Who is buying classic muscle cars?
Posted by Merlin509@reddit | askcarguys | View on Reddit | 282 comments
I’m a 64yo guy, former mechanic/machinist back in the 80’s and have restored several 60’s Camaro’s and Chevelle’s as a hobby back in the early 2000’s. I’ve continued to follow the hobby, watched the auctions, and considered getting back into it, but I feel like the asking prices now are completely out of line with the value. The only place I see the cars available are consignment shops, eBay, and live auctions, and the prices for basic non-rare cars are through the roof. People are asking $65k-$95k for SS Chevelle’s and Camaro’s that are nothing special, and eBay bids are way short of buy-now prices. I get the high prices for super rare and documented models, but not $60k for a ‘69 396 SS Chevelle in stock trim. I also get the restomods that are well done, as that quality of work is expensive. Is anyone actually buying these cars at those prices, and if so, who? Boomers are aging out and millennials and Gen-Z couldn’t care less about them. Is Gen-X paying that money, or is it all an illusion and these cars just collecting dust in consignment warehouses with huge price tags on them?
HeavyDutyForks@reddit
Its still boomers buying them. At least that's what I see at my local car auctions. But, a lot of them never hit the reserve price so back they go with the owner and show up at the next auction only to not be sold.
Gen-Z maybe, but buddy if the prices weren't how they are I'd own one in a heartbeat. Its not that they don't care, they're so far out of our price range that they're unobtainable.
Even the ones that need restoration (inside, outside, and drivetrain) are absolutely ignorantly priced. I would love to rebuild an old 60s muscle car, its what I dreamt of as a teenager. But, I probably never will and have turned to other vehicles. I never thought I'd get into antique vehicles but here I am with a Model A I finished and an old basket case of a military jeep I've been toiling on for the past couple years now
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
Yeah, it’s not fair of me to say that Gen X couldn’t care less. Maybe even Gen Z. I just don’t see a lot of those generations buying at auctions and also almost never see younger folks driving them at car shows. They are somewhat more common at the drag strip, I think because the ones that have been cut up for drag racing are less valuable and more attainable.
Fantastic_Joke4645@reddit
I’m Gen X, I grew up wrenching on 70’s-90’s cars. I’d love to buy a muscle car. I have a second home, a boat, disposable income…. I just can’t fathom paying more than like $20,000 for one. I see these prices and think, it’s just not that special.
My thought is the really rich boomers have been hoarding them up, I feel like the guys buying these have like 10 of them. I suspect in the next 10-20 years a lot will flood the market.
You can look at 30-50’s cars and see their prices aren’t as strong.
K_Linkmaster@reddit
The market has already moved to the 80s cars. The 2000s jump in price will be in the next 10 years.
Old guys priced out young folks. I watched it happen and so turned down ridiculous offers for my baby. My baby is mine and will be passed on. Value, $500.
Deep-Egg-9528@reddit
Not very many 80's cars are super desirable.
K_Linkmaster@reddit
Yup. But since the Ford Mustang is still a thing and has a huge following. Just watch mustang prices, for the trends. Whatever mustangs are going up is who has collectible car money. Whatever cars 40 year olds dreamed about are the next crazy priced cars.
Even the 90s cars are going back up.
No-Understanding-912@reddit
It's 100% rich boomers hoarding them. I know three different guys with warehouse/garages that are full of muscle cars. Once those guys start dying off in bigger numbers, the bottom will fall out on the muscle car market. Or at least drop to a more obtainable level. I'm an older millennial and every car guy I know would buy a muscle car if we could afford them.
Deep-Egg-9528@reddit
It will be the job of their children or grandchildren to sell them after they die and they definitely won't be getting the $150,000 they thought it was worth.
pbrassassin@reddit
Every car guy would buy one if they could afford it , which means the price will remain high, no bottom falling out
No-Understanding-912@reddit
I get what you're saying, which is why I have more obtainable in the too. We will get to a point where large collections are going to start coming up for sale and bring down the market value.
Wilson2424@reddit
Older millennial here. Sold my 67 Pontiac and my 78 Cutlass years ago....and I miss them. But life got expensive and busy and they had to go. Maybe one day ...
No-Understanding-912@reddit
Yeah, I recently sold my Dad's 72 Firebird, it was nothing special and in a bad color combo, but still went for $26k. It was never a car I cared for since it was all original and I always wanted something I could restomod, but I would have absolutely kept it if I could have afforded to and had a place for it.
Wilson2424@reddit
Time money space. You never have more than 1 or 2 at a time.
If you have the time and space to work on your project, it's cause you're out of work and have no money for parts.
If you have the money, you're working OT and don't have the time to work on it. Or you still can't afford a place with a dedicated project garage.
No-Understanding-912@reddit
Yep, that's about right
lvbuckeye27@reddit
You gotta find a barn special. There's a really good video on the Honda YouTube channel of a guy in SoCal who specializes in restoring first gen Hondas. Well, somehow someone found the very first N600 just wasting away out in the desert somewhere. It's literally serial number 001. So he did a full resto. People were offering him ungodly amounts of money for it, but he donated to the Honda North America museum.
Now, to be fair, my sister taught me how to drive a manual transmission in a 1978 Honda CVCC when I was like 11 years old, so Honda will always have a special place in my heart, but still. I love ALL cars and car history. But it's a wonderful mini-doc.
Link because it's worth watching: https://youtu.be/wpW4ABjGd6M?si=tI0bW6PMdpFNTFm2
GMEINTSHP@reddit
People collect things from their childhood. Nostalgia.
You wont see many classic car collectors/high prices anymore because the buyers are dying off.
Young people are collecting magic and Pokémon cards, stuff like that.
RobyMac85@reddit
I guess jump in here - millennial - but I love old cars but also live where it’s cold 6 months a year. I would love an old muscle car, but it’s not practical and especially not at the current cost. I often kick myself for the deals I passed up 15 years ago but what can ya do. I bought an MGB off an old guy who just couldn’t wrench anymore. Got a fair deal and it’s treated me well. I chose this platform as the car was affordable, it needs to be wrenched on every winter and parts are very cheap. It’s the only way to afford the hobby for me along with a house, vacations, etc… but I’d love to do the same with a muscle car, the little man puts a smile on my face on a sunny day and that’s really all the matters
AntiqueBasket9903@reddit
Totally agree. Boomer here. I've had my MGB for 8 years. Great fun to drive, cheap parts. Very affordable way to get into the classic car game. For me it's not about horsepower. Don't get me wrong, that's fun as hell too. As I've gotten older priorities have changed. Currently looking for a bug eye sprite. Happiest car on the planet
-t-h-e---g-@reddit
Most gen-Z tends to buy cars a bit later and lower spec, this is coming from a 16 year old with a 75’ Plymouth valiant with a slant in it
WeissIsBestGirl19@reddit
As you said, the younger generations have been priced out of the hobby unless they can nickel and dime a rust bucket into restoration quality
Nd4speed@reddit
Gen X, grew up on 60s-70s muscle cars, they were affordable in high school. Knowing that, I'd have to be high on the devil's lettuce to even consider picking one up now for these prices.
kinga_forrester@reddit
It’s simple. Most classic car buyers want their dream car from childhood / young adulthood. Old people have the most money. Some people want cars from before their time but it’s a smaller market. 30 years ago it was 30s-50s cars going for big money, and 60s-70s stuff was more affordable. As the boomers die off, the market for muscle cars will cool off, and it will be 80s and 90s cars that are crazy money. (Not that many aren’t already.)
mikkowus@reddit
Late 70s-90s cars sucked so those decades will be skipped
neonxmoose99@reddit
90s cars definitely did not suck
mikkowus@reddit
*early 90s.... There were a few that didn't, but it was a weird time with a lot of weird layouts and low horsepower
voyagertoo@reddit
there's a few 80's things that are great - Japanese stuff, some European
Buffaloslim@reddit
I worked with a guy in 1981 who bought a 67 Shelby gt350 for 10k.
Quake_Guy@reddit
Remember Car and Driver did a story on a guy with a Superbird. He bought it running for $6k in the mid 80s. One of the rarer engines too.
AKADriver@reddit
The late '80s was basically the last time the sort of thing we're seeing now happened. All of those muscle cars went from Joe Dirt values to (gasp) 5-figure prices in the late '80s collector speculation boom. I was a kid at the time but I remember the car enthusiast magazines back then were full of condition grading and valuation content just like those baseball card price guides we all religiously consulted.
Justthetip74@reddit
Yeah and that's $38,000 today with inflation and the car was only 20 years old not 68
Glad_Release5410@reddit
Its beginning, i picked up an 86 trans am a few years back and i paid too much. I wont cry too much though, its been pretty good to me so far.
AKADriver@reddit
I bought my '93 240SX for $1600 in 2016 thinking it was my last opportunity to get one that wasn't wrecked and thrashed, not expecting that a global pandemic and social media trends would basically 5-tuple its value 5 years later. My biggest regret is buying that car and not an R32 GT-R when they were relatively affordable because they sure as hell aren't now.
oldslowguy58@reddit
There’s the answer. Throw in the Late boomers and early Xers who got our licenses in the “malaise “ period into that pool of buyers. We don’t want a 1979 anything but that 70 Chevelle was on our dream car list.
Live-Razzmatazz4265@reddit
Millennial here had a Chevelle in high school before it was valuable, restored it after high school still own it. Have owned a Ford Capri Ford Cortina and Buick Riviera, but that was already a decade ago, sold Rivi and Capri to pay for daycare. Many people my age like old cars just out of their price range. I think the same goes for younger generations, expensive to buy nice or junk ones and restoration parts are crazy expensive now as well.
seaburno@reddit
As an X-er who loves muscle cars - I've been to a couple of the auctions. It seems like either the car is a horrendously overpriced garage queen, or if you look at it crosswise, the bailing wire and bondo holding it together fail.
I don't have the time or space to restore/rebuild one, I don't have the money, space or time for a garage queen, because if you don't drive them, then stuff fails.
SmallHeath555@reddit
GenX - was never attracted that much to muscle cars but give me a sweet 80s VW Scirocco or similar and I would be thrilled to bag around in it. I grew up idolizing Ferrari and the gull wing doors for the Delorean.
Big-Coffee8937@reddit
Don’t know where you grew up, but every Gen-xer I know is into Muscle cars. We grew up with them, had them, sold them and want them again.
RiverGroover@reddit
If people think american muscle cars are over-priced (I agree with the OP and have the same questions), wait 'til they see what people are asking for worn-out 80's and 90's VWs, for which no restoration parts even exist. It's like they invented the "I know what I got" meme specifically for VW owners.
