QOTD: What's The Future Of Everyday Classics?

Zombie McQuestionbot
by Zombie McQuestionbot

We received an interesting email the other day here in the TTAC underwater battle station. As is frequently the case, this one was about a used car. But not just any used car.


is a touring car that took my mother to and from work as a teacher in the 1920s. It stayed in the barn at my grandparents farm until the 1980s when my mother gave it to me. I had the car fully restored by a specialist in old car restorations in the early 1980s, and spent a little less that $40,000 having this done. It has 68K miles on it. I know I will never get my money back from restoring this vehicle, I am asking $25,000 for it now.

This is a typical used car story: my parents drove it to work, I fixed it up a bit, I’d like to sell it. Were this a 1990 Accord, I think it could be sold in a matter of days at the right price. But this is a 1926 Dodge, which leads to all sorts of questions. It doesn’t have any value as a commuter, obviously. But it would be an inexpensive and fully-sorted entry into the world of classic-car rallies.

Everybody says that Duesenbergs and Auburns and whatnot will never lose value because there will always be a new generation of educated, moneyed collectors who want to own them. Arguably, the same is true for fuelie Vettes and RoadRunners and 454SS Chevrolets of all types. What’s going to happen to the 1926 Dodges? The Chevrolet 210s? The orphans? The Model As? Will the demand meet the supply?





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  • Cabriolet Cabriolet on Jan 29, 2014

    Marcello We shipped a VW Karmann Ghia to Brazil about 2 years ago. Gentleman brought the car for his fathers birthday present. My son-in-laws family came to the USA from Russia via Brazil after the 2nd world war and spoke with the buyer of this car. He asked us to fill out a special form supplied by the local Police dept to show full details of the car. We even had to list the manufacturer of the tires. Just wondering if this could be the same car. I like to buy older cars myself. My best find was a 1991 VW Cabriolet triple white which i found stored in a barn on Long Island. Had this car for about 5 years and put about 25,000 miles on it. I would say it was the most fun filled car i ever owned. Someone offered me twice what i paid for it and sad to say i sold it. Now i have a 24 year old Miata that i enjoy during the summer.

  • Jimbob457 Jimbob457 on Jan 29, 2014

    About 60 years ago at age 14 I had the amazing experience of learning to drive a Model T Ford. I lapped the neighborhood at about 25 or 30 bone shaking miles per hour. Best laps of my life. Keep 'em rolling!

  • Dwford I don't think price is the real issue. Plenty of people buy $40-50k gas vehicles every year. It's the functionality. People are worried about range and the ability to easily and quickly recharge. Also, if you want to buy an EV these days, you are mostly limited to midsize 5 passenger crossovers. How about some body style variety??
  • SCE to AUX The nose went from terrible to weird.
  • Chris P Bacon I'm not a fan of either, but if I had to choose, it would be the RAV. It's built for the long run with a NA engine and an 8 speed transmission. The Honda with a turbo and CVT might still last as long, but maintenance is going to cost more to get to 200000 miles for sure. The Honda is built for the first owner to lease and give back in 36 months. The Toyota is built to own and pass down.
  • Dwford Ford's management change their plans like they change their underwear. Where were all the prototypes of the larger EVs that were supposed to come out next year? Or for the next gen EV truck? Nowhere to be seen. Now those vaporware models are on the back burner to pursue cheaper models. Yeah, ok.
  • Wjtinfwb My comment about "missing the mark" was directed at, of the mentioned cars, none created huge demand or excitement once they were introduced. All three had some cool aspects; Thunderbird was pretty good exterior, let down by the Lincoln LS dash and the fairly weak 3.9L V8 at launch. The Prowler was super cool and unique, only the little nerf bumpers spoiled the exterior and of course the V6 was a huge letdown. SSR had the beans, but in my opinion was spoiled by the tonneau cover over the bed. Remove the cover, finish the bed with some teak or walnut and I think it could have been more appealing. All three were targeting a very small market (expensive 2-seaters without a prestige badge) which probably contributed. The PT Cruiser succeeded in this space by being both more practical and cheap. Of the three, I'd still like to have a Thunderbird in my garage in a classic color like the silver/green metallic offered in the later years.
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