Tudor vs coupe-$$$

BlueSunoco said:
The dollar thing with cars is a strange mind set. It seems like most of us Model A owners fret over ROI, can I make a profit? etc. etc. That's natural I guess.

But we will run down to the local car dealer and buy a new pickup and plop down $45,000- $50,000 and not think twice. Some go higher. In 8-10 years that thing is about worn out and has a value around 6 grand, maybe. It's OK in our mind to eat 45K on a new vehicle but not a Model A Ford.

Granted, the Model A will not do what that new pickup can and you're not really comparing apples to apples the point is the money 'lost'.

It has been my experience also the last few years, and I blame the 'reality' TV car shows, EVERYbody and their brother-in-law wants to get your collector car on the cheap, 'flip it' and pocket a big profit, puff out their chests, and proclaim 'I da man ain't I slick?' I get real and I mean real tired of guys approaching me wanting to buy my car so I just toss out absolutely stupid dollars to them, they often get mad:confused:but I say 'You came to me I didn't approach you.' :mad:

Had this again just last week I just needed to vent:p Some guy from Missouri driving around with a car hauler a local at the restaurant sent him down to my house. I'd just as soon have the Jehovah Witnesses drop by!!
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Very true! I had two friends spend over $40,000 and wait a whole year to get that special Camaro that came out I think 3 years ago, and both sold it less then two years and were told they can only get about $20,000 for it. Another friend had bought a special Ford truck that cost him $85,000 and sold it after two years due to high maintenance costs and I think $500 each tire that wore out after 30,000 miles.
 
This is slightly off topic from the OP's post, but I have to say it. $85K for a PICKUP?!?!? :eek: That amount would pay off my mortgage!!!
Most new cars are disposable. They are made of paper thin stamped sheet metal and have airbags to compensate for the lack of structure. I prefer my older vehicles and trucks. I feel a lot safer in them than in a front wheel drive tin can POS.
 
31 Model A said:
When I went to looking, it was either a coupe or a roadster already restored fully or to a point. A Tudor never entered into my mind, just didn't fit into being a chick magnet.
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There's way more room in the back of a Tudor than either a roadster or coupe, if you really are a chick magnet!
 
Is not the enjoyment of driving the car around worth something? The honks and smiles as you drive or stop. The stories you hear from others that have, had, or know someone that knows about the Model A. Ever see the smile on the face of a child as he/she sits in the seat and honks the horn?

If you buy a car, restore it and have it sit in the garage, or trailer it to exclusive shows, only to sell it when another car comes around, then yes you need to be concerned about your investment and the profit at the end.

This is not true with my car. The car has "paid" me, every time I get into it for the reasons I mentioned above. If I gave it away, I would still be ahead of the game by having been it's caretaker.

If you sold your A today would you loose money, That depends on you, not the car.
 
"But we will run down to the local car dealer and buy a new pickup and plop down $45,000- $50,000 and not think twice. Some go higher. In 8-10 years that thing is about worn out and has a value around 6 grand, maybe. It's OK in our mind to eat 45K on a new vehicle but not a Model A Ford."

I've thought more then twice and ended up keeping my 2000 silverado 4x4 extended cab with 178k miles. I'll just make it reach 300k and save the extra for more model A's.............................!
 
No two ways about it - my '31 Roadster was a lousy car to take with a date to the drive-in theater in the '50s! I'm sure my generation will understand. On the other hand, it could beat its way through the woods to the beach where few could follow. The Tudor would have had it all! I grew up in Florida before the tourists took over.
 
1929,

I think if we had a better understanding of where you are coming from and where you are going we could fine tune some of the responses. I wouldn't restore either one as investment unless I was starting with one that was almost there already. If you want a stock car as an investment I would say don't do it. The law of supply and demand is why I say this. The people that like the stock Model A's are unfortunately passing on (going to be with Henry). This reduces the demand. The supply is increasing because their cars are now on the market. If you want to restore a car for the enjoyment of it and prefer to choose one that will hold its value better that is another situation. With the cost of restoration just be sure to buy the best car possible after watching the market for a while. I don't see much difference between a coupe and a Tudor sedan, just look for the best car you can find. You should base your decision on what you want to do with the car. The Fordors (except the 1931 slant windows) are less generally desirable because of the amount of wood which is expensive to replace.

