Should you buy, sell, or hold these classic Mopars?

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It took quite a while to find the Mopar I wanted, and then again to invest time and money to make it mine....pretty sure I am holding on to it for a long, long time. I would hope the majority of members here see their cars as an "investment" in terms of motoring enjoyment not as a stock or bond.......
 
It took quite a while to find the Mopar I wanted, and then again to invest time and money to make it mine....pretty sure I am holding on to it for a long, long time. I would hope the majority of members here see their cars as an "investment" in terms of motoring enjoyment not as a stock or bond.......

Mine is not only my daily driver, but also is my onsite service call vehicle for our business.
 
I think people should enjoy them. Problem with cars, real estate etc is the rich get involved and horde cars/real estate etc, and drive the price up to make profits.
 
Investing in old classic cars is for the rich and want to be famous IMO. We have discussed on this forum before about these cars as investments and majority feel this is a hobby and IF someone wants a good classic car investment, go to the experts and buy into Porche maybe. For 99% of us it is a hobby.
I have restored many "good " mopars since mid 80's, and here is an example of what is. Back in say 'early mid to later 70s I cold buy a complete 69 Roadrunner for $1000-1500,NO, 99% of them were NOT # matching, yes real RR but the original engine was long) and after I did an ALMOST nut and bolt resto, as in perfect body/paint, rebuilt engine trans, new legendary int, maybe a rebuilt front end if needed, a good rear, new or god tire, new exhaust, it would bring about $7500-8000. Sure I have seen guys buy it from me, do nothing and flip it for another $1-3000 in another part of the country. I had about in it what I sold it for.
Fast forward to today, you can't even find a decent complete 69 383 Roadrunner project, for Less than $5000 and it will generally be crap, and need every body panel replaced. Same resto today with me again doing all the work except body/paint, will me having more like $25000 in it. Realistically what it is worth. Sure someone somewhere could sell it for $27-30000 maybe.
If we went back to the same period of mid 70;s a comlete AAR cuda project could be had for around $5-7000 and restored for the same $ pretty much as that 383 Runner. Fast forward to today, what are they going for?, but again too what would a AAR project car cost today also? Point is the very rare and best examples are cars that "might" be worth more, 1 or 2 or 3 decades down the road!!!
If someone wants an investment car, they better have a crystal ball and buy into the top cars of the top brands and models.
Otherwise, just enjoy the hobby,.... it is a money hole.
 
BUY: 1978-79 Dodge Lil’ Red Express
dodge_1979_lil_red_mecum.jpg

Mecum
1979 Dodge Li'l Red Express
Dodge drove the Lil’ Red Express straight through an emissions loophole and onto the market in 1978, and with a tuned 360 cid V-8 and no catalytic converters, it was actually the fastest American vehicle to 100 mph at the time, according to a Car and Driver test. But while it’s surprisingly fast for a pickup, it’s no sleeper, with the cartoonish exhaust stacks and Canyon Red paint with gold graphics. The D150-based truck had an MSRP just over $7400 (about $30,250 in 2019 dollars) and a little over 2000 were built the first year. The Lil’ Red Express returned for 1979 and over 5000 were sold, but they were saddled with performance-robbing cats and as a result are worth a couple grand less than the ’78 in any condition.

Given the popularity of vintage trucks over the past few years and the outrageous, impossible-to-ignore nature of the Lil’ Red Express (not to mention its performance and rarity), we’ve been surprised at their relatively low prices. They’ve gone up steadily since about 2015, but the gains were modest.

Until late last year, that is. Values are up eight to nine percent over the past year and 2.7 percent over the past four months. And after a flat period starting in 2017, buyer interest (measured by quoting activity) started to jump in late 2018 and is up nearly five percent, well ahead of most other vehicles we track on the collector market. More are being added to insurance policies as well, so the numbers suggest people are coming around to these funky pickups, and given wider trends in the vintage pickup market, the Lil’ Red Express has room to grow.

We also haven’t seen a super-clean, super-low-mile example make a splash on the market yet. Most of the ones we’ve seen have been in the condition #3+ or #2- range. When the perfect one does come along and bring an outrageous price, it will likely drive prices even higher.


hmmm. not sure.. they say to buy. they are still too new for the "truck craze" going on. only ones those years that seem to be popular are the GM square bodies so far. in most cases one has to be looking for a lil red to buy. hopefully they do catch on and skyrocket.. i'll blow mine out at that point.. right not you can get a damn nice one for 10k or so. the ones advertised for upper teens to 20k or so seem to just sit around forever.
 
  1. It's your money or car.
  2. It's a free market.
  3. If I had a pile of cash to throw around, I'd put it in the market (specifically American business that do not do business in China and definitely not in tech), it is liquid there, not so in a car.
  4. Wherever you put your money, it is a GAMBLE, it is up to you to mitigate the risks and maximize return.
If you are in the hobby, you are losing money. PERIOD. It is not an investment. Rather, it is something you do for the pleasure of it, or to make memories with your kid.
 
I agree to buy the truck. There is a run on them and other 60-70 small truck and 1st generation SUVs like the Ford Bronco. Selling anything can be tough. I was offered about $10 grand more for my '69 GTX than I payed after just one year. But I had to decline because she loves me!
 
