Will SC's and 3.2 Carrera's have "their day"...

[speedracer]

similarly to long hoods presently? Will the 80's "yuppie cars" ever become as desirable? Will people start backdating their 964's to look like carrera's or SC's Or will this trend be reserved for the long hoods. Thoughts?

[jackb911]

This is just an opinion, but having owned almost every USA 911 body style variant over the years, here's my take:

Nothing will ever eclipse the longhood from a 911 purist's perspective. Those cars will always be the quintessential "911", especially to us older guys.

When the shorthood cars came out in '74, my first reaction was almost as negative as when the Cayenne was introduced...yuck. However, the impact bumper styling eventually grew on me, and I ended up buying one toward the end of the model year. But to me and many other folks, the longhood Porsches are still the more attractive car. If that is not the case, explain the plethora of '73 Carrera RS replicas out there. Did Porsche ever build a better looking air cooled 911?

But the SC's and the 3.2 Carreras will probably be remembered as the best all around 911's of them all. Relatively simple, and relatively bulletproof. They still drive similar to the later longhood cars, though weight became a factor. While a longhood is more fun to toss around, you'd better know what you are doing. SC's and Carreras are more forgiving (read more understeer).

Current values for super clean 3.2's, especially the G50 versions of 1987-88 indicate that there should be a continuing strong demand for these cars in the foreseeable future, barring major economic issues. These are the last 911's that are actually fun to work on and with their manual steering, feel like a "real" (older) Porsche.

I predict that the long hood cars, particularly the 911E and S coupes will continue to be the investment grade 911's mostly due to supply and demand. Many of the longhoods have rusted away, while many of the post 1976 911's have not.

I can't imagine converting a nice 964 into a 80's style shorthood...however, Porsche Doc converted a 964 C4 into a stunning '73 RSR replica. But whatever floats your boat!

[MOMO3.2]

It was only a few years ago that most people considered 911T's as not collectible. They are now!

I think the 1974-1989 cars will eventually escalate in price too. They will never be as collectible as a long hood 911S, but I suspect they will suddenly increase in value.

My reasoning is that the 1974-1989 cars are part of a "great divide." They are still very raw, maintain the original torsion bar suspension, air cooled motor (that to me defines the 911), and are devoid of power steering, ABS, and airbags.

Any of the "special models" like the Club Sports, 1974 Carrera, or Carrera 3.0 should be worth considerably more than other impact bumper cars.

It's gonna happen and if you already own one, consider your self lucky!

Mike

[saintz]

I think it all comes down to your generation.
To me it was the mid 70s when I started my lust for 911s so it had to be an impact bumper for me one day and luckily that day did arrive even though I had to wait 30 years.

[burgermeister]

The longhoods sure look nicer to me, and I'm not an "old guy". Well, age is relative... . On the other hand, galvanized steel sure is a plus for a car meant to be driven (as opposed to welded up), especially in the not-so-arid midwest. And if the big bumpers were replaced, the only non-subtle visual difference would be the roofline by the rear window (when did those ugly vents get added anyhow) and the hood...

Based on prices (and production numbers) for any 911, they are not exactly slouches in the desireability category - I think they've all been having their day since the day they were purchased new.

All that said, I view my 911 as money thrown down a hole. Whatever it brings whenever (if ever) I decide to sell will be a bonus - frankly, I hope the shorthoods never "have their day" - if it became a $40K car I would never drive it, and that would suck....

[gunlover05]

if you look at the values in Excellence of the Carreras, they've been creeping up in the last few years....I think that trend will continue, and a few above have already given some good reasons...if you notice, it takes about 30 years or so before people really start "collecting" cars on a large scale.....so in another 5-10 years, these cars will be HOT imo...

SCs are, IMO, the best buys in the market right now...find a great low mileage pampered example, drive it 1.5k a year, and keep it stock...should appreciate pretty well in 10 years...

the long hoods will continue thier climb, like the 356s have, probably more though.

[DanielDudley]

Back a few years, antiques were old. Really old. But more and more people wanted them, so the prices escalated. People still wanted antiques, so newer things became collectable.

When longhoods are untouchable, you will see an increased interest in later aircooleds. They are easily recognized as the iconic 911, and when the impact bumpers came out, many people were of the opinion that Porsche was one of the few manufacturers get them right. Ordinary people don't even notice them these days. I think of mine as an armour clad RS. Why remove a perfectly good battering ram ? You never know when Jeremy Clarkson is going to come by and mooch a ride .

[the]

Yes. But it's going to take a while.

[ianc]

One factor that may hold the short hoods back in terms of price appreciation is simply that there will always be more of them; for two reasons. One would be (and here I'm only guessing) that there were more short hoods made than long hoods. Two (and more importantly), short hoods just don't die from rust like the long hoods do\did.

