From time to time we have discussed on this forum the fact that it is unlikely that any car less than 40 years old will significantly increase in value due to collectability. This is largely due to mass produced numbers but also due to other factors. Of course there are some exceptions such as an Aztec Gold C5 or something along those lines. Though I'd argue that as rare as an Aztec Gold C5 is, for example, it still isn't worth huge dollars like the truly collectable cars of the 50's, 60's and early 70's.

My question is a two part question:

1) Do you think there are any limited edition cars of the 21st centruy, example G8 GXP, that would truly become collectable in the way of the muscle cars of old? Collectable to the point where the car would be worth saving and preserving?

2) Do you think the notion of a car being 1 of XXX cars with a certain color/transmission/option combo, etc. really makes it more valuable than the car's more common brothers are? For example, there were 308 Speedway White Convertibles in 2003 but then you can extrapolate transmission, interior color, yada yada yada... until which point you can say a car is 1 of 91 like optioned cars. My question is whether you think this adds any significant value, either immediate or long term? Or, do you think it is just the stuff the car show signs and profile signatures are made of. In other words, is it still just a 2003 Convertible and values follow accordingly or do you think the pairing it down based on options really means anything?

 

I think its cool to show and tell people how rare your car might be worth, but in the end for the C5 era the C5 Z06's are going to be more of a collectable then the coupe or vert counterparts, as well as the 98 pace car...and at the rate these cars get parted out, wrecked, or well not taken car of , I think in the time they could and I use that word loosely could be collector car.. but also the muscle cars did not have all the high tech gadgets that more modern cars have and when those stop working and there Is not a replacement part for it that also hurts the car..

 

1. Very few. I think of something like the Ford GT (the GT40 style) might be. Also some of the high dollar cars.

2. For our C5's I "think it is just the stuff the car show signs and profile signatures are made of." Every car has enough options that the exact combination is pretty limited so I don't think many would be more valuable. If there are any, I would guess that the FRC's, the '04 Z16 Z06, and the '03 Commemerative Editions, etc. might be, but I would guess that they would only be valued much higher if they were also better condition with very low miles.

Who knows? I guess we will see in another 30 or 50 years. I hope I am still around to find out.

 

Excellent point.

Do you think cars from the 21st century will be sought after even remotely the way that 50's-70's cars are today? Do you think the option extrapolation in order to make a car rarer means anything or do you think that after color, motor and transmission, the rest of the options are somewhat insiginificant to long term value?

 

Thanks for the comment, I tend to agree but want to know what others think. Like you said, if you parse it down far enough then every car is rare.

 

My car, an '03 coupe with the Milestone Edition package on it, is one of only 100 or so that were so equipped. Whether or not it is more valuable than any other C5 remains to be seen - the graphics package is a love it or hate it kind of deal. I have only seen one for sale since I bought mine and it was at a Barrett Jackson auction in 2010. It was a vert, had 50K miles on it and sold for $39.6K.

http://www.barrett-jackson.com/appli...ln=671&aid=304

 

Another factor to consider is: Who is going to be buying the collectible cars of 25-35 years from now? One reason cars of the '50s - '70s brought such high prices was that baby boomers had aged to the point they finally had the money to indulge themselves with the cars they had admired as kids and either couldn't have then or did have and want them again to relive their youths. Will the kids of the '90s and '00s have that same desire years from now? I don't know the answer to that - perhaps not if the trend toward not getting drivers' licenses and not owning cars of their own is real and continues.

Have and enjoy cars not because they will be worth something to someone else someday, but because they have meaning to you right now.

K9Leader

 

very good points in the thread, I think any car can collectable and valuable some at the same time whiles others just valuable or collectable just depends on the car. What it will really come down to I think is supply over demand, remember a while back when the first Fast and Furious came out? Toyota Supra's were know but not as well know as they are today, enter that movie and the Supra is in today's world a very sought after car, its getting harder and harder to find them in bone stock OEM form. With that said Corvettes have always had some sort of collectable insight mostly due to the people who know what the car is, so yes i think the C5 era cars will be collectable down the road how long who knows but valuable that is hard to say , as its not long enough for a car with our production numbers to have the latter of the two in my own oponion

 

History indicates that the cars we loved in our early days of driving are the ones that are desirable in our later years.

