My father bought this new in '85. I got it 5 years ago and have put 4,000 miles on it. He was a career military officer and his maintenance records show it. He had it worked on 81 times and has 81 receipts that correspond with 81 hand written notes in a notebook of what was done each time. I still use his notebook that shows every tank of gas, (date, gallons, mpg). Some years show only 2 or 3 tanks of gas.

He bought it in '85 because I had recommended it since I enjoyed and appreciated the RX-2 and RX-3 that I had owned.

It sits in my garage, and I take it out about once a month. It is an automatic which I don't know what that means for it's value?

 

Wow, nice car. I'm sure with the sentimential attachment you'll be hanging on to her for a long while, maybe passing it along yourself someday. Automatics are looked down upon from a sports car viewpoint and normally are not considered as desireable. However, there are other views to consider.

I own both manual and an automatic car. The 5 speeds are more fun and pure to the breed. The auto is butter smooth though. Additionally, they really short shift the motor, never really winding it out unless your traveling hell bent for leather down the auto bahn. This babies the engine and in a lot of cases, you'll find super running cars w/auto transmissions. The automatic was considered top of the line in "luxury touring" mentality and generally attracted older, more mature buyers who wanted a more refined sports car.

Bottom line is, they are less common and the most expensive models sold off the showroom. They can be found with a more mature history of use and maintenance. Even so, today they aren't as desireable on the open market and go for less, all other things being equal on the car. Your Dad did good though. His detailed record keeping go a long way in showing how much he loved and cared for the car. Something not uncommon for an orginial owner.

You have a chance to carry this foward, keep the car maintained and in good order for a future enthusiast to enjoy and appreciate the way your dad did. Even more so, if that enthusiast is a great grandson. Do you still have the window sticker and dealer paperwork? I'd get a binder and start a notebook, organizing all the paperwork and documentation in one place to go with the car. Don't forget to include pictures of the car and the people who've owned it. This gives a real life to the car and adds a great sense of history. Cool stuff really.

 

Here are some pics of my car. The car is an '84 GSL-SE with about 200K on it. I'm in the process doing a full restoration.

 

not sure if my car qualifies but. i payed a whopping $500 bucks for this car. the pics were taken almost two years ago when i first bought the car from a guy who had it in storage for 13 years. it has 137,000 on the odometer. but its pretty clean. got it home and it fired right up.

 

My baby, 84 GS 12A BONE STOCK, no mods.... yet...

 

I don't own her anymore, but she was a beauty