Need help with the value of a low mileage '79 911 SC

[slipangle]

Wise and distinguished posters of the Pelican Forums,

I need some help with the value of a <30k mile '79 911 SC. A few years ago my brother-in-law bought it from the orignial owner whom through neglect had allowed the car to fall into ruin. The brother-in-law rescued it, and he has spent an ungodly amount getting it back into shape.

Some things that have been done:

A no expenses spared, everything removed from the car original color repainting. All of the window seals and weather stripping were replaced upon reassembly. The results were spectacular, and the car is absolutely beautiful.

The interior leather and carpeting was completely replaced or restored. Again, absolutely beautiful.

I'm fairly certain that when the motor was out for the respray, everything was updated and/or retorqued or replaced as necessary. I know there was no lower end rebuild however, as his mechanic found that it wasn't needed.

The car isn't perfect. A big issue is that the A/C is out, although attempts were made to get it running. Another concern is that if the car isn't driven frequently, the battery dies. He had work done on the brakes, and I believe they are fine now. The speedo broke on him, but again, I believe that was resolved.

I drove the car about 6 months ago. It felt great in almost all respects, but twice when I floored the throttle, it stuck wide open. The brother-in-law had never experienced it before or since, so perhaps I muscled it down too hard.

He's asking for $25k, which I know is FAR less than what he has in it. He wants out because he would prefer something new with no issues. He likes to look at the prices on Hemming's, and for Hemming's it doesn't seem out of line, but I think the prices on Hemming's are too high... I'm not a collector. I'm only interested in a solid weekend driver that I'd keep and love forever. The brother-in-law is a great guy. What's a fair price?

I sincerely appreciate your opinions regarding this.

[dienstuhr]

$15K?

The sticking throttle should be attended to. The low mileage is nice but judging from the description ("neglect had allowed the car to fall into ruin") it's no garage queen cream puff. Probably driven hard and put away wet. No original paint left and no history of engine or trans rebuilds. A/C and electrical issues. PPI for the mechanicals would be a must.

Now that I reread that maybe $15K is too much for that car...

Cheers

d.

[umfan866]

Where are you located? Can you post some pictures? What color is the car? Collectors like the rarer colors, and in general a repaint is considered a bad thing compared to original paint. A really nice original SC would go for 15k, an average or crappy one 8-12k.

You can always check the value at New Car Prices, Used Car Values, New Car Reviews & Car Buying Guides - NADAguides.com Official Site which I found (through some comparisons) that they follow Excellence magazine.

[Danny_Ocean]

As described = $12k.

[slipangle]

Thank you for the quick and direct responses! In order to avoid insulting my brother-in-law, I'll definitely sit this one out.

[Matt Monson]

Let him spend some time trying to find a buyer and when he gets more realistic about his price then consider making him an offer.

However, I will differ than a few of the others here. If the work was done to the standard you suggest and the car really is show quality at this point, it's a high teens car. $12-15K is a really solid driver that got it's cosmetics in order. This car sounds a bit nicer than that, again assuming high quality restoration work done to it.

[slipangle]

Originally Posted by Matt Monson

Let him spend some time trying to find a buyer and when he gets more realistic about his price then consider making him an offer.

However, I will differ than a few of the others here. If the work was done to the standard you suggest and the car really is show quality at this point, it's a high teens car. $12-15K is a really solid driver that got it's cosmetics in order. This car sounds a bit nicer than that, again assuming high quality restoration work done to it.

The paint is as good as I've seen, and the interior looks like it just left the factory. The car may deserve someone other than myself because of that, since I prefer driving to polishing.

I have been watching the local classifieds and autotrader with a focus on the 3.2 - 3.6L cars. The brother-in-law knows how much I admire his, though, and I think he's just frustrated. Unfortunately for me, I'm in SE Arizona, so it's slim pickings for Porsches out here.

Thanks again for the information and recommendations!

[umfan866]

Slipangle,

To get 25k he may need to wait a few more years until the last of the SC's are over 30 years old, and they'll likely appreciate. A year or two ago, a really superb SC could command 15k here in the Bay Area. Now it seems either there aren't as many SC's around, or people are dumping their more average / driver cars, but I am seeing SC's regularly anywhere from 8k to 13k, typically 11k or so for a decent car.

One mistake you should not make is to fall in love with a particular car - even though I don't have one yet I must have gone to see and drive 20 of them... and I can tell a good 911 from a bad one reasonably well now. A lot of people fall in love with the first 911 they test drive and pay the piper later.

If its a driver you want, focus on a car with solid mechanicals and decent paint, and no major issues. You should be able to get a decent 87-89 G50 for 15-20k hopefully with a top-end rebuild and/or clutch already done, and a lot of life left in it. That's what I am looking for - either that or a heck-of-a-deal on a 1995 993 with issues (odo issues or salvage title issues- search for other posts by me and you'll see). A 993 with issues could go under 20kl on a good day.

how about this one in arizona - if you really like DRIVING

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-cars-sale/544180-1987-911-g-50-coupe.html

and also check out this thread for something that would command > 15k

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-cars-sale/542316-1981-911-euro-sc-bobs-sleeper-san-antonio-tx.html

[dienstuhr]

Originally Posted by umfan866

how about this one in arizona - if you really like DRIVING

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-cars-sale/544180-1987-911-g-50-coupe.html

I'll save you a click -- that car has 145K miles and NO INTERIOR and the guy's asking $17.5K

Originally Posted by umfan866

and also check out this thread for something that would command > 15k

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-cars-sale/542316-1981-911-euro-sc-bobs-sleeper-san-antonio-tx.html

That one's $27.5K and looks great, but has 161K miles and is probably the most expensive straight SC I've ever seen advertised.

Both have been advertised since May and haven't sold. Seller #2 quotes "Excellence" as a source of pricing, so that tells you something.

Regards,

d.

[Matt Monson]

Originally Posted by umfan866

Slipangle,
To get 25k he may need to wait a few more years until the last of the SC's are over 30 years old, and they'll likely appreciate. A year or two ago, a really superb SC could command 15k here in the Bay Area.

I think region has a lot to do with it. The cars I am now seeing in that 12-15k range I mentioned were up around $16-18k two years ago. SC's definitely picked up some steam during the early car frenzy that was going on in 2006-2008, at least they did here in Colorado.

But the market has changed. Just last week I saw a 1977 3 liter that I know sold for $13,500 in 2006 advertised at a dealer for $8500! The car had only gone up about 5k miles in the last four years. Now that's a slide in the market. I tried to grab the car because the dealer didn't even know it was a 3 liter but it already had a deposit on it after 5 hours on Craigslist. That was easily a $10k car.