My dad loved the cars of the late 20's and 30's He would have payed big money for a 30 Ford roadster. For me it's the cars of the 50-60s.
I suspect the ricers will bring big bucks 20 years hence.

 

Funny you should mention the Aztec Gold. There has been one listed on the Chicago Craigslist for months at $39,995. Obviously even as rare as this is, the market still doesn't value this enough to justify the price of entry. Considering that is around what these cost new, what is left in it for a Collector and how long do they need to wait to find out?

Some Corvette appraiser, or something like that, was interviewed briefly during the latest Barrett-Jackson auction and he stated the 91-95 ZR-1s are the next wave of cars that are good buys now to see future increases in value.

 

good point

 

I think it's a simple question of supply and demand. If there is a demand for a certain older car, then the price will go up. No matter how limited in production numbers a car may have been, if the demand isn't there, then forget about it ever becoming collectible.

Of course, limited production numbers does help future collectibility. Ferrari are masters at applying this theory. For limited production models, they will always produce one-less than the number of orders they have on hand. This automatically helps boost the desirability of the car and guarantees future collectibility.

However, I doubt that the new generation of kids today will desire older cars like we do. In this throwaway consumer society, manufacturers do not expect or want their cars to last past their warranty period. The enormous amount of electronics in todays cars will certainly be their demise in the future. I cringe when thinking about a 15 or 20 year old C7. It will be a total electronic nightmare with no parts available to fix them. Will that make it a future collectible?..................I seriously doubt it.

PS: It's interesting to see how well the C4 ZR1 and Grand Sport are doing. Prices are actually climbing.

 

Thing is now there are people keeping records. They are aware of future collectibility. In the past, preservation was never a concern. (If I had back all of the smog pumps we removed from the early C3's, I would be a rich man). We didn't care that we stuck our Mickey Mantle rookie cards in our bike spokes. That attitude is what made it collectible years later. Today's emphasis is on the 1 of xxx factors. The fact that the only made 308 White 03 verts is only important if I am looking of one. C5's collectable in the future? The 03 anniversary cars probably to the extent that it will command a bit of a premium over other C5's, but it will never fund your retirement. The Z16 cars will be better since they were truley a limited build, but as we look at history to predict the future, I would imagine the C4 Grand Sports are an indicator of what the Z16 will do. Also referring to the recent Mecum Kissimmee auction, a 2 mile never prepped Z16 no-sale at $45K, a 200 mile car sold at $40K is an indicator that the awarness for collecting is strong with people buying these cars and "preserving" them.

 

Another very good point. I should mention that I am trying to decide on a new DD and I am trying to determine if the allure of the G8 GXP being a future collectible is really a factor or not. It fits the bill as being limited (1800 total built) but will it truly be sought after in the future? I like most everything about the car, however it lacks slightly on current driver convenience features.

 

Good point Phanni but not sure I agree with this last part. It would fly right in the face of K9's point above about whether the people will have the money and desire to buy collectible cars.

 

Another great point, thanks!

 

totally excellent comments Ron

 

[QUOTE=Vetteman Jack;1586047486]My car, an '03 coupe with the Milestone Edition package on it, is one of only 100 or so that were so equipped. Whether or not it is more valuable than any other C5 remains to be seen - the graphics package is a love it or hate it kind of deal. I have only seen one for sale since I bought mine and it was at a Barrett Jackson auction in 2010. It was a vert, had 50K miles on it and sold for $39.6K.

http://www.barrett-jackson.com/appli...ln=671&aid=304[/QUOTE

I never knew there was such a thing as a milestone package. learn something new every day!

 

My FRC is 1 of only 1245 made. That's a pretty low number. How many are left out there? Yet at the same time lets not confuse rare with desirability. While I do like to think the FRC is a prototype for the z06 I tend to believe the z06 will be more desirable in the future. I think the best bang for the buck today is the 01-02 trans am ws6 ram air, the market is bottoming out on them and I do think they will go up in price in the future. If I could predict the future I'd be in vegas making odds. People talk about the muscle car era...but honestly the muscle car era is now. Look at the horsepower that's being produced today. It's insane!

 

My '94 C4 was one of less than a dozen white with FX-3 suspension, but I just thought it was fun to drive.

I think some of the limited edition stuff is cool (like the C6 GT1) but I don't know that I would pay extra if it was just a color thing.