Well........25,000 professionals on the street from bankrupt Lehman Brothers. I figure these are guys with a little discretionary income and maybe a few toys in the garage. With every blow like this, it puts another nail in the coffin for our muscle car values. Of course, I'm talking out my butt here--I'm no expert. Some of you guys smarter than me on the subject, what do you think?

I guess it's only bad news for sellers. If values do take a hit, buyers will come out ahead. If enough of these laid off bankers have classic cars and they stay unemployed, it may flood the market more than it is now.

One thing I have noticed on Egay is that if you look in the completed listings, there are very few actual sales for the nicer Chevelles. Even though there are a bunch for sale, no one seems to be dumping them for pennies on the dollar. I suppose like it has been said, it costs a lot of money to make one nice, and people are just not willing to lose their shirt. Also, if anything, the cost of restoration parts and paint supplies is going freaking crazy. Especially paint & boby supplies. Matter of fact, I think now is the time to buy those restoration pieces for our projects before the obligatory price increases at the start of the new year.

Interesting article in the most recent Hemmings Muscle Car Magazine. It talked about a plain jane 66 impala being bought by an overseas broker and shipped to another country. With our weaker dollar, the car could be purchased, shipped, charged import/export taxes, and still sold for a profit overseas. It went on to say that the guy who transports the cars to the docks has a thriving business and hauls 10 to 15 classic cars a month to the shipping docks. Sad. The gist of the article was that if you want a muscle car, buy it now. If the bloodletting continues, more and more of our cars will end up overseas and we could see an increase in values due to simple supply and demand. Food for thought.

Mike

I've got some cash, just sitting here waiting for a bargain

That's nothing compared to the 400,000 manufacturing jobs that we have lost in Michigan. Keep buying those imports and will all be on the bread line.:thumbsup:

I'm with Andy's thinking on this. There is no harm in some selective investing in these times. As others have said just be careful.

The darkest hour of the night is the closest one to the sunrise.

I'm with Andy's thinking on this. There is no harm in some selective investing in these times. As others have said just be careful.

The darkest hour of the night is the closest one to the sunrise.

Yeah.....you got it on that one.

Things have to get worse.....before they get any better. :)

That's nothing compared to the 400,000 manufacturing jobs that we have lost in Michigan. Keep buying those imports and will all be on the bread line.:thumbsup: That's why all I have ever had and all I will ever have are Chevrolet's.

We keep trying to shape this into a muscle car market thing, but it's not. The value on every non-essential good has dropped. They're talking about the same thing on every other forum, be it cars, guitars, motorcycles, power tools, or toys.

Went out to breakfast this morning with a contractor friend at a local spot. The normally full parking lot was empty except for four cars at 7:30 in the morning. People are not spending money, period.

I think the expectation that muscle car values would be the lone rising phoenix from the charred ashes of our economy would be quite unrealistic.

We are now being held accountable for our years of excess. Virtually no area of our life will be untouched by this economic adjustment.

"When they raid the whorehouse they arrest everbody including the piano player."

The greatest example I can give. The Shreveport GM plant is struggling to survive like all of them. This plant was built to make small trucks and is now building the new Hummer. Last week they interviewed a worker as he was leaving the plant. He moaned,groaned, and whined about the situation and then drove off in his Nissan truck. Hard to have your cake and eat it too.

Like so many others with a car or project to sell I am not getting much interest unless I want to resemble welfare and give it away. To get where my car is will only go up and finding one like it is very difficult. I am going to push it up in the corner, put a tarp on it and weather the storm. I am convinced that when this turns around, my attitude will brighten and I will realize that I will not have the opportunity to own another car like this at this money again.

Thats why I bought my 69SS project. Wasnt the greatest deal but I paid what the car was worth. It doesnt break my heart one bit that these cars are going down in value.

Thats why I bought my 69SS project. Wasnt the greatest deal but I paid what the car was worth. It doesnt break my heart one bit that these cars are going down in value.

I agree. If you have a classic car because of what it is worth on resale you have it for the wrong reasons. I'm hemorraging money right now on the wagon project but I want to get it done. I'm not worried about what it will be worth when I'm done because I have no intention of selling it anyway. Heck, I'd work a job at McDonalds during the day and Burger King at night before I'd lose my house or my cars.

Thats why I bought my 69SS project. Wasnt the greatest deal but I paid what the car was worth. It doesnt break my heart one bit that these cars are going down in value.

I agree. If you have a classic car because of what it is worth on resale you have it for the wrong reasons. I'm hemorraging money right now on the wagon project but I want to get it done. I'm not worried about what it will be worth when I'm done because I have no intention of selling it anyway. Heck, I'd work a job at McDonalds during the day and Burger King at night before I'd lose my house or my cars.
That's the kind of passion this hobby should be based on, I could not agree more, I was in this long before the boom and will be in it long after the bust. :beers: To you gentleman.

I put one of my Chevelles up recently, just to clear up some space and capital for a new project... Sure, I had mine priced a bit high (but I was open to negotiation)... Not one inquiry...

