Boy am I glad I am into model A's!

[pgerhardt]

I have been checking out the Barrett Jackson auction on Velocity, and wow! Some would think that the prices of model A's remaining flat is a problem. Not me!

I never thought of my involvement in the model A as an investment, but just as a cool hobby. A hobby I can thankfully still afford to be in. If I were into early corvettes I would be priced out of the hobby. And how can you enjoy your car if it is too valuable to drive or tinker with!

[Flathead]

You make some good points, as long as you aren't looking for a popcorn truck.

[mrtexas]

Originally Posted by pgerhardt

I have been checking out the Barrett Jackson auction on Velocity, and wow! Some would think that the prices of model A's remaining flat is a problem. Not me!

I never thought of my involvement in the model A as an investment, but just as a cool hobby. A hobby I can thankfully still afford to be in. If I were into early corvettes I would be priced out of the hobby. And how can you enjoy your car if it is too valuable to drive or tinker with!

Demand for Model As is low and very sketchy. I had a hard time selling a 29 roadster and 28 open cab pickup both newly restored, new paint, interior for $5k less than anything else out there on the the web.

[Jeff/Illinois]

I guess Model A's are like anything else, you just have to have the right buyer at the right time if you are selling. I've seen all sorts of collectible cars all over the place on price.

That Tudor that sold at what, $28K with that ratty looking engine bay,,,, well to me that was way over valued but I guess two guys saw something in it they both liked. Oh well! I also saw a '70 Boss 302 sell around $40K and they are a $65K car all day long must have been a clone or something was wrong with it.

This was DVR'ing the thing of course. I could blow thru three hours of the auction in under 20 minutes at 32X speed counting the time I'd pause to watch something that drew my attention.

[burner31]

Paid $350 for the '57 Chevy and drove it home, paid $3500 for the Model A and had it running down the road in three months.
Think i did OK.
Let the prices climb, makes me feel good

[ronn]

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

Barrett Jackson pricing is a joke and yes, laughable.

the reality is much like Pickers or Wrestling on TV.................

[slammin]

Follow some of the sale sites, Hemmings, Classic Cars, eBay, Craigslist etc. I look thru them every week or two. Many of the cars that were offered last spring are still listed. Not just the ones with museum quality prices, but lots of decent looking cars under 15K as well.

[harleynut]

mrtexas & ronn are right on "low and sketchy"

[WHN]

Model A Ford’s are great fun cars for a certain type of person. This is most likely true for every collectible category.

There is a good market world wide for mechanically sound, nice looking, good running, cars. Twenty footers.

Remember! There is an ass for every seat. The problem is the seat has to be priced correctly and be able to work for the ass.

Most Model A’s have been owned by many different people over there life. Service history is poor at best. There are also a number that have had modifications done that please the present owner but might not make them worth more to a buyer.

I have seen a number of Model A’s for sale at prices that don’t make any sense for any number of reasons. Condition and correctness usually being the first ones.

Some of us just have to realize that if we own a car that has a common body style, was restored 30 years ago, is painted a strange color, has a worn out front end and brakes, no shocks, old springs, 25 year old tires, worn interior, and the engine looks like a rusty mess.

“It might not be a $15,000.00 car”, it for sure will not be a $18,000.00 car. $6,000.00-$8,000.00? Who knows.

I love these cars and have owned one since I was twelve years old. They are great fun cars.

Enjoy yours for what it is. When and if you have to sell, be realistic to the cars condition.

[larrys40]

Originally Posted by Jeff/Illinois

I guess Model A's are like anything else, you just have to have the right buyer at the right time if you are selling. I've seen all sorts of collectible cars all over the place on price.

That Tudor that sold at what, $28K with that ratty looking engine bay,,,, well to me that was way over valued but I guess two guys saw something in it they both liked. Oh well! I also saw a '70 Boss 302 sell around $40K and they are a $65K car all day long must have been a clone or something was wrong with it.