HenryLoggins@reddit
This
voyagertoo@reddit
is that true? like trying to restore a 86 scirocco isn't happening unless you can fab parts?
whaler76@reddit
Speak for yourself
Buffaloslim@reddit
I’m gen x and feel the same way, I owned two different sciroccos. I love small quick cars with rigid suspension. A Honda S2000, Porsche 914, Toyota MR2 or Datsun 280z is what gets my attention.
FaithlessnessRich490@reddit
Gen-Xer here kids are in College right now, I aint buying shit.
Stuntsanduntz@reddit
As a millennial in my early 30s, if I could own classic muscle I would. I’ve wanted a matching late 60s early 70s chevelle /el Camino since high school and since then I’ve just added more to my wishlist. But as you said, dropping over 60k for an operational vehicle that is at this point too precious to daily ontop of its terrible fuel efficiency doesn’t make sense. If I win the powerball though… sensibility out the window. (Although I’d probably still grab a lil 5 speed Honda fit as a daily for parking/gas)
XCCO@reddit
I'm a millennial. I have a 1977 Corvette and a 1983 Mustang. I'll sell you the Mustang for not an astronomical price.
TitanThePony@reddit
That makes sense. Although both nice cars, plastic bumper C3s and Fox body Mustangs are not demand classic cars.
scrappybasket@reddit
I think every generation’s car enthusiasts want these cars but the younger the person the less likely they’ll ever be able to afford one of these. I’m in between millennial and gen z (30m) and I fall into this group.
I desperately want a classic car but the cheap projects cost more than my used 2014 Ram 1500 Laramie.
If only I could have purchased one when I was 12… then I’d be in good shape
robindawilliams@reddit
As a guy in his early 30s, I'm just finishing up a 66 mustang but I had to buy it in parts from a boomer and spend a couple years trying to put it back together so I could afford to own it.
There is a huge market of people hurdling into retirement looking to burn their wealth on luxuries and a massive number of people aged 18-40 who have had the ladder pulled up before they could get on it.
I've got a nice little V8 66 coupe, but its origins started as an abused and generally unexciting 6cyl with minimal value.
Unfortunately most of these buyers are going to wake up one day and find themselves at ever shrinking car shows with cars whose value has plummeted because anyone young enough to still be able to go out and turn wrenches was priced out of ever developing a passion for old cars.
RiverGroover@reddit
You'll continue to have opportunities. The fact is that not many people your age are capable of or interested in fixing or building things themselves. For them, they have no choice but to buy an expensive, complete restoration, or go without.
I understand where the 'blame boomers' trope comes from, but it's really not that accurate. There are of couse many with excess wealth accumulation, but the vast majority are scraping by just like everybody else. Some of them APPEAR to have a lot, but that's often because they built it with their own two hands, and becaise they manage their priorities.
robindawilliams@reddit
"not capable" comes with not having the opportunity. A house costing 9x annual salary that used to cost 2-3x annual salary doesn't have anything to do with managing priorities or 'building with both hands'. I didn't get any help from anyone older to do what I did, my friends and I put in the work despite growing barriers of entry.
The narrative that an entire generation has gone soft and doesn't want to do things themselves has only two possible answers, it's bullshit perpetuated to justify the actions of the people with the wealth OR if it is true than the boomer generation had such horrible parenting that they failed an entire generation of children and made them weak/incapable.
Given the majority of my friends are averaging 60+ hours a week, many in hard labour jobs or extremely technical fields, I'm going to assume it's just the lie that many boomers tell themselves to feel better about their own situation. I wish I just had to walk to school uphill both ways lol, that would be easier than dealing with back to back financial collapses, AI, outsourcing, etc.
I'm not saying they are all rich either, a good chunk of that generation has been left behind as well and not just the ones that made bad financial decisions or have 3 alimony payments eating up their savings. If they failed to get on the ladder back then, they will never get another chance like the rest of us, but even the ones that missed their shot seem to think everything should be easier with modern technology as if it hasn't been designed to strip people of their time and automate their skills.
Anyways, didn't mean to rant.
4entzix@reddit
It’s actually the opposite… many of them lucked into getting a 401k at just the right time… and with 30 years of company matching funds and compounding interest… most boomers became millionaires from passive income
The problem is now in their 80s they can just break off a chuck of cash from their 401k and outbid everyone for houses and cars in cash
With the pension system you only got access to a % of your money every year and you couldnt buy something with 500k all cash unless you saved years of pensions payment…
Blankok93@reddit
Well, most of us can’t, even those with knowledge. Did you see how many guys in gen Z are in the trades ?
Most of us can’t afford to pay 10K for a completely rusted out 205 GTI or Clio Williams, those who can can’t afford houses because they’re all owned by people 45 to 80 years old, so they don’t because who’s gonna do a full rebuild either in an apartment complex parking or on the street ?
The same streets where it would be stolen due to the consequences of hippie policies?
I’m a mechanic myself and has no project car 🤷🏻♂️
xXxDickBonerz69xXx@reddit
And many who would like to do what you did can't because they are renters without a garage to even have a project.
mikkowus@reddit
That's my problem.. at least with a van you can pretend you have some space to yourself when camping on public land
shottylaw@reddit
Think about what you're saying. The generations you're talking about, across the board, are far worse off than they should be. Predatory pricing for everything with stagnant and low wages. Failing economy that's sitting on multiple crises that have happened in my lifetime.
Simply put, the vast majority of Americans are broke as hell and simply can't buy things like this.
HeavyDutyForks@reddit
You spend a lot of time thinking when you're working in the garage. I was thinking about some of these ungodly prices relatively recently. I've got to have close to 600 or 700 hours I've put into this Jeep so far. That's just getting it road-worthy. Re-wired, engine rebuilt/painted, trans/transfer case gone through/painted, handling rust, etc..
I painted the engine bay and primed the underside with rust converter while I had everything out. But, I still need to paint the rest of it, re-upholster all the seats, and tie up a few other odds/ends. If I were to have paid someone to do all this, it would be well north of $70k
I'm not looking to sell mine or make a profit off it, its just a labor of love. But, I can kind of see it both ways. It would be hard for someone to put $70k into a restoration and then sell it for peanuts after the fact
rezwrrd@reddit
That's just how it is with cars though, and how it's been for at least as long as I've been driving. The very first piece of advice I got about project cars (and cars in general) is that you will never get back as much as you put into it.
seajayacas@reddit
600 to 700 labor hours not counting parts is a very substantial project.
Aloha-Eh@reddit
It's going to be a labor of love, because you're not likely to ever see the money you put into it ever again.
But, like I said to the guy who found a 55 Chevy being used for a chicken coop; thanks for saving a piece of history.
Same to my friend who hauled a 57 Chevy out of the desert. She was rough. Now she's a thing of beauty and joy. Not a concours restoration, but a definite restoration my friend built in his garage.
He restored one other 57 before, and sold it. He won't make that mistake again.
Again, thanks for saving a piece of history.
Whether or not you make a profit on it, a part of you has a chance of outliving you in this world. And that's a pretty fucking cool thing.
HeavyDutyForks@reddit
Idk the full details of this thing's life, but I know for sure it had been sitting in a barn since 1989. The guy I got it from said it had been sitting before that but he didn't know how long. There was all kinds of jacked up things with it. It had been brush painted while fully assembled, seemingly never been cleaned before, and a little bit of frankensteining that I had to sort out to get back to completely original
I'm full in on it, I'm sure a shop probably would've cut some corners where I didn't. But, yea this has been the biggest project I've ever undertaken. But this is what it takes to make one of those basket case cars you find on Craigslist into great condition. Its a ton of work
Blankok93@reddit
Gen Z does, in my country good first gen mustangs were at pretty low prices for a long time, then emission regulations happened, boomers started hoarding them.
There’s no way I’m paying 60k for a clean 67 to a boomer, half of our wages are already garnished by the state in order to pay their retirement, healthcare and all of the bullshit they voted for
xXxDickBonerz69xXx@reddit
Because they're selling for more than we make in a year and we're all living paycheck to paycheck.
It doesn't matter how interested we are or aren't. They're unobtainium.
It's not like we can finance them for 96 months like we can for a new truck or Challenger or M3 or whatever other financial disaster people will make either. You actually have to be able to afford classics if you want one.
voyagertoo@reddit
you could finance one if you have your shit together
DeepsCL9@reddit
Millennial here. I would LOVE to have a first-gen Camaro SS. I still have a Hot Wheels ‘68 from my childhood.
Despite a dual income in the tech industry, we are too damned poor to do anything about it. I guarantee it’s rich boomers holding on to (and buying) these cars.
SailingSpark@reddit
Genx is odd in this respect. We were the first gen to grow up with American, European, and Japanese cars. It's not that we do not like Muscle cars, it's that not all of us do. I prefer my European Cars. I have an old Fiat 124 spider in a very slow restoration while a friend of mine has a Mazda rotary pickup (REPU) he is working on. That is a cool little truck.
Mysterious-Dealer649@reddit
I was thinking about the same. The gen x that can afford to play in that world probably lean towards euro and Japanese especially the younger ones. As far as real actually special from the factory muscle cars they’ve mostly always been in boomer hands. Where I live just rust claimed most of those cars that got drove regularly by the time I was looking for a car in the mid 80s
Past_Bus668@reddit
I'm Gen X. Would love to get one of those.
In fact, I looked at a '68 Chevelle earlier this year as a project and backed out.
Just too much damn money for not enough car.
Growing up, it was mostly boomers restoring Chevelles, 60's Nova's, Corvettes in my area.
I couldn't afford one then, and I can't now.
I have feeling, after boomers are gone, there will be a glut of these inherited cars being resold, and prices will come back down.
thepumpkinking92@reddit
Millennial here. If you gave me the keys to a 78 firebird Trans am, or a 69 fastback mustang, or anything within that ballpark, I promise you, it would be at every car show I can find that I could make it to with a full detail, with my wife and daughter right next to me.
Unfortunately, at the end of the month, I have about $200-300. And, while id absolutely love to save that every month to spoil myself with a pretty, classic muscle car, I'd much prefer to spend it on my family or improving our house instead of just myself. And my wife and daughter both appreciate cars; they tell me about car shows, my daughter, a gen alpha, has taken an interest in them, and helps me when I do my maintenance on our cars or replace parts, asking questions about how stuff works.
We just simply can't afford it. Instead, it's treated like driving past a big beautiful house; look at it, appreciate it, fantasize about owning one, but never touch it and realize it's way outside the realm of possibilities.
But, I appreciate your work on them. Idk where you are, but if you do decide to get back into them, I'd be more than happy to lend a hand in helping you fix one up so I can appreciate one up close and personal. Been working on cars all my life. I can fix em. I can rebuild them from the ground up. Don't know squat about restoring them, but im a quick learner. Just couldnt afford the cost to start my own build, and because of my disabilities from the military, can't spend much time at once working on one without excruciating pain, but id help for sure.
