Have you ever just asked if its for sale??

Absolutely! I used to cruise neighborhoods on weekends going "car shopping" with a buddy. We found MANY cars that way. You get a lot of "someday I'm gonna" replies but sometimes you can score a heckuva deal. The best thing to do is let them set the price. Do not make an offer, let them tell you how much they want for it. Most important thing is to bring cash, because if they give you a price right off the bat you can always negotiate if you say, I can pay cash right now for it. Also, make sure they have a title available before you hand over the cash.