I have been out of the loop for a few years and really haven't paid much attention to car parts prices till now. Thanks to the rising scrap iron prices and the already scarce supply of early Ford bodies I have noticed prices have risen on body parts. I was wondering what is reasonable price for 27 T bodies as well as 28-31 A bodies that are in reasonable shape? Thanks, Casey
I'm also curious what is considered 'reasonable shape'... Might be in for a surprise for price vs. condition.
Well everyone's opinion of fair shape is different. Typical for something 82 years old, no windows, body not rusted out, no major body damage, still has the doors. Missing the typical parts that are stolen off of them.
It is worth what ever you accept. The market as a whole (at least here) is so scewed. The high scrap prices, cash for clunckers and I'm sure about a 100 million other factors that I am not addressing have drivin prices up in such a bizar rate. When i buy anything it always feel like I need to spit on my own backside before I get it
Supply and demand dictate the prices but often times you can find older restorations that are pretty solid but tired for less than you can buy someone's incomplete project car for. The scrappers are putting the hurt on us when we start looking for inexpensive nine Ford rear ends or deals on older big V8 engines.
I recently paid $305 for a very rough (almost junk) '26 Model T...(Picture attached) and have seen them close to ~$2000 for a real decent one....(this is the body only, as you asked for) Cheers......
I'll throw another variable into the mix, too. Geography. Out here in the Western half of the country, the "T" coupe body above would be more like 600.00 - 750.00 for the "junk" one pictured, and I'd love to see a "nice" one for as cheap as 2000.00. I was at a swap last week where there were three '27 bodys from 1500.00-3000.00.
For the most part, Fords have been and always will be the most expensive of the "everymans" early cars. I don't think the scrap prices have effected the prices, as most people are smart enough to know the early Fords are worth more than the price of scrap. I see shots of yards crushing out old stuff, and it's generally non-ford 4 doors and trucks that seem to lose that battle. Even with Ebay, and the amount of eager overseas buyers for early Ford stuff, it still seems like people are posting constantly about finding good deals by networking and beating the bushes. The unfortunate reason for this, I feel is the passing of the older guys who were saving this stuff for future projects who unfortunately didn't make it long enough to get to them. At least they were able to save them for another generation rather then loosing the to the scrap drives!! Here are some car prices I saw at a recent swap meet: $1500 for a complete SOLID 30-31 Model A 4 door body that was a no-sale after a couple of days. A Rusty, beat up 40 coupe for $3,500, a nice, solid all original running 34 2 door for $20,000. An OK shape 34 Cabriolet older rod project @ $16,000, A rough 35 cabriolet @ $15,000 and a solid mostly complete 35 Convertible sedan @ $16,500. I think some people base their prices on stuff off "repop" prices to: If a pair of new steel 40 rear fenders is worth $1500, then these trashed rusty ones have to be worth $300.... If a brookville 32 3 window is @ 25,000, then this Henry steel one must be worth $30,000.....Even though it will need $20,000 in metal work to get it even close to the shape the brookville one is in! Most peoples bottom line on prices? Anywhere from "offer him $100" to "$250 per ton" to "whatever you'll pay" if your looking to buy. And.... "Put it on THAT auction site and the bidding will tell you what it's worth" if you're selling!!
I love it when people ask these questions w/o any details or photos. I get this all the time with the cars I deal with. They get all upset when I ask questions and want photos. If you're going to ask a WIW question, BE SPECIFIC about what it is and an honest description!!! So, what s a 1959 ford worth? What body? it's got 2 doors Cvt, retract, Ranchero or coupe? hardtop hardtop retract or coupe? coupe what's the condition of it? Ran when parked....in 1969 etc...... GRRRRRRRR!
I think a complete A body seems like $1000 minimum proposition. Less than that and you're just buying pieces (apart). T's, no clue.
youd be surprised how much they have gone up. id say with the internet and shows like pawn stars and american pickers. and not to mention barret jackson,people think everything is worth a fortune. recently the model a coupes and pickups seam to be hotter than the sedans. last year i sold a 27 T coupe complete original with pretty much every part on it for $4800.recently i saw a nice 29 A coupe body, a few rust spots with all the parts go for $5000. guess it depends on what its worth to you. one guy refuses to pay that much, and the other scoops it up.
