Will our cars become classics?

[Grandprix1]

Does anyone think or believe that the W Bodies will become "classics" or worth more then they already are in the future. I show my Grand Prix and not many people see it as a cool car until you get the people that have had one before and loved them.

[Heartbeat1991]

Someday.  The rarer ones get some attention now.  I had mine at a few local cruise nights.  I still get the occasional interest when I take it to for a burger etc.

[movielover40]

Certain models for sure.

[Psych0matt]

No

[digitaloutsider]

Does anyone think or believe that the W Bodies will become "classics" or worth more then they already are in the future. 

 

 

 

Short answer, no.

 

Long answer, there might be some value in TGP/TSTEs and certain Cutlass Convertibles in pristine condition to the right buyer.  These cars will never be "classics".

[Heartbeat1991]

 

 

Short answer, no.

 

Long answer, there might be some value in TGP/TSTEs and certain Cutlass Convertibles in pristine condition to the right buyer.  These cars will never be "classics".

Of course they will.  after enough time passes, everything becomes a classic.

[White93z34]

True, but how many people do you see lusting after a low end 69' Caprice vs. a 69' Camaro. 

I'm pretty sure the cost of entry for a old VW Beetle is still pretty low.

 

I think you'll see cars like near zero mile preserved in a bubble TGPs apprechiate to maybe what they sold new for.

 

There might be a slight bump for some other desirable hipo models, but long and short of it is they were by and large forgettable commuter cars that have as much a chance as being collectible as a 1993 Camry.

[94 olds vert]

No

Correct. These womt be collectible, but they will have a value. Not a lot, but the convertibles, some of the rare cars like 5 speeds, and supercharged cars will be worth something in the future.

 

Or if self driving cars become the new standard, all manual driving cars maybe collectibles. I really dont know.

[Grandprix1]

I think they will have aleast a value to the ones that were taken care of. My GP only had 40k miles on it and I'm planning on getting another car to keep the miles low. I have some people that look at it and are like wow that's cool. Others are just like. I see this car everywhere what's so good about it.

[94 olds vert]

No

Correct. These womt be collectible, but they will have a value. Not a lot, but the convertibles, some of the rare cars like 5 speeds, and supercharged cars will be worth something in the future.

 

Or if self driving cars become the new standard, all manual driving cars maybe collectibles. I really dont know.

[Grandprix1]

That's true. It is very hard to find a manual or a true manual now a days unless you get something such as a corvette. Even Camaros now are getting hard to find manual. Most are auto with paddle shifters

[Galaxie500XL]

Paddles aren't the same experience...had I known how much I'd enjoy the 5-speed in my Camaro, I'd have owned a manual transmission car much sooner--this is the first manual car I've ever owned.

[Grandprix1]

I wish I knew how to drive manual. I will drive my GP "like a manual" by shifting from 1 up to drive. Which is fun sometimes but I'm sure the trans doesn't like it.

[ron350]

No they will be lumped in with cars like the Chevy Citation.

[Imp558]

Some of them will inevitably be melted down and come back as cars the masses care about, those will become classics one day. For now I like that on any given day I don't see another first gen Regal in traffic and my car remains unique.

[Padgett]

Model A and Model Ts are hardly rare but are desirable.

 

After 30 or 40 years the only hard sell is a four-door.

 

Have seen one car I had in the early 70s bid to a quarter mil but was a $1,000 car when I had it.

 

ps Crossie is the easiest car in the world to learn a stick, almost impossible to stall in 1st.

Edited September 29, 2016 by Padgett

[rich_e777]

Are they to you?

 

That's all that truly matters. If you can take your W to a car show and talk about it with the same enthusiasm the others do then you`ll be accepted all the same.

[Nas Escobar]

The Cutlass Supreme convertible, and the TGP will be cars that will be like how Corrados or CRX's are nowadays. They'll have a following, people will wish they can find one but they will not be in 70 Chevelle SS or 70 442 range.

