Excellence: 911 SC Undervalued

JR_NYC · 05-29-2008, 04:27 PM

Just got my August '08 Excellence today. Cover article is the Top 10 Porsches to Collect Today. Among them is the 911 SC. They figure SCs are undervalued in the market and that they'll eventually become collectors cars, like the 356 Coupe.

Excellence thinks an "insanely nice" SC should go for $22k-$28k in the market today!!!! And that a nice one should sell for $16k-$19k.

I guess I'll have to garage my SC if I ever decide to move on...

I'm afraid that by the time the SC has appreciated gasoline will be banned or selling for $20/gallon.

Gogar · 05-29-2008, 04:38 PM

I'm confused. Do you think those Excellence prices are too low, or too high?

I think my SC is worth about $20k, but I don't think anyone else does.

scottmandue · 05-29-2008, 04:42 PM

What years did they make the SC?

Is one year preferable or do you go with "buy the newest one you can find rule?"

Hmmmmmmmm it is an investment... yeah that is what I am doing... investing.

dzls rok · dzls rok's Garage

i think it might be awhile before sc's become collector cars. there are just so many around. clean, low mileage, rust and accident free ones might be hard to find. but plenty of beaters.

Superman · 05-29-2008, 04:56 PM

Forgive me for continuing to whine about this, but two insurance companies, earlier this year, independently concluded that my '83 SC, rebuilt engine, rebuilt transmission, desirable colors, completely rebuilt suspension, new tires, corner balanced, was worth less than $10K.

JayG · 05-29-2008, 05:03 PM

Yeah when I see a 911 on the road, its a SC. Every time. Can't remember the last time I saw an older cab or targa around here.

Porsche-O-Phile · Porsche-O-Phile's Garage

Kind of my thoughts. Granted I'm biased towards '74 Targas but SCs seem kinda' dime-a-dozen. They're nice to be sure, but they're very common.

Now early 911s? Those are becoming rarer - and the prices reflect it. I honestly do think the mid-year cars ('74 in particular) are the next to see increases.

Or so I keep telling myself. . .

dzls rok · dzls rok's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by Superman

Forgive me for continuing to whine about this, but two insurance companies, earlier this year, independently concluded that my '83 SC, rebuilt engine, rebuilt transmission, desirable colors, completely rebuilt suspension, new tires, corner balanced, was worth less than $10K.

change your insurance company. try hagerty or jc taylor that have classic car ins. with agreed value. you tell them what your car is worth. your payment gets higher as the value gets higher.

Seric · 05-29-2008, 05:08 PM

SC and 3.2s are to common to be considered under-valued. I could see rare versions of them gaining value, but nothing insane. Some day, I agree they will be classics...

JR_NYC · 05:25 PM

I think $28K for an SC is crazy. That's a Richard Sloan price. But high teens to $20k for a very nice car that's been well maintained is reasonable. The article argues that cars in excellent original condition will appreciate. I agree with this. So many cars have been modified or are worn out at this point. Also, since there are so many fair cars at low prices on the market, old broken down cars are being parted out. The supply is gradually dwindling. The SC is considered "reliable" as well. That's if you don't consider broken head studs to be a reliability problem. What's worse, hoping you don't have broken head studs or owning a Carrera and worrying about premature valve guide wear?

Excellence also thinks unusual colors will be worth more and shows a pale yellow SC in a photo (bamboo?). There were some cool colors - sort of 70s colors - available that were phased out by the time the Carrera came out.

Scarcity seems to depend on where in the U.S. you live. I rarely see SCs in the Tri-State area (NY, CY, NJ), except when I take the car into the shop. Boxters, 996s, 997s, and the occasional Carrera is about all I see on the road. I think that has to do with weather (not practical in the winter) and rust.

