[Maxwellvon]

Hello,

Well this is my first post here and I hope some of you folks can give me some advice on my most recent acquisition. I saw a 1971 DeVille on Craigslist for $750. I called the owner who was a young guy that drove the car while in H.S. and took it off the road in 2003. His Grandfather bought it new in 1971 and gave it to him when his health declined. Long story short the car doesn't run but did run okay when he parked it 5 years ago. I've been working on cars all my life for a hobby so I figured I'd check it out as it was only 4 miles from my house. It was as described, complete and not running. It's very musty smelling and the trunk has rotted through on the drivers side under the mat. The floors are very solid as is the frame. Minor rust at the rear of the front fenders and the fender skirts are missing. The interior is rough but no tears in the leather and the headliner is very good. The engine compartment is dirty but all the vacuum lines and harnesses are intact and it doesn't appear to be tampered with. I offered him $200 and he said he could get $350 from the scrap yard. I left and later that day he emailed and we agreed on $250.
I had it towed home and dove in. I removed the spark plugs and sprayed some Marvel Mystery Oil in to each cylinder and let it sit overnight. I installed a battery and spun the engine over on the starter. It turned easily so I installed new plugs and added new fuel to the tank. To my surprise it fired right up!
I let it run for a few seconds then checked for leaks and fired it up again. It runs great! I got it warm and did a compression test. Here are the results.
#1) 145 #5) 165
#2) 170 #6) 150
#3) 135 #7) 150
#4) 155 #8) 155

My experience has told me that they should all be within 15% or so of each other. So it's a little soft on #3 or maybe all the way around?

It idles well and takes throttle smoothly. I have to adjust the ign. timing.
I has an exhaust manifold leak on the passenger side at the rear in the middle of the manifold (not at the head).
The "Brake" light is on in the dash module as is the "Gen" lamp ( fluid in BMC is full) (Alternator is putting out 12.75V at idle and 13.0V off idle).
Transmission leak at output seal rear.
So here is the question. Is this car worth fixing up or should I take out the battery and let the scrap yard take it away for $250? I really don't want to get into any major mechanical work but it seems all that this needs is a little TLC. I can do the body work myself and have a friend who can weld the trunk floor in. It's gonna need brakes and exhaust too. I've been looking for a winter project but I'm concerned with the availability of parts (body,trim, interior etc). I'd like to have a decent driver for next spring.
I'd appreciate any honest opinions.
Thanks,
Max