 

The thing is gonna be that these cars will end up at the yard junked because parts are gonna be hard to find. I actually met the owner of the 92 Cutlass I got my frame from at the junkyard. Funny thing is that he works there. He told me he junked it because the roof leaks and couldn't find a way to seal it (the seals were shot). That's gonna be the major killing point for us.

 

In the 2nd gens, the final 500 Intrigue may be like the TGP's and CSC's in the 1st gens. They'll be somewhat desirable, but that will be to someone who knows what "Oldsmobile" is. As the last Olds are 12 years old, they're going to become more obscure. Other than that, the Impala SS, Monte Carlo SS (supercharged), and Grand Prix GTP will be one of those cars that MAY be like how muscle cars are now. The reason I say that is because of the 3800 S/C. The 3800 scene is one that in a way can rival the 350SBC scene. With new cars being complete appliances, the L67 powered cars have a probable chance of being desirable because it's a platform where power is easy and cheap.

 

3rd gens have no real chance of being desirable in the future because they're 4 doors except maybe the Grand Prix which was the only W that had a blown 3800. The 2006-2007 Monte Carlo for all practical purposes can be considered an MCE than an actual "new gen". There wasn't much done to make them different than the 2000-2005's and the majority of stuff can swap over. IIRC the nose and tails are too different as the drivetrain but I'm willing to bet the doors are swappable. Regardless those will be somewhat special because of the fact that they're the last Monte Carlos and the last W body coupe. The Impala (of both gens) will be a disposable car almost similar to what the Crown Vic is. Crown Vics litter the junkyard.

 

Paddles aren't the same experience...had I known how much I'd enjoy the 5-speed in my Camaro, I'd have owned a manual transmission car much sooner--this is the first manual car I've ever owned.

 

"Autostick", which was one of the first "shiftable" automatics that I had an experience with (as well as one of the earliest examples that kind of tech) is fun to use and all but it doesn't beat a real Manual. The major gripe I have with those manumatics is that there's no way to go in neutral when braking or desiring to slow down. You either have to shift down as the gear gets weak or wait for the computer to reset to an appropriate gear.

 

I've driven a 1st gen Stratus and a 1st gen Mazda 6 with the manumatic and that's always been my major complaint... no real form of neutral. The funny thing is that nobody knows how to use the damn feature. I drove the car of this young lady I was talking to at the time, which was a brand new (at the time) Hyundai Sonata. I used the shifting feature and she went ballistic and thought I was gonna fuck up the car. I had to do a whole explanation of what the feature is.

 

Driving real manual however, is way better. I bought a 96 Infiniti simply because it was stick and may be the only reason I can tolerate Nissan, to the point that I may end up with a 2004 Nissan Maxima with a 6 speed.  If anyone hasn't done so already, I recommend that they learn to drive stick. The driving experience is different. For the record, in traffic it's really not that much of a pain in the ass as people make it seem once you're used to shifting. Uphills are another story. Those will always be nerve wracking because you don't control how close the dipshit behind you gets.

 

I wish I knew how to drive manual. I will drive my GP "like a manual" by shifting from 1 up to drive. Which is fun sometimes but I'm sure the trans doesn't like it.

 

Drive it like a ratcheting shifter. Always let go of the pedal when you push up the gears and let the computer change gears as you go up. Takes about a second. Then ram the pedal and it won't mess up the trans too much. I've driven most of my Automatics that way at some point in my ownership. Doing that in my Cutlass will make the tires chirp, sometimes doing a light burnout. I did it in a Grand Am, but that car's computer  seemed to not really want me to redline it. Turning ETC off seemed to make the car more responsive to a pedal hammering.

 

No they will be lumped in with cars like the Chevy Citation.

 

Not all of them. But everything built nowadays can be modern Citations, which are basically disposable cars. In today's world the insurances are more quick to total a car than fix it, so let that be a dictator of how post downsized cars are in "desirability". What's considered "the last of _x_ breed" will always be collectable, Panther cars notwithstanding. I don't see those becoming desirable in the same vein a G body or B body did. Most of the Panthers ended up being fleet cars so it's a major thorn for em.