Rick Lee · Rick Lee's Garage

I sold mine for $20k in July of '06.

hytem · 05-29-2008, 05:34 PM

The car market is topsy turvy right now because of gas prices and future uncertainty about the ICE in cars. SCs aren't really a rare car--there are a lot of them around--many for sale.
It's a buyers market--and a decent one can be had in the low teens--if you're lucky enough to find a buyer.

targa911S · 05-29-2008, 06:59 PM

If I were to buy another P car tomorrow, it would be a 3.0 SC coupe with a sunroof. That or a 993 Targa. Good value for the money. Sure they are a dime a dozen, but it's a p car you can drive. I loved my 70 S Targa but the more valuable it got, the less I drove it. I'll be dead before that SC would be a collectible, but who cares.

livi · 05-30-2008, 12:10 AM

Some day..

Too good a build quality and owned mostly by true Porscheistas equals too many cars still around holding the prices down.

What does Excellence have to say about the Carrera?

the · 05-30-2008, 12:39 AM

Of course, articles like that are fun, but kind of random.

If instead of the 3.2 Carrera, the SC was replaced by the 964, I could see the SC having some collector value over the next few years.

But the problem for the SC is that the Carrera is pretty much the same car, with a better injection system. I really can't see an SC ever being worth more than a Carrera of equal condition. Combine SC and Carrera production, and you have a lot of cars built over 12 years.

The excellence article on the SC doesn't say anything about the Carrera. The author does mention that he thinks SC prices have bottomed. I suppose that is one distinction, the SC being older probably has bottomed, while Carreras might not have yet (although I think they have, too, the newest 3.2 Carrera is now 20 model years old).

(I've had both, and liked them both!)

livi · 05-30-2008, 01:50 AM

Here in Sweden, as well as in Germany, the prices on SC and Carrera have gone up substantially the last three years or so. For instance, I got my Carrera 2004 and the price for an equal car today is generally 20-30% higher than what I payed.

Which incidentally well covers all my expenses and more, making it the only car I ever had that I actually saved money on.

Superman · 05-30-2008, 07:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dzls rok

change your insurance company. try hagerty or jc taylor that have classic car ins. with agreed value. you tell them what your car is worth. your payment gets higher as the value gets higher.

They don't insure daily drivers.

Superman · 05-30-2008, 07:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JR_NYC

The article argues that cars in excellent original condition will appreciate. ......

........The SC is considered "reliable" as well. That's if you don't consider broken head studs to be a reliability problem. What's worse, hoping you don't have broken head studs or owning a Carrera and worrying about premature valve guide wear?

Excellence also thinks unusual colors will be worth more and shows a pale yellow SC in a photo (bamboo?). .

Again, forgive me for continuing to whine but quite frankly, I thought my car was worth, mechanically, more than a low-miles, excellent-condition model. Why? Because the engine had been rebuilt. Modern valve guides. Eliminated the Dilivar studs. 20/21 cams. Absolutely no rust whatsoever. Everything adjusted perfectly. Even small details were addressed. It was one of those "interesting" and unusual colors. Sure, it needed paint but you could have driven this car to Peru and back several times with no expectation of mechanical issues.

And again, Haggery won't insure a daily driver. Other companies won't stipulate to an agreed-to price. Dontcha love the insurance industry?

Back to the topic: Yes, I think SC's are undervalued. An SC in good or excellent mechanical condition, with the common problems already addressed.......we're talking about more reliability and more fun than you can find in almost any other car.

legion · 05-30-2008, 08:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JayG

Yeah when I see a 911 on the road, its a SC. Every time. Can't remember the last time I saw an older cab or targa around here.

Around here, all of the '65-'89 911s are Targas.

I'm guessing all of the cabs are someplace warm and sunny...

DARISC · 05-30-2008, 08:19 AM

My daily driver 82 SC coupe was insured with A.I.G. for $38,000. I had to supply receipts for all the work done for them to insure it at that value. It cost me about $1600.00 per year including a 98 Saturn wagon grocery getter.

In Feb. I sold the Saturn and bought an 08 Volvo C30 coupe, which I now list as my daily driver and the SC portion of the bill has dropped a bit (I think I can still drive it up to 8 or 10k miles per year as now insured).

Appreciation isn't a concern to me. I wouldn't have spent that insane ammount of money to bring it up to reliable daily driver condition if I'd ever intended to sell it.