Need some opinions. Im trying to sell my little modified and haven't had much luck. Im thinking people are afraid of the supercharged banger and putting a flathead v8 may make it more desirable to the masses. Plus I would rather keep the banger. what's your opinion....banger or v8 Clark
I think your question answered itself, @Clark I LOVE this car BTW. But I think the supercharged banger is too high-traditional hot rod-nerd for the wider market unless you're taking it to a specialized auction. If you sold it at something like Mecum, you might get some action on it, but eBay (I watched your listing), probably not so much.
You could also sell it sans the engine and let the new owner supply their own power plant. I think you would do well to keep the rare blower and hot rod banger .HRP
Small block chevy, flat black with red wheels and you should do fine. I would toss in a stocker flattie and send it down the road. Awesome car, but most people don't know what they are looking at.
any car can be hard to sell - have had people tell me that if my blue car was red they would buy it. never can please everyone. just need to find that one buyer and there is guaranteed way to do it. have sold a car within a couple of hours of putting it up For Sale. others have taken months. maybe offer it with or without motor.
I don't really want to sell it, I need the money to bail me out of another project. Selling it without a motor, would be like giving it away. At that point it's a project and can't see anybody wanting to pay more than 5k for it. I've got a nice flathead and for the most part I think it's a bolt in. Even thought about putting a hood on it and changing the look so the new owner could possibly run it in the race this years Clark
I think that car is unique and just famous enough to be worth trying to sell on TV personally. If you can wait until the end of July that is.
Clark, my opinion ( not worth much, I know) is that the car is very cool, no matter what period engine was in it. The engine just made it all the more cooler to me. The blown banger may well put off a lot of potential buyers. So you get to keep the very cool engine, drop in a nice flathead 8 that more people will feel at home with, and use the banger to start your next project. BUT you can't start another project un till the '34 roadster is runnin. Jus sayin. Cheers, Stewart.
I like the banger and think its awesome. But I think most people are drawn to a v-8. I think a hood top/ flathead and wind shield and it would be gone. good luck
Clark, Correct me if I'm wrong, the banger is a good mill, right!!?? If I have a good mill I do my best to hang onto it. The 355 ( I know apples to oranges) in the raven's roadster is one that I have had for 18 years and I have lost count but I think it is on its 5th or 6th body at this point and unless the raven explodes it by some freak of the imagination it will go into at least one more body. it is a good engine, I could freshen it but it is a good engine. if your banger is a good mill and I believe that it is keep it and move it to another body. A flathead v 8 will make your little hooptie more marketable to someone who doesn't know or appreciate bangers as much as you do which is going to be about everyone. if I could find one I may lean toward a 21 stud just because of the type of car that it is but that has everything to do with what you have at your disposal. Anyway that is what the beaner would do.
Is that a Studebaker chassis? I love the look of the car, but when I see a chassis like that I'm thinkin straight 8 flathead.
I think it's perfect the way it is but what do I know. There was a time a car like that would sell with a Chev 350 in it but I think those days have passed. You could mock up or photoshop it with the flathead, run an ad and see what response you get. Only change the engine when it is sold and you get a deposit. I am afraid if you change engines you will have your labor for your pains. In other words, it may not make the car more saleable or higher priced. As for desirable to the masses, the masses won't look twice at a car like that. You need to find the right buyer, and that may well be someone who digs blown flathead 4 bangers.
I would be more concerned about the lack of upholstery, windshield, headlights etc. I know to you it is purely a race car. And agree, there is not much meat on it but what's there is choice. Why are you selling the car? I think you want to keep it, and you should keep it.
I gotta sell the car.....don't want to. here's the car with lights. I did plan on driving it on the street .
Frame is Essex, front axle is dodge. I did a build thread on the car. Pork....yea ,the motor is great. The combo works we'll together. If like to play with it and see what kind of horsepower I could get out of it. I would love to put it in another car....when I decided to sell it I planned on finding and doing it again Clark
I'm with the v8 crowd, if you are looking for a larger market, to move the vehicle quicker. The blown banger is top notch, and rare. So are the customers that are looking for a rod with one. A flatty is a very desirable power plant for more folks and should move it quicker. Just my $.02
that's a really cool car, but at 6'4" i don't fit too well. so people are put off by the engine? are they planning a cross-country trip or driving it as-is for the next 20 years? i suggest a sbc or sbf if you want a wider market. i guess a flatty would help "sellability," i love 'em, but don't know if i'd want to chance and extended road trip with one!
If you want to keep it in the more traditional crowd but hit a wider market in the traditional crowd the flatty is the best route, a valve in head would probably not be as desirable as it sounds. I am not Mr flathead by no means but I would be more inclined to by it with a flatty then with a valve in head motor. The flatty just fits the build better in my mind.
Dan c....you'd be surprised. I'm 6 foot and not exactly a small guy and I fit. No the car is not a cross country cruiser. But it would be comfortable for an hour or two. And no a sbc or sbf are not going in the car. I still want to be proud of the car and it still have the look. My 34 has Y block and will be a long distance kind of car... Clark
Clark,money is tight right now and I honestly don't think it's a sells market,the track roadster style is not everyone's cup of tea but that banger is a sweet engine. HRP
I love the car as is, and the engine is so cool. I would buy it if I had the money, but therein is the problem. I don't think you've asked too much, but finding someone who wants it with that much disposable income is the hard part. Best of luck. I agree with PnB, if the engine is a good un, then keep it and throw a basically stock flathead in it.
I always get a laugh when someone on here comments "but what do I know?" being some of the most knowledgeable in a number of fields. When I say it I'm implying I don't know shit, and of course I don't. Sorry for interrupting, please continue.
That is a awesome car! Wish I had the cash!! A three springer is a Dry Lake Styled car, it should have a mill to match. Maybe a small hood. And if you run a hood most things can slip past the naked eye. Even a stout build Ford 300, then it's a question of speed and drivability. And remember HAMBers ain't 90% of the World, and other people are weird. And only a HAMBer will appreciate that wonderful mill! But somebody might buy at just swap it out, because they don't trust it.
I mean what do I know about selling cars to advantage. I have sold plenty of them but usually misjudged the market and sold them too cheap, like less than half what it would cost me to replace them. For all you would get out of it, it would probably be easier to sell it a few bucks cheaper and save the work and expense of changing engines. I really don't know if this is true, maybe a car like that would be twice as desirable with a V8 but I don't see it.
I think a V8 has more 'notoriety' in society...although I love a 4 banger myself!.... seems to draw a special breed of nostaliga to a car that pre-dates a Hemi or Flathead, etc.....I think the general public tends to ''identify'' more with a V8 and question a 4-banger as 'too weak' in a modified car or early hotrod....''first impressions'' seem to dominate a person's spending ability, unless they are already determined to love and respect a 4 banger.....I run a 4 banger in one of my cars, and everyone seems to immediately notice, and then ask ''why don't you put a V8 in it???"....as if I wasn't aware of something in a trend....apparently most of society ''expects'' a V8 from what I've noticed.....and that is ''why'' I don't! ....guess it comes down to just exactly what a person wants
I would leave it alone and wait for the right buyer. Take it back to TROG this yr and put a sign on it. Get some guy with money to make an impulse buy after watching the races all day. It might even end up going over seas. Or just keep it and stash it in the back of your shop where you kept the engine. So the wife doesn't see it... Out of sight, out of mind! Works for me all the time. Lol