Depreciating or increasing the value?

Certain cars seem to bring more $$ modified than stock IF done in a timeless fashion becuase people want to drive em. Certain cars you do not want to modify--example is my 57 FI BeAir. Many times I thought of upgrading it to something more modern than the old rochester solid lifter setup but my wife had a fit and said leave it alone--wise move as I would have messed up a valuable car--this was in the late 70's--glad I listened. I usually come out on the cars I fool with but can't consider the labor--it's a hobby for me anyway. At 70 I learned that these are not an investment but rather toys to keep me occupied. I sell one only so I can do another one for enjoyment and a retirement hobby.

 

A lot go great opinions have been offered so far.

If the o/p is going to sell his Buick to graduate to the classic he wants the question of how much you spend verses the potential selling price is more than important. Who wants to spend $50,000 and sell for $35,000? If you are building what you want and intend to keep it is a different story.

Cost verses value always enters into what I do with cars. Too many times I've seen a ton of money spent on a particular project that will never recoup the cost as it is an ackward body style or undesirable year. It takes about the same amount of money for paint, body work, interior, chrome, etc. for what ever vehicle it is.

In the end the value is what a buyer is willing to pay. If the o/p is planning to sell this how many buyer are there for what you are building?

 

The buy vs build theory forced me to close my restoration shop back in the tech stock days. Folks were spending 6 figures and making 7 in under a year. Long term, like it or not, significant cars are one of the best investments you can make. In 1992 you could buy a Ferrari F40 for $3-400K. In 89-90 they were trading at near to over a million due to the "gotta-have-its" racing to get em. Once Desert Storm hit, those infamous news images, the chain was pulled on the toilet and prices tanked. 2 decades later that $400K will get you a million. Any stocks doing that? What was a stock Deuce 3W worth in 92? Not near what it is today even adjusted for inflation, stock or hot rodded.

The biggest return on the investment is that you use it. For some it's lots of driving, for others it's pampered and shown at concours events and simply enjoyed more personal and perhaps quiet. I've never seen a stock certificate show. You know, who's got the best border design or calligraphy? Can't drive an investment book, and as I said before the values can't be manipulated like gold or real estate prices. True enough, there's more than 1 instance of shady deals intended to drive up values, but be in the right seat when the music stops? You can by a garage full of HAMB-friendly cars at the end of it all.

Why build at all? Does anyone actually look close at the shitbox builds on some of the TV shows? Can you trust what you buy without personal knowledge of the build/history/previous owners? I'd bet a pro-built car doesn't suffer near the devaluation of a home-built. This whole topic has many facets both pro and con. In the facets I've been on it's been more pro. A man spent $325K on a Packard 12 restoration. He enjoyed it, sold it, and bought it back because he missed it for near that same money. 10yrs later it brought $550K. Winner or loser? I'd tend to agree that you can't spend $50K restoring a Model A cpe at $65/hr + materials then expect to sell it for a profit. I hope all this blathering makes sense.

 

Oh so true

 

A few reasons that a modified car can bring a negative price premium:

- May not match the buyer's taste

- Lack of trust in the skills of the modifier. You weren't therefor the modifications; how do you know the car was done right and not just bodged together? Certain cars are simpler and easier to judge the quality than others.

- Lack of documentation. If a car has parts from 10 different makes and models on it, and a part breaks, how do you know what part to buy?

- Perceived inconsistency between the urge to modify and customize a car and the urge to sell the same car. If the owner made really great modifications, why is he selling it now? This is a variation on the truism that "nobody ever sold a car because it ran too good." There's a basic suspicion in the case of any sale of a used item, and rightfully so, because the buyer must beware. The suspicion is even higher when the seller has (allegedly) invested a pile of money in the car. Why would he do that and then sell it? Possible permutations:
- Was he displeased with the results? Nobody wants a hack job.
- Did he run out of money and now he has to sell? I hope the car wasn't built with such lack of foresight.
- Are the modifications really designed to cover up prior damage? That's dishonest.
- Did he modify it with the intent to make it attractive to buyers? That's a bit disquieting, as it means this build is really motivated by profit, and the buyer must be on the lookout for cut corners.

These are just some of the downsides that can detract from the value of such a car.

 

If you are building the car yourself, then it's cheaper to build than to buy one done already. Your labor is free.

If you're farming out the work, it will be more expensive to build than to buy one that's done already. Why? You are paying a premium for the labor for the custom work.

I built my '33 truck myself, top to bottom stem to stern. All in I have MAYBE $12,000 in parts, materials and initial cost of the truck. Been offered $25,000 for it a few times, but I turned it down. So if you do all of the work yourself, it's cheaper. But, it takes MANY hours of your life to complete. There's the trade off.

 

are you building the car to make money or enjoy?

 

Step #1. If you listen to anyone but yourself, get out now...Your gonna have a bad time.

Let um buy an nice original, build yourself a hotrod and go have fun.