Rich Yanulis

This is the beauty of our Vintage Corvettes.

The general public doesn't have a clue as to what year they are, BUT, they recognize and acknowledge the timeless style

Almost every time I stop at a red light, someone next to me opens their window to comment. The usual question is "what year is it?"

vettebuyer6369

This is a GREAT thread question.

A couple years ago I decided to replace the SWC I sold a few years ago. Wanted a Daytona Blue, the rest if the details were negotiable.

Like Frankie The Fink, I have found people everywhere asking for $15k more than any NOM should sell for, and correct cars on the moon.

I understand the increased interest of the 50th anniversary, but I'm not seeing the logic of the impact. The 63 has always been iconic and popular... And not particularly rare either. I always thought they were a good buy. But in an economy where people are skittish about buying anything, where nice C2 roadsters are selling for under $40k and C1 prices are down across the board, I cannot fathom the prices asked and apparently are getting for SWCs.

I would write a check today for a good numbers match car at a reasonable price. But like Frankie, I'll put my checkbook away until the 63 coupe market catches up to reality.

Mike Terry

Not sure how many of the 63 coupes are in the registry or are left but I do know that the last 5 that I have had were not in there. I have 2 SWC's in the garage now that are not in the registry but one is leaving Sat. for TX. and the other will be on my booth space F/S M156-158 at Corvettes at Carlisle in August. I guess I am covered for a couple other 50th birthdays with the 66 Mosport Green Coupe and the Sunfire Yellow 67 Coupe in the garage also. maybe I should keep one of the 63 SWC and buy a 64 and a 65 and I will have one of each year . Wonder what my wife would say to parking her car outside for a few years , hummm.

C1-Curt

I see a lot of discussion about being rare or not being rare. I guess that is all around each person's perspective of rare. I know of about 3 or 4 SWC's in my area and I never see them out. I am in several car clubs and there are still a lot of people who have never seen one in person, in my mind that makes them a little rare

If you look at the C2 registry there is less than 3% of all 63's ever built registered and that is both coupes and drop tops. I know that there are many more not in the registry but if you think about the 10k or so produced (that is not too many to start with) there are not too many left around due to rust, removal of the split, crashing and parting out back in the day. So even if we figure 3500 left (and I think that number is high) that makes the car fairly rare as it relates to any car. You have to remember, they won't make any more and the ones around will still continue to fall out for various reasons so they will only get more rare.

I personally was not looking for a SWC as I just finished my C1 project but this car kind of found me, the price was right so I made an investment choice to buy it and enjoy driving it. If you have a SWC in decent shape and with the economy picking up I just do not see the price dropping much, 50th anniversary or not. When I bought mine a few months ago the 50th anniversary did not even register in my mind, I saw a cool car and went for it.

There are still a few deals out there, if you sit on the side lines it is a gamble. At the end of the day most cars are a money pit anyway but buying one of these is a better investment than buying a new car, driving off the lot and loosing 5 to 10k Toys cost money, making money on them is just a bonus if and when it happens.

MikeM

The '63 coupe has always been a very popular midyear since about the time the Sharks came out in '68. Not so for the first few years as many didn't like the rear window and other features.

I don't think once the popularity increased in the late '60's that it has ever waned. Even when all you read about in Corvette mags and forums was the '67 427/435. Maybe everyone is tired of talking about '67's now and they want to talk about something else for awhile?

I couldn't care less about a coupe of any year. I like convertibles.

vettebuyer6369

I agree that each persons perspective of "rare" is individual, but irrespective of stats that could be applied to all mid years, there's always plenty of SWCs at most shows, events and auction I go to. Plenty for sale, too.

And I'll disagree that staying on the sidelines is a gamble. I don't believe I could not find a SWC if I really wanted to pay today's prices... They aren't drying up that soon. And it has never made sense to me to buy something when it appears to be at its peak... I think buying now is the gamble, not waiting.

Rich Yanulis

I agree with MikeM and Chattanooga.

1963 Coupes are true iconic classics and always will be.

YES, prices have increased 15K over a couple of years ago.
But if you left your IRA invested, you are MUCH better off today than you were in 2009.
That increase in net worth can now trickle down to fund discretionary purchases.