Dangerous-Pie_007@reddit
I think perception gets kind of skewed when looking at '60 cars. I graduated on 1981. I now have a '71 Bug and a '68 Cougar that needs everything. These cars are over 50 years old. A 50 year old car when I was in my 20's was pre-war. None of my peers had anything like that, only the old men had them. I always thought a '32 Ford was cool, but I could never afford one. It is the same situation for Gen X etc.
alltheblues@reddit
It’s because money. They’re not showing up at auction because they can’t afford those cars at auction. Same reason they don’t have them at car shows. That, and the fact that there were other cool cars when they were young, so the nostalgic options are greater.
Siva-Na-Gig@reddit
Another Millenial here. I own a few classics that I bought years ago before prices were crazy. There’s no room for my generation to get into this now, we’re all too broke to drop this kind of money. We’re all interested, we grew up on The Fast and the Furious (1970 Charger), Gone in Sixty Seconds, Dazed and Confused. We’re priced out.
Legitimate-Fly4797@reddit
Gen Z is under 30, you think we can afford to spend 65-95k on a car?
SkiyeBlueFox@reddit
The collectors market in gen Z is smaller, and those like myself who would want to are generally too broke
klde@reddit
Im a millennial, grew up around a family member who is a huge Mopar nut and has a couple really cool ones. I remember sitting in the library in hs in the early 2000's on ebay shopping dusters cause I saw one featured in Mopar muscle mag and fell in love. They were so cheap then. I'd love to get one someday but they just get more and more expensive
Ok-Armadillo-392@reddit
Millennials are definitely into them. All my friends had second fen camaros. Some chevelles novas etc. But it was only the rust buckets mostly. Prices were always stupid for what you got so it was easier to go with a fox body or a third Gen or a diesel truck.
Cross-Country@reddit
Millennial here. We adore them, they’re a pipe dream for us. We can’t afford what boomers demand for them. You can find one with a tree growing through the engine bay, and they want $60,000 for it because “I know whut I got.”
Blog_Pope@reddit
They will be beanie babies in another 20 years, the boomers and older Gen X like me won’t be buying.
yallknowme19@reddit
I was lucky to fulfill all of my car owning dreams when the older Caddies were still mostly just busted out used cars. I had Eldorados and Deville Coupes and whatever on minimum wage.
Nowadays a bust out 68 Cadillac on Marketplace is $5-8k
farmerben02@reddit
Gen x and we sold our 98 cobra after 22 years enjoying it. The guy who bought it was 78. We go to the mecum auctions and dream but we would be more interested in a 70s mercury Marquis or 60s Cadillac. My Dad had a 1968 1/2 barracuda with top trim that he raced, and sold in the 70s. That would be worth a quarter mil today.
FindingUsernamesSuck@reddit
I think this is becoming the general statement of a generation, maybe two.
Many-Perception-3945@reddit
I also shared that dream as a teenager despite 0 mechanical aptitude whatsoever... now my interest is basically nil between the cost of entry and the anxiety of sourcing parts.
totallystraightguy94@reddit
The new generations don't have money to burn on vintage cars generally. I'd love to buy a fun car for Sunday drives but it's financially impossible with prices rn
Deep-Egg-9528@reddit
The price for Chevelles is bananas. The area where I live seems to have about a dozen 1969 Camaros listed on various sites for over $100,000. The market for 6-figure muscle cars is definitely drying up as boomers die off.
ContributionBorn9105@reddit
What do you mean? I own a 25 year old c5 corvette its legally an a classic in my state, cost me 13k lol jk
SuspiciousAlfalfa884@reddit
As the boomers die off there will be a big inventory increase and prices will drop. Families will have to sell grandpa or dad’s hobby cars. Cycle of life.
lvbuckeye27@reddit
The reason is that they haven't made a 1969 SS Chevelle in 56 years, and even the "common" ones are rare now. I saw a guy destroy a 1970 Z/28 Camaro not too long ago. The light turned red and he romped on it. The thing is, he didn't see the cop in front of him until it was too late, so he locked up the brakes, went over the curb into the rocks, and over a pretty decent sized decorative shrub. The body looked all right, but he ripped the whole underside of the car out.
Also, that 1970 z/28 cost roughly $4500 in 1970. That translates to around $53k in 2025 dollars if the car is in good condition.
OverCorpAmerica@reddit
I see the markets flat and declining. As the muscle car generation is dying off, the vehicles they owned end up in the markets and not a lot of buyers scooping them up. As someone who is the son of a muscle car guy who just sold 2 muscle cars they went for short money in my opinion. Both gems, super clean, needed nothing, and sought after models.
One was 69 427 vet convertible that’s was very clean and built right. Block was 68 427, both tops, upgraded to 5 speed, and everything perfect and original except for those few things. Garage wall of trophies and only went for 55k.
Other was a 70 nova, non SS and built up 350, perfect condition, mild cam, sounded insane, and great all around cruiser and needed nothing. Everything in fantastic condition, Sold for 32k.
2 exceptional hot rods and I felt both were worth more and went for short money.
If I had the space I would of grabbed the 69 vet to keep in the family and a piece of my father and his handy work and passion for perfection. I have 2 toys in the garage and a high end daily driver. Kind of regretting it but I have too much on my plate and no solace for it.
Swamp_Donkey_7@reddit
Mid 40s here. I dabble in 1980s and 1990s cars. A lot of the consignment and auction places are overpriced. Poke around the private market and you can sometimes pay half of what a consignment shop does.
I imagine the folks buying at consignment shops are those that have more money than time. Some of these cars sit for 3-4+ months. Smaller buyer pool I guess, but apparently enough of a pool to sustain it.
What grinds my gears are the flippers. Guys that sit around FB marketplace all day with their trailer ready to go. See an underpriced car on FB, get there within the hour cash in hand. End of week the car is relisted for almost 2x without doing a damn thing to it. Mixed feelings on that. Yes…it’s a free country, but this is just making cheap project cars unobtainable to folks that can’t afford these premium prices on sub-premium examples.
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
I totally agree. I can’t believe the rusty junk I see advertised on FBMP for $20k or more. Or “rollers” for $25k-$30k that still need paint and interior repair in addition to a drivetrain. Even if you have the tools and skills to repair the rust and prep for paint, unless you own a paint shop, you’ll drop $20k on paint for a decent job and another $25k on the drivetrain. You might as well save yourself the time and trouble and pickup a Hellcat or ZL1.
RhubarbIcy9655@reddit
Which is why I waffle back and forth about selling my 1971 Cutlass. I already did the work I wanted to do to it, it drives nice and is faster than I really need. Went through all of the brakes, rebuilt suspension with attention to performance upgrades, 370" iron block LS with ported heads and a 227/232 cam, built 4l60 with 2800 stall converter, rebuilt 8.5" 10 bolt with new posi and 3.73 gears... the works. What I feel that it's worth is probably below what others would ask because though it has zero rust issues, the paint is showing its age having been done in the early 2000's.
Quake_Guy@reddit
Exactly the cost of bodywork kills most ideas of fixer uppers. 30 years ago, $1k got you a half decent paint job including minor dent work.
StuffIanWrote@reddit
I don’t have mixed feelings about flippers. They’re the bottom-feeders of the free market; and the scourge of every hobby group.
KingDavid73@reddit
Millennials are like 40. We think these cars are cool, but there's no way we can afford them.
JoshPum@reddit
I was recently watching a garage/car collection tour on 1320 video's YouTube channel. Dude had almost 1000 cars, almost all of them were American classics. He said that he won't buy any more because the prices have gotten so high in the last 5 years. I think that says ALOT about the current classic car market. Link to the video Little side story, the guy I bought my first go kart from had a 50s Chevy in the driveway, i dont remember what model. He said it could be mine for $1500, thing ran great, this was like 8 years ago and I seriously regret not buying it.
RandomUsername259@reddit
The classic car market is traditially used to launder money or transfer large sums of money without stoking questions.
Desperate_Platypus34@reddit
1st gen Mustang's with the inline 6 and C code v8's were made in huge numbers and still plentiful. They make for a relatively affordable gateway into owning and restoring or restomodding classic cars. Aside from the interior bits, which are ridiculously expensive for some reason, parts are cheap and mostly still being reproduced. Hell, Dynacorn sells a brand new fastback shell for around 17k. You could probably build one from the ground up, entirely out of catalog parts.
7378f@reddit
Born in 86 and all I want in life is a 70' Chevelle SS resto-mod. I'll never have the money but a guy can dream.
Raivotril@reddit
In finland all the 40-80 years old guys are cruising in old usa vehicles, younger on volvos or newer bmw or mercedes
Commercial_Wind8212@reddit
I would just buy a new challenger
fredout1968@reddit
I did just that. I am a Gen X late 60's kid and while looking for a fun car. I looked at a bunch of old Mopars. They were all $40 to $50K and none were perfect. I have the room to store a car, but not really to work on a car .. So the decision was simple if I have to spend that kind of money, why not get something new that comes with a warranty and scratches the old school itch. I ended up with a Go Mango Scat Shaker 6 sp. It definitely feels old school but starts every time and has all the creature comforts. I am very happy with it.. That said, I still like the older cars a lot too. I wish that I had a bigger garage! 😆
Commercial_Wind8212@reddit
fuel injection and ECU. better in all ways
outline8668@reddit
Except new cars have no soul.
fredout1968@reddit
Yeah, hard to argue. Maybe the ECU being locked to prevent molding is a negative for some people, but in the overall I'll take FI everyday.
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
Hard to argue with that. Best retro treatment out there.
Noncompliant1776@reddit
Boomers got rich off the housing market and if they have stock portfolios they made even more. That’s who is buying them
Bulky_Dingo_4706@reddit
Gen Z here with $300k in Google stock.
Noncompliant1776@reddit
That would be the exception to the rule. There are not a lot of Gen Z with $300k in stock, but there are a lot of boomers who made a lot of money on the housing market.
Bulky_Dingo_4706@reddit
I was taught early about finances, but I’m also in a fortunate position. I still live at home at 25, and try to invest 80% of my pay. Others look down on it, but I’m building as much as I can before I move out. Google is my biggest position (I think it’s undervalued).
Noncompliant1776@reddit
Yeah, I moved out and got my own place when I turned 18 so I had already been living on my own as an adult for seven years at that point.
