which would you choose for weekend driver and as an investment?

[strat61caster]

Why don't you just use the last thread you started?

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=77324

[Atropine]

BTW...you seem mechanically inclined...

I always thought the old Opel GT's looked great.

I have no idea if they hold their value...or if the handle well or w/e.

I just love em.

Also Datsun 510 or 240z or a Mid 70's Celica if you wanna go Japanese.

[dem00n]

Staying to the original OP question...since anyone can just say Bro, get this car. Vtech!

I'd go for the Pantera. Those Vette's are dated, a Pantera has a good size aftermarket. If you mod a Corvette of that era, the price will take a huge hit. A modded Pantera is pretty common and hold their value pretty well.

[mike the snake]

I forgot I'd made the other thread! My bad.

I'm getting a Pantera. It's my dream car, the old vettes also light my fire a bit, but nowhere near as much as the Pantera.

Plus, they are open canvases. Numbers matching means nothing, most have been modified with all the stock issues resolved.

I'm planning on getting the blue race car in the pic I posted, just killing time til the end of the month when I can finally go look at it.

The idea of a Nascar engined, fire breathing, Italian classic, all gutted and race prepped, driving on the street occasionally, and then also driving 20 minutes to Sears Point for a track day, and then driving home, is the ideal, perfect situation I can dream of.

I don't want to deal with restoring cheesy 70's interiors, and fixing cosmetic stuff doesn't interest me so much. I want a race car that I can drive on the street and use for track days and autocross without the need for a trailer (already went through that with the Porsche).

[swarb]

Pantera is the best choice. It is fast, semi-sorted(have spares?), just hopefully the motor is still healthy. Hell, you could shift it at a lower rpm and have it last twice as long.
Stop calling it an investment. It really is not. It is an expensive toy that you can potentially sell for next to no loss later on. You tell yourself that just to justify the purchase. Spend the money. You don't have any use for your money when you are dead. Enjoy life. Live the dream. Follow your heart. DO IT. Keep a budget and don't look back! Have fun buying tires/fuel/brakes LOL nascar motor... those rear tires!!

[reni]

Um... "investment"






But if I was actually going to spend my own money to buy a garage queen in real life I would probably go NSX (even though it probably sounds like groupthink at this point)

[Rampage]

I would go with the Pantera. Its value is already on the way up. But I would not buy a racecar and try to put it back to street or concourse condition. Too much expense and hunting down small, hard to find pieces. I would look for one as near to original as I could find. Those are the ones that are worth the money. Problem is, that will not fulfill your weekend racer wants. Good luck though.

[mike the snake]

One thing about Panteras is the whole "number matching" thing doesn't matter, unless you're going for an original concourse show-type car. Most all have been rebuilt/restored/restomodded into really cool creations, and they are what they are.

I prefer the modified, monster engined, wide wheels/tires (with or without flares, I like both). A lot of nice versions like these are a little bit out of my price range.

The race car, if it checks out, I'm really looking forward to seeing, because it's already sorted mechanically, will take a bit of work to get it back on the street (lights, blinkers,-I was thinking of strap operated side windows a la old Porsches)) and it'll already be loud and scary and fast. No interior to restore, already has the roll bars installed, ready to go for track days and autocross, and the occasional club meeting or car show.

Just a few more days and I'll know, either blue race car, or keep searching, maybe do some traveling.

I've seen some listings in Oregon, and Arizona that have potential.

California car probably has the best potential to be rust-free.

My available funds limits me somewhat as well. There are some super beautiful cars out there I wish I could afford.

My hopes also are that later on, I'll be able to maybe get what I have into it back, instead of having to sell it off for half of what I put into it.

[f0rge]

The only reason I'd get a vette over the Pantera would be if you wanted a vert.

Sounds like you want to take this thing to the track though, so the vert doesn't make much sense. If you just wanted a weekend cruiser a C2 vert with side pipes would be pretty amazing.

[reni]

Originally Posted by mike the snake

My hopes also are that later on, I'll be able to maybe get what I have into it back, instead of having to sell it off for half of what I put into it.

That sounds unrealistically optimistic, to put it mildly.

[mike the snake]

"Unrealistically optimistic"....... LOL You just totally described me perfectly in 2 words! LOL

Now, I Just went through a year of owning and modding my BRZ, where it spent 6 months of that year in the shop, nothing went smooth, problem after problem, finally got everything perfect, and finally I have this great car that I enjoyed, but I'm busy working, so I don't get to drive the BRZ that much, but I LOVE it.

The I have this fuckin open heart surgery, I start thinking differently about everything, I change my mind about cars and decide I want to get my dream Pantera, so I sell my BRZ.

I had about $54,000 into the BRZ as it sat (car, parts,labor) and I just sold it for $27,000. I expected this, not crying about anything. The new owner got a smoking deal on a badass car, I got some of my money back.

What I want to do this time, is buy my dream Pantera, maybe one that needs a little work (I love/need projects to work on), enjoy and drive the car on weekends and car shows, track days, autocross, have fun with the car, BUT, when I decide to sell it, say in 10 years, instead of having it have depreciated, both from time And the mods I did, I can sell it for close to, as much, or more than I originally paid for it, instead of selling it for half of what I put into it in 1 year like with my BRZ.

I go into all this knowing I'm going to lose money, I'm really good at that lol.

Originally Posted by reni

That sounds unrealistically optimistic, to put it mildly.

[Tcoat]

If I had any idea what cars would have/will raise in value I would be a billionaire by now!
It is not always the ones you would expect or predict that will and even then the bottom can drop out at any time and your great "investment" becomes worth less then you paid for it.
And... no car made is a good "investment" if you plan to drive it at all (even just a little bit) as every single mile drops the value a bit more.
If you bought a 63 'Vette in say 66 and parked it and maintained it and never ever drove it then you made an investment otherwise you just have a really cool car that may or may not be worth more when you decided to sell it.

[mike the snake]

Thanks for the replies, you all are correct.

I will go into buying my new car with my eyes open.

[Dadhawk]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

...If you bought a 63 'Vette in say 66 and parked it and maintained it and never ever drove it then you made an investment otherwise you just have a really cool car that may or may not be worth more when you decided to sell it.

Even at that, it may not have been that good an investment. A fully loaded (every possible option) 1963 Corvette coupe cost $6200 more or less.

If you had taken all that money and put it in the bank earning 5% interest you would have $75,140.18 50 years later (2013). If you returned 6.5% it would be $158,503.85.

Based on information I could find, if you had invested the same in the Dow Jones Industrial Average you would have $610,613, even when accounting for losses (1963-2011).