Collector Car Investment Market Discussion

[Geeto67]

(Started a new thread so this doesn't gay up the investment thread- Mitch)

 

This brings up a good question - are collector cars still a good investment? The aircooled 911 market was going gangbusters and then all of a sudden it went soft middle of last year. It maintained the initial fast climbing high prices but no new growth, people are waiting till after 2020 to see if they pop up again.

 

Traditional musclecars which have been the collector car juggernaut for 30+ years now have also gone soft in the market place, and there are some that are saying it won't recover. Restomods seem to be the only thing growingin value in this market, presumably because they are more usable than a perfectly restored GTO or vette.

 

90's cars seem to be on the rise though, supras are setting record sales prices, NSX seems to be steadily growing, and diablos and 348's and 355s don't seem to be depreciating anymore. people are looking at ZR1's, Vipers, and lotuses as the next big price jump cars, but they have been saying that for years now and it hasn't happened yet.

 

Motorcycles are weird right now. Lots of stuff is going soft, esp really early bikes, old harleys, and indians. Meanwhile vincents continue to climb in value, bevel drive ducatis are on a gravy train with biscuit wheels, but older staples of the 70's superbike era like the kawi triples, norton commandos, sandcast cb750s, and Z1s have tapered off.

 

These are just my observations based on what I look at in the market. And yeah we know vehicles are a bad investment...blah blah blah...if you are going to be that guy just go sit in the corner till the adults have finished talking. 90% of the cars out there are horrible investments, but there is a collector car market, and people do make money off buying old cars holding them and selling them just like art, real estate, or any other tangible investment.

 

 

So what's CR think? If you wanted a vehicle investment, where would you park your money.

Edited February 20, 2019 by Mitch
Because kerry

[iwashmycar]

My gut is no on a monetary investment alone.

 

The monetary + "emotional" (for lack of better word), yes. Otherwise, whats the point?

[coltboostin]

Easy answer is no, because no one can predict future demand of a pleasure commodity that is typically a deprecating asset. Unless you got a crystal ball, your just getting lucky if you double up on ANY car in any length of time.

[Geeto67]

My gut is no on a monetary investment alone.

 

The monetary + "emotional" (for lack of better word), yes. Otherwise, whats the point?

 

"emotion" or nostalgia is often what drives the market, but that can be said for a lot of cars, even the ones that aren't an "investment", same can be said for art investments and even some real estate deals. That being said, I've never sold an old motorcycle at a loss, even totaling up parts and maint, insurance and use, and I am not the only one here that "flips" or trades with old vehicles. The point we are discussing is "investment".

 

I am not asking whether the whole of the investment market is a good idea or not, it exists, it's a thing, people do this just like trading any other investment asset, and I get it that it isn't for everyone. I am asking how people feel about the trends in that marketplace right now - what are the bright spots, what's dim, etc...

[TTQ B4U]

JEEP XJ [emoji16]

 

Sent from my Galaxy Note 8 using Tapatalk

[Cordell]

It seems all well and good right now, but I bet one of two things will happen, either a recession or autonomous cars. Autonomous vehicle would likely turn other cars into very expensive to insure and kill that market aside from museum pieces.

[Dharris89]

I only have money pits so I don’t think of my current cars as investments.

 

I think as we all age there will be nostalgia for what we wanted and saw in our youth. So investing in the best of a certain model at the bottom of the depreciation scale may not be bad. Fox mustangs used to be dirt cheap but now clean ones are a pretty penny. Anything that has a story like the black 77-78 trans ams with the SE package still go up but the base versions haven’t kept pace. What was the best from the 90’s and 2000’s that may be desirable later?Maybe the G8 GTP or similar? Anything rear wheel drive is still worth money even for a swap.

 

I guess if someone had the space and time to wait they could be a good investment but you have to think who is going to want what and how long will it take. Unless the entry is pretty high like a Ferrari or other exotics, it’s probably safer just to invest in the market. At least that’s my thought.

 

Although if I had a barn and the cash, it would be full of Pontiac Firebirds, Grand Prix, Oldsmobile 442’s, Chevelles etc and I would be very happy whatever they were worth.

[RS69]

I agree the collector car market has gone soft. I still have one for sale(78 Vette) and don't care if it sells or not. I think the younger generation doesn't really care anymore and the old farts aka our parents are done spend the big money on them. The people buying at auctions are the super wealthy and not the common person.

 

The day of the car investment is gone(I am sorry to say). I will still continue to purchase ones that interest me, but if I break even over the time with it, that is my goal. I still have many cars and believe if I sell today, I will still make some very good $$ on them. I bought them at the right time(years ago) and performed most of the labor on them.

 

My focus now is real estate.

[iwashmycar]

I kind of wonder how many potential investments Cash for Clunkers may have killed. There are no cheap (but likely) decent cars still around it seems. That 5 speed Lumina on the Craigslist thread got me thinking. (not saying THAT is an investment per se)

 

Like all the hidden barns full of 60's muscle guys were able to "put away" for cheap....seems like there could have been some cheap v8's and shit that might be worth something someday, all crushed.