Tomorrow's Classics and the Value of our P Cars

[McLaren-TAG]

A couple of threads over the last few weeks got me thinking. Threads talking about putting cars up for sale then removing the ad, and the other about whether or not the our cars have become garage trophies too valuable to sell.

This post isn't about answering those questions, since everyone has their own purpose and their own reasons. But some of the responses about the current value of air cooled 911s in general and the pros and cons of prices either going up or down etc got me thinking about the nature of what we're doing today and how it will translate into tomorrow's classics and hot rod project cars.

The general rule of thumb is we covet the cars we grew up with when we were in HS and the cars you lusted after but could touch back then being something we'd gladly spend disposable income in buying, restoring, driving, racing, etc.

As the years go by the complexity of cars has tended to make them less and less "repairable" by the garage mechanic. Massive amounts of electronics and computers, low voltage wiring and data links, drive by wire not to mention emission controls. Now with composites and hybrids becoming mainstream it's going to be even more complex.

So what happens going forward? I'm not entirely convinced that the hot cars today will be so easily restored or maintained past a certain shelf life and certainly nothing that would be economical to repair should one of the major components I mentioned above go awry because it would be way beyond the skills of most.

So what happens then?

Curious about the discussion and thoughts but what I've been coming back to is a belief that the cars that can be maintained by the back yard mechanic are going to hold their value if for no other reason that they can be maintained relatively indefinitely.

[KNS]

They've been saying cars are getting too complex to maintain since the '80s. However, I think we are reaching a point where thee shear volume of computer controlled systems in contemporary autos will be well beyond the DIYer outside of routine maintenance (which in some cases has gotten easier).

I recall reading about a fellow with a 997 that had some strange quirk going on with his car, like the windows kept going down on their own or something similar. He'd gone to the dealer multiple times trying to get the problem solved and they could not figure it out - he was at his wits end with the car.

I think that is why the magazine Hemming's Sports & Exotics is so popular (one of the few monthly magazines that actually has a growing subscriber base). It's full of sports cars and the like but also lots of basic, fun sedans and hatchbacks from yesterday that owners love for their simplicity.

[NYNick]

I've always found this a difficult question to answer. Short of the enormously priced, limited edition super cars for the rich and famous, some of which were destined to be classics right out of the factory, it's a tough question.

The backyard mechanic days are over for modern cars. So, then all you have to consider are unique, pound for pound, flat out deals for the use you're looking for. Some modern Porsches come to mind, and maybe even a Corvette or two. But don't look only at sports cars.

BMW has made some serious sedans and coupes par excellence, and there are more and more 'sleepers' out there for the budget minded. Who can say?

If any of us knew for sure, it would be a helluva payday down the road.

[msark]

Look at the Hellcat.... I believe it will be a modern example....

Mopar collectors have always paid a real premium for their collectibles.... A friend was looking and he didn't talk to a dealer that wasn't full sticker plus 15k-25k.... Chrysler doesn't like the dealers doing this so it seems the trick is the dealer will register the car and sell it as used... With 7 miles! Then Chrysler can't make an issue of the markup....

[Christien]

Maybe the tools and knowledge will become more accessible to the backyard mechanic in 20 or 30 years Pre-internet there's no way I'd be able to maintain any car beyond a Model T, so that's certainly helped. OBD scanners are now very affordable and have allowed me to at least do some simple things on our modern family cars, like find which O2 sensor needs replacing, etc. It helped me specify what was wrong with the transmission on our old Odyssey and address the problem (though not entirely fix it). Most of the wear items (esp. brakes and suspension) are easily DIY-able on most modern cars.

Maybe our access to technology will improve sufficiently over the next couple decades that we'll be able to fix 997s in our garage. If you think about it, it's just a collection of parts and wires that were assembled, so they must be able to be disassembled.

[PropellerHead]

I don't know. Finding a competent tech to work on triple throat webers (let alone zeniths) or keep a vintage MFI system up is becoming increasingly difficult and expensive. Much easier to find someone who can read the OBD system, possesses modern proprietary software tools, etc. to work on modern cars. Now, in 25 years, who'll be able to do that vs. rebuilding carbs and tuning ignition advance curves on a traditional distributor? I don't know but I intent to impart that on my kids as much as possible. We'll see if it sticks in the age of video games and software tuning of cars.