Traditional-Pop4103@reddit
43 here. Bought a 64SS Impala all original in 2017. 20k. Today at that price all that I see are rotted out shells. I recently saw a 64 convertible Impala w/ a 409 that needed trunk and floor pans replaced and a new engine, the asking price was $33,000. Ridiculous. Currently looking at C4 corvettes. Seems to be the best bang for your buck. If you want a manual 2door V8 that can move.
nopulsehere@reddit
There’s a lot of new money in all age brackets. I’m getting ready to hit 50. I got my first C-10 when I was a senior in high school for 5k? Three in the tree. Loved that truck. Did some upgrades and custom work. Low budget. Lady ran a stop sign and T-boned me. Been looking for the last few years and the market is 30-45k. One went for 55k. It needed some work. I get the impala, Camaro and the original muscle cars. But damn, now if it’s just old. It’s gonna cost you some coin to get it.
Mountain_Usual521@reddit
Man, I sold a 1968 Mercury Cougar with a 351 Cleveland in it for a couple hundred bucks when I was a kid. I should have kept it.
Trunksplays@reddit
So I make a good amount of money as a Gen Z individual.
When I see prices of muscle cars, and they push the levels of used super cars from the 90/00s, it’s sort of ridiculous to me.
Yes, there’s justification for the old school retro and American muscle. But 80k for a garage queen from 1965 or 80k for a used 1990s Ferrari? Sorry, I’d rather get the Ferrari. It’s not due a “flex factor,” it’s just people need to remember that there were a bunch of XYZ muscle cars made, and a far limited number of some of the other high dollar cars.
Take what I say with a grain of salt. But that’s just my view. It’s getting to a point where you’d honestly be better off selling your old muscle car and then buying it back when the market crashes lol.
wahoo20@reddit
It feels like the same thing I’ve noticed with pokemon cards or anything that people view as a money making exercise. A lot of older generations (Boomers and Gen X) that bought their classic cars either to restore or at a complete restore condition are offloading their prized pig hoping for a big return.
Economy might be an issue too, trying to get as much bang for their buck for an investment.
To be honest, as a millennial, I would kill for the chance to get some of these cars on auction sites or Facebook marketplace but they are just out of my budget. My generation is, on average, a decade or two behind our predecessor’s financial progress so we just don’t have the income to buy, restore, etc. my dad was into classic cars but I never got into it until the last few years. Bought a junker off fb marketplace and have enjoyed making it good again but it’s slow going with how much the economy has been run to shit. Dollar doesn’t go as far as it used to so getting into this “hobby” is tough.
mattynmax@reddit
Idk I would kill for a not rusted out C3 corvette in a cool (not white or black) color. Unfortunately every one I’ve seen is either more than a new luxury car or has been destroyed.
Ki77ycat@reddit
Not yet a classic. A couple more years to go. I have a 2003 Mustang GT Centennial Coupe. Only 717 were produced. I'm sitting on 14k miles and saw one sell at auction for $25,400 with 14k miles last year. That's about what it cost new.
If you look at it objectively, keeping and maintaining these is expensive. Let's say I sell this when it's 25vyears of age for $25k and paid $26k. That's a $1000 loss. Add a new set of tires every 10 years (yeah, I know, not many miles. Well tires deteriorate over time and they become dangerous,even if they look perfectly fine. Learned the hard way.) There's $2500 in costs. Add in annual insurance cost. There's an additional $27k in costs, just to have it sitting around under a car cover in the garage. So there's sunken cost of almost $30k + initial purchase price of $28k for $58k, but I can only get back $25k, so sorry if the price is high, but I took good care of it for you so stop complaining. Besides, had I invested $28k instead of buying a car, it would now be worth $191,757.31 if I had managed it at 8% growth. The rest of my investments have averaged 10.3% average over 35 years, so if I had invested it and received my average return, that would be worth $324,747.52. So owning a classic car is not a good investment decision.
Furthermore, had I also not paid insurance or purchased tires, oil changes abd fluid changed on a car I didn't buy, then added that cost back into the investment account, I would have an investment account worth over $455k.
Just something to think about if you are thinking about ;buying a classic car.
AqueousBucket48@reddit
Gen z, I'd be buying them if I could afford more than the bare minimum of gas, insurance, and groceries a month. Doesn't help my truck is thirsty
RacerXrated@reddit
Judging by the serial relistings and their prices, nobody.
ImTheJewgernaut@reddit
Millenial here, and I own two early 70s Dodge E and A body cars. The problem isn't that we don't care, it's that we aren't going to spend auction prices on cars that really aren't that practical.
I was lucky enough to find both of mine beat to hell on craigslist and slowly work them how I wanted them. I used to care about the numbers matching, low production, highpower big block cars, but they just aren't worth the money. I want something more akin to Roadkill, because it's cheap fun. I don't want a garage queen that gets trailered to events in hopes of getting some trophy or accolade.
JCC114@reddit
Prices are actually down for cars outside of the most mainstream models. Likely coming down for all soon as lumbar futures fall in and gold rising along with dozens of other indicators screams the economic bubble is popping soon.
cdsbigsby@reddit
Tons of millennials and Gen-Z love classic cars. Most of us can't afford a house with room for an extra car, or the extra money for a hobby car, let alone be able to justifiably afford the price the cars themselves are going for these days.
flabberghastedbebop@reddit
The question isn't really what you would like to buy now (but can't bc you are relatively young & poor), but rather what classic car will you want in 15-25 years when the kids are grown and you have some money. I think the inventory of 60s-70s (high) classics vs the future demand (likely low) will cause a huge crash in prices for these cars. Right now we are living through the period of dying boomers who "know what they have" and history shows a lot of these cars won't sell until the old man dies and his kids get rid of his stuff.
iHaveLotsofCats94@reddit
If I could have scored a house with a garage, I would have in a heartbeat. Already have to play musical cars with the SO depending on who has to leave first in the morning unless I want to take my truck to work, which is parked on the grass lol. She told me I'm not allowed to park any more cars in the yard so I'm stuck with 3 max for the time being. Otherwise I'd have a classic project too
Bulky_Dingo_4706@reddit
Speak for yourself in the last sentence, please.
Quake_Guy@reddit
Millennials are doing better financially, at least the top tier when compared to the same group / same age of Gen X.
Raalf@reddit
Funny you mention the house part. Around here (Florida and Texas) the boomers closed in all the garages to add an extra 500-800sqft to their middle class house to squeeze more perceived value. Just finding a garage with 2-3 spots is a unicorn for any house under 600-800k.
AlwaysBagHolding@reddit
I’m a millennial, with money and space for one and I can’t justify something like a 69 Camaro. I’ve got a 4 door hard top 66 caprice that scratches the same itch and I have less in it than a rotten in half shell of a first gen Camaro would cost me.
4 doors and long bed pickup trucks are the deep discount way to get essentially the same experience, and I have both.
ProtonSlack@reddit
As someone from the Late Millennial/Early Gen Z generation (born in 1999) I can say that if it weren’t so prohibitively expensive, I would absolutely buy and restore a classic muscle car.
I recognize that I’m speaking only from my viewpoint, but the friends that I have would also be in the same boat. We go to cruise nights and shows, do all the events. But we’d never go to an auction, simply because none of us have the obnoxious amount of money needed to buy something at the auction.
If some boomer with money to spend really wants a 3rd Camaro to rebuild, there’s a high likelihood he has more disposable money than I do and he’ll end up with it.
Coupe368@reddit
Money was cheap and boomers just bought all kinds of crap.
Boomers won't be around long, and those cars will be utterly worthless.
I have a 70 442 that is just OK, but honestly if my father hadn't bought it new then I wouldn't be able to justify the upkeep and it would have been gone a long time ago.
Think of all the crap boomer parents have been hoarding for decades that will immediately go in the dumpster as soon as they pass on.
You can add a lot of muscle cars to that list.
cscracker@reddit
It's all rich boomers driving the prices through the roof. Nobody else can afford them.
2lovesFL@reddit
The question I want answered is, who has all the Tbucket and 32 fords, shoeboxes, and other hot rod with the crazy paint jobs.
-like the mussle cars now, the buyers are older wealthy guys buying their youth dream cars.
Who's buying those guys dream cars, now that they are too old and fat.
magaketo@reddit
Nobody. Prices have been stagnant for a long time. They were precious, now many fewer people are interested in a 100 year old garage queen that needs tinkering every time you drive it.
2lovesFL@reddit
Exactly!
So who's going to buy the 69 Z/28's and mach 1 mustangs in 20 years.... when today's buyers are too old or dead.
magaketo@reddit
Buyers will never be an issue. Stagnation in pricing will be.
Top-Pick-2648@reddit
Seems like current generation has 0 interest in the classic muscle cars, the ones that do have automobile interest, seems to be toward JDM
maljr1980@reddit
Well a brand new car that would be similar to a 69 SS is going to run you around $60k as well. You want an iconic car that’s either mint and reliable or has been restored. Not really sure what you’re expecting here.
ThisIsMyBoomstick667@reddit
As a millennial, I can tell you it is definitely well-off boomers. I am in a classic VW club and I am by far the youngest by 25-30 years. I've gone to general classic car shows and am still the youngest. Yea, there are a couple young-ish people, but they drove their father's car.
People buy cars associated with their nostalgia, which is why in my age group, people are buying 90s and early 00s cars (I have a 2002 car exactly in the spec I always wanted, and get offers every now and then to buy it). That's the vehicle I grew up with and so it has a specific part of me in it.
I'm lucky that I can wrench on cars, have a garage, flexible work hours, etc.. but most people my age don't have all that. The floor will fall out of the classic car market when boomers get too old to drive those muscle cars or die out. Their kids don't want them bc they are working and have a side hustle, no time to work on them and likely don't have any nostalgia associated with them unless it was in the family for decades (often not).
bjorn_egil@reddit
The main problem, at least in my area, is that even a car that's barley possible to rebuild now cost the same as one needing a light resto cost 10-15 years ago
Raging_Dick_Shorts@reddit
I wish I could buy a 68 camaro, but damn the prices are through the roof!
Caspers_Shadow@reddit
I (60M) sold my '65 Mustang after having it 20 years. I looked at it as having money in the bank. I was very unlikely to take a huge loss on it down the road. Granted I could have invested the money and made out better, but I was already doing that. I got $40K for it and the buyer shipped it overseas. What makes less financial sense is buying high-dollar new cars, boats and RVs that plummet in value.
oneaccountaday@reddit
I’d love a 454 4 speed chevelle, or a 64 civilian power wagon.
The reality is what am I going to do with it?
A new Camaro would roast the Chevelle, my duramax would run circles around the power wagon. So they’re basically just toys.
I’d love a 427 corvette but I’m not dropping 100k+ when I can get a brand new one for not much more.
This is the same deal with Harley’s, us millennials don’t won’t them. I get mocked for not wanting a road or street glide, and then I get mocked for wanting one with a foot clutch.
