Not if you are talking about '32 Fords. I think '32's have outreached real estate by at least double lately. I too have a long term project. I've had my '40 tudor for almost two-thirds of my life (no I'm not 18). Also had all those other things like school, wife, house, kid get in the way. But I'll never sell it. Told my high school buddies I'd have it done by graduation. At that time I didn't know I meant my daughter's graduation.
"Just a car"? I don't think I have ever owned "just a car". Even my daily drivers have been modified to my tastes. I have had plenty of "name yer price" offers for my roadster, but the stories from other guys that start out with "I wish i still had..." always seem to suck. It was my first build and a lot of sacrifies were made to build it the way I wanted it. (raviolis and bolagna sandwiches... yummy) My 55 Buick is the first vehcile my g/f and I have ever done together and I can't imagine what it would take to sell it. Way too many memories and learning experiences to watch someone else drive away in it. Now for the flip side... I am lookin into puttin my chopper up for sale. I decided I wanted to build one when I had never even ridden a motorcycle. I just wanted to see if I could build one. It came out better than I ever expected it to, but it just isn't practical for me and my lifestyle. It's gonna be tough to watch go down the road but the money will be used on other cars. Weird.
His profile says, 1932 ford cabriolet 283 chebby powered (saving for something cooler). That being known, your girl said yes to you (and the cars). To me, that's cool. I feel a bond with some of my stuff, perhaps it's the story of how I got it or how hard I worked for it and my soon-to-be fiance loves me for that. In fact she's been great support in me selling off things to build my dream car (a 30/31 coupe on Deuce rails). A lot of her support comes from knowing how much I am there for her family (and mine). After I fix something in her parents house and help a few of her family members learn English she knows that I enjoy time doing car things... even if it is going for a walk through a pick-and-pull.
I am with you 100%. I also bought my Chevy II when I was 14 yrs old working under the table at Perry's Sunoco pumping gas and cleaning tools (full service station). That was in 1986. I've owned that car for more than 1/2 of my life. There have been many times over the years where it has just sat untouched, but I have NEVER thought of selling it. It has never crossed my mind. I'd have to be in REAL finacial trouble and living in the damn thing before I could even consider parting with it. It sure isn't the nicest car out there, and there is nothing really special about it, but it is special to ME.
I had to sell my chopped Duece 5W after owning it a long time. Was in a body cast and needed house payments. I still look at all the Duece threads looking to see if I recognize it. Last I saw it was here in So Cal at an Outriders picnic, and some guy named Will owned it. The Dragmaster front end was gone and it had a sbc in it......sad
...and if you do, you better not post about it here! I'd LOVE to get my hands on one of those and really can't understand someone selling thiers. They're just bad ass bikes. One of many things on my "wish list".
I had always wanted a '32 5w and had a chance at one in 1972. Had no money but had just finished rebuilding a totalled '70 GrandPrix for my wife. The guy called that owned it and said I had 24 hours to come up with the money, he was in a bind. I took the clear title to the GP to the bank and told them I needed a loan. I had the money by that aftennoon and my dream car has been with me ever since. I've owned 12 '32's since (currently have 4) but that one isn't going anywhere. Even my wife insists that it stays no matter what. Frank
Bought a 30 Ford Victoria when I was 16. That was in 1966 & I still have it. Just can't seem to be able to bring myself to flip it. It was my very first A and it will probably be with me for as long as I am around. Paid $400.00 for it back then which was alot of money for a running, amateur restoration then.
I've had my 40 for 25 years.(I bought it when I was 13) I tried to sell it for about an hour at Des Moines about 8 years ago.As soo as I had a couple people getting real interested in buying it, my best friend who was with me(and has helped on it all 25 years) said "you know you'll never have another 40 coupe if you sell this one." I immediately walked over to the car and took the sign out. It needs another going through, but I know if I tear it apart at this stage in my life, It will be a long time before it would see the road again, so I have just learned to love the "patina" it's getting and plan for the next go around. Hopefully some day either my 5 or 2 year old will be able to enjoy it as much as I have...
In my teens and early 20s my car was a part of my image, and personality. As I kept moving up to faster cars, I started selling the last completed project, to finance the next. By now I was learning that my own greatest joy was in building a nice car. The cruising was a distant second. By my late twenties, the cruising and thrill of speed meant less than the craftsmanship, and artistic input, and my work became a source of pride and recogition.....even if another guy was driving it. I suppose it is somewhat different for each person, and you have to decide what you need.
I have owned it more than half my life ... and I am a older, retired type of guy I guess I am going to own it when I die. Never really considered selling it ... but I do not drive it or use it like I used to. I sometimes take it for granted. It sometimes sits for weeks or months at a time ... in the last 5 - 8 years. It is some times like being married ... you take what you have for granted. It was real nice here yesterday ( Sunday ) ... and the wife and I got the 32 out and went for a Sunday drive ... spent the afternoon together ... and really enjoyed each other and the 32 roadster. GREAT TIMES ... Just wish I could get my 32 3W finished ...
