Duesenburg prices from 1954

[adam1982]

$28,000 in today's money

[WQ59B]

{jaw hits floor}

[keiser31]

Well, in 1954 you could get a five bedroom house for $12,000.

[West Peterson]

Translate the difference in today's market, that the Duesy was 1/4 the cost of the home, and it really shows you where the Duesy market was.

5-bedroom home: $200,000

1931 Duesenberg: $50,000

[Dave Henderson]

MODEL A DUESENBERG PRICES FROM 1935;

1924 $50

1925 $75

1926 $75

1927 $100

But these were wholesale prices. Retail could have been a whopping 25 or 50 bucks more!

[RPrice]

I remember, back in the '50s, Motor Trend magazine used to have a classified section toward the back of the magazine. Ads like the Duesenberg one were pretty common then. If we only knew what would happen.

Rog

[Lebowski]

That must have been frustrating back then when you had to sit down and write the seller a letter since he didn't include a phone number and then wait a few days for a response.... :eek:

[1937hd45]

I always liked the story about Duesenberg restorer/racer Jim Hoe. He bought a running J sedan on Long Island, and asked the seller if he could borrow an ax after paying for the car. He chopped the body off and drove the chassis home and build his SCCA race car out of it. He also bought TWO J's that were stored in a gas station basement during WWII, $700. for the PAIR.

Edited September 21, 2011 by 1937hd45 (see edit history)

[Rusty_OToole]

Supposedly Merle Norman of Merle Norman World of Beauty fame sold his Duesenberg to Bill Harrah for $5000 in 1959 to finance his cosmetics company startup.

In 1969 he asked Harrah to sell him his old car back. Harrah replied that he did not usually sell his cars but because it was him, he could have it back for $50,000.

Norman indignantly refused. The car remained in Harrah's collection until he died and the collection was broken up in 1985 or 86. At that time it sold for over $500,000. Not sure if Norman bought it but I hope he did.

[Bleach]

I'm kind of skeptical of the Duesenburg story.

Anyway, you must be thinking of J.B. Nethercutt. Merle Norman was his aunt and she started the cosmetics company back in the 30's. JB was a co-founder of the company. JB was an avid car collector and amassed a huge collection of rare antique and classic automobiles over his lifetime. Some of the collection is on display at their museum next to their headquarters in Sylmar, CA.

Here's more on JB and Merle Norman: http://nethercuttcollection.org/Founders.aspx

[alsancle]

I'm kind of skeptical of the Duesenburg story.

Anyway, you must be thinking of J.B. Nethercutt. Merle Norman was his aunt and she started the cosmetics company back in the 30's. JB was a co-founder of the company. JB was an avid car collector and amassed a huge collection of rare antique and classic automobiles over his lifetime. Some of the collection is on display at their museum next to their headquarters in Sylmar, CA.

Here's more on JB and Merle Norman: Founders

+1 and I think it was a number of cars, not just one.

[West Peterson]

I believe the story is true, except I think it was later than 1959. A.J. is right, it was a number of cars. J.B. sold the cars to Harrah, but I think he tried to buy them back almost immediately when he found a different way to finance the cosmetic company. Whether Harrah refused, or was asking way too much, I don't know. But I do know that he bought the Duesenberg back at the auction in 1986(?). It was the SJN convertible coupe, and I think it was for a lot more than $500,000... I think closer to $1.5 million.

[60FlatTop]

That Jim Hoe story seems to be a stretch, although I remember the people who sat around garages and told those stories.

This 1958 article sounds more realistic: The majestic automobiles are still in circulation thanks - 06.16.58 - SI Vault

Bernie

[Guest Klayfish]

Wonder if 50 years from now, our kids, grandkids, great-grandchildren will all say "Can you believe what a 1996 (insert make/model here) sold for back in 2011???" With the number of 80's and 90's cars I've owned over the years, I'm sure I've already had one.

This was a similar situation with the original Shelby Cobras, wasn't it? Didn't they have a hard time selling them when they were new? I thought they didn't skyrocket in price until many, many years later.

[CarlLaFong]

That Jim Hoe story seems to be a stretch, although I remember the people who sat around garages and told those stories.

This 1958 article sounds more realistic: The majestic automobiles are still in circulation thanks - 06.16.58 - SI Vault

Bernie

The story also struck me as one of those tales that Ol' Uncle Booger would regale his buddies with, while sittin' around the pickle barrel." Anyone in his right mind would drive the car home, unbolt the body and lift it off.

[Restorer32]

A case could be made that anyone in their right mind wouldn't have been buying Duesenbergs at the time. Art Brummer once told me that he used to buy barns full of old cars and would always leave the 4 door convertibles behind because no one was interested in them. He eventually bought a Dues closed car not 3 miles from our house sitting in a machine shop.

[jscheib]

How about this. I was looking in some old magazines - mid 70s, before they are tossed -I found that the price for my '32 Buick 4 door sedan was about the same for a '53 Buick Skylark. I should have switched then if it was a question of value. Now the Skylark has a 4 times the value.

John