It’s one of those “okay, fine, keep your old junk, I’d appreciate it and be one of the few left that could actually drive it, but I’ll just wait when that 50k Harley is worth about 5k and that numbers matching 75k chevelle is 10-15k.”
So to answer your question we’re here, the prices are just way overinflated, we’ll wait.
The5thVikingHorseman@reddit
My brother and I are saving up to buy our dad a mid 60's GTO. He sold his when he married our mom.
OkMushroom364@reddit
Im 35 if i could afford a classic muscle car rare or not i would buy or more
KnowledgeEmotional60@reddit
Can't ignore in this equation the inflation we have experienced in the last 5-10 years. The cost to paint a car has increased 5x's from what it used to be. Materials are way up. Parts are very expensive- even with Chinese reproduction parts. Machine shop labor for engine builds is almost impossible to find and when you do prepare to sell an organ to pay the cost. Shop rates have also gone up for both mechanical and body labor. These factors drive the market as well.
I'm a millennial. I grew up in a home with muscle cars in the garage from the time I was about 15. By the time I turned 28 the fleet had doubled in value. I was a proffesional in the automotive world for the first half of my adult life. I don't think the bottom will ever fall out of these vehicles completely. There will be some market checks and stabilization of prices but american car culture is strong.
Traditionally when the market flounders boomers will pull money from Wallstreet and find better ways to enjoy it. As several of my customers said- if I'm gonna lose money on an investment I may as well enjoy it.... but none of those people lost money- there automotive investments showed a lower rate of return than index funds but they got plenty of Smiles Per Gallon.
The market will work itself out but the days of Mach I's for $17000 are only accessible via a very special DeLorean.
PaulanerMunken@reddit
I’m early Gen Z with disposable income. I would love to own a classic muscle car. I love checking those out when I go to cars and coffee, especially the ones for sale.
You old guys want 60k+ for a Camaro. Sure it’s restored and looks mint but for that price I could buy a brand new car that I can finance.
Fox7285@reddit
It shuts you out for sure. I'm a millennial and when I bought my classic I went for what I could afford and could work on.
Bought a four door, slant 6, 62 Dart. Not much power, but it was fun. I sold it because nothing had broken and I didn't want to get stuck with $1000 in parts.
trap_money_danny@reddit
You're failing to appraise nostalgia.
largos7289@reddit
Watching too many barret jackson BS. It's rich dudes that just throw away money. Case in point in the 90's early 2000's you couldn't touch a 57 chevy coupe for anything less then 50k could be a shit box and get 25k. Now i see them all over for 15k and are not sold. The market just fell out on them. My 72 camaro RS is a labor of love and i don't care it's my car. My one kid wants the car and told her it's her's when i'm gone. My friend's son cold give a crap he's like whatever gets me from point A to B. Maybe i'll buy a vette later in life. He's gen Z it's not the same as when we were young. The car represented freedom, the ability to get in a just go. They see cars as an expense they don't want.
Overcast451@reddit
I am Gen X and have always been a 'gearhead'. I would absolutely love to buy an old muscle car. Even some of the lower end ones appeal to me. Like a 1976/77 Cutlass Salon S with T-Tops.. always wanted one. And of course, I would prefer a late 60's Chevelle, Challenger, or Camaro without a doubt!!!
But I am also older and wiser. What they want tor these cars just isn't pragmatic for me anymore. There are many other places to spend cash for enjoyment even.
For the price of most 'classic muscle cars' in good shape, I could buy a boat and have my roof re-done at the house.. and it would STILL be cheaper. Especially when you factor in outrageous insurance prices on collector's cars and the way people drive now. Especially these phone-tards that can't put the f$cking thing down even while driving.
Was always a seriously huge desire for me to own one.. just not worth it to be honest, with so many options out there.
And I did just look at some '76-77 Cutlasses online out of curiosity. A couple 'so/so' ones under $10K, but the rest are like $25K+
Yeah, that's a metal roof, a new compound bow, and a remote control mower.
BUT that's also the price of new crap too - new crap is even worse. So I drive an older truck, and while that 2004 F150 isn't 'sexy' it's a very solid truck. It needs enough preventative maintenance to keep my wrenches and impact tools from getting rusty, lol.
Just honestly.. for $35K, you can keep that Cutlass. Because for that very same price, I can get a brand new boat and take the whole family out on the lake anytime for fun. Sure, it's season limited - but who's driving a 1970's muscle car worth $35K in the snow? :)
Not saying I wouldn't LOVE to have something from the 60's or 70's... I most certainly would, was a dream of mine for many years. Just can't justify that particular item (as I already have two cars) over something like a new roof or putting more away for retirement. It's just simply not practical enough for the cost. For me at least.
No hate to those who can afford one - enjoy :)
nickmiller_of_pgh@reddit
I’m a millennial and I have a handful of 30’s-60’s American cars, and a bunch of old Harley’s. I have a handful of friends into it too, but by and large we’re buying basket cases not finished cars, I watch eBay and market place and nothing seems to sell. I think as the boomer generation ages out the value of this stuff is gonna tank. I think it’s started already. My guess is in the next 10 years the market is saturated and values on most stuff collapse. Obviously not rare and highly optioned stuff. I am also concerned that as boomer generation ages out a lot of the knowledge disappears too. Most millennials don’t know how to work on them. This more or less happened with model t’s already.
Gen_Ecks@reddit
Older Gen X here and prefer 80s-90s cars over 60s classics. Have had a few C4s and a Z28 from the era. Love to own a first gen Camaro but not paying the money it takes. Just not worth it to me. And I’ve about given up my dream to own a C2 Corvette.
salvage814@reddit
You are looking at the wrong metric. Auctions, eBay and consignment shops inflate the price always. If you look at dealer prices, private sales, estate auctions prices are down on muscle cars. You just gotta look around.
BabaThoughts@reddit
Similar to 1950’s vehicles. The market collapsed for those when that generation got old, died off. Seems Gen Z are more into 1980’s/1990’s Japanese and European.
Miliean@reddit
I mean, that's the case with all used cars right now. But the truth is that a car made in the 65, was loved by someone who was a 16 at that time (so born 1949). And that person is 76 today. They're past the peak earning years and are now well and truly retired. If this person was going to buy a muscle car, they would have done so 10 (give or take) years ago when they likely retired.
If you assume that a used enthusiast car's market peaks when it's fans turn 65, and you assume that people love the cars that were new when they were first driving as teenagers then the cars that are at peak today were made in 1976.
Now where our model falls apart is that in 1976, cars were shit and everyone knew it. The gas crisis, the new EPA regulations took the muscle cars of the 60s and neutered them in the 70s.
My guess would be that the 16 year olds of the 70s knew this and so they still idolized the muscle cars of the 60s and early 70s. So we're seeing artificially inflated muscle car values today because of this.
So the short answer is that the boomers are not quite aging out of this car market. It's also worth noting that there is a massive clump of wealth that's sitting with the boomers, much more so than prior generations of older people.
The truth is that the cars are slowing down but still selling. But they're going to hit a wall and when they do it's going to go a lot faster than with older generations of cars. Values of those muscle cars are going to plumet and plumet quickly once things take the turn.
Dnlx5@reddit
Man Im 35 and make 6 figures, I stopped dreaming of muscle cars mostly because of the value proposition.
An ss camaro would be amazing, but so is a 2020 GT350, and its way more usable. Hell, a miata for half the price would be cool, I have an old fiat x1/9 im restoring thats cool, a v8 swap in a japanese car is cool...
You have to really want a specific experience these days to get a muscle car.
Blemo71797@reddit
Plenty of Millennials and Gen Z love classic muscle. We can’t afford it. A dollar could buy a lot more 40 years ago and wages haven’t kept up worth shit
rezwrrd@reddit
Plus cars, especially classic muscle cars or anything sporty, have just become so much more expensive. People "know what they've got" and want a fortune for it.
AhBuckleThis@reddit
I’m Genx and I’ve owned my 69 Camaro for 23 years. I overpaid for it in 2002 and spent over $50,000 fixing it up. The cost to restore these cars is huge. I would spend approximately $20-30,000 more just to do what I did over the years. Also, collectors made the rarer cars worth insane money. Everyone with a project car thinks it’s made of gold because a 1969 Camaro z28 sold for over $100,000, but your average car is expensive because of labor cost.
I did all the work on my car except for the paint. I paid $15,000 to have my car painted back in 2010. It’s probably double that now. No way I’m selling my car for $20,000 lol. I just put a Tremec TKX 5spd, new scatter shield, and an aluminum radiator in and spent over $7,000 just in parts.
I think young kids like the cars. Every single one of my kids friends loves going for a ride in it. Normally they are always talking, but when they are in my Camaro, they are quiet taking it all in. There is interest, it’s just too expensive for younger kids unfortunately. That’s why you always see a gray haired old dude driving a brand new vette because he can finally afford it.
Reliability isn’t an issue as long as you upgraded the ignition and cooling systems. Almost no one runs the stock drum brakes anymore and suspension and tire technology has vastly improved how these cars handle. You really need to be in a good financial position to own nowadays as it really is hobby.
DoctorSquibb420@reddit
Millennial here, i care deeply about classic cars. Im a licensed mechanic also. Problem is I can't afford a house with a garage or anywhere realistic to keep the car unless i want to drive to a storage locker on the bad side of town every time i want to look at it.
Important-Year-2861@reddit
Gen X wants the cars from their youth. Boomers want the cars from their youth.
I think you’ll find Gen X going for 80s and 90s vehicles. I think you’ll find boomers looking at these too. It was a transition time where the old tech such as engines met the newer tech like brake boosters, early fuel injection and the return of horsepower.
JONOV@reddit
Boomers aren’t aging out. My dad is 73, and only in the last few years would he have considered spending that kind of money on a discretionary luxury like a classic car. The youngest boomers are still a few years from 65 and retirement. The guy who’s now 75 realizes he only has 15-20 years left, tops, might be less apprehensive about buying the dream car.
Workingiceman@reddit
15-20 years?? More like 0-10.
JONOV@reddit
Speaking more from a financial planning perspective. You don’t want to plan to run out at 85 and live to 90 and be destitute the last five.