They aren't making any more

C1-Curt

I hear you, I personally did not pay an inflated price for my SWC because I bought mine from a friend who had the car for 33 years and he wanted to see it go to a good home rather than a car flipper so it is easier for me to talk from the side lines

I just do not buy into the notion that the 50th anniversary is driving the prices up. I think it is more a factor of people feeling a little better with the stock market and economy, seeing their portfolios grow and thinking they have some extra discretionary cash to spend thus driving up demand with a limited supply. Unless the economy takes another hit I think we are living in the new normal.

I guess we can all start another thread in 2 years and talk about who could see the future, I have a $1.00 on this is the new norm for SWC's As you can see from my $1.00 bet I am not a gambler but I am a big spender!

Rich Yanulis

I agree

Baby Boomers are what's driving today's prices.

Frankie the Fink

I was heavily into Mustangs for a few decades...the Eleanor craze was in full swing with little regard about some rock video (I don't even know who Jerry Buckheimer or whatever is) after the Fast & Furious movie. My pals were actually concerned that original fastbacks were going to be non-existent because of all the conversions and 'clones'. Then the Nash Bridges (Don Johnson) hemi cuda craze. The recent spate of SWCs in car product commercials and the "They Don't Write Songs About Volvos" shirts and posters have all pumped up the car's notoriety.

If there is anything my financial advisers have drilled in to me is that when there is: a) irrational valuation, and, b) irrational exuberance over ANY investment then step away.

Just having been on this forum for 6-7 years I can tell you that the SWC posting, inquiries, etc have had a spike in the last 24 months or so and I'm betting things swing back and stabilize on these cars. Time will tell.

IMO - the smart money is selling these cars right now, not buying. Especially if they have any issues affecting the value: NOM, flared fenders, rust, etc..

SBR

It is the latest trend, I remember back in the early 80s when a 63 SWC fuelie was more expensive then a 67 435. That changed in the late 80s and now the trend is favoring the 63s. I would guess that this will last for a while then interest in the 67s or something else will pick up. Bottom line is buy what you like.

1KULC7

I have had my 63 for over ten years now, and have gone to many shows. Sitting behind my car and listening to the people when they see the split window seems to have one common theme that I hear over and over again,

"This is my favoriate year Corvette, I just love the split window in the back, it seems to set it apart from all the other years."

Once and a while I will hear, "My favorite is the 427 big block, but the 63 split window coupe is in a class all by itself."

I do think this car is rare, and I have been at MANY car shows both all makes and Corvette only shows, and only once and a while a 63 Coupe will be there, most of the time it has been alterned, usually a 350 crate motor, but its still a split window.

I see many more 63 convertibles than I do 63 coupes both at cruise night and shows.

I don't think many people outsite the Corvette folks really know are care it the 50th anniversary of the 63 SWC, so to me that does not make much of a factor.

As one person told me not to long ago, the numbers of 63 Coupes decrease every year, and they will not be making any more of them.

As we all know, there are more 67 Big Blocks than was produced in 67, but you cannot say that about the 63 Coupe.

Why did I buy one, because it has always been my favoriate Corvette, I like all the design cues of this car, including the Split Window, and it is different than any other Corvette from any other year.

Pricing, supply and demand, will the prices go down, who knows, but over the years at the BB hav decreased, the SWC has increased consistantly. So have to wait and see, my wife and I call it my IRA.

Look, a 63 Coupe is iconic, people look form them at shows, and I know people who still have never seen one. So it is what it is, if you got one, enjoy it, if you want one, well buy one or wait, but not guarantees the price will go done. I bought mine in 2002, paying $30K for it, and did complete restoration, if I was to sell it today would I make money, probably not, but the fact is I enjoy it, and never have invested in cars to make money, but to enjoy them

Cheers,

Frankie the Fink

I would love to have one, make no mistake, and got screwed out of a nice one by a quetionable seller (as some know) recently. But when 300hp, automatic cars that need work are going in the mid-60Ks, and, NOM cars in the mid-55K-$62K. I'm bailing.

I'm certainly not impoverished but I can't bring myself to have another $60K+ toy in the garage that already has two... And certainly not when I can get an equivalent condition '67 and keep $15K in my pocket.

Rich Yanulis

Well said.

MikeM

If all you're interested in is buying/selling cars to flip for a profit, get yourself a business license and start your own used car lot.

