A friend of Ray's who has an auction permit or license went down to see the car. He said it was a 5-speed with a 2.8. Since the car was originally a 4-cylinder, I wonder if that isn't a 2.5, or like Raydar said, someone went to a lot of work to convert it. The auction company said they weren't expecting to get more than 3-350 for it. If anyone might be interested in going to the auction on Saturday morning, he might go and place your bids for you for a small fee, or maybe even for free since he's going to bid on the trailer.
Let me know and I'll put you in touch.