For sale: Nissan 240SX. Year: 1997. Mileage: 676. Location: living room.
Today's automotive time-machine offering comes from New York's Long Island, where a seller on Craigslist is offering a virtually brand-new 1997 Nissan 240SX with original wiper blades, hermetically sealed original paperwork and special DuraSteel body. It even comes with a cassette player! The asking price of $100,000 appears to have been lowered; media reports suggest it originally went on the block Wednesday at $125,000.
Dubbed "Midnight," the car comes with a four-cylinder engine and automatic transmission that drives the rear wheels. As you might guess, it comes with quite the backstory, allegedly involving the "Lemon Law" and five attempts at service with Nissan and its lawyers.
The owner claims the vehicle was a consolation prize, of sorts, after the original 240SX he received — this after returning a malfunctioning 200SX — was found to have been damaged in a flood but never re-registered as such. He claims a judge eventually ordered Nissan to deliver him a display-model 240SX intended for use at auto shows, encased in a custom-built mahogany showcase, and built with DuraSteel, which prevents rust.
Plausible? Who are we to say. From the Craigslist ad:
"It was obvious that this special car could never be replaced. I decided it will spend its life in the living room of a special built home. It would be started and ran a few times a year and insured and registered and taken for annual inspections to maintain the history and mileage records with the State of New York Department of Motor Vehicles. Every year the gas was drained and refilled, the oil and filter changed with Mobil1 only. The car would be washed and waxed and then returned to its carpeted spot in the air conditioned living room. It has never seen rain or put on the street other than in August. A few years ago, a friend who is one of the founders of Tire Rack, presented me with a custom made set of OZ rims made especially for the car in Italy ( five rims ) mounted with the best Michelin Super Sport tires.
"The original alloy rims with the original Bridgestone tires have been kept in the living room with the car for all these years. All original papers that are in any way associated with the vehicle have been kept in a special airtight container with all factory included amenities. The car now has approximately 675 miles on it. All of them with the ultimate care and love a car could ever expect. However, after 20 years of enjoying its company, I am now retiring and it is time to turn over the care and love to its next owner."
The dealer handling the sale says the owner pulled the car into his sister's living room on ramps made from old airplane wings.
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