If you make it to 65 the actuarial tables on life expectancy shift and you’re probably going to make it to 80. If you’re married at 65 at least one of you will (statistically speaking) make it to 90.
michaelfkenedy@reddit
Yep my dad 71 called me the other day asking if id like to restore a car with him
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
True.
thebigbrog@reddit
I certainly think the reason the prices are so high is that the cost to restore a car is high. I currently have two. A 73 Charger that I have been collecting parts for as I can afford. The car is a basket case but these old cars are getting rarer by the day so you restored what you can. I’m seeing the light myself as the parts list adds up and I know that certain things like bodywork are not in my skill set so I have to farm that out and people don’t work for free. I will have a pretty penny tied up in the car when complete. To put it simply I also restored a 99 Accord for fun and it’s now my daily driver. I dumped $8k into the car with upgraded leather interior, body kit, custom paint, wheels and tires, a few more things. Just asking 8k for the car not factoring in hours of work on it and no one wanted to pay more than $2k for it. So I kept it. Why should anyone spend what it takes to restore a car and then basically loose money because others that want to own one can’t or don’t want to spend the money to buy it. If it looks like shit they bitch and want it for free. If it looks beautiful they want it but all they want is for you to sell it to them for the junk price you paid to drag it home in the beginning and think you are crazy for asking for what it costs to actually get it to that condition of beauty again.
jkenosh@reddit
I’m 50+ and have the income to buy one but ain’t really that interested, I have a newer scat pack and it’s fast and comfortable, I went to test drive a 1988 mustang gt and was amazed how slow it was, my wife’s minivan could of outrun it
VW-MB-AMC@reddit
90% of the people I see in them are 50+. The majority of them are probably over 60.
I am a millennial myself and I have been interested in muscle cars and other classic cars my entire life. I would very much like to own a muscle car myself, but I can not justify spending that much money on something that would essentially be a big toy car. And with the gas prices we have in my country I would hardly afford to drive it. Instead I buy cars I can afford to both buy, own and drive. I refuse to borrow money to do my hobby.
dumbname0192837465@reddit
Boomers mostly, they've propped up the muscle car and vintage american guitar market for years. More so clone SS chevells and fake yen kosher and les pauls.
Lupine_Ranger@reddit
Boomers have priced everyone else out of classic muscle cars. They've done the same with a lot of things. The "fuck you, I got mine", hoarder mentality, and "flipper" mentality ruined it for anyone who wasn't born early enough. It's a trend shown very similarly in vintage firearms as well.
As boomers die off, their estates either become part of auctions, or are sold privately by their children (for the most part), and are purchased by other boomers because they have the money and interest. Eventually, as the generation dies off, we'll see a market crash or reset to more affordable levels. Think crystal glassware or Hummel figurines. Younger generations will pick up some interest as prices fall, and prices will rise again to match interest. Icons like Chargers, Challengers, Corvettes, Camaros, Mustangs, etc will always be "expensive".
crdog@reddit
43 married with kids and a 72 Nova all in im at 40k and im looking at putting a new rear end in this winter.
Watch ya think?
CalebCaster2@reddit
Id love to have one, but the '69 mustang with the half rotted frame and no engine on Facebook marketplace is unironically the price of a brand new corolla. In this economy, I think retired boomers are selling them to retired boomers.
One-Inch-Punisher-@reddit
Gen Z here, 22 years old. I would daily a classic muscle car in a headlight if I could afford it. Right now I’m cruising with an 07 Mustang GT. Good enough for now I suppose
Psychological-Age602@reddit
Not me. I got a GR Corolla instead.
mymomsaidiamsmart@reddit
Wish it was me selling. As a car nut who has owned my share of older muscle cars, they have been about the best investment had you seen the future 15 years ago. One of my biggest retreats is not having all the cars I have owned and just put them in storage. Classic muscle car prices are Insane. $500k invested 12-15 years ago , you could retire from selling them today. $250k in old cars 20 years ago and your giving your grandkids money. 60’s -mid to late 70’s muscle cars are like their weight in gold today. I’m not a mechanic by any means, I tell my kids I would be broke if I knew how to work on my own cars. I would have a warehouse full of them but looking forward it would have been the best way to enjoy an asset and watch it go up 3-6 plus fold .
Morgenstern24@reddit
Look man, I’m gonna be 30 this month right, so your idea that millennials don’t want or care about muscle cars ain’t exactly right, but my dream car that I’ll never be able to find or even afford is an Oldsmobile 442. Is even restore an old junked one if I could afford it.
VanHam17@reddit
Give this situation another ten years… prices will be falling precipitously.
XxJabba666xX@reddit
Gen Z still likes muscle cars lol. Gen Z doesn’t have really have the money yet to buy the classic cars of their dreams yet. Millennials tho, they seem to have lost the plot.
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
My son is a millennial and developed an interest being around mine, but he’s now raising a family and that’s an extravagance that he can’t really afford right now, even though he makes good money. I am proud of the fact that he’s still drives a manual. We built an SN95 Mustang GT 5sp that he drove for more than a decade before buying a 5sp BMW and now I just bought a WRX with a 6sp. He’s an engineer and may still end up with a muscle car, but will probably have to build it. He has the skills.
TrilliumHill@reddit
I'm a bit older than your son, but in about the same position. First car was a 240z, kicked around an old TA with the 400 small block. When my kids were young, I did get another formula firebird, but it just wasn't the same. Sold it to get a Mitsubishi Evo, and it's just hard to look back at the old muscle in the same way.
Then there's the support vehicles you need. Something to daily and a truck to haul parts or trailer a toy to the track. I still like the fat fenders from the 40's, muscle from the 60's, and the euro and Japanese coups that are now getting into classic territory. There's just more to pick from, and it has to complete with my truck that does 0 to 60 in 4 seconds flat.
Will prices fall? Probably not, seems like they have hung around the price of a new car now for decades, it's just inflation is a bitch.
XxJabba666xX@reddit
That’s perfect! I’ve been building up knowledge over the year and have deep interest in German vehicles. Opted for a GTI and have a fat turbo. I think the real difference it you folk like NA big beefy motors and the new guys more prefer adding boost
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
True. Those of us brought up on big displacement and gobs of on hand torque find it hard to wait for the boost. :)
XxJabba666xX@reddit
And that’s perfectly fine! Im down for a big kick in the ass from the torture monster. But with smooth driving you can stay in boost pretty damn easy in my GTI
Mdlage@reddit
I’m a mid 30s millennial. I talk to others my age between 30-40 and a lot of them state their dream car or idea of a “real cool car” is a classic muscle car.
Many of them say they’d rather have an “Eleanor” or “general lee” than a lambo/ferrari.
Now, with that said, a lot of these guys have 500k+ net worths at least and still don’t buy those classic muscle cars and still are driving Toyota/honda economy cars or American trucks.
Maybe it’s just because they view those cars as less flashy and aren’t flashy guys, maybe it’s because they grew up watching them in tv and movies with their parents who also passed the love of those cars down to them.
I can tell you though, none of them are actually bringing out the cash to pay for these cars.
And I also think by the time they’re 75, they’re probably going to be buying a lot of “their generations cars” just like the boomers are not all lining up to buy model ts of the generations before them, Millennials will probably be chasing 90s sports cars, nsx, dodge viper, the cars they had as youths, 350z, etc.
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
You’re probably right. I do think that if you didn’t grow up with these classic cars and you go out and drive one, after being used to the late model tech and reliability, you’ll be disappointed. It’s a much different driving experience and you need to know how to work on them, as they always need tweaking. They aren’t reliable push-button performance like a current SS, GT or SRT.
Rapom613@reddit
I think there is also a bit of speculative money getting into cars as a whole, guys have seen the return on certain cars and think they are a good investment, this driving the prices up.
halfcocked1@reddit
I always have this discussion with my brother, who is 10 years older than me (he's 60). His first car was a '72 Charger that he got for $100 and dropped an engine into it. He sees cars for what they used to be worth and can't imagine paying the prices they go for now. I think many enthusiasts have the same mindset. When he complains about a '71 Mustang for $25k (for example), I point out that they don't make them like that anymore, and that a new Mustang costs $50k. I think when you compare the muscle cars to new cars, it IS apples to oranges, but at the same time, many people are buying new sports cars as a toy, much like a muscle car, so is still sorta apples to apples. So the choice is still there...Do you pay $70k for a newer Hellcat Charger, or do you want to pay $70k for a '69 Charger?
ardit33@reddit
Your friends, duh. There are fewer of these cars surviving and lots of boomers with money.
sleevieb@reddit
If you want to see where muscle car prices are headed look at pre war and brass era cars. Virtually unsellable with except the most desirable examples. Same thing will come for muscle cars, especially as zoomers cant drive, much less stick, and the next war will send gas over $5.
ProStockJohnX@reddit
Well some people will pay $45-60K for a restored car because they want something turnkey that looks great.
The restomods, protouring cars, big bucks. The people buying them generally understand the additional work that went into a build like that (minitubs, Detroit Speed suspension, custom triangulated 4-links, LS/LT + blower swaps. I have a friend who has spent about $130K building his '68 Camaro into a protouring build (LSX engine, Whipple blower, custom leather, AC, etc).
I hang out with some of the guys in the restomod/protouring community, though my car is a very light '67 LS turbo Camaro that is more of a drag car I cruise once in a while (8 second car).
Spud8000@reddit
i have heard numerous reports that classic car prices are diving.
like you said, the younins do not want those....they want cars from the 2000's
Bulky_Dingo_4706@reddit
Speak for yourself.
michaelfkenedy@reddit
I’m 40. I pondered this question as well.
In my 20s and early 30s I owned and restored two classics.
At this point in my life, new family, saving for retirement, paying down my mortgage, I feel that owning a classic would be an idiotic thing to do. I could probably make it work, but for what you get, there’s just better things to do with time and money and space.
I’m also bored of them. I no longer get excited when I see a Chevelle or a Mustang or Camaro or Challenger. Occasionally, I see something unique and I get excited, but it wears off quickly.
magaketo@reddit
Thousands of Camaros, Mustangs, Corvettes, Chevelle's, Chargers, Challengers, etc. are sitting in garages everywhere and only come out for the dream cruise. They are not rare by any measure. Lol. I am really tired of seeing all of those cars. I'd much rather see a classic being dailied and enjoyed, even if it has a few bumps and bruises.
michaelfkenedy@reddit
Yup
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
I get the yawn factor. I feel the same way. I used to attend a lot of car shows and show off the cars I restored or just spectate, and enjoyed it at the time. I had a badass black 69 Camaro that I dressed out to a RS-Z28 clone with a 565hp 509ci BB, Tremec 5sp, Moser 12 bolt and thought I was king of the street. That was big power 20 years ago, but today it would struggle to keep up with a newer lightly modded Mustang GT, much less a Hellcat or Trackhawk. New tech with factory boost and huge brakes with computerized suspension has made the older tech seem boring. I appreciate the art in some of the restomodded classics I seen as the fabrication is very impressive on some of them, but it takes a lot for me to stop and look nowadays.
michaelfkenedy@reddit
It isn’t the power that I yawn at. I don’t care much about power.
It’s the bodies.
“Oh look, another Chevelle.” “That’s a 442.” Oh…right.
I tend to get excited over shit I haven’t seen, or weird shit. Which in my neck of the woods is usually European.
