Cadillac

[old car fan]

Starting a new topic,Richie car's, he has the rare car's.would you rather have him post elsewhere,or sit around and sell for a hot rod .can I buy them maybe,but I personally don't think the prices are bad.today,you save history .there is no money to be made in restoration.making money is history as well

Edited August 16, 2019 by old car fan (see edit history)

[auburnseeker]

At  prices I've seen listed so far  Hot rodders will rarely buy them.  They want cheap to start with.   Few will pony up real money for something like the 38 V16 in a sedan body to build a rod out of.  If you buy a V16 tear the v16 out and swap in another engine ,  you have lost all the provenance that would have given it the value to be a v16 in the first place.  They will buy a better or much cheaper V8 sedan and in the end have a 38 Caddy either way. 

[Matt Harwood]

The '38 Cadillac V16 limousine I sold a few years ago, I actually sold twice. The first buyer was a guy who was going to put it on a late-model Suburban chassis or something. He didn't want it stock, he was going to cut it up. I talked him out of it and eventually sold it to someone who would restore it. Usually I don't feel that it's my place to tell people what to do with the cars they buy from me, but in that Cadillac's case, I told him he'd spend more on such a conversion than he would on a restoration and that it would be worth less (both of which are 100% true). I did want to discourage him from buying a car like that and cutting it up. Unethical? I don't know. But I do try to be an advisor (Melanie calls us match-makers) when people with little experience are buying old cars. He surely would have regretted buying the car before he was finished with the project, but by the time he came to that realization, the car would be too far gone to change paths. I feel justified in my decision even though it is perhaps none of my business to do such things.

[Matt Harwood]

Why does it matter where the discussion is as long as the people participating are OK with it? We're discussing a car for sale, just not polluting the original poster's thread. 

 

Isn't that what you wanted?

 

 

 

[old car fan]

And Richie,s car's are for sale.that's why it's here

[old car fan]

Matt,agree,I would have done the same thing.

[auburnseeker]

Matt you see alot of guys buying cars,  I'm not sure how much on the Project end as most of yours are nice pretty much turn key cars but for the most part what would you say the average rodder wants to pay or does pay for his project,  if talking about just the start with an original car that hasn't had anything done to it yet? 

I'm wondering as it keeps getting thrown around that rodders are going to swoop in and scoop these cars up. 

Are as many rods (rat rods aside) even being built still?  I know alot of guys are building rat rods but I know few will pay much for their project as they like them rough to begin with. 

From the litter I see of them on Criagslist and now facebook it seems like maybe 5 or less for more common stuff and maybe open cars under 20,  but those have to be pretty decent relatively rust free starts,  of course that's not including stuff like the 32-35 and 39-40 Ford coupes and open cars that seem to command a premium even as assembledges of parts from a few different cars. 

I know I have some ads out now for a new project and have had some decent offerings of good original cars at what I think are real prices that those should sell for and not overinflated wishing prices,  but just nothing that rings any bells yet, as I'm kind of holding out for something prewar needing some work but not a big project and really looking at Coupes or better yet an open car. 

I think that 40 Ford money is starting to get awful warm in my Pocket and might combust.  

Edited August 16, 2019 by auburnseeker (see edit history)

[old car fan]

I started the post so we not messed  the ops. add .Why in the world would anyone test his reason,or price, these car's would be long gone,I think he did a wonderful thing,personal,I would not post the car's here,he is posting car's for sale,don't want it,don't reply,simple.If that happens,I certainly hope he will contact me

[old car fan]

So how many people make a dime now on a restoration

[auburnseeker]

He's not really trying to sell cars or they would be on here like Matt puts them on here.  Atleast fully accessible with lots of photos and priced in the market range so they sell.  

Being I'm in the market for my next new toy,  U have been looking at probably thousands of ads every day for all types of pre 1970 cars with a greater interest in something older so I can see what's being offered out there for sale right now and at what price.  I can see what is and isn't moving.  So I feel I can atleast pass my observations on along to the rest of you that might not be accessing as many outlets as I have. 

Anyone looking for anything in particular?  I'll pass the info along when I find something that fits the bill. 

[auburnseeker]

2 minutes ago, old car fan said:

So how many people make a dime now on a restoration

No one but the shops make money on restoration and the guy who bought a car for near nothing then flips it to the next guy for a premium plus,  after that, it's up to the next guy to try not to lose/ spend  so much money on the project that he ends up in Divorce court, which will be many times more expensive than the money he already lost on the car he has to sell for a 1/10 of his investment to settle the divorce. 

[old car fan]

Flipping that type of car is long gone,my point is, I love he puts them out there,not messing with another post,and I think the prices are reasonable

[Matt Harwood]

I think it's awesome that he has such great stuff squirreled away. Yes, storage conditions could have been better but as a car guy it's still exciting to think that there are such things out there. They're complete and rusty, but not rotted, and that's an important distinction. There was plenty of surface rust on the '38 V16 I sold, but that sucker was SOLID. Mostly when you hear about a "guy who has old cars stashed away" and you finally see them, it's a bunch of AMC Rebels and '70s Plymouth Furys with trees growing through them.

