By driving old cars I have not have payments, of course there is the cost of repair and improvements. In most cases I made a profit when selling. Over the years I hung on to several and would they bring more than was spent and were probably good investments. But, aside from whatever profit there might be in selling is the benefit of driving and owning what I like which is hard to quantify.
Hello, Unless one is made of money with nothing else to do but spend it, we all have used our family daily drivers as an investment. Those cars got us where we wanted to go, to work, picnics, family gatherings, graduation events, etc. We all got where we wanted to go, then and now. That was due to our “investment” in our choices of daily drivers, hot rod coupes, sedans, trucks, station wagons and vans of all sorts, Our own hot rods were not investments. They were teenage cars for the aspect of freedom to do and go where you wanted to go, anytime. The beach, city, mountains, and friend’s houses as the majority of drives for us. The car just made it easier to communicate and enjoy what life had to offer. No way were we thinking of long term investments or resale value. We all liked our own teenage/20 something cars and what they did for us. Who wants to spend time in a funky garage getting repairs in Baja, Mexico? Or sitting in a repair shop at the base of the local mountains because your hot rod has problems in altitude driving? We all, or most of us, make sure our hot rods, family cars, kid’s cars and grand kid’s cars are running well and hope that they stay safe in their own travels. The car is then considered an investment in safety and convenience. We don’t want our wives stuck out in Timbuktu with a car that just stopped due to negligence in maintenance or upkeep. Safe and sane is not just for fireworks… Jnaki My wife has always been a positive person toward me being a stickler for car purchases, maintenance and reliability. She allows me to make a choice or choices of family cars. But, with styling and my wife’s choices of color/model and whatnot. Then we decide. Once purchased, it becomes an investment in our happiness for those short and long road trips we have been taking since 1966 in a red 1965 El Camino. For us, that 65 El Camino was an investment in our happiness and not ever having to stop somewhere and fix something. We had 120k worth of happy motoring without any cause to doubt its capabilities. But, since the El Camino heard we were thinking about selling it and buying another car, it gave up a water pump and thermostat, just because… It was the first repair we had in 120k miles. (all over the Westcoast and into Baja, Mexico…) That to us is an investment in reliability. Not, who is going to buy the car or how much it is worth. 1966 to 1976 was 10 years of million dollar+ investment in happiness, plus fun activities that forever will be in our memories and are already priceless. YRMV Photo by VNak
Predicting the future is tough. I like it though, similar to the “if you could go back” that time machines were talked about. No matter what era I could pick to live in, I’d never have enough $$ to buy 10 cars to put away as an investment.
I'd guess the storage costs & maintenance costs would eat up any gain pretty easily , Land , building, climate control ,insurance , etc , etc.
The challenge, of course, is predicting which models will hold that kind of value over decades. If you’re into gaming, some games can actually be a good way to make some money too. Trading skins in games like CS2 has become a popular way to earn a little extra cash. It’s a nice way to mix your hobby with making some money. If you’re interested, check out skin.land. It’s a cool way to turn something fun into something that pays off.
I recently attended an estate sale for a long time acquaintance , known since the late '70's . He had a very large Mopar car and parts collection , it was in the middle of nowhere Nebraska . I had hopes of buying a 426 Hemi that he had , or a 1968 Dodge Charger that was an ex drag car of his. Those quickly went out of sight pricewise for me ! The Charger was less engine and transmission, some crusty old cragers and junk tires . It went for $30,000 ! The 426 hemi had been sitting in his barn with no carb on it for nearly 40 years , it went for $20,000 ! He had a real '69 440 6 pack super bee , less engine and transmission, needing all the Chrome reinstalled, but with new paint , it went for $34,000 ! There were many more ex drag cars and a couple of original cars that sold plus half a dozen rows of parts . Some of the parts went cheap , but most brought good money .
I've never considered cars and trucks to be investments, but I always make a profit on the ones that were bought to flip. I usually buy it, make it mechanically sound so it runs and drives, then clean the ever-living shit out of it. I mean clean top to bottom. Let the buyer do the restoration. But I'm a firm believer that buying a new car is the absolute worst way to spend your money. The depreciation is akin to going down to the river and tossing your cash into it. On the other hand, spending big money on an original or restored classic should never hurt. The vehicle will always be worth what you bought it for and it might even appreciate in value while you're out cruising it around.