This was DVR'ing the thing of course. I could blow thru three hours of the auction in under 20 minutes at 32X speed counting the time I'd pause to watch something that drew my attention.

one of the guys I do some work for flew me out... and so I got to be there for some of it. It was my first trip to their auctions... and it was an experience. I saw that Tudor cross the block with V8 wheels and yes, it did have a Mitchell overdrive. sold for the 27-28K and I was surprised. My '30 Tudor is many times better than that car for sure and mine has an overdrive as well. The auctions are just snapshots of value at any given time with two people there that like it enough to bid on it, and may or may not have enough sense to know when to stop. Just that simple.. I will say I've never seen so many people with a cavalier attitude toward money. Mine comes much harder than that so I am needless to say very conservative.

Nevertheless.. .it was an experience and learning opportunity. I was also able to go over to San Diego and see my friend Arlyn Beiber and Bill Hansen for a couple of days. The guys were awesome and one of the best parts of the trip.

My advice is keep or find the car of your choice and do what you need to to keep it in good order for your expectations. enjoy it and don't worry about the value so much. After all... every time you buy a newer car it mostly goes down in value.. not up! and... as they say "you can't take it with you".

Happy Model A Motoring
Larry

[Chuck Sea/Tac]

Originally Posted by Flathead

You make some good points, as long as you aren't looking for a popcorn truck.

What’s wrong with popcorn trucks?

[Nabco]

Originally Posted by ronn

Barrett Jackson pricing is a joke and yes, laughable.

the reality is much like Pickers or Wrestling on TV.................

So are you saying that the auctions are fake or staged, that’s laughable. That would be in violation of a bunch of antitrust laws and they are doing it on live tv....

[1928Mik]

I have been into many cars but now back into Model A's. I have found out it's a very affordable hobby and I am very glad I'm in it. I used to faithfully watch the BJ auctions but have learned that things are not always what they seem, being the cars are way overpriced, with the bidders being hyped up by the TV cameras and the atmosphere. Also, Steve Davis (with the sunglasses) is a big Ford guy, Mustangs in particular, so he is always interrupting to tell how good the car is being the 'real deal'. If a Chevy comes up, he says nothing. I would like to go just to say I went, but I could not justify bidding in that atmosphere of a bidders assistant blowing a whistle or waving a towel with a TV camera in my face. Come to think of it, the only thing good about it this year was the 'Sold Sticker' girl!

[Flathead]

Popcorn trucks are fine. I believe they sold one for $70,000 but it didn't come home with me.

[holdover]

I wish that buyers like those at BJ come to my place when I sell something. The value they put on those cars will be difficult the get back at sale time. 100K + for Camaros and Mustangs, and Cudas is a lot of money, somehow the whole BJ show has them convinced that they are buying something rare and sure to be of "investment value." If you sign up at their site you can see what everything sold for. What is more crazy to me than the car prices is what they get for signs and gas pumps etc. brings to mind what PT Barnum said. I watch it using the computer without the talking heads and commercials and consider it entertainment. Now as to Model As, if they cost as much as what sold on that auction I would not have the four that I do. I just hope that prices stay within reason so more people can afford to get into the hobby. Just an opinion, your mileage may vary..

[Jeff/Illinois]

Originally Posted by 1928Mik

. Come to think of it, the only thing good about it this year was the 'Sold Sticker' girl!

Make her the new Wheel of Fortune chick and ditch Vanna White Vanna's time has come and gone and this gal is already qualified she can turn letters on the big board........

One further thought about what holdover said '..... somehow BJ has convinced people that what they are buying is rare and will be of investment value'..... We might ALL be in for a big surprise in ten years or less if politicians have their way and outlaw gasoline powered cars. Will we have to order five gallon cans of gas from Bratton's, as a 'part'?? Convert our Model A's to electric??

[Dr. OldKat]

This conversation was enough to lure me out of long time lurker mode to actually post something. Trying to figure out what any particular A should be worth is something that I struggle with. I am like everybody else, I guess; if I were selling one I’d want to get as MUCH for it as I could & if I’m buying I’d like to spend as LITTLE as possible on it.