I think like with Harleys the baby boomers drove the market up and now they are done with them and the market tanks. Maybe the same thing with classic cars.

I would buy drive and enjoy. IMHO.
 
The real top examples of the big ticket Mopars are traded between each other, the top feeders. I bet seldom does a great example sell at auction.
When you read Hagerty article and they mention a 383 68-70 Runner going for $39,000, it was nut and bolt job to perfection and it cost the owner more $ than that to pay to have someone restore it!
Is the LIl Red Express, the 71 340 Demon and the 70 440????Runner primed to make a jump? I doubt anyone really knows. But if so I bet the ones that will appreciate are the top examples bought right and not paid too many $ for. The top feeders drive the market and they are finiky about what they spend $$$$ on.
LIke said in the article basically the Mopar market has never really recovered from the fall of the economy in '07. Then take all the new muscle, old timers like me getting out or dying off, and no wonder the market is flat or falling.
If I had $$ to invest it would not be in the classsic car stuff!
 
I think like with Harleys the baby boomers drove the market up and now they are done with them and the market tanks. Maybe the same thing with classic cars.

I would buy drive and enjoy. IMHO.

harley screwed up by flooding the market. they were better off when there was a waiting list for a new one.
 
where do ya claim bankruptcy in there?
Was it chapter 5 ??? lol

Big business? I say big companies merging and then firing all their best workers, although seniors, is illegal.... and LOW, but done every day.. I rather have Trump and his bankrupsies! lol
 
Back to the subject, Hagerty Insurance will send out their predictions as to classics they think are undervalued.
Here in Tx trucks have always been big, and seems in general today everywhere. The square chevies are hot I read where a lot of young people are getting into the 1/2 chevy of the 60's now days, are they are cool and affordable. So up goes the price for them.
Old broncos have been hot a while, and even old 4 x 4 Nissans and Toyoto's are hot.

Investment? Buy a desirable model that the other guy has spent the $$$$$ to have restored or maybe even he did it all, buy it for pennies on the $$ and sit on it and wait. Or wish in one hand and poop in the other, and see which one fills the fastest!? lol
 
Funny, my neighbor sent me that article. He owns a Lil Red, I own a 70 RR. I took it as a stab at me and laughed. I have my car because I’ve always wanted one, not because of their value. It’s priceless to me. I’m having fun doing something I haven’t done with a car, a preservation. I’ve done daily’s, restos, parts cars, and just about everything in this hobby, now I have a new self imposed challenge, keep this car just like it left the road in 1976. That’s the fun of owning what you love, you don’t have to worry about the value.
 
there are thousands and thousands of these cars now...they are everywhere!
It's never a bad thing to take a profit.Shop carefully and buy or build again.
 
Yesterday a friend asked me which of my cars I liked the most. My answer was simple and honest. What ever one I was driving at the moment. That being said, both of my classics are for sale. They only have small for sale signs in the rear window and are not advertised anywhere. My reason for selling comes down to a friend with a 68 black on black Charger R/T that I could have if I waved the right amount of green under his nose. Neither of my cars are worth enough to get the needed cash but selling both would cover it and then some. The sticking point I have is I won't sell either of my current rides at a loss. I know what I have invested without adding my labor in and that is my bottom line. It seems that every year my cars are worth a little less or just barely holding on in the market. Whenever I change a part or rebuild something the selling point gets more difficult. The market for classics around here is pretty soft and unless someone with an abundance of cash takes a liking to my cars I will enjoy what I have and hope my friend holds on to the Charger a while longer.
Jerry
 
I have owned many old Mopars since the mid 80's, everything pretty much. I rarely ever mad a profit on any restored car. I did good to just get my $ back out of it, and I had good project cars bought cheaper than most. I made some profit on selling projects way back then, as I simple cleaned them up and got them running. But good project cars were abundant and I could find good ones where I could sell them at a fair price and me and the buyer were happy. Noone bak then wanted 318 anything or even dusters or hardly a 340 A body even. The ones I made the best $ on were rare cars like AAR Cudas, a few hemi projects, 440-6 cars, that the seller could not sell,and called me, and I drove 500-800 mi for the car. Sure, if I had sat on them for decades I would have sold well, but I turned them and someone got them that needed them. Glad they went to good homes. I never regret not being well off.
I have never sold any car for less $ than I had in it, many I barely broke even, and not counting any of my labor. It has strictly been a hobby for me the last 18 years. But I never buy any project that I don't think I will at least break even on when I let it go, but now days I do all the work, even the body/paint. It will be a decent looking driver with all rust repaired, and usually just a decent running stock motor, usually missing the door panels, headliner carpet and ripped seats!! lol
I am sure people can buy a restored car at a good price, and find someone to pay a little more. Takes a good eye, a lot of friends and networking, and then being in the right paart of the ountry to find a buyer to pay top retail.
I rather trade horses and goats!
 
I think all A-Bodies are rising in value, but especially Demons and Dusters
 
I look at my cars as entertainment. Just like buying tickets to an event, going out to eat (drink), etc. I'm buying enjoyment for myself. If I was investing in cars I wouldn't be restoring, I'd be buying cars already done.
 
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