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Project cars drying up?

cosgig said:
I see them coming out of the woodwork daily. Some reasonably priced, some still living the dream. There’s no shortage of project cars out there, just a shortage of energy and enthusiasm to get them done.
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It's a hobby that requires a lot more than just elbow grease. Parts, and fabrication skill sets have been in decline in America for decades. Its nice to drive down the road and have people totally groove on your mopar, but few understand putting one together is far more than simply getting stuff to make it happen.
 
Within a couple hundred miles of my home there has been a good selection of muscle type cars for sale. Prices for some are unreasonable, thanks to TV auctions, but there is quite a few within reach to the average hobby guy. You have to be careful with our northeast cars, but they are out there. I look almost daily over morning coffee and enjoy just looking, and have flipped a few.
 
Durandal25 said:
It's a hobby that requires a lot more than just elbow grease. Parts, and fabrication skill sets have been in decline in America for decades. Its nice to drive down the road and have people totally groove on your mopar, but few understand putting one together is far more than simply getting stuff to make it happen.
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exactly! And the willingness to put in time, and patience to learn things you don’t know. Of course, you can always just open the catalog, whip out the credit card and pay to have things done, but that takes money. Unfortunately, nowadays, most younger people don’t have the patience to do that, they’ve been trained to get instant gratification, and have no patience to go the long run from start to finish. That energy and enthusiasm I mentioned?....you need plenty of it. And, the inspiration of owning and driving a muscle car has to be the driving force, and sadly many young people have not been given that chance by their peers. The days of parents involved in owning these cars and passing the love along is over, and by ratio, the ones that do are far outnumbered by the ones who don’t.
 
Let's face it guys, these cars are 50 years old and they ain't making them anymore. Every time one gets restored, that's one less project car available. The supply pool has to dry up sometime.
 
Ranger16 said:
Let's face it guys, these cars are 50 years old and they ain't making them anymore. Every time one gets restored, that's one less project car available. The supply pool has to dry up sometime.
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That is what I was getting at. It's not so much that cars aren't around and for sale but the overall frequency of seeing them on the on market is less. Maybe it is that they are still around but more cars are in the hands a a more narrow group of people which choose not to sell them?
 
Not out here they aren't

old Jeeps CJ's that aren't way over priced
& 67-71 D100's are scarce where I'm at

MoPars are in short supplies like always
either the typical hoarders have them all stashed away
or want solid Gold prices for rusted out old junk

I guess it depends on how much you want to spend

it's not 1977 anymore
the under $10k cheap cars are more scarce
 
Darter6 said:
And then there are guys that have them as "someday when I get around to it" cars. I know of 5 or more that have been cubby holed for more than 30 or more years.
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Guilty as charged, but I have excuses.:rolleyes:
 
I see plenty of project cars on Facebook Marketplace in my area. No shortage here.
 
Jeep CJ-7 and Scrambler are currently at an all time high.

7K for a restorable one is "normal".

20-25K for a nice one.

2 years ago I found a "rarest Jeep ever made" Jeeper's Jamboree edition CJ-7 on local craigslist.
1 of 630 IIRC 4.2 4 speed with the engine out and tore apart.
Had all the Jamboree specific parts except the spare tire cover and was mostly original paint.

$1500!

...and a "fresh rebuilt" 4.2 on another listing for $600.

If you want a CJ-5, those are cheap.
 
The hunks of junk that people are dragging out of the ditches , advertising on facebook swap-shop sites with a CRAZY price tag....WOW !! Must be somebody buying them......................MO
 
I dont get why some continue to knock the younger generation as not being motivated. Why? Because they are not into what we like, that being old iron.
Ive had plenty of 20 right on through 40 year olds really like my car, I hear it all the time. They are just not into those old cars, some are but others are into the newer stuff. Thats fine with me, its all the same thing
 
Last night on my way home I had to detour from my normal route due to 2 wrecks.

I stopped at a gas station and saw a 30 something couple in a 69 chevy long bed step side complete with loud exhaust and primer spots, but it had nice wheels, and at the pump next to it was a 20 something kid in a 76-ish corvette!
 
It's the day and age. Back in the 60's-70's I had no interest in street rods,flatheads and the like. It was Musclecars. Being a gear head in my teens thru-20's that stuff was just old crap. Same applies today for this generation.Why bother restoring or buying a 335 hp Road Runner when you can buy a 2020 something with 800 hp for almost the same money. Even some that are a few years old. 392 Challengers a few years old are now in the $20K range.
 
My son says he gets whiplash from driving around in NE AL and seeing cars in a field yard or on a carport only to find the owners won't part with them because they are gaining value...while they rust away.
 
A long time friend just had a 69 Satellite and a 68 Formula S 'Cuda givin' to him from the original owner this past summer. The "Cuda was parked in 1972 the Satellite sometime in the 80's. He was after these cars for over 30 years. Both complete but wayyyy beyond repair.The guy let them sit behind his house and sink into the ground up to the rockers. What a waste..
 
I think there are plenty of cars out there, the problem I am seeing is that everyone with anything even remotely interesting now thinks its worth $10K because they saw on go across the auction or on eBay, etc.

I think the title of this thread should be "Affordable project cars drying up".
 
Darter6 said:
A long time friend just had a 69 Satellite and a 68 Formula S 'Cuda givin' to him from the original owner this past summer. The "Cuda was parked in 1972 the Satellite sometime in the 80's. He was after these cars for over 30 years. Both complete but wayyyy beyond repair.The guy let them sit behind his house and sink into the ground up to the rockers. What a waste..
Click to expand...
yep that ol'
"I'll get to it someday or I will restore it someday" :jackoff:

while they slowly go back to mother earth :poke:
for 20-30-40 years
never move or **** done to them,
to help keep them in decent or restorable shape

:soapbox:

what does Mike & Frank (American Pickers) say ?
"Rusty Gold", no it's just Rusty
 
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