Classics Vs. Muscle Cars
August 1, 2005
“I think what has been put on TV, in an exciting and professional way, has
overinflated the value of these cars,” says Wangers. “It shows what kind of a
world our marketplace has become, or I guess I could put it what kind of a
marketplace our world has become. But it’s a good stimulus for the hobby.”
What Wangers has a hard time reconciling is that today’s high prices are based
on rarity rather than an automobile’s intrinsic value in terms of performance,
design, or build quality. The Hemi-powered street cars are rare because no one
bought them. “It’s a wonderful racing engine, but it stinks for the street,”
says the former drag racer. “It was a constant pain in the ass, and they
ultimately had to drop it.”
He cites another example closer to home for him. “In 1971 the GTO Judge had run
its course. It was a good promotion in 1969, but by then it was tired. The
market ignored it,” he says. “Talk about a cold hunk of iron in the market. Only
17 Judge convertibles were built, and they had a hard time selling that many.
But if you happen to have one today, your working days are over.”
Julius Steuer sees things a little differently. As one of the world’s most
respected Mopar restorers, Steuer did mechanical work on the cars used in Nash
Bridges. He thinks prices for the rare Chrysler muscle cars are high because of
market manipulation by a collector who wants to drive up the value of his
investments. Steuer won’t name the individual, but says he is not a speculator.
“He does it for the love of the cars,” he says. He drives his $2 million to
$3 million convertible from L.A. to Phoenix.”
Regardless of who or what is driving the market, Steuer declares, “I think Hemi
convertibles are as high as they’re going to go, but everything rare under them
is still moving up.”
A Plymouth fanatic since he was a kid, (“I didn’t even have Dodges for a long
time. Why? Ask my analyst.”), Steuer says the reasons rare Mopar cars command
high prices are twofold: Not only are they the best documented, they also boast the lowest production totals. It’s a simple case of supply and
demand.
Hyman Ltd. Classic Cars showcases a variety of rolling stock, with
an emphasis on classic American icons and postwar European sports cars.
“There are more ’69 Z28 Camaros or 427 Corvettes today than originally rolled
off the assembly line,” he says, referring to how easy it is to “manufacture” a
classic muscle car from today’s off-the-shelf parts. Steuer himself has no
problem building ’Cuda clones for Nash Bridges. “It’s the same fun, look, and
drivability,” he says when comparing them to the multimillion-dollar originals.
“But they are not good long-term investments. I suggest you buy an original car
for investment.”
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