The only cars that I ever made money on were woodies. This '48 Town & Country sold for 6 figures. Also sold a '46 Pontiac wagon and a '48 Chevrolet with a factory authorized aftermarket wood package at a profit.
An aggressive investment will double in value every seven years. Even the safest investment ( i.e. CD) will double in value every fourteen years. How to Double Your Money Every 7 Years (investopedia.com) Neither require a garage, maintenance, or insurance coverage. As my wife will gladly point out, none of my cars or motorcycles have come anywhere near those returns. But I can't spin the tires or pop a wheelie on my mutual funds.
Lots of input here on a touchy subject. This thread has spun from cars as an investment into personal feelings and using cars as they were intended. We love our cars, we buy specific makes and models because we enjoy them, whether we drive them or squirrel them away to rot on our properties. They become part of our being most times. In 1990 I bought a 57 Chevy- I didn't even like 57s but it was cheap and it was a 57 CHEVY! Got it for $800.00 bucks. I have just over $7500 into it now. The grandson of the guy I bought it from recently contacted me and said "name your price, I will give it to you". The car means more to me than the money it may bring. Buy land, properties, precious metals for investments- enjoy the cars as a hobby
If that was taught in high school, and kids put the information to use the world would be in a better situation. Thanks for posting it.
I got my 57 in a trade more than 30 years ago. no cash. drove it home, then a 300 hp 350 crate motor, 350 turbo, vintage air, power disc brakes, new radio and side glass, fuzzies, weatherstrip, more. I dont even want to add it up but its a good dependable driver and it helped me avoid ever buying a new car so thats got to be figured into the idea of best use for your money. Whats your lifetime total cost of the new cars you bought? I have been wondering what to do with my stuff when I die. I recently met the son of the guy I got it from. He was 11 yrs old, now 48 and wants the car back.
Hello, Investments are those things that one puts away for a rainy day. We bought some stocks early on and hoped that one day they would grow to help us out when we needed them. Our dad bought some funky old stocks called Dolly Madison... yes the cupcake family. His idea was that as little as he put into it, one day, he would sell it when money was necessary. So, the old adage, put it away for a rainy day came up unexpectedly as usual. So, he had extra money when he sold the stock and now. It served its intended purpose. He told me that he was not a person who uses stocks as a get rich situation. it was, for him saving for a rainy day. And yes, we saw the rainy day, plus our dad was smiling that he planned on something and it worked out. When my wife and I bought some early stocks, they were inexpensive and we thought they would help us in the long run, whenever we needed some emergency help. We hated to ask our folks for any help, although they would gladly help out. So, as little as we were able to afford, we bought some stock at low cost and hoped for the best. It was one of those things that gets put away and the only time it was noticed was when the our friend called and said your stock doubled and is on the verge of doing it again within the coming year. So, did we want to invest more? We had to stick with our plan, ¼ income for housing and the rest to use to live. Savings for a college fund was there, but not the most pressing thing. If we could, we would sock some away. With our bank account, we said no to future investing in stocks, we are fine. But, if we had, it would have doubled and increased our level of investments. At the time, we had no money to "play the market." So, we just kept plodding along and did not care whether or not it was increasing or decreasing. It was put away for a rainy day and that day has not come as yet. Jnaki Then, one day, a large payment was coming due, extra medical bills and other costs were all arriving at the same time and we were getting inundated with extra bills that normally did not happen. So, before we got under the table and behind, we sold the stocks for a "rainy day" as our dad told us early on in the older days... Yes, we did have enough to pay off that big wall of large payments and yes, it served as a rainy day help. Stocks that had doubled and increased from the measly beginnings were still measly compared to the big rollers at purchasing 1000s of shares of anything. But for us, the sold stocks helped when it was needed and they were investments that no car would have had when we needed it. A young set of companies... Apple, IBM, Microsoft and yes, good old, Dolly Madison all sold for profits and we were glad they were investments that helped us when we needed them. Note: Our 327 40 Ford Sedan Delivery was gone and we only had two small daily drivers we could afford. so, hot rods were not an investment if one does not have extra money. If one considers our 327 1940 Ford Sedan Delivery as an investment, then yes, it helped us buy a single story house with a yard a few miles inland from the ocean. As long as Hilborn Injector Company and Clark Foam for surfboards was in the big brick building near the freeway, we were just a mile close by. A safe place for our son to grow up and enjoy life. We sold that house 24 years later for a profit after our son was finished with college…YRMV
You get to enjoy your old car investment while you own it, like art, or recreational property. Hard to enjoy a fund or a chunk of metal- like gold, but some people do. Typically if you buy it right- from someone who is done with it- read estate sale- and sell it to someone who wants it, you can generally do alright. The internet has made this a way bigger hobby.