 

And as far as "Camries" being collectable, we might be surprised at that one. For some odd reason, the old RWD Datsun 210s and Toyota Corollas became niche cars. For some reason the "stance" crowd likes souping those up. The Civic fad in a way extended to the Accord and Prelude (they shared engines) and nowadays I've even seen CR-V's riced out (they're stretched Civics in a nutshell)

[Grandprix1]

Most of this is pretty good information or ideas. Like I said when I show mine there are people that like it and want to look at it others are like who cares. As for as driving it like a ratcheting shifter. That's what I do with TRAC OFF. I haven't been able to make it squeak the tires when shifting though I'm not pushing it to redline either. I will run it to around 3.5k to 4K then switch depending on what I'm doing or trying to accomplish. I think that as long as the cars are taken care of they will last as long as they can. I plan to keep mine for the rest of my life

[Euro]

Will they be?  Yes, I firmly believe that.  You can't compare them to muscle cars of the past, because it's 2 completely different generations.  But they'll definitely be seen then, how cars from the 50s-70s are seen today.

 

Go to any car show or cruise night now, and ask an older gentleman if they ever would've guessed...that in the late 70s or early 80s, if their 62 Impala or their 70 Ford Galaxie will be collectible or desirable today.. they would have laughed at you and called you crazy.  They were throw away cars back then...juuuuuuuust like a W-body is today.  I've talked to people that even were blown away at the price Hemi Mopars have brought over the last 5-7 years...that he sold his 70 Hemi Challenger in 1983 for $1,000 just to get it the fuck out of his driveway because he couldn't stand to look at that old pile of shit anymore. 

 

I think you all will be surprised in the next 15-20 years.  

[94 olds vert]

Our cars will not have parts available to fix them. I could go on ebay right now, and buy all new parts to build a '65 Mustang, and then find a shell. That is the difference. The Wbodys that are kept in good shape will be valuable. Collector status? That I dont know. I suppose anything is possible.

[Padgett]

My problem is the LQ1 doesn't start making real power until 4K and is needed to surprise an M3. Suppose I could back the limiter down to 6500 but why ? The 3.3" stroke is short enough not to be a bother.

 

+1 to Euro. You would not believe how many prime muscle cars were just considered "gas guzzlers" in the 70's and early 80's. Back then my Judge was a $600 car and about the same as the $2k I paid for my GTP (though in both cases I had to rebuild the AC).

 

Also you would not believe how many things that didn't work back then are desirable now. Take my Z06 FI split window. The split window was a one year item because customers complained they could not see out the back, the Z06 brakes were being swapped for single piston Chevelle disks, and I used to pick up FI units for $50 and a Holley or $100 outright (had a 57 Bonne FI on the mantle for years until a friend offered too much money for it). - Was an impoverished college student so needed every unfair advantage I could get like 900 CFM from a late Rochester FI. Did have access to the Swartz Creek junkyard.

 

So I have never considered a car an investment, just a toy for enjoyment.

[Grandprix1]

That is true from what I hear. Back then apparently it was just like seeing a Toyota Camry on the street today. They were everywhere now 60 years later those everyday cars are only driven to car shows and are always kept clean never driven in the rain work tons of money and are people magnets. Who knows maybe we will be surprised if we hold onto these cars and see what happens in another 10-20 years

[Euro]

Our cars will not have parts available to fix them. I could go on ebay right now, and buy all new parts to build a '65 Mustang, and then find a shell. That is the difference. The Wbodys that are kept in good shape will be valuable. Collector status? That I dont know. I suppose anything is possible.

 

You never know.  Up until a few years ago, most parts to fix/rebuild the classics of today were non-existent...hell, some still are.  I bet finding parts for your T-Bird were next to impossible 30 years ago. 

[94 olds vert]

Thats true 30 years ago parts were not avaible. Now every part is avaible.