Do you have a plan for your cars after you're gone?

Show up at my funeral and get door prizes and raffle tickets. Proceeds are to buy BBQ and beer for the attendees. Might even have an essay contest with dramatic readings for some cars. Same for my tools.

Bruce

I need to put it in writing somewhere- I want a track or section of road rented, and all my vehicles brought there.  My friends/family then get three timed laps or passes in each vehicle with no practice whatsoever, fastest person in each gets to keep it or pass and let the next fastest take it, etc.  This race/party is also my funeral.

It was a simple answer before my daughter was born. My boys would each get a car, one gets the '75 Duster, the other gets the '69 Olds. Now I need to add a third car for my daughter to inherit. At least that's what makes sense to me. :)

Take my corpse out to the high desert, put a brick on the accelerator, light that mother ablaze, and release the e-brake. Modern Viking funeral.

I'll see you bastards in Valhalla, shinny and chrome.

Patrick said:

My problem is i have guys who claim they’re leaving their stuff to me.  One friend who is north of 70 and has no living kids to leave anything to tells me every time i see him that his 04 marauder is willed to me.  My uncle said the entirety of his garage and gun collection go to me.  Carli’s uncle has no kids and is leaving us and her brother all his vehicles, land, cabin, and he has 30+ antique tractors.  Couple that with both of our parents and we’re boned when that generation starts passing away

 

Unless there are specific instructions for things, why not just sell it and use the proceeds to benefit your family? You make it sound like a burden, and all I see is an opportunity to build wealth for your heirs.

No, but I've I've thinned the heard so that I no longer have cars with no plans while I'm here.

My son is a gearhead and Tiger Mom gets the largish insurance policy so I believe he’ll get anything in my estate and do with it as he sees fit.

Went to the wake for my friend last night.  After expressing my condolences, the topic quickly shifted to our shared love of weird, quirky cars.

I spoke with his family and some friends about what is going to happen next with his "collection". They aren't 100% sure yet, but they are leaning toward keeping one of them for the son and selling off the rest. I offered to help when the time comes, so you may see some "not mine, some affiliation" sales in the classifieds in the coming months. 

His wife said he had 8 project cars, not including the stuff they regularly use. The cars include a Fiero set up for a 3.8 SC swap, my old Shelby CSX, a FWD Mercury Capri XR2 Turbo, an AMC Eagle 4x4 wagon, a Mini, and more. 

I did will El Rabbitto and my firearms to my son.  My wife did giggle.

In reply to Tony Sestito :

Those aren't weird cars, those are our (type of) cars.

Not sure.  My wife and I have no kids and no plans for any.  We have nieces and nephews,  but none old enough to really gauge what kind of cars,  motorcycles,  etc they'll be interested in.  Right now we have a pretty large collection,  but I may scale that back as I get older.  Regardless,  if one of the nieces or nephews shows a large interest in cars, and the rest don't, it will work out well for them.

Patrick said:

My problem is i have guys who claim they’re leaving their stuff to me.  One friend who is north of 70 and has no living kids to leave anything to tells me every time i see him that his 04 marauder is willed to me.  My uncle said the entirety of his garage and gun collection go to me.  Carli’s uncle has no kids and is leaving us and her brother all his vehicles, land, cabin, and he has 30+ antique tractors.  Couple that with both of our parents and we’re boned when that generation starts passing away

 

I mean its a great problem to have. Auction it. Use the proceeds to enjoy your life and say thanks to your loved one. Ashes to Ashes. We are all so very temporary and as I get older I am less sentimental about "things" oddly enough.

Not many people would like my car.  It would probably bring $500 at auction, so I haven't really put much thought into it.

I think this subject needs to be looked at in two ways.

1. "what do I want to happen to my cars"

2. "what can I do so that my collection of obscure cars and parts isn't a burden to whoever inherits it all in part or whole."

The former I don't really care much about (although I would like to see my 1800ES get restored, cost-be-damned should I pass before it happens). 

For the latter, I've been trying to get everything organized and label things so that it won't take an expert in Triumphs and Volvo 1800s to make sense of what I have.  

Toyman is very lucky. If you have a reasonably good collection, and if your kids are car people, then they'll figure it out.  Unfortunately, we don't all have that to fall back on. If you don't have car-savvy children, then you probably want to divest before it's too late. Or, make provisions to donate them in your will to somewhere they'll be accepted. (If you don't have a will, you really should consider having one done). However, if your car collection is a backyard full of project cars and parts, forget it.  Time marches on, and as much as we love this hobby, the support is dwindling rapidly. So let it all go to the crusher and don't worry. Go in peace.