With more solid examples to choose from, the short hood price won't approach the long hood price, ever, as far as I can see...

ianc

[DARISC]

I paid 13.5k for my SC 2 1/2 years ago. Freshened it up plus new paint, etc. to make it a reliable daily driver. So now, given what I've put into it, it's worth 42k on the market. Not bad I'd say, wouldn't you? Sorry - it's NOT for sale!

I'd go on and on but they're here to give me my med.s - two great big burly guys in white uniforms. They agree that that's what my car is worth. They agree with everything I say as long as I take my med.s.

[nostatic]

I sure hope they don't. Need cheap track whores...

[lfot]

Originally Posted by nostatic

I sure hope they don't. Need cheap track whores...

Hahaha... and I've seen your track whore at TRE. As long as you keep buying them up and driving the paint off of 'em, the clean ones are sure to go up in value.


All in good fun.

[umfan866]

I think they will have their day, maybe not soon, but they will. Forbes did a piece a while back on cars to watch (that may appreciate) and the 3.2 / G50 cars (87-89) were in there.

I think it TOTALLY has to do with your generation. When I was in high school, the definitive sports car was the 80's SC or Carrera, and that's what I want - I have no affinity for, or attraction to the longhoods. But when the older generation was in high school, the longhoods were "the" car to have. And the even older generation thinks that 911's themselves are too modern - the 356 is the ultimate car to have. Each generation thinks that whatever is more current than their "ideal" no longer has road-feel, soul, or Porsche-ness, and thus stay true to their generation. When people get older, they may be able to finally afford what they had wanted/prized in high school, thus the rising prices. Buy a nice mint low-miles SC/Carrera now, and you might be able to make some money.

[TibetanT]

If the law of supply and demand holds true, and Darisc and I don't sell our 911SC cars, won't that make the price go up?

I think all of us, Carrera's 1984-1989 and SC's 1978-1983, will be in good shape in a few years. These years have their benefits and as some have said here, they handle nicely and are friendly to work on.

[justinbaldwin]

SCs and Carreras are so cheap now in england, but that's probably a function of the continuing supply of newer porsches coming down the second hand market, and overborrowed home owners.

however, that will change eventually, i have no doubt that these cars, made with good old fashioned thick metal, overengineered because they weren't designed by computers, and thankfully free of 'modern, fault-prone' electronic wizardry, will eventually rise in value.

first, the classic iconic shape is no longer being manufactured, second they are cheap to own and run, third, the bodies are galvanised, fourth they are renowned for reliability, fifth you can fix most things yourself, sixth they are still yards faster than most modern cars, seventh they have character, eighth they still look the bollocks.

there simply is no other car of this era that can touch them from a classic ownership point of view. in fact they were voted best classic car last year.

in a few years time India will be have the largest population on earth, the indians are renowned for their work ethic. their economy will grow enormously. Britain on the other hand will be broke from too much borrowing. then, one day, the Indians will make a Bollywood film starring a humble 911SC, and all those ridiculously cheap right hand drive 911s in England will shoot up in value as the rich indians scramble to buy what's left, and for the first time in a hundred years, the English will supply something useful to the Indians, (even though it will originally be German!)

that's what i think anyroad.

[twobone]

So.....

I have seen many 84-89 high mileage cars out there in the $15-20K range.

Question of the day...does it make more sense to spend $25-27K on a low mileage car as a weekend driver for two reasons:

- More pride of ownership
- More driving miles (5-8 years of my driving) before she turns into a "high mileage car"
- keeps her value better

I have my eye on a nice 84' guards red cab with 44,500 miles and the guy wants $27,500. I think that is on the high-high end. What does excellence say for a clean to super clean 84' cab?

[JeremyD]

I predict the Club Sport carreras, the M-491 Carreras and the G-50 cars have bottomed out and will start appreciating.

27,500 for a 1984 - I think is unreasonable. For a g-50 car - yes - maybe -

My wrench has a theory that the uber low mileage carreras are MORE suspectable to valve guide wear. He thinks that because the tolerances are tighter - that oil tends to wick away when not driven, that these cars tend to have a slightly higher incidence of valve guide issues.

Mine had 57,000 on the clock when this issue arose.

[joe payne]

I thought SC's would eventually dominate the world as we know it. They will become priceless!! Muhahahahahah!

[Greek55]

I had a 1966 Corvette converitible with a 427/450 horse power motor. I bought it to drive it and enjoy it. I love going about 5 mph and then going WOT, tires spinning and the torque rush. I paid $30,000 and put another $10,000 in it for a total of $40,000. 3 years later the car was worth $120,000. I couldnt enjoy it anymore. I couldnt even leave it in a parking lot, and WOT was out of the question becasue if I blew the numbers matching engine it would depreciate about 80%. The car sat in my garage anther year, appreciated some more, covered and my kids were ordered to stay clear of the car.
My point is enjoy them while they are still a great buy for what you get. ONce they start going up in value, they are like any other investment, you put it away until you are ready to sell.

[Superman]

SC's are going to conquer the world. Sure, laugh all you like now but mark my words. World Domination!!!!