1964 Acadian Beaumont, custom convertible, like chevelle rblt 355 motor, built 700r4 trans, by boss automotive, 4core alum rad 12 bolt rearened, tubular a-arms and rear trailing arms. dual magna flow stainless exhaust,with stainless headers and mufflers, endura air gap with 600 edelbrock carb, msd 6al 2 and distributor. all new brake and 3/8 feul line two year old power top and cylinders, power steering, power disc brakes, frame off with new body bushings. 264 of these built. I have original 283 and trans, needs a better paint job to have a show car looking for $18,000.00
That tempts me. Would save me a rental vehicle every year when I come out to Ontario and Quebec. We want to do the eastern coast in the next couple of years too. Would be a familiar ride.
Got me thinking. Have a business that may be sold so might have a couple extra dollars to boost my CPP. Ottawa area would be best as that has been easier to fly into than Montreal. Ive done crazier things like buying 4 of these last year.
That's a good idea. A lot of regular tourists to PEI buy cars on the island and store them here to use when they come each summer. That's how I found my rust free 96 Accord. A lady from New York bought it in Quebec, drove it here, registered and stored it every winter so she wouldn't have to worry about a rental when she came.
It just seems that (ALL) our cars are worth little or nothing these days. Just hope you never have to sell your car out of economical reality. No one wants to pay any where near what it cost to actually build a car properly. I just have to laugh at most of the remarks folks have about what other folks are asking for their cars. Put the shoe on the other foot.
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1957 Pontiac Pathfinder Deluxe sedan restored 261 six
1974 Chevrolet Caprice Estate wagon low mileage original 400 V-8
It just seems that (ALL) our cars are worth little or nothing these days. Just hope you never have to sell your car out of economical reality. No one wants to pay any where near what it cost to actually build a car properly. I just have to laugh at most of the remarks folks have about what other folks are asking for their cars. Put the shoe on the other foot.
My attitude on this has always been that it's a hobby and as such I expect to lose money it because I'm doing it for the enjoyment. But, for some reason the old car hobby has long been looked at as an investment, like a business. There are cases when somebody scores a great deal on an old car (because the seller doesn't know what it's worth, or they were doing the buyer a 'favour' by selling it low because "they really want the car" ) and can flip it for profit, but I don't look at those guys as being real car guys - just businessmen using our hobby to make money off of a real hobbyist.
Here's a personal example: A few years ago a family member told me his wife was wanting him to sell his old car because he doesn't use it much. He said it needed a little work and he's not very mechanically inclined but he knows a guy that does good work for a reasonable price. Then he said, "maybe I should just sell it because I'll never get my money back out of it".
So, I asked him a few questions:
1) Do you get enjoyment out of the car? Does it make you happy just to know you have it or to see it in the garage even if you don't have time to drive it? Answer: yes
2) If you were to go golfing would you expect to get your green fees back at the end of the season? If you went on vacation, would you expect the travel agent to refund your vacation costs after you've enjoyed your travels? Answer: no
After thinking about it and discussing it more, he agreed that, just like any other form of entertainment there is cost involved. He decided to keep the car and spend the money to get the repairs done - he realized that you can't look at it like an everyday car that you use for commuting (which you also lose money on)... i.e. not driving it doesn't mean that you are not getting enjoyment out of it or payback on your 'investment'.
This is why I don't understand the expectation that you should get your money back out of your car after you've spent a bunch to build or restore it. You've done it because you enjoyed it, and and you get a certain sense of satisfaction from doing it. Not to mention that often people build to their own tastes, and when you go to sell it you may have a hard time finding someone who has the same tastes. Really, if you are doing it to make money there are lots of better ways to make money that don't take so much time and effort - building/restoring an old car should be a labour of love, and I think that most often it is. The guys that are really skilled in many fields and have a well-equipped shop, might be able to do well in getting their money back - but what is their time worth? How much did their shop and tools cost them? Again, if you want to treat your hobby like a business you need to take all of that into account.
When you laugh at people commenting about the prices of cars, they are usually comparing them to other cars on the market, which is the way it works - supply and demand.
Let's look at it this way - if you had a bone stock original low mileage survivor that looks like you just drove it off the showroom floor, is that worth as much as a freshly restored car? Say you bought a nice survivor car 15 years ago for $10,000, and somebody else bought a project car 15 years ago of the same make and model for $2000. Your survivor hasn't cost you much other than routine maintenance and heat for your garage, but the guy with the project spent $50,000 over the last 15 years restoring it to be like new - by your logic the restored car should sell for $50,000 while the survivor should sell for $10,000 plus inflation adjustments. Is that what you would expect in the real world?
Another example: Take 2 identical survivor cars - one guy loves original cars and keeps his well preserved and bone stock. The other guy loves custom cars and likes to follow current trends, so he cuts it up and paints it in whatever gaudy colours happen to be "in" at any particular time - he spends $50,000 on it, but it's not in the taste of most buyers, and most car guys would think, even though he spent a lot of money on it that he 'ruined' the car. Would you expect both cars to sell for the same amount of money? Maybe if the customizer finds the exact buyer who has the same tastes as him, but most of us would see that as being highly unlikely.
Yet another: Two guys buy project cars to restore - one is a 1970 Chevelle 2 door big block car, and the other is a 1966 Rambler American 4-door. They both do great restorations on them, spend $50,000 on each car. Can they expect to sell each car for $50,000? Would you expect the Rambler to be worth the same as the Chevelle?
The point is, just because somebody spent a bunch of money on something doesn't mean they should expect to get their money back out of it. As somebody mentioned they are only worth what someone is willing to pay, and even that is not a constant. I agree that it sucks to sink a bunch of money into a car and then lose because you are forced to sell it, but that's how it goes sometimes, unfortunately. IMHO, anybody getting into the hobby should understand that it's an expensive hobby, and you will probably never get compensation for the time and money you spent on it - there would probably be much fewer half-finished projects for sale out there if everybody truly understood the level of commitment required by the hobby before getting into it.
It just seems that (ALL) our cars are worth little or nothing these days. Just hope you never have to sell your car out of economical reality. No one wants to pay any where near what it cost to actually build a car properly. I just have to laugh at most of the remarks folks have about what other folks are asking for their cars. Put the shoe on the other foot.
My attitude on this has always been that it's a hobby and as such I expect to lose money it because I'm doing it for the enjoyment. But, for some reason the old car hobby has long been looked at as an investment, like a business. There are cases when somebody scores a great deal on an old car (because the seller doesn't know what it's worth, or they were doing the buyer a 'favour' by selling it low because "they really want the car" ) and can flip it for profit, but I don't look at those guys as being real car guys - just businessmen using our hobby to make money off of a real hobbyist....
yada yada yada
...into it.
AMEN!! Very well put.
True car people do it because it gives them joy to bring one back to showroom condition, or modify it into the machine it should be, or whatever turns their cranks.
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67 Chevelle Malibu Sport Coupe, Oshawa-built 250 PG never disturbed.
In garage, 296 cid inline six & TH350...
Cam, Toronto.
I don't judge a man by how far he's fallen, but by how far back he bounces - Patton
) and can flip it for profit, but I don't look at those guys as being real car guys - just businessmen using our hobby to make money off of a real hobbyist.