It's people like this that cause swings in the market interest. If there's no movement in any particular year, the used car lots can't sell cars. Buy what you like and don't worry yourself about whether or not you'll make a buck or you might worry yourself into an early grave.

1KULC7

Sorry, I have to respecfully disagree with you. The SWC since I have bought one in 2002 has increased in value every single year, even through the recession. When BB dropped, the 63 coupe still gained value. GM made a series of the Woodward Blvd Posters, the SWC was the first one that was made back in 2004. The "They don't write songs of Volvos" has been availalble since 2005. You have a poster of a C1



Did that increase sales during that years 50th Anniversary, NO...

What about the 67 BB:



I have seen MANY T-Shirts on this car.....

Or what about the others:




So what is the common thread, nostgic, the good old days that can be yours today, the remember when, that is why these cars sell and how Chevy cashes in on the old days of Chevy...Good Old Days....

Comes down to the 63 is an American Icon recongized all over the world, much more than a 67 BB, its the split window that sets it apart.

It will always have a following, they are not making them anymore, and they are very hard to forge. CLEAN 63 Coupes, that were not molested during the late 60's and 70's for drag racing, are hard to find, and even harder (more expensive) to return to stock showroom condition. So yes, there will always be a market, and it comes down to supply and demand, and now the 63 coupe is in short supply and high demand.

As an owner of one that I restored to Top Flight, I am very tempted to sell, but cannot bring myself to do it, because I couls never afford to replace what I have now.

Cheers

Zoomin

Reflecting on my own experience, I had owned every generation of Vette except a C1 and C2. I currently own a 2010 GS vert, and when the C7 was finally announced, I started thinking about getting one. Then I thought, damn - my last 3 purchases were a 2001 Z06, 2003 Z06 and this 2010, and I lost a ton of money in the form of depreciation on those.

That, coupled with the fact I'm perturbed about how the GM bankruptcy was handled, I decided to start looking at C2's. You can buy a very nice C2 for the price of a new Vette. It appears I may not be alone in that thinking.

Donny Brass

If someone would kindly let me know when these 63 SWC were not popular, I will be happy to work on the original question.........

This thread might as well be called "Beautiful Women, when did men become interested in them again?"

1KULC7

But somebody must be buying them.....I certainly could never replace what I have today, could not afford it. I managed to get in just before the prices started to rise, but the restoration of this car was BIG $$$$, to get NOS, OEM, or Restored Parts, as the 63 has SO MANY one year only parts, the command big dollars just for parts. But I was determined to make it happen and it did.

As I just stated, will I sell my car, of course eventually, maybe sooner that what I think, will I ask top dollar, I doubt it, I want a fair price of what I put into the car to get back when I sell the car, not in the car business, in the ENJOYING and APPRECIATING what I have business.

DEALERS are asking the big bucks for these cars....just go to Hemmings, almost every 63 Coupe in the for sale section has no price and is being offered by Corvette Dealer, not private parties....

Let's see where it goes....

ChattanoogaJSB

Sorry Frankie to confuse, I was calling the film Gone in Sixty Seconds a 2 hr "rock video" by Bruckheimer, featuring the car. Just like other fun movies, Top Gun and Flashdance by him...

I do agree that fastbacks in general got a boost, and fastback projects in particular- those that could be bought and renovated into an "Eleanor" to WILDLY varying standards.

I also would agree that if you have issues with value, now or nearly now is a time to sell. As I've said before, I'm 33 and just bought my '64 having built a '69 in college and bought an '09 new. While I LOVE my car and look forward to sharing it with my son, there are not enough of me with serious interest to keep up with what could be a rush to sell in 15 years. I'm pleased with my prospects for passing on this love to my boy, but if every single person like me is committed to doing the same, some number of them are just not going bite on it long-term.

Supply is NOT the number of cars existing, it's the number of cars for sale. This number is likely to go up as the owners who remember them new or in the '70's and 80's sell out due to age or pass away. I don't know enough people my age to fill their shoes at ever-increasing prices. Best case scenario, I think, is that they level off and keep up with inflation.

Also consider, the cars are high volume production compared to an exotic, so with a decent survival rate, there are still lots out there. Precious few are wrecked or degrading into an disuse; I would venture to say with basket cases that would not be considered years ago being restored now, that the number of real viable running, driving, cars is net INCREASING steadily.

P.S. I could care less about my own car's value, I own it because it makes life more fun, period.