a great collectors car that is, in most cases, fairly cheap right now. It's rare because they're not easy to maintain and they didn't make a ton of them. They're relatively quick for cars of the era and look awesome and thus are desirable. Story? Who has a better/worse story than Saab? As for unique, it's a turbocharged three-door Swedish hatchback. Hard to top it. This SPG on eBay Motors needs a lot of love, but is only $2,500 (to start with).
We're already prepping our barn for the find of the future, what should our broke selves fill it with?
(QOTD is your chance to answer the day's most pressing automotive questions and experience the opinions of the insightful insiders, practicing pundits and gleeful gearheads that make up the Jalopnik commentariat. If you've got a suggestion for a good “Question Of the Day” send an email to tips at jalopnik dot com.)
(Hat tip to Erikotis for the suggestion!)
Photo Credit: Komar.org
Send an email to Matt Hardigree, the author of this post, at matt@jalopnik.com.
No matter how hard I looked, I couldn’t find a custom search box in the Google Chrome browser. Even Internet Explorer has a search box, so why shouldn’t Chrome?
In developing the browser, Google did away with the separate search box, if not with the functionality. It was only in confrontation with my own ignorance that I rediscovered this feature.
You’ve probably discovered how you can launch a Google search directly from your address bar. Using keywords and a few minutes work in advance, you can also set up custom search engines. In this article, we’ll explain how to configure and use this feature, as well as how to change the default and create a custom search engine.
Using Keywords For a Custom Search Engine
To use one of your custom search engines, you have to precede the query with a special keyword. How to assign this keyword, we’ll show in a minute.
To illustrate, when I want to search MakeUseOf, I simply type ‘makeuseof <search query>’. The uses can be extremely diverse, and in general hugely speed up your browsing process. When writing an article, I but have to type ‘dict <strange english word>’ to get a dictionary explanation. Similarly, you can use keywords to search YouTube, Flickr, eBay, Craigslist, Facebook, FilesTube, DeviantArt, and whatnot.
By default, Google Chrome uses the site’s domain and extension as keyword (e.g. makeuseof.com), but it’s highly advised to devise your own keywords – things that are easy to remember and quick to type, like ‘dict’, ‘goog’, ‘yout’, ’subs’, and so on. In the end, it all comes down to preference and ease of use.
Adding a Custom Search Engine
Now you’re warmed up to the idea, here’s how to add a custom search engine. The instructions below should work on both Mac and Windows.
The easiest way to open the search preferences window is to right-click (Mac: ctrl+click) in the address bar and select ‘Edit Search Engines…‘ – alternatively, you can also go to Preferences -> Default Search: Manage.
A preferences pane much like the one below should pop up. You’ll notice (to your big surprise?) that a lot of different search engines have already been added. This is because Chrome automatically adds search engines to the list after you search from a site. Most of the ones you’re looking to add are probably already there, but you need to change the keyword.
Otherwise, it’s pretty easy to add a search engine manually. You just need to supply the name, keyword and URL. Not simply the site URL, mind. You’ll need to show Chrome where to insert the search string.
To find the correct URL, simply launch a search on the site, and take a look at the address bar. You’ll need to replace your own search query with %s to create the search URL for Chrome. Perhaps even easier, you should be able to search for ‘%s’ on the site, and just copy the entire URL.
Changing the keyword (or any of the other options) afterwards is as easy as double clicking on a search engine.
To create a new default search engine, simply select one from the list and press ‘Make Default‘ in the bottom right corner. If you want a Firefox-like search experience, you can create a custom feeling lucky search, and make it default. As easy as that.
Do you have any other Chrome productivity tips? Let us know in the comments!
How To Not Get Screwed On eBay Motors, From The Horse's Mouth
(Ed Note: The auction wizards at eBay Motors have been following the saga of McFly, the Once and Future Hyundai Owner. Because neither eBay nor Jalopnik want you to get screwed, we asked the 'Bay for some buying tips.)
With more than three million vehicles sold on eBay Motors to date, and a car selling every minute, eBay is one of the world's largest automotive marketplaces. The site brings together a huge community of buyers and sellers every day. Where else would you go to find a Tesla Roadster, a Porschefied Subaru WRX STI, a 1952 Studebaker pickup, and a Back to the Future DeLorean, all on the same day and in the same place?
Think about that for a second: three million sales. With turnover like that, there are bound to be anomalies like the recent Hyundai case. Still, there are protections in place on the site that help foster trust between buyers and sellers. Some of these protections are common knowledge; some aren't. To that end, here are some tips for prospective buyers:
Do Your Homework
1. Know what you're purchasing. We recommend seeing the car in person, but even so, rolled odometers or past accidents often hide under a veneer of shiny paint. That's why eBay offers free vehicle history reports on every eligible car and truck listing. We also highly recommend having an unbiased professional check out the car. If necessary, the site can faciliate such a check-out.
2. Know who you're dealing with. One of the best tools for eBay users is the feedback reputation system. It's basically a seller's rap sheet, and it allows buyers to avoid a scene from The Goods by viewing ratings and comments on the history of a potential seller. (Tip: If the dude is wearing a plaid blazer and wants you to check out his excellent Thundercougarfalconbird, he probably shouldn't be trusted.)
3. Communicate with the seller. Contacting the seller through the eBay Motors platform before bidding is one of the best ways to avoid sticky situations. Sellers should be prepared to answer questions and be up front about the vehicle's cosmetic and mechanical condition. (If not, the vehicle history report will probably narc on them anyway.)
4. Grab the title. It's always a good idea to see a copy of the vehicle's title before committing to a purchase. If the title has Wite-Out on it, run screaming.
5. Use common sense. This is perhaps the most important tip. Don't get carried away by wishful thinking or passion — no matter what the car is, another example will eventually come along, and not buying something hurts a lot less than losing thousands of dollars. Basically, you just need to use common sense — if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. (That rocket-powered, $1500-Buy-It-Now Jaguar D-Type that Steve McQueen once owned and flew to the moon in? Probably not real.) Use good sense and patience to sniff out any potential problems.
Protect Yourself
1. Never use Western Union, MoneyGram, or any other instant cash-transfer method to pay for a vehicle. This sort of thing is cool if you're buying a SlapChop (or in for a Cash4Gold transaction), but not with a car. If you decide to pay in cash, do so in person, and be sure to get a written record of your transaction. (Also, bring a friend that works out. When it comes to transaction security, too much muscle is never enough.)
2. Check to see if the vehicle you want to buy is covered by the eBay Motors Vehicle Purchase Protection Plan. You can find out in the “Buy Safely” section of the listing. Most vehicles are covered, and those eligible are protected for up to $50,000. (In order to be covered by the plan, eligible transactions must be made on the eBay Motors platform. In other words, if you found a car on eBay and purchased it in some other manner — say, going to the seller's house and offering him a briefcase of unmarked bills before the auction end — it doesn't count.)
These tips aren't a guarantee, but keeping them in mind will go a long way toward assuring a trustworthy, legitimate transaction on eBay. Happy bidding!
Image Credits: XKCD, Demotivateus
The author of this post can be contacted at tips@jalopnik.com
We this ebay tool will help you!
Although I've been a member for 5 years, I have only just “found” the discussion boards which I now love reading – many laughs and lots of good tips. However, I am intrigued to know how it appears that the regular contributors appear to be able to access the details of items people are talking about. How is it possible to do this without simply looking at “view item” in feedback – lots of the items relate to disputes so no feedback has been left. Just interested!!