Lots of good reply`s. I understand everything is worth something. Things have changed in the past 10 years. When I was younger I knew of several places that I could go pick up A and T body`s and parts. Now they have all been hauled off to the scrap or picked clean. Now I find one, and thanks to TV shows like mentioned above, they want thousands for something that isnt worth a couple hundred bucks. Here is an example, I found a nice 30 Two door sedan body, nothing else but the body and the doors, windows busted out, interior picked clean, but the body has no dents anywhere, not even the traditional bullet hole, it been sitting in the weeds for 50 years. Gal wants $3,500.00 firm for it. She says that's what she has seen them go for and that's what she is sticking to. Its not necessarily a bad price for a body in that good of condition, but its lacking a lot of parts. I bought a complete almost running 31 A coupe for 5000.00 10 years ago. I know things have changed, I was just curious what other peoples thoughts were and see if I was the only one who thinks as things change we are going to pay more for Henry`s Steel or go to buying Brookville steel or fiberglass and being ahead in the long run.
My two Cents worth, IS NOW .50 centos ! I was outta tha' Loop fer about 22 yrs, kinda' kept up with prices.........."I Thought ! Makes it Harder when I think about buing nice '50 Merc Conv. for $1200. '34 five winder Ford, for $550. ( 1965 !) '57 Chev. Convert. $ 550. (late '70s )'Yeah, I like living "In tha' PAST, ..............It's Much Cheaper ! I recently paid $1350. for a 1950 Caddy H.T. All ther, But Plenty "Rust Out" Worth saving, ?? YES Good Hunting ! Smokey
Deals DO come up sometimes... My nephew and his friend went on a 'walkabout' outside town here, around Atwater. (Central CA., 65 miles North of Modesto) They walked 1/4 mile off the back roads, behind barns and along creeks... They found a collection of rusting tin behind a large barn, in plain sight from the road, if you looked real hard... There were 2 Studebakers, (1926 & 1928) both sedans; 1 Packard roadster, 1930; 1 '27 T touring, missing engine, trans, front fenders. 1 '27 Roadster, missing engine/trans, and turtledeck. All fenders, hood, shell. Inside barn, a '26 T Roadster pickup: no rust, runs with a fresh battery. I got the '27 tub for $300, and the '27 roadster for $200. Plus an extra frame & front axle thrown in. The seller wanted $750 for the roadster pickup, nephew got that one! Funny thing was, they were 2 miles from my house!!! Later, in an unrelated search... There were 3 different '27 tubs I saw later, (in the last 2 years) $900, $1500, and $1500 All of them sold, 2 right away and the third went 2 weeks later... I got a near perfect '27 cowl, cut off at the subframe 10" behind the 'A' structure. (leading edges of doors) for $50. The Cherry swap meet in Fresno...Dash, windshield stanchians, firewall, cowl vent...(gas tank cover) Oh, the 'T' cowl gas tank was there, too. Prices will vary. 'T' stuff comes and goes in popularity, probably partially due to monthly magazine focus: "BUILD A TRACK T!" or, "WHY NOT A LAKES CAR?" Suddenly, 'T' bodies are priced right thru the roof!...For about one season, then it's all Model A's & Deuces again.
Isn't eGay just about the best guide to what you need to pay for anything? If someone is asking too much, it won't sell. If it's being sold cheap, it will generally get bid up. You don't have to buy from there to use it as a research tool. Sure it's full of conmen, hoaxters and assorted riff-raff. Use it for your benefit. Just sayin' Cheers
Not even close. You can list 2 identicle items starting at $.99 and one will sell for $5 and the other for $500. Feepay isnt what it once was.
There is something to knowing how to list also, IE keywords in the title, no reserve, and having a good feedback score are very important on ebay.
I`ve also looked at the same part and looked under "buy it now" and skipped all the B.S. and just bought it. I see that a lot on parts.