Charlie Stephens
 
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Charlie Stephens said:
1929,

I think if we had a better understanding of where you are coming from and where you are going we could fine tune some of the responses. I wouldn't restore either one as investment unless I was starting with one that was almost there already. If you want a stock car as an investment I would say don't do it. The law of supply and demand is why I say this. The people that like the stock Model A's are unfortunately passing on (going to be with Henry). This reduces the demand. The supply is increasing because their cars are now on the market. If you want to restore a car for the enjoyment of it and prefer to choose one that will hold its value better that is another situation. With the cost of restoration just be sure to buy the best car possible after watching the market for a while. I don't see much difference between a coupe and a Tudor sedan, just look for the best car you can find. You should base your decision on what you want to do with the car. The Fordors (except the 1931 slant windows) are less generally desirable because of the amount of wood which is expensive to replace.

Charlie Stephens
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Not doing it for an investment Charlie, Iam doing it cause its history, I just don't want to put much into a car that no one wants, like when I first restored a 1939 ford standard to totally original and found out that no one wants four doors. I have a 1929 Coupe, I found out from the responses that its not, so I will raise the budget.
 
BRENT in 10-uh-C said:
Wow, I dunno if THAT is an accurate statement! The last I checked, the Hebmuller is an air-cooled Volkswagen, ...and they were fetching on the upper side of $150k! That seems like a pretty decent ROI!!

Even some of the air-cooled Kombi Transporters (Bus) fetch more money than an average 68C or a 180A. Price a restored 'barn-door' and see how much they will set you back. ;) Now isn't it ironic the restored Type III Stationwagons will bring more than a typical Model-A Tudor, ...and the split Type 1 --and earlier V-dubs bring better than $25k with some busting the $50k mark. Seems like those are a decent ROI too. Maybe you were referring a Super Beetle with that $$ thingie! :D

.

BTW, below is a 1950 split we are doing a full frame-up on for a customer out of Kansas City.

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IMHO a VW bug is a horrible driving and maintaining car. I had one, a 62, when they were a poor used car. Forget about any heat other than burning your foot. Air conditioning? Dream on. It is not by accident when they quit making them they disappeared from the road in a few years. I was forever changing oil(500 miles) or adjusting valves(1,000 miles). Never heard one run down the road that didn't need the valves adjusted. I have no nostalgia for bugs if you haven't guessed. Oh, and the buses? Never owned on but road in a few. Expect to be passed by city buses and rear ended on the freeway. Think twice as heavy car as a bug which already has pathetic acceleration for scooting down the road. Just remembered, no gas gauge either.
 
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31 Model A said:
When I went to looking, it was either a coupe or a roadster already restored fully or to a point. A Tudor never entered into my mind, just didn't fit into being a chick magnet.
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Hoogah said:
There's way more room in the back of a Tudor than either a roadster or coupe, if you really are a chick magnet!
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31 Model A said:
When you're the chick magnet behind the wheel, the roadster or the coupe is the tuxedo. ;)
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At this age bracket they are called hens not chicks.;)
 
1929 said:
Not doing it for an investment Charlie, Iam doing it cause its history, I just don't want to put much into a car that no one wants, like when I first restored a 1939 ford standard to totally original and found out that no one wants four doors. I have a 1929 Coupe, I found out from the responses that its not, so I will raise the budget.
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Building a driver instead of doing a restoration might be a good solution.

Charlie Stephens
 
Ronn (post # 53) apparently 'gets around' a bit . . . . .

Having just learned the meaning of this term ("Cougar"), I can now translate it's meaning :
. . . . an older woman (40, 50, 60, 70, or as in my wife, 86) who 'preys' on younger men (I am 73).
They still have the 'hunting' instinct and are fully 'alive' as a woman. She wants the back seat, but my bones, cartilage, and hormones, wants to rest with a beer and a football game . . . .
So the Coupe works just fine with me. At 27, I wanted (and had) a Deluxe '31 Roadster. And I knew how to pull the shift lever UP and turn it over to the side, for some "leg action". Now I don't have the strength to pull it up . . . .
Wife just came in . . . . . I have to go now.
 
Anteek29 said:
Doug's post (#55) made me chuckle...I can relate :)
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Me too!! THAT'S funny Doug:p:p

MrTexas, I never owned a VW never wanted one but your observations are exactly correct. I just had a 'VW' conversation two weeks ago with a very good friend who is an expert mechanic and this subject came up. He told me 'People who drove those things over 40-45MPH had to plan on an entire engine rebuild every 20,000 miles because that crap engine couldn't hold up to that.' (His exact words) He also pointed out 'IF they were that good of a car and they built so many how come you never see them around? Not like Model A Fords my God I can tell you of a dozen of them still running around within 10 miles of where we stand and they're over 80 years old!!!';)

Case closed:)
 
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