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
It’s the engineering and fabrication that I notice.
michaelfkenedy@reddit
Yea that too. Especially if you have wrenched.
I look at panel fit and paint completely different now. I like to see things in accessible places. Neat solutions or weird solutions.
PigSlam@reddit
My dad's buddy has around a dozen now. He restored a 70 Chevelle in the late 1990s and took it as far as a car can go on whatever show circuit, and then just started buying/building variations on it ever since. He has a resto-mod with an LS6/Tremec setup, and some other platform mates. He has a few oddballs too, like a '30s Roll-Royce, and a fire truck.
Beard_Hero@reddit
I work in the restomod field. Mostly fords/lincolns. I have customers of all ages budget building 90’s-2010’s mustangs and f series trucks.
But when you get to the 60’s and early 70’s mustangs, or 66-77 bronco, or 50’-60’s f series, I have clients easily $100k+ deep into them if they aren’t doing all the work themselves. 60’s Lincoln’s as well.
As the price goes up, it moves from anyone who likes cars over to: business owners, retired upper management, end of career pilots, doctors, lawyers, real estate investors, pro athletes, actors. I have some international clients doing import/export, or even oil family money.
Prices are coming back down some vs 3 ish years ago.
Both_Painter_9186@reddit
Elder Millennial here. I’d fucking love a classic 69/70 BOSS Mustang, or… my dream car… a 1987 Buick Grand National.
I am relatively well off for a millennial. I own a nice home and have a good paying job. Dual income, spouse has good paying job too. I can’t see dropping half my annual salary on a toy when I have other obligations. Certainly not with this economy and job market.
PhiloBeddoe1125@reddit
A LOT of them go out of the country.
1453_@reddit
Simple supply and demand economics, just like everything else. As soon as supply outpaces demand, the prices will come down. Clearly that hasn't happened yet. If you can wait long enough when the boomers and gen Z's are dead, I'm sure the prices will come down. Not sure how you'll be able to restore anything while living in a nursing home.
NoStandard7259@reddit
Every day these cars get more rare. Cars get crashed, rotted away, parts get harder to find etc. mainly still boomers buying these cars but a lot of people who grew up with boomer parents loving these cars also grew up loving these cars. Still a great show car or drag car.
CleMike69@reddit
I’m a car guy I own a classic so I feel your pain with the pricing although mine has skyrocketed in value. You can’t touch a chevelle SS for under 40 typically. Your best bet is to find the guy who has one tucked away that nobody knows about and try to make a deal that’s how the dealers do it they hustle and get good deals then they tack on a massive profit and sell to a consumer.
robb76264@reddit
The issue is the cars people want to buy and restore are the same ones they wanted to buy and restore in the 90s. There's no such thing as a classic car after the mid 70s.
Ok_Barracuda_5059@reddit
There not worth the money, the bottom is going to fall out, they make lots off noise, there outdated technology and only go fast in a straight line, un reliable, for 60 to 90 way over priced!Boomers aren’t going to be around for ever, there kids or grand kid will just put them on the market !
overcatastrophe@reddit
Retired boomers with money.
Spaceman_Spliff_42@reddit
I’ve been wondering this too
adultdaycare81@reddit
15 more years they will sell. Then boomers die enmass and the genX’rs are old. Have to assume only the best sell after that
HiFiMarine@reddit
This is later GenX and boomers. When we all die and the EV overlords take over these are all going to be worthless
Toxic-Park@reddit
I came of driving age in the mid 90s (1995 to be exact) and I remember original, but still in very good, daily drivable condition examples going for between 6k - 10k. Of course there were some amazing, restored or rare examples much higher.).
So in my heart of hearts I just cannot even entertain numbers as absurd as these are now.
It honestly takes a huge amount of fun out of being a car enthusiast.
You at least like to know some great cars could at least be within reach for you.
It’s completely demoralizing to see these prices.
Diogenes256@reddit
I’ve always thought these things were overrated and I was around back then. I may catch hell for this, but most of them just weren’t good cars. I love some of the shapes, like any car guy and there is a romantic notion of the era. I love me a good restomod, But stock? So many of these things were just awful cars that were low quality, way too big with terrible handling and not actually fast. I get it, it’s a market and specific rarities, etc. Not looking for a fight, just my two bits
Street-Narwhal8067@reddit
Millennial here if I had any sort of money I'd be getting a classic. A real classic not some late 80s 90s bs
Questrader007@reddit
I have watched some of the Mecum auto auctions on X and youtube, they get absurd prices for originals Frankenstein's and some stuff that's partly restored.
magaketo@reddit
Inflation. Stockish Model A's were 20k for a great car when I was younger. They are still 20k for the same car 30 years later.
bobbobboob1@reddit
The way I did it was to offer what I valued the car at no matter what the asking price and walk away eventually landing my 57 210 for 12 k
billdizzle@reddit
The value is what someone will pay for it so you may think it doesn’t have that value but the market says it does
mikkowus@reddit
*millennials and Gen-Z couldn’t care less about them." Very much wrong there. No other time in car history cars looked better
Complete-One-5520@reddit
Boomers, the rest of us are broke.
Imaginary-Swing-4370@reddit
Early Gen x’r. I’ve always wanted at 70 cuda or challenger since HS. A 440 was about 16k back then ,now it’s in the 80-100k range. I can probably afford to buy one when I retire, but as I get older I don’t see the value, unless its for a investment standpoint but I want to drive it, aw decisions ,decisions.
NewtAcceptable2700@reddit
I’m a millennial with a very decent job. I’m also a car guy who loves all makes and models of cars. I’ve got a family, they come first. I’d love to spend money playing with a car. Wages have not kept up with inflation, so it’s not even an option.
Just to be clear I make six figures and am not a moron. I don’t drink, gamble, smoke, or frivolously waste money. I still cannot justify that amount of money. My living expenses are too high a percentage of my total income.
The justification is somehow paying people more will make everything unaffordable. So as an alternative, everything is just unaffordable anyway.
Silvy1500Z@reddit
As another commenter said, I think it is still the boomers keeping prices high. I know there are some outliers here from Gen Z saying “I would love one!” But realistically, the vast majority of people under 50 (or even 60… ) do not care, do not want to own one, or simply will never be able to afford it. When I would cruise my Duster around, half of the old guys thought it was a Torino from Starsky and Hutch. Young guys didn’t even notice. Eventually I believe we will see a market shift for 60s/70s muscle cars come back to more reasonable prices, but the days of a complete running/driving ‘69 Camaro with decent paint for $10k are long-over.
I say all of this as a 30 YO millennial who has owned and since sold (regrettably) a survivor 1972 Plymouth Duster 340. Currently own a “classic” original unmolested 1998 GMC Z71, a 1994 Jeep YJ, and a 1954 Ford F600.
Also, all the YouTubers need to stop buying classics for content, it keeps the prices high! Now get off my lawn!
Canelosaurio@reddit
Get a friend with a dealers license, shoot him a couple hundred bucks, and go to Manheim auctions, usually 2nd Thursday or Friday every month for classic and specialty cars.
Hersbird@reddit
I am 55 and have followed musclecar prices since 1984 I think the opposite is true. The prices have never been better. What was a $100,000 car 20 years ago is almost 1/2 that but $100,000 back then was a lot when I was making $25k a year. Now I make $100k and there are good cars under $50k.
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
There was a brief period before the housing collapse where the prices got crazy at auction. Anything with a Hemi in it was going for nearly half a million at Barrett Jackson and a lot of people were trying to purchase these cars at auction and then immediately flip them to catch the market appreciation. That fell through After the housing bust and never did fully recover because so many people lost their retirement savings thinking that it was just going to keep going. That said, prices are up again.
The televised auctions are not really a good gauge of value, because there’s so many factors that drive the price there. Lots of collectors and folks with money showing off on TV after several cocktails on a Saturday night results in crazy bidding. Most of what I’m talking about is the online auctions and consignments. Those cars aren’t really that special, but the pricing is crazy.
Hersbird@reddit
I long ago gave up on a factory Hemi car. I personally don't care if a car is original or not, I want to drive it so a clone is just fine for me. Don't need a real Roadrunner or SS car, just the correct 2 door hardtop to base it on. That said I have seen some "real" cars with some good prices too. My stepmother sold her real 68 SS396 Chevelle, a really clean car, amateur frame-off, 20-year-old restoration, for $10k 5 years ago when my dad passed away. I wasn't in a position for a $10k toy even though my dad and I built that car for her. She sold it to a younger couple in her small Montana town who were very happy to get their dream car. I'm not a big Chevy guy anyway although I did have a nice 70 Chevelle in high-school with a factory 300hp 350 and a Muncie m22 4 speed.
whitewolfdogwalker@reddit
This past Labor Day Auburn Collector Car Auction had some pretty low prices, not meeting the reserve.
hemibearcuda@reddit
Mostly collectors. The kind with money who only see them as investments.
They are killing the hobby for the rest of us.
polarityofmarriage@reddit
My dad got his 71 Chevelle recently… but he’s 69. I think it’s boomers getting boomers on the prices.
aj8j83fo83jo8ja3o8ja@reddit
The reason for the crazy inflation on the high end is not boomers, it’s overseas exports.
Boomers mostly have the cars they want by now. Saudi prince nephews however, cannot get enough and money is no object. That’s where all the perfect Charger R/Ts have gone, never to return. It’s a bummer.
Rude_Masterpiece_239@reddit
Millennial here. 43 y/o. Would love a late 60s/early 70s firebird but the nice ones I’d want are outrageous. I couldn’t imagine paying Porsche 911 money for a 1970 muscle car.
Once all you boomers die off maybe I’ll pick one up 😉
13374L@reddit
I would love to buy one, I just have no where to put it.
HarvesternC@reddit
Given the average age of the people driving 50s-70s cars, you'd think there would be a huge available inventory in the next couple decades, and prices dropping, but I think that is just wishful thinking. There will always be enough of a market for nice drivable classics that will keep the prices relatively high for the foreseeable future. We will also see a substantial rise in 80s and 90s cars (we already have), especially imports which a lot of the younger enthusiasts seem to prefer.
