1992 Chevrolet Caprice

Wagon

5.0L 305Cu. In. V8 GAS OHV Naturally Aspirated

Automatic

1G1BL83E1NW140495

Clear

Gasoline

This is a special vehicle for a special person -- please read and watch carefully to find out if you are that person. This is The Blue Whale, my 1992 Chevy "Transcontinental Camper Cruiser". At the heart, it is a 1992 Chevrolet Caprice in excellent condition: 75,000 miles, garage kept for 22 of its years, lovingly maintained with plenty of recent maintenance done. This is a Pacific Northwest car, garaged over 90% of its life, which means it has never seen salt, and only very seldom seen either frigid or very hot temperatures. 99% rust free: as you can see in the photo, there are some small superficial rust pockets starting to form on the undercarriage -- not a lick of rust on any of the body panels. It has been very well cared for and driven lightly throughout its life. I am a relatively young buck myself but I drive like an old one -- cars like this deserve to be babied! My goal with this car was to have the perfect touring and camping machine as I explored many of the national parks over the last year. And so I worked hard to outfit it to the task. I did no modifications to the car itself, but accessorized it to become quite the nice impromptu camper that beats any RV on gas mileage yet can just as easily be a 'round the town car. I installed a 20 cubic feet cargo box on top, which required having a machinist friend make custom mounting plates for me, since the roof bars are huge on these full size wagons (see picture for a close up of the custom mountain plates. Then, since I live in the northwest, I painstakingly silicone-sealed every possible crevice to ensure waterproofing. In the cargo box I would store all my necessities during trips: clothing, camping gear, food, toolbox, etc. This way I could take all the necessities with me while keeping the entire car clear as a sleeping space. I also custom-cut window covers out of reflective insulating material for each and every window on the vehicle, allowing for total privacy when you sleep. They also work very well for keeping your car cool on a hot day as they are reflective (or for keeping you warm on a cold night). Check out the video for demonstration of how these set up and stow away. The car has a twin-size folding mattress in the back. It sleeps one very very comfortably and sleeps two in a pinch, though finding a 48" wide would be best if two people wanted to sleep in it frequently. It comes with lots of little extras that make life on the road easier: butane stove and extra fuel, 250 watt power inverter providing two power outlets for household items, a good set of jumper cables, a portable air compressor for maintaining tire pressure, and my favorite: a portable washing machine so you can keep nice and clean on the road. Everything on this car is in tip-top shape! It's so clean and has kept up so well. My GM specialist in Portland actually worked on the production line for the full size cars in the 90s, and he says he hasn't come across one of this age that it's such great shape top to bottom. Had a new radiator installed in '11. The battery is also from 2011. Last fall it had a complete brake job, with new pads all around, new rotors in the front, and new cylinders in the back. Four Firestone tires with 60% tread remaining. New fuel pump installed last summer. The previous owner installed a remote keyless entry system, and the remotes are very powerful: they work from about 50 feet away. The car gets amazing mileage for an Olds 305, a testament to how well it has been maintained. On my cross-country national park tour last year, I calculated mpg at each fueling stop, and it maxed out at 27 mpg highway (with a cargo carrier on top!!). This tells me the engine is operating just like it sounds and feels: smooth and happy. Obviously these were ideal conditions, probably a tail-wind and some elevation loss, but I've never seen it dip under 21-22 highway (except when I drove over the Rocky Mountains). I can only think of four small issues with the car: 1) the AM band doesn't work on the radio, might be a connection issue with the antenna (stereo system and all four speakers work perfect otherwise). 2) The driver side front panel sustained a very small dent last year from a drunk driver who was having a heck of a time trying to back into a parking space. This kind of thing doesn't bother me so I haven't bothered to buff it out or inspect it but the important thing is that it did not damage the seal on the light fixture and did not cut into the paint. Not noticeable to me unless I go looking for it, but I know some people are more sensitive to this sort of thing. 3) The rear gate latch sometimes doesn't lock with the other power locks -- you need to double check after you use the power or remote locks to make sure it is in fact locked. 4) The A/C needs a charge. Compressor works great and it'll blow cool (enough to keep you in the 70s on a hot Summer day) but will need a charge to blow icy cold. Best heat of any car I've driven. Car is registered in Oregon. If you are an Oregon buyer, you are lucky: I just renewed the DEQ and registration! So you'll have a full two years of registration with the car. Last thing: right now I am on the East Coast and will be returning to my home in Portland in the third week of February. Therefore I'm going to make a unique shipping offer that will hopefully work out well for the both of us: I will deliver this car to your door for the price of gas and a one-way ticket to Portland, OR, the two combined not to exceed $500. Therefore this car will show up at your door with no effort on your part for no more than $500 (hopefully less if gas prices stay low and I can find a cheap plane ticket). The deposit of $500 required within 48 hours of auction end will cover the shipping; you will be responsible for the full auction price upon delivery. If my shipping expenses come to less than $500, I will apply a credit toward the final price. The delivery date will be somewhere in between the 15th and 25th of February; I will be in touch as the time approaches to supply details. Check out my videos of this amazing car: **NOTE: In this video I repeat the mistaken information I received from the person who sold it to me, namely that the car has had only two previous owners. If you read the vehicle history report, it has been assigned five different titles, but four of these reassignments occurred over a period of a year as it looks like it bounced around a bit before it found its second home.**