No one in their right mind buys a classic car as an investment. Like any gambling for every 1 winner there are 10 loosers. You only get to hear about the winners in the press. A car may fetch 200k at auction this week and half that next. Bidding wars at auctions create silly expectations from other owners.
I once thought that and bought a few Corvettes; said to my Dad, "these are better investments than stocks, bond etc." He laughed...and proved me wrong.
To me, if your gonna look at cars as an investment of any kind its a short term one. Long term is too long and rocky to really look at it that way. If your buying a car to own for a good length of time, its because you enjoy that car and just plan to use it. For the short term is just mainly keeping up with trends. Was easier when magazines were everywhere because then you would see one or two similar builds get all the ink time, that would be the wave selling. Look at the patina mid late 60s truck trend with modern chassis with bags, modern drivetrains and fancy interiors but the body just rolled off the farm. When that started rolling you could buy a truck cheap and flip it pretty quick for a little gain. But then as soon a magazine or online article says these are "insert tag" bargain cars/trucks to buy, the ship has set sail. Again looking at the C10s and some of the more modern performance cars. The thing that will be interesting to watch over time is this latest muscle car boom. A lot more cars got squirrelled away due to how the original cars boomed in value. So alot of people looked at them like investments this go round.
Investment in my health, sanity or just my general well being........YES!!! Anything else I don't care about.......
I like the comment about investing in my sanity and general well being...otherwise, cars sort of suck as investments.
I have never looked at them as A Investment,I am careful what I buy or build and watch how much $ I put into them, I can say at the least I have got my $$ back and got to use them for awhile. Sometimes make a modest profit. I stay in the 20-35k. area.
Always felt that best to consider them a hobby for fun. Not get hung up on expense. Looking back today at the 50 or so joyrides I had. I'm glad my leg ain't double jointed. I be kicking the shit out of me. A reference made earlier suggested the need to properly pick a purchase. I must point out that somewhere, into the '90s, they still were relying on a certain ingredient. Car manufacturing was based on metal. The metal these days is simply a thin wrapper to cover up 'junk' within
This has been a fun read, makes me want to start another thread. "Stuff I flipped too early, 40-50 years ago. " Bob
In order for them to be an investment, I'd need to sell them. I bought my first vehicle 23 years ago and my stable of "special" cars is up to 5 now. Haven't sold a single one and don't plan to. I enjoy them, and the money I put in are sunk costs. I could be wasting it on other ways, so this is just how I choose to waste it.
Problem with a high value car like that is while they have plenty of fans few of those fans have the wallet to actually get one. And the few that do do just that.....get ONE. Real way to have a semi safe financial investment is desirable lower end cars. Ones worth a few bucks but cheap and common enough that if the market dropped you could justify actually driving them regularly. Like instead of a z16 65 Chevelle a 283 or 327 65 Chevelle. A bunch of lower price cars with high turnover would net better profit with less headache than one or two super high end rare cars in the same period
Me too Jim..ez peasy..never missed it from my paycheck..not rich but comfortable now and enough left for a nice assisted living/rest home when I’m near the end I hope.
And don't forget the cost of insurance on your car investment. If you don't insure it, a fire, tornado, flood, or thief could wipe out your portfolio.
The Jalopy Journal