Tron_35@reddit
Im gen z and I would love a classic muscle car. 2 things stopping me, 1 is i just cannot afford it, 2 is i super can't afford it, I want something I can drive daily, and im not in a place in my life where I can have 2 vehicles. One day its a dream of mine, but definitely not anytime soon.
sondernier@reddit
Always wanted a 69 Camaro (friends all basically owned the same RS/SS until it drained your bank account and you’d sell it to the next guy) came close and life got in the way. Returned later in life and remembered the bad with the good about cars that age and ended up with a 6M R/T 2015 that basically checks all the boxes, had a warranty and wasn’t too far off a driver quality old Camaro price wise. Basically is a daily driver and to be honest I’ve yet to see anything you would consider a classic being driven at all let alone daily, maybe to and from car shows but to answer who is buying?…hobbyists, incredibly talented ones that do the work themselves, incredibly motivated ones that spend money they maybe should be spending on something else, rich ones that can indulge either a lifelong or fleeting passion, for the most part. The really high end ones are just rare art that people are trying to make money on, I guess there would be exceptions that proves the rule but honestly what difference does a theoretical bank balance of 200k that you’ll never spend versus having a PCP 1970 Hemi Cuda sitting in your garage that you can just go sit in…never mind.
Savings-Wallaby7392@reddit
My mechanic near my house that will repair classic cars charges $200 an hour. And he will take your car for months on end. And he will only use factory parts and of course he marks up those parts too and charges sales tax. The cheap mechanics are gone
Busterlimes@reddit
Its genX
dbu8554@reddit
Saying the other generation doesn't care about cars it's asinine. We can't afford it and boomers don't understand that.
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
I pulled it back.
TomatoesB4Potatoes@reddit
Most Gen X are practicable people. While we may love classic muscle cars, many cars are only fit for Sunday driving. With few exceptions, driving a classic muscle car on a busy highway in poor
Enough-Refuse-7194@reddit
Gen X here, just bought a 69 Vette this year, bit of a project and not terribly expensive. No idea who pays some of these prices - IMO insane
Aloha-Eh@reddit
Gen Jones/Gen X here. Love the old muscle cars, but they're pricing their way out of ever being attainable to me.
But I still jones for a 1971 Nova like my parents used to have.
SnooChipmunks2079@reddit
I’m 57 and my ideal hobby car is a late second generation Firebird, but I don’t really have time or space for that.
Lost_Bus1085@reddit
I drove a Chevelle that my dad and I built in high school. I think I paid $3,000 for it. I'm 50 years old now. When the prices get to be more than a new car that outperforms it it's just basically a piece of art. A brand new Camry is faster than the muscle car gets 40 miles per gallon and I'll go at least 200,000 miles with a warranty and air conditioning. It's hard to justify paying more.
bripptybripptybraap@reddit
Probably the same guys who were buying them when they were new. Rich old guys.
therin_88@reddit
It costs $30,000 to paint a car these days, and prices on parts have finally started going up as well. I don't think you can restore a 1969 Chevelle from the ground up for less than $60k, so why shouldn't a finished one be worth that?
OldboyVicious@reddit
In a Gen-X who lives muscle cars from the 60s.
I'd never pay the prices for the cars you mention.
Every old muscle car I've had I've paid a few hundred bucks, to a couple thousand because it's in bad shape and needs restoration.
I'd much rather go the route of fixing it, working on it, modding it, and restoring it myself, considering the cost.
It's like you said: 60-80k for a mediocre specimen in a color I probably hate with options I don't like, vs. 2-4k (plus cost of restoration) for something that will be "exactly" what I want in a year or so.
proscriptus@reddit
I think you underestimate the number of 30 and 40 year olds with money who want a muscle car.
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
Probably am.
Bohottie@reddit
It seems like the market is softening for muscle cars, tbh, since a lot of boomers are aging out of the hobby. I live in metro Detroit, and there are always a ton of nice looking 60s-70s cars available for fairly reasonable prices.
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
We have a monthly Supercar Saturday event here that I walk through every month, and there’s a lot of Supra‘s, Beamer‘s, Lambo‘s, Ferraris, Mercedes, as well as Hellcats, ZL1’s and Cobra’s, and I’d say the average driver’s age there is late 20s and early 30s. there’s a few older folks, but it’s a lot of young people driving really expensive cars. I’m sure of some of it is family money, but I feel like there’s a lot of young people making money on social media and spending it on showy things.
Bohottie@reddit
Hard to know. There are so many unconventional ways for young people to make a lot money nowadays, so I assume nothing. I’m hysterically happy the car hobby is growing and being embraced by the younger generations.
Whizzleteets@reddit
Early muscle is still out there for reasonable money but you have to look but, that doesn't mean that the car scene hasnt changed.
Everything changes just a fact of life. Car guys like what they grew up with and things like The Fast and the Furious has helped to shape the younger enthusiasts the same way American Graffiti did long ago.
There is a lot to like about modern muscle cars. Conveniences are nice for sure but for me, I prefer the spartan interior, raucous noise and brutal acceleration from my 1st Gen Camaro.
saltysaturdays@reddit
This makes me want to finally rebuild my dad’s 1968 Camaro. Currently sideways on a rotisserie & stripped down to just the frame
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
Do it!
turnt-tit@reddit
As a Millenial, I love classic muscle. But if I have the money to spend on that I have the money to get a much better, much newer car and while the coolness factor plays a part performance is higher on my priority list. Plus there's some pretty dam cool cars still coming out.
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
True.
kick6@reddit
Speculators instead of enthusiasts.
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
Well said.
Dinglebutterball@reddit
I’m a regular working Joe just into of my 30’s and I’m not buying restored cars, resto mods, or anything like that.
I’m buying neglected rusty examples in the $3-8k range and making them drivable myself. I’m buying rancheros instead of el caminos, Dodge darts instead of novas, and jeeps instead of early broncos. I’m using junkyard parts where I can and rubbing pennies together to buy scratch and dents where I can’t.
People keep saying “no one is buying these old cars” but prices keep going up and they aren’t making any more of them.
Ralph_O_nator@reddit
I think people yearn for what they wanted as teens. Cars from the 1990’s-2000’s are about the same “vintage” of cars as 20-30 year muscle cars were in the 1990’s. I remember when 1990’s Honda, Toyotas, Porsche, Audi, GM, et cetera were being sold for a few thousand bucks in the early and mid 2000’s. Good luck finding a decent square body GM or clean CRX Si for less than ~$15k. I bet in another 20-30 years “vintage” Teslas will be cool.
Objective_Ad429@reddit
I’ve seen clean square bodies go for 30k recently. Granted these are clean like off the lot
Objective_Ad429@reddit
I’m a millennial (born in 92) who loves muscle cars. If I had the cash to set on fire I’d have a 70 Chevelle SS tomorrow, but as it sits most people in my age group don’t have the disposable income. Even the base model 60s cars are getting rare, it’s been 60 years since the beginning of the muscle car era. I do have a 53 Chevy coup, but it’s a hand me down from my dad, and it’s been in the family for about 50 years. We “restomodded” it mechanically but didn’t do anything cosmetic. It’s getting in need of a body restoration but I just don’t have the cash or time to sink into it right now.
ID_Poobaru@reddit
Boomers are hogging them all
69FireChicken@reddit
You're looking at $30k minimum at a restoration pretty much any way you go, buy a $5k rust bucket you're going to put $25k in it and that's doing most of the work yourself, if you're hiring out engine work, transmission rebuild, body work and paint you're probably over $40k. That's not accounting for any of your time. So, $50k plus for a well done classic is pretty fair imo, special cars are of course more. But when you compare that to a new F150. . .yeah, classic cars have never been a cheap hobby, and it doesn't look like it is going to get cheaper any time soon.
AzuriteNova@reddit
gen z people DO care about muscle cars. the issue is, they are mostly in college, school or have just gotten a job, so purchasing something that is basically a weekend car is still pretty out of reach.
infinitecosmic_power@reddit
It's just the car version of boomers hoarding worthless knick knacks. I've been in the collector car world my whole adult life, and constantly have to try to convince my collectors to buy things that guys my age (41m) will want.
"If you want this car understand you're spending money you won't get back, so either drive it and get your value or find something else. "
There's still muscle out there to be collected and not lose a shit ton, but it's not the 60s or early 70s stuff.
Accomplished-Lynx262@reddit
I cant afford to even though i want one. A decent classic car is 40-60k, specialty shops are expensive, they dont have ac or bluetooth radios and theyre death traps in accidents anyways
ActionHour8440@reddit
It’s like $15k-$20k for a 69 Camaro rolling chassis right now for one that isn’t rusted out. Shit is ridiculous.
Unlikely_Rise_5915@reddit
My buddy wanted to build one in high school (granted this was 25 years ago) and got one for $2500 out of Florida. We spent the winter in the garage restoring it.
I’ve been wanting to do a mustang but the prices for a blasted out shell are ridiculous. And that’s why I’m just looking for an old grandpa regal to have as another set and of wheels.
jailfortrump@reddit
The best barometer for any car's actual value in my opinion is sold cars in venues such as MECUM Auctions. These are typically complete cars ready to drive. Seldom are projects crossing the block. The vast majority of buyers are successful business people or successful working people who have always wanted "this or that" to collect or take to their local cruise night's. They range in age from 40 to 70 by and large.
SLOspeed@reddit
In general, we seem to seek out the "cool" things from when we were young. For me as a Gen X'er, those are cars like the Fox Mustang, Grand National, Syclone, Ford Lightning, 80s/90s imports like the Nissan 240 or 300z, etc. Judging by the popularity of Radwood events, lots of people seem to agree.
For me, 60s cars are what my parents had when I was young. Old, clunky gas guzzlers. I wanted the new and exciting cars.
Solomon_knows@reddit
Go look at companies like velocity restorations and I’ve asked the same thing., who’s paying $300-400k for these?! But they sell 50-60 a year.
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
Crazy. Maybe boomers spending into retirement, or influencers blowing that monetization.
mike_tyler58@reddit
Im a millennial and would love to restore a classic or two but it’s just too expensive.
Even junked out shells are expensive, then all the parts are expensive. Plus the fact that I have to work so much overtime it’s essentially two jobs so I have little to no free time.
So I think it’s rich boomers who are buying them. Maybe some rich Gen X now too.
rudbri93@reddit
I mean, im a millenial and i like classic muscle cars. I think the larger market is genx since they bought and sold them cheap and beat up back in their youth where my gen didnt get as mich of that experience. The real high dollar stuff is all collectors, generally.
db_peligro@reddit
genx here, kids having their own cars was rarer back then and kids having muscle cars was not a thing based on my experience. we also grew up with strict drunk driving laws.
basically I don't think our relationship to cars was all that different than millennials.
Merlin509@reddit (OP)
Good point. It’s hard for us who grew up with them to pay that kind of money for something that we routinely bought and sold for under $2k.
That, and as somebody who has worked on them a lot can contest, they are very low tech and can never really perform, even with significant upgrades, like the late model muscle which can be purchased easily for $20k-$30k.
rudbri93@reddit
Yea the appeal of modern muscle is definitely a factor. That 30k can get you a pretty sweet couple year old mustang that makes a good daily driver.
doesnotexist2@reddit
Genz likes them, we just don’t have money