RevKev, thanks for this thread! These "artifacts" become part of our lives. The gent who introduced Myth, Joseph Campell, makes room for Henry Gregor Felsen. It's a grand thing
Well I'll consider myself lucky. Got the same situation with an off topic car except A- I actually ran the piss out of it for a few years before the decline to roller chassis and B- It ain't worth shit. The decision to "keep" is easy when the car ain't worth a grand! If you wanna keep the deuce, and keep your budget in shape to build it, here's the formula. Buy a fixer upper house way under market value for zero down. Use your current downpayment to make it acceptable to move in. Treat the house like a project car for the next year and the one day you'll look around and realize you have a nice pad for less than an apartment's rent. As I type there's a faint hint of Vulkem sealant odor in the air. Because as much as I woulda loved to been working on my hot rod yesterday, instead it was spent installing new entry doors. It's the only way my budget has room to "have it all". FWIW, my married friends that did fixer uppers reaped one additional benefit. A spouse that understands the reality of managing large mechanical projects (like car restorations)
i got my car in 76 ,i was 7 helped my dad pull it out of a salvage.he told me then that it was my car and that could never sell it......its part of the family..i waited until i was mature enough to build it...messed up a few cars in the mean time ,should have saved those as well....put the car on the back burner again if you need to....but keep it .one day you may have a kid and want them to have the car...its always a good story when one doesnt get away....
Hello, We have owned quite a few cars since 1958. Maybe not as many as some here on the HAMB. Fascination with cars has built in a feeling of pride of ownership. Whether it is a clunker, hot rod, custom or modern cruiser. When I started driving, I had the responsibility to keep the 58 Impala clean, tuned up and looking good. (that is, if I wanted to ride around in it…it was my brother’s car at the time) from that point on, every car that I owned showed the same respect in my mind. Keep it clean, running well, and looking good. My wife has learned that this motto has kept our cars repair bills at a minimum. She appreciates that our cars have always run well, clean, and were reliable. One thing that she always tells her friends is that as women, “We always have something to feel guilty about…” “But, my husband only feels guilty when the cars are not clean and looking good.” That gets laughs at every family get together and even at her lunches with her friends. Feeling guilty at a dirty car or poor running car? It is just a car, but it is our car and pride of ownership comes into play. We have seen the retro cars in all stages of rust and customization. My wife’s comment for those cars is that they need some work, but they are cool. To her, if it starts, drives well and is always reliable, she loves cars. It must be her experience with her 62 Corvair. She got stuck by the side of the road at night , coming home from a job interview, on the darkest freeway in East Los Angeles. That experience has spurred on this “I want a reliable car theme.” If it runs well, it is her favorite car. (plus it has to have lots of horsepower, A/C and drives/rides well) Jnaki Also, it has to have room to haul around a 98 year old dad to doctor's visits, hospitals, lunches, etc. and all of that extra paraphernalia. Gee, it sounds like the same stuff for our grand daughter when she was little. We are the "Tweeners," the middle between the extreme family ends. Cars have been sold for family needs... 40 Ford Sedan Delivery needs for college, Impala needs for college and beyond, An El Camino , a Harley Sportster plus another 40 Ford Sedan Delivery for a new family oriented house, sports cars for family necessities...etc. But, the thing is, it all works out in the end...or getting near the end...
Hell no. If your Gonna build a life together we start at ground zero. Been there, done that and regret it to this day. Some things you have to hold sacred, like your car. Find another means to come up with the money. I sold some cars I didn't want to just to get out of tight spots but if I would have just thought a bit I could have figured out something else. Never tell your significant other what it is worth. Sold a car I built with my daughter, would empty my bank account to get it back. I would never sell that car if it was me. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Old thread, but that's just fine, good question. Post # one asks if you would sell the car ya love to pay for things you need. My wife asked me a similar question recently, (her opinion is that we should never sell my cars/bikes), I would sell everything to support my family, if I needed to, EXCEPT the motorcycle I've owned since I was 19, which is the biggest piece of crap out of all of it, but I won't sell that thing. I've thrown stuff on CL when we were desperate, luckily no buyers.
I have sold both cars and bikes in tough times. Yeah I miss the rides but don't regret it one bit. It's kind of funny that when things are going good I never try and replace the ones I lost with similar types. Freud would have enjoyed meeting me.
The key here I think is monetary value. To those that sell, the car has monetary value, but to me, my 36 has none, It was the first truck I ever finished, and have owned twenty years, on for another twenty. In the event of my house burning, I would save it after my wife and dogs, it will go to my daughter on my death. It has no monetary value to her either, it was her dad's, she would keep it too. It was appraised twenty years ago at forty thousand, for insurance purposes, but if it sits, no matter, if I have monetary troubles, (won't), it'll sit, it is mine, my artwork, m y sculpture, my treasure, my jewelry, something respected by my family, I have done nine cars since, and a ton for other folks since, but one is special, the others just cars to be sold to finance the next one.
^ I understand that totally. I do not have the talent to build one from scratch. I make repairs, change things around etc. but have never made one myself. Entirely different game there. No one else in my extended family has had an interest in cars so I don't have that special attachment to one that has been handed down. I believe my son has his eye on one or two of mine and I would gladly keep them for him.
That's a very nice thought but sometimes u don't get a choice to keep one if them u like and in some states they have the no fault clause which helps in a lot of ways but cars and trucks don't apply do either give her no reason to leave or get a pre-nup on the car and anything else that's urs BC promises of sayings like "I would never do that to u" go by the way side when it comes to a women who is mad enough to divorce u, they're are a few that really don't care and wouldn't mess with u but that's far a few so it's best to get one up front or put the car in someone else's name along with ur own, not hers though lol trust me I kno all to well, lol jmo hrh Sent from my iPad using The H.A.M.B. mobile app HotRod Harry
I bought my F-100 in '87 at the tender age of 15. In the 30 Years I have owned it I've made a lot of memories and honestly I wouldn't have it any other way. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
The Jalopy Journal
