Another example of 911S insanity

[pwd72s]

[tabs]

I havn't seen any Delahayes cruising around as of late...or come to think about it ever!

Or old 30's Packards, Caddys, Lincolns or Dusenbergs...

Those are not modern cars..and as such are no longer practical transportation. They can't keep up on the freeway.

Old Porsches, Ferraris and MB's were cutting edge in their day and that translates to common place performance today. so in that sense they still can keep up and can be used for transportation rather than being a quaint novelty.

The thing about some collectibles like art or antique spoons for instance is that you can put a 500K painting on your wall and when you croak your beloved child can take it off the wall, take it home to put on their wall and then down the road sell it as their own. Cars have to be registered...

Art ,coins, sterling silver, antique arms, and stamps have always had a cache of being desirable and collectible...and as such has had value. Art looks gud to you on the wall. Cars (spoons etc) during the Great American Prosperity Bubble became desirable as lots of people had disposable income where they bought stuff that had meaning to them...most likely as a kid. Some people bought lots of stuff which they liked and started to be called collectors.

Before the end of WW2 most Americans were living hand to mouth and could not afford to collect anything. The used car market only became viable during WW2 when automobiles were not being mfged. No body wanted used cars before WW2.

Antique Arms and Spoon collecting was always a niche where the person liked what he had and wasn't seeing it as an investment. They enjoyed what they had. In 1998 the Wall Street Journal published an article that basically said that Spoons were as viable as Art to collect. Since then there has been no turning back and prices have risen accordingly. It gave people a justification for putting their money into spoons.

Cars take room to store and have maintenance costs. Not to mention it is a big ticket item.

[javadog]

Originally Posted by tabs

I havn't seen any Delahayes cruising around as of late...or come to think about it ever!

Ya gotta get out more...

I used to see a 1930's Horch get driven to the office occasionally...

[tabs]

The question becomes will the Collection Bubble burst. Unusual things of merit such as Art (perhaps stamps) will always be a store house of value as there is as perceived cultural value to them. Other things like coins have an intrinsic value as well as historic value to them..they are spendable for the most part. Spoons have a UTILITARIAN VALUE, they can shoot you dead as well as have historic value.

The top end of the car heap is considered to be rolling art... a Ferrari GTO, 275 GTB a Porsche LH 911S etc has transcended the utilitarian value as has the 30's classics...they have become historical cultural icons reflective of the time that they were mfged. Same with Spoons..a Colt Walker or Henry rifle is a piece of American history. Henry #1 was presented to Lincoln and is in the Smithsonian Institution. Henry #6 which was presented to Gideon Wells Sec of the Navy under Lincoln sold in 2000 for 675K...a billionaire bought it as he was buying/collecting the best of the best. A Colt Walker sold in 2008 for 1M.

I believe that this sort of item will virtually always have a trade-able value. As such with all the newly printed liquidity sloshing around that it has to go somewhere, and since traditional investments have now become suspect as to their sustainability, liquidity is moving into hard non traditional assets. It has become a hedge against future uncertainty. Also to be factored in is that where else can you park money when traditional assets are under performing or you need to diversify because of risk (eggs all in one basket).

Low end anything except spoons and precious metal anything because of their utilitarian value might as well be burned if push comes to shove.

As for the early S cars they are NOW BEING RECOGNIZED AS BEING SPECIAL. People who were into them have recognized it forever, it has now become a general awareness. Their time has come and there is NO GOING BACK. Values may dip or plateau for awhile but they will have a continued upward trajectory. Early Ferrari's in the mid 80's hit that awareness factor.

[tabs]

Originally Posted by javadog

Ya gotta get out more...

I used to see a 1930's Horch get driven to the office occasionally...

It wasn't driven by the office secretary now was it? (the cavet is unless she is..)

Of course you understand that the guy decided to do something different that day..he felt like driving that car. Why not? But you are just nitpicking, cause you can.

So how many special interest cars do you see driving around on a DAILY BASIS? Or how many do you see at one time stopped at a stop light on a regular basis. In other words it is an unusual or occasional sighting...to see a car that is now a quaint novelty. (the cavet is unless it is old car day at coffees are us)

Geez are you that dim that I had to speel it out for ya. You deserve to wear a dunce cap..you played the card so wear it with pride.

[Craig T]

Originally Posted by tabs

So how many special interest cars do you see driving around on a DAILY BASIS? Or how many do you see at one time stopped at a stop light. In other words it is an unusual or occasional sighting...to see a car that is now a quaint novelty. (the cavet is unless it is old car day at coffees are us)

That really depends on where you live Tabs, and the economic demographic of your zip code. Drive Potrero Rd from Hidden Valley past lake Sherwood to Westlake Village on a weekend and you'll see a couple seven-figure collector cars out for a drive. Head east on Sunset Bl from the 405 Fwy up to the Bel Air Hotel mid-morning on Saturday. That's good for at least one Bugatti and a couple 1960's Ferraris (Newer Lambo's are like Prius's).

You're aware of the rapidly expanding wealth separation in this country. The guys paying $260K for a 72 911S have so much money that $260K or $120K makes zero difference to them.

[tabs]

Originally Posted by Craig T

That really depends on where you live Tabs, and the economic demographic of your zip code. Drive Potrero Rd from Hidden Valley past lake Sherwood to Westlake Village on a weekend and you'll see a couple seven-figure collector cars out for a drive. Head east on Sunset Bl from the 405 Fwy up to the Bel Air Hotel mid-morning on Saturday. That's good for at least one Bugatti and a couple 1960's Ferraris (Newer Lambo's are like Prius's).

You're aware of the rapidly expanding wealth separation in this country. The guys paying $260K for a 72 911S have so much money that $260K or $120K makes zero difference to them.

I am primarily talking about 30's cars being obsolete. The 60's cars are still revelant.

I am not talking about what they cost. Nor newer.

I see some expensive iron on the road here as well. But it is newer.

When was the last time you saw a Dusenburg tooling down the freeway at rush hour or any day for that matter. Get it.

[Craig T]

Originally Posted by tabs

When was the last time you saw a Dusenburg tooling down the freeway at rush hour or any day for that matter. Get it.

...A case of my not reading the whole thread. You're right.