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2009 BMW 335i, 2003 Corvette cnv. (RIP 2001 Jaguar XK8 cnv and 1985 MB 380SE [the best of the lot])
If I had an aircraft hangar or Leno's garage etc for storage, and unlimited funds, I'd want it.
Like the stuff on this page - there's a cult around it now.
The 300 SEL 6.3 was even more ferocious (same engine).
My friend sold his (very very nice) 32' Chevy rod for $51,000, after a long time trying. His receipts were about $104,000. (ouch!)
But he won some shows, drove it after the show circuit was done, had fun for a few years, so it was probably cheaper than 4 years of professional therapy at two visits a week. :P
There *ARE* cars you can make money on, but you have to be very shrewd about it.
As someone once told me, in a burst of good automotive wisdom:
"The profit on a car is in the buy, not the sell".
In the case of projects, it's in the buy and in the brakes you can apply to the restoration.
This issue is was a gorgeous, bright green, over the top resto on a 1969 AMX. Sold for 32K, and supposedly had receipts for over 90K on the restoration.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
If it's not an open car or muscle car, or exotic European, it's risky.
As for street rods, I'm not sure any street rod in history ever made a profit, aside from the "period rods" built in the 50s by famous builders, or maybe some of the famous salt flats racers.
Buckets and console fastback
6 cyl 64 SS
Worth triple if not a sedan
Restored 67 I wonder if the colors on the pass side are that far off in person
Pretty rare site in these parts if you can actually see it
A bit too rough for the money Get that trim out of the trunk and back on the car
Worn out 2 door money for a worn out 4 door
Good candidate for a refurb maybe
New paint isn't great but maybe an affordable ticket to local cruises
Too far to go
The mother of big old Chevies
Not a Chevy but still of interest
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
W108 looks really nice, but they bring more like 7-8K-ish even in great condition. It's also a carb (base 108) model, which some like, some don't.
There is a show where they do exactly that (buy junkers, make them into rods, and sell them at auction), and if you believe the numbers, they make a profit just about every time. Oh, actually, there are a few shows now that I think about it. The first ... I can't remember what its called... I'm not even sure they are making new shows anymore. They seem to be out in the southwest somewhere. The 2nd is that show that started last year about Gas Monkey Garage. And then there is Counting Cars.
With all those shows, I usually have a hard time believing the numbers, especially Counting Cars. I've seen him buy a car for $5k, spend weeks on it, give it a full interior and paint job, and sell it at $15k "for a profit." Hmmm...
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '08 Charger R/T Daytona; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '08 Maser QP; '11 Mini Cooper S
But the ones I do watch seem to be a stretch. Almost like wheeler dealers, where they don't add in the cost of labor!
Texas car wars is a new one, and those costs for what they do have to be bogus. Desert Valley (not sure the actual name) was the same deal, though they did pick there parts from the yard mostly. Still, the $ did not make sense when you counted man hours, though I guess if you have guys in the shop getting paid $10 it could!
The other older series was "rags to riches" (I think) at Barry's speed shop. I did like the "spendometer", and that one actually seemed legit, because they claimed to spend some serious coin on a few of those builds.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
2017 Cadillac ATS Performance Premium 3.6
I believe it's called "Fast and Loud", and, like "Wheeler Dealers", I suspect they don't factor in any cost for labor.
I could show you photos of cars I have inspected that look great but are utter disasters when you look underneath or actually try to drive them.
Building rat rods is fine but don't call them 'restorations'.
Counting Cars is the one that is a spinoff from Pawn Stars on History Channel. It is about the guy who usually does their appraisals at the pawn shop. I think it is an entertaining show and he is quite a character... but the numbers make no sense.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '08 Charger R/T Daytona; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '08 Maser QP; '11 Mini Cooper S
As for the scripting ... eh. I don't watch it for the drama personally, although that's probably what drives viewership. For us gearheads, we watch to see what cars they dig up and what they do to them. Wheeler Dealers is definitely the most technical of the bunch.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '08 Charger R/T Daytona; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '08 Maser QP; '11 Mini Cooper S
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Wheeler Dealers is fantastic, I can watch it for hours. Edd is a good combination of skilled and patient, and Mike is a superdork - but not an unlikeable one, he has enthusiasm. If Edd's labor was billed at a market rate, he'd be a millionaire.
Not my favorite color, but this 1970 Custom Impala was probably one of the best Detroit battleships around back then. For some reason my eyes were drawn to the fender mount turn signal indicators. I don't recall seeing them on big Chevys but by 1970 the options and accessories were growing for these things like the bulk and weight.
My grandparents also had a '68 Impala, but it had a 327. I don't remember it very well. They gave it to my Mom in '72 when they bought their new Impala, and she traded it when I was 5, for a '75 LeMans. I remember it being a vibrant, colorful bluish-green color, but I was looking through some old photos over the weekend and found some where it was in the background, and it appeared to be more of a dull grayish-green.
Given they sold so many of them, it's not surprising that you see a lot of these '70's still at shows and the like. There is one locally that is an all-original survivor car, carfully preserved, but with a most unfortunate color combo - a tomato-red paint job with a black vinyl top and gold cloth interior. Ordered that way new by the guy who still owns it.
This one may have been "professionally restored", but is that white piping I see on the seats? And why a junky aftermarket air cleaner? Throw that away.
2017 Cadillac ATS Performance Premium 3.6
The 68 - if I want a mint low mileage car, I want it to be original - if not, the mileage isn't worth much.