 

I realize that I'm often the first guy to say that cars like that Cadillac V16 don't make any financial sense, but I also like to point out that the journey is often more important than the destination. I'm jaded because everyone I talk to in my career expects to make a profit from their hobby. It's maddening and makes my job harder. But I think there are still a few guys out there who like projects and getting things done who don't necessarily want a basket case or to turn things into hot rods.

 

I don't have a lot of experience selling projects and I don't really know what rodders want. My impression is that everyone in the rodding scene is tired of the same old crap like 32-33-34 Fords, which you can now buy in plastic or steel by the trainload. They all get built the same way and for many rodders, it seems to be the building more than the driving that excites them, so the market is flooded with very similar cars. When these guys get bored, they decide that the thing that's boring isn't HOW they're building the cars (cookie-cutter parts from a catalog), but WHICH cars they're building. After two or three 3-window coupes, they think, "These are boring. How can I get noticed? Hmmm. I know! A Marmon hot rod!" Then they build it the same way they built all their garden-variety Ford hot rods and are confused when it's still boring. I don't know.

 

There's definitely some creep into high-end cars within the rodding world, but it's still not the norm and I don't know that a vehicle like this at this price would appeal to any rodder. I believe that different is often better, but expensive and frumpy isn't necessarily what they want even if the finish line is going to be a six-figure build. We understand the value proposition for a restoration, they understand it for a rod, but I'm not convinced that many guys are interested in cutting up a $30,000 basket case to build a rod the way we are willing to tackle a $30,000 restoration project. I don't know why, and that's just my impression, so I might be way off base. But I seriously doubt that V16 Cadillac will end up with a big block Chevy and 20-inch wheels.

[old car fan]

Matt you always make sense.,point is,if he did not have them.We would have no chance to own them

[B Jake Moran]

1 hour ago, old car fan said:

So how many people make a dime now on a restoration

 

Again that is NEVER the point of doing a restoration.  Jeez can we get over that!  Restoring anything, a car, a house, whatever - or to put it another way - to be a woodworker and make a piece of furniture or as my wife does - to restore a piece of furniture - is about the art of the process and the satisfaction of the process in the end result. 

 

I am so tired of the "you will never get your money out of that car" criticism.  I have 2 Reattas I am restoring neither are "worth" a dime. I overpaid to read their for sale ads for crying out loud.   STOP the comments about value.  Restore the V16 and when you are half way through look down and contemplate who bought the car originally and just the sheer awesomeness of the car.  No - hot rodders have little interest in this faction of the hobby.

Edited August 17, 2019 by B Jake Moran (see edit history)

[auburnseeker]

I bring up value because we tell every new guy on here to buy the best car they can afford.  The problem that fights these cars is when one searches out what is out there in those buy in prices,  there are often ones we would steer the new be to.  Is anyone expecting those of us that are giving this information to everyone,  to ignore it completely ourselves?  I know I won't.  That would be foolish.  

We can all do whatever we want with our money,  but the fact it still sits here, not sold,  means it's not ringing any bells for anyone or they would make it happen.   Even if this was a 1933 Auburn Convertible sedan for the same price (right at the top of my Bucket list) ,  I would be walking to find the better example we tell everyone they should buy. (even if it meant going to the bank and begging for another 20 to 30G)   Maybe a one of one car left he has you cornered, but If it isn't then why tackle it.  Lots of cars need love and resurrection.  I can point you to a junk Yard in NH that advertises super rare classics out in the field for top dollar plus as well and they are selling just as fast.  It must be getting expensive for the seller as even at 5.00 a rip for craigslist ads,  he's still not moving any of hte 20 or so cars he puts on there.  Some have been posted here before.  A terraplane convertible an early 30's Studebaker, a Pontiac 56 Safari, etc. 

We still can't confirm what shape it's really in from those few photos.  Matt knows what shape his was in, and he posted lots of photos up front so we could see what shape it was in.  No speculation.  This is the East.  It's not kind to cars.  This may be much worse than one thinks.  I have seen alot of creep rot on cars from around here.  You can't properly assess what you have until you tear it all apart and clean up all the layers of flaking rust and look in all the nooks and crannies. 

[Guest]

5 hours ago, old car fan said:

point is,if he did not have them.We would have no chance to own them

I see little chance of owning (or even recieving on offer on) any car that is advertised at triple it's true, current value.

[auburnseeker]

Well if there is anything left of them in 30 years,  the next generation will have the same chance, but being their main exposure to cars will have been how "connected " they can be in them,  few will have the desire,  or much less the resources to tackle such projects.  Eventually they may become a great source of parts to keep others running if anyone is still driving old cars at that point and they haven't been outlawed for use on roads because the smart cars can't communicate with them. 

[1912Staver]

On the one hand this collection of long term storage cars is indeed "King Tutt's tomb", on the other hand at this point in time few of these cars are going to make enough sense to many old car hobby potential buyers to turn them into actual buyers.  There are definitely many potential gems in this group, but most if not all seem to need substantial amounts of restoration.

 And big restoration projects; regardless of the potential end product, are increasingly in a difficult position in the marketplace.

 Many of us are probably very interested in cars of this sort, I know I am. But relatively few of us are in a position to take on a major project.

 

Greg in Canada