Background; I’ve had horses almost my entire life, still do even at my age (when most people SHOULD know better). If there is any hobby that you ALWAYS buy high and NEVER sell high it is horses. I have rebuilt or restored several antique tractors and can tell you that you will NOT sell one of those things for anywhere close to what you have in them. Our home turns 100 years old this Spring. When we bought it almost 33 years ago I was young enough, and stupid enough, to take on pulling that thing down to the studs and rebuilding it, including virtually one of everything from the foundation to, and including, the roof. Wiring, plumbing, HVAC you name it. Think buckets of $$$$$. So I think I get it: no matter the hobby or endeavor is … nothing comes cheap. You still have to pay for what you get. The people that have poured their blood, sweat, tears and dollars into getting an A all dolled up want and expect to recoup that investment.

While buying, restoring, rebuilding, etc. an A might not be as expensive as doing the exact same thing with any ’68 muscle car, it still costs to do so. The problem I see for A sellers, is that it is an experience that doesn’t appeal to as large a group of prospective enthusiasts as it did just 15 or 20 years ago. Most people relate to cars/trucks etc. that they were either familiar with as a child, or owned, admired or envied as a young adult. With the oldest A’s turning 90 years old this year, it is pretty obvious that the built in fan base for these cars is probably well into their 7th or 8th decade of life. To put it bluntly, time is not on their side.

In talking to friends, family, neighbors and so forth that are generally my age (early 60’s) or younger and who are into cars, I have yet to find one that would really like to own an A. But I can remember a church auction (fund raiser) in my town just over 6 years ago where a ’31 Standard Coupe was auctioned. The people that appeared to be in their late 70’s or early 80’s went nuts over that thing. That older restoration with no touring upgrades and a 30 to 40 foot paint job, at best, went for about $35K. I might have paid 1/3 of that, or less, for it, but no more than that. There was just nothing special about that car. While I understand that a large part of that price was because it was a church fundraiser, the big takeaway was WHO was interested in it. Virtually everyone that bid on it, other than me, was easily 10 to 15 years older than I was. The buyer appeared to be in his early 80’s. I doubt seriously that he will be able to drive that car much longer, if he and the car are even still together. So where does it go from there and for how much? The fact that he paid 35K for it in 2011 is irrelevant.

I’ve already drug this thing out far too long , especially for an initial post, but the bottom line for me is that I have had a difficult time reconciling a desire to be fair, or just, with the seller and yet not put so much into the purchase price that I get scalped when I need or want to get out from underneath it. I am serious when I say that I welcome any and all thoughts that anyone might have as to how these things should be evaluated.

[denis4x4]

Dr. Oldkat nailed it! The over all dollar total of the Arizona auctions last week was down compared to 2017. I suspect that a couple of collectors convinced themselves that they needed an A in their collection and compared to a COPO Camero, the price of an A was chicken feed.

[Bob Bidonde]

I love restoring and driving Model A's, and I do not expect that I will recover the costs of restoration.

The cost of a complete restoration of a Model A far exceeds a Model A's market value. This I know from recent experience! I have over $60K into my 190A, and it's a driver (not for judging). I did most of the work myself, but health caused me to have the body metal work and painting done by a professional at a fixed price.

Body work, prime & paint alone cost more than twice what I paid for my running 190A in 1993.

Have you noticed that many many many of the cars auctioned go for much less than the cost of the their restorations / mods.

[Jeff/Illinois]

denis4X4..... what little of the B-J auction I watched I did notice that Ron fellow, the house building contractor guy, sitting in the front row. I think he bid on that 2017 GT Ford, that went for over two million dollars. The B-J people always treat him right, he has money to spend.

Anyway, in car collector circles, I have read and heard where he pretty much got out of cars and sold off most of what he had, like two years ago? Not sure why he was back, maybe just actually an investor not a serious car guy............

Ron Pratt is that his name??