Oh well, lost out on the other project anyway...

That's nothing compared to the 400,000 manufacturing jobs that we have lost in Michigan. Keep buying those imports and will all be on the bread line.:thumbsup:

I understand where your coming from. I do have a question though.
My new GM picup was built in Canada. My wifes Dodge was built in Mexico. My neighbors new Toyota was built in Indiana. So which one paid American workers?

How many bankers do you think actually have musclecars? They all seem pretty "stiff" to me, Need to have at least a little redneck in ya' to own some muscle. LOL

LK

I just sent the bank a $4700 check to pay off the remaining lien amount for a loan I had against the Chevelle for restoration costs.

I've owned scores of Muscle cars. And always had loans on them.

I've also sold scores of Muscle cars because times got tough, and I had to lower my monthly outgoing payments.

This is the first time in my life, I've had a clear title to a collector car.

As far as the downward trend in prices, there's only one guarentee that's certain in this downward spiral.

That eventually, the prices will go back up.

It just depends on how long you wait it out.

I'll wait it out driving a 454 Chevelle.

I agree. If you have a classic car because of what it is worth on resale you have it for the wrong reasons. I'm hemorraging money right now on the wagon project but I want to get it done. I'm not worried about what it will be worth when I'm done because I have no intention of selling it anyway. Heck, I'd work a job at McDonalds during the day and Burger King at night before I'd lose my house or my cars.

AMEN!!!! :yes: I'm hemorraging in my investments but my car is not an investment. I own it for the love of the car, not to turn a buck. This car will be my legacy that my son (who is 11 now) will someday own. Hopefully I'll have another one added to my collection for my daughter some day.

How many bankers do you think actually have musclecars? They all seem pretty "stiff" to me, Need to have at least a little redneck in ya' to own some muscle. LOL

LK

This banker has 2 Chevelles, Thank you

This banker has 2 Chevelles, Thank you

I stand corrected. :thumbsup:


LK

This banker has 2 Chevelles, Thank you

redneck banker? lol :D

our chevelles are pure fun and enjoyment not investments:hurray:

Couldn't agree more. Those that are in the "hobby" just to buy and sell to make a profit are in a different hobby than I am......enjoying my '67, spending money on it, and giving to my daughter when I am gone so she can enjoy it.
If someone is losing money on their investments of buying chevelles to turn a profit, oh well, win some and lose some.
On a side note, those that were/are into buying and selling have increased the availability of products for all of us to restore our babies and also made it more justifiable to our "better halves" to spend money on them due to the increased value.

Just got back from the auction in Branson this past weekend. There was a little of everything, no sales, low prices, and high prices. Just as in the stock market and comodities, if the market is moving sideways there is not much opportunity but if the market is moving up or down, there is opportunity. Sell high, buy low. I have made money by borrowing for a car, but I wouldn't sell unless I make good money. I didn't see bargain sales on quality cars in Branson except for the '84 Ferrari owned by Yakov Smirnov. He dated Brook Shields and she rode in that car. The license plate read: X RED. I didn't have a bidders card and good thing, it went for $32,000! I dunno, maybe thats all they are worth.

This is totally good news for me, I'm dieing to own a nice 70 SS Chevelle... I want one so badly...

This might take the hurt off of buying one, being that I am of low income and no credit, I cant just take out a loan for $10,000 to get a good body...

our chevelles are pure fun and enjoyment not investments:hurray:

Amen to that. :)

We can't just oversimplify the hobby guy vs. the profit guy. I love the car hobby and all it represents. I go to car shows, swap meets, cruise-ins, etc on a reglar basis. I own a few Chevelles and El Caminos in various stages of completion. I buy em, fix em, love em and sell em. Some folks keep their cars for years and years. For me it is the thrill of the hunt. Then the rush I get from transforming them from rust buckets to beautiful drivers. After the cars are done and a brief love affair--I'm done. I'm ready to sell them and move on to my next project.

I watch the market and sell a few cars, but only to support my car habit. I do not buy finished cars and speculate--only projects that I can complete. That is more fun to me.
At the same time, I don't think badly of someone who buys & sells big dollar cars on a regular basis. I'll bet most of them do it simply because they love classic cars. They could probably speculate in more stable investments, but choose to stay with cars because they like the hobby as much as we do.

Anyway....just a friendly counter opinion to think about. There is a guy in our car club who is 60 years old and still has the same corvette he had in high school. It's the only classic car he has or will ever own. More power to him. I think it's great. I read about guys here who have owned their cars for many years and intend to own them for many more years. Again, I totally respect that.

I see lots of posts that pretty much slam guys for being speculators and ruining the hobby. Not a fair accusation in my opinion. As with anything, I'm sure there are some real shysters and con artists out there. They are the ones on ebay selling a sweep dash "Genuine SS" and looking for their next chump. Slam those guys, but for the guys talking and asking about prices/values, etc--give em a break. I'm sure they are enthusiasts just like us. They're just ready to sell and move on and hopefully get max dollar for their efforts.

It's late, I'm bored and rambling. Thanks for listening.

Mike