Is vintage car collecting a good investment?

[FloridaWen]

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Inves....aspx?GT1=10421

A 4-wheeled investment vehicle
Building a garage -- and a portfolio -- full of mint-condition cars is a lovely pastime, but can you make money doing it?

By SmartMoney
Dick Messer's passion for automobiles was often misunderstood, especially at home.

When, back in 1978, he bought a Siata 208S Spider for $15,000, for example, his father didn't talk to him for five years.

"At dinner, he would literally turn to my sister and say, 'Tell Richard to pass me the salt,'" Messer says. "You can't believe the friction I got from my family for spending so much on a car."

Today, that car is worth $700,000. Together with the 20 or so other cars in Messer's garage, which he estimates have cost him roughly $100,000 to purchase over the years, his collection is worth around $2 million.

"My sister is jealous now," he says. "She's looking at my car collection and saying, 'There's your retirement -- you've got nothing to worry about.'"

The collection isn't for sale, but Messer's expertise -- he is now the director of the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles -- is sought by car enthusiasts and investors alike. "I get a lot of calls from wealth managers who've started to add collector vehicles to the portfolios of their wealthy clients," Messer says.

That's not a surprise, given the jump in value collectible cars have seen over the past few years. Muscle cars -- high-performance American cars from the late 1960s and early 1970s -- for example, have surged in popularity thanks to the growing number of baby boomers who have always dreamed of driving the cars once owned by their fathers and now have the money to buy them.

"Just a couple of years ago, you could buy a 1969 Z-28 Camaro in really nice condition for $40,000; now that same car is probably $60,000," says John DiPietro, the road-test editor for auto Web site Edmunds.com.

At this year's Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance car show, held annually on the Monterey Peninsula of California, some rare collectibles were auctioned off at nearly double the prices they fetched just several years ago. Auction house Christie's sold a 1936 Auburn Speedster for $423,500, which two years ago had been sold for $250,000.

"That's a big jump," says Rupert Banner, the head of the international car department for the Christie's. "The market today is certainly seeing some spectacular growth."

Earlier this year, auction house RM Auctions sold a 1962 Ferrari Testa Rossa raced by Phil Hill at Le Mans that year for $9.3 million. The seller had purchased the car five years earlier for $6.5 million.

To be sure, car collecting can be a fun hobby if you have a passion for vintage wheels, but you shouldn't by any means consider it part of your retirement-saving strategy or even bank on making a profit. That said, assembling the right car portfolio -- collectible cars made at least 25 years ago in limited production and good condition -- could add to your enjoyment and maybe even your net worth. Here's what you need to know.

Market research
As with investing, make sure you know what you're buying. Start your research with a local car club, then attend a car show or auction and talk to the owners and industry insiders.

"Attending an auction is like going to school," says Terry Lobzun, a spokesman for RM Auctions. Learn as much about the car you're interested in, and don't forget to ask about maintenance and insurance.

[hyo silver]

With a time machine and a wad of cash, you could do pretty well. I'd love to go back and buy that Jaguar my Uncle turned down, or the $19,000 house I used to live in that's now worth millions. I'd say 'investment vehicles' are for the money you can afford to play with, not your retirement plan.

[wbuttler]

I've restored three "antique" vehicles and
learned that the trick is to buy a vehicle already
completely restored---at the lowest possible
pricing.....unless you sell the vehicle you restore
at the height of a popularity curve you will probably only
recover your initial investment plus a small amount
--but not recover the investment in your time.
labor, and other expenses. You have to do it cause
you enjoy the process ---as an investment---
my opinion is that uranium wells are a better investment
than vehicle restoration and sale for profit.

Froley

[qbee42]

Is vintage car collecting a good investment? Sure. I have a 1994 Ford Aerostar I'll sell you for $50,000.

Tom

[FloridaWen]

Back in 1971 (H.S.Graduation) I bought me a two year old, 1969 Plymouth RoadRunner, metallic silver, 383 cu. in., 4-speed, hi-back buckets, Hurst shifter, Posi-traction tires, 3.91 rear axle gear ratio with less than 16,000 miles for $2,500............. Sold it two years later for $1,500 !!

I think today it may be worth upward of $50K ??

OH, those were the days............. the late 60's early 70's........ GM, Chrysler, Ford, even AMC !!
The days when a kid in High School could actually afford a decent, used car that he could afford to buy and afford to keep running........

[attachmentid=11737]

[koa]

I remember in 1967 walking into the Ford dealer and on the showroom floor was a street version Ford GT 40 for $10,000 and Cobra's for $5000. There was a guy who was selling his daily driver in my neighborhood for less than $5000. It was a 300SL Gullwing.

[Spoid]

I would say now is a bad time to get into car collecting. Prices have risen dramatically over the past few years, which, to me, means they are over priced. I believe they will be like the stock market, real estate market, and commodities markets - cyclical.

[patsparks]

If anyone is looking for a 1968 Toyota Crown with a genuine 20,000 miles on it I have one for sale at $6000 no offers. It's on historic vehicle registration and goes very well.

[daniel]

There are plenty of things that have increased exponentially in price over the last quarter of a century. There are also plenty of things that have not. The trick is to know what things will increase in the future; not which things have increased in the past. This guy guessed right and has a nice nest egg. Plenty of people have guessed wrong and been wiped out. It's called gambling.

[bigboy]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(hyo silver @ Sep 29 2007, 11:48 AM) [snapback]519023[/snapback]</div>

With a time machine and a wad of cash, you could do pretty well. I'd love to go back and buy that Jaguar my Uncle turned down, or the $19,000 house I used to live in that's now worth millions. I'd say 'investment vehicles' are for the money you can afford to play with, not your retirement plan.
[/b]

You might want to look into vintage guitars as well. Seriously, the room it takes to maintain and build a collection is minimal... and the cost of entry can be a lot lot less...plus you can fit a bunch of them into your Prius...(with the seat down)...