I'm involved in a somewhat related dilemma. I, along with many, many other guys in our 60s, 70s, and 80s, built model cars for the Fisher Body Craftsman's Guild back in the 1950s and 1960s. These are historically significant works of art and automotive sculpture. We're facing the same issue. Where do our models go when we're gone? Some of us have family that could look after them. But some of our FBCG alumni have taken on the task of setting up "legacy programs" at various museums around the country to donate our models to. That might not be possible for sombody wondering where their six cylinder '66 Mustang notch back with automatic transmission is going to end up, but I think you need to think creatively. You probably need to donate it (or your collection of less-than-desirable running vehicles) to a cause that can re-sell it or them for their own benefit. In other words, make it a charitable donation to a great organization that can maximize the value for their own benefit. Again, get a will!

I should probably have already given more thought to this than I have.  I'm hitting 40 next year, and SWMBO has already declared no humans will pass through her uterus, so no-one by law will be stuck with our collection of 19 cars if one or both of us pass.  My brother is relatively high-functioning handicapped, but certainly will never have a driver's license, so the cars do him no good.  

Our collection, meagre as it may be, is guided mainly by the principle that "rare does not equal valuable."  Between all 19, 17 of which are running/driveable, an exceptionally skilled seller might realize an average of $1200 per car.  As the interesting ones are insured at agreed value policies set to the most optimistic interpretation of their replacement cost, the best that could happen to any heirs would be that the cars are wiped out with us when the asteroid strikes..

I have a large collection of vintage Datsun literature and Japanese magazines in my nightstand and closet.  I told my wife if I go first to eBay it all and she might net $750 or so.  

She will probably just throw it all into the recycling bin.  

In reply to Datsun310Guy :

Reference my previous comment, but yup, like it or not ... what we think is great stuff to us is worth nothing to those who think otherwise. And that's about 99.9% of the population and growing. So who's going to buy parts, miscellaneous odds-and-ends, literature, and partially-done projects? Umm, not many. Good luck finding rubes. They might be out there, but then they'll be here asking what to do with this junk. I really do think that we're at the end of our "golden" era ... or, maybe very close to the end.

In reply to Tony Sestito :

As for me? At age 70 I’m left with a shadow of my former collection. Only two of which promise to be of value in the future.  

One assigned to a life long friend. The other to a grandchild.  Realistically the later will be a burden rather than a blessing.  

We need to be realistic.  Race cars and “project” cars. No matter how uncommon will have no real value other than parts donators  or scrap. 

Think about 30-40 year old stuff  from the 70’s & 80’s  who is really collecting it other than you?  Oh the rare Ferrari, Corvette, unique car will sell at a premium but the 4 door automatic with rust and a bad transmission?  

Gary said:

In reply to Datsun310Guy :

Reference my previous comment, but yup, like it or not ... what we think is great stuff to us is worth nothing to those who think otherwise. And that's about 99.9% of the population and growing. So who's going to buy parts, miscellaneous odds-and-ends, literature, and partially-done projects? Umm, not many. Good luck finding rubes. They might be out there, but then they'll be here asking what to do with this junk. I really do think that we're at the end of our "golden" era ... or, maybe very close to the end.

I basically said what you did,  ( sorry, didn’t read yours until after  I posted mine )  so now I’ll play the devils advocate.  

Even today car’s and parts of cars from the 1920’s, 30’s, & 40’s have some value. In part due to how unique they are compared to today’s plastic trash.  

I visited a women’s house recently who was very big in the art community. She had a framed cast Iron seat on display as well as a group of dash instruments  from the 1940’s nicely framed up.  In fact wandering around her house there were a lot of automotive based things on display.  She called it Steam punk.  

In reply to frenchyd :

I'm not sure the situation is quite that bleak.  There are still new enthusiasts popping up.  There are still vendors who deal in old car parts.

Of course, many of those vendors are getting older and often cling to the perceived value of their parts stashes.  If they really want to continue their company, they need to start work on a succession plan now.  Otherwise, it's likely everything will get sold off for scrap when they're gone.

slefain said:

It was a simple answer before my daughter was born. My boys would each get a car, one gets the '75 Duster, the other gets the '69 Olds. Now I need to add a third car for my daughter to inherit. At least that's what makes sense to me. :)

A friend of the family had this situation.  He owned two MGAs.  His wife told him he had to buy another so that each of the three kids could "have one of Dad's cars." 

Ian F said:

In reply to frenchyd :

I'm not sure the situation is quite that bleak.  There are still new enthusiasts popping up.  There are still vendors who deal in old car parts.

Of course, many of those vendors are getting older and often cling to the perceived value of their parts stashes.  If they really want to continue their company, they need to start work on a succession plan now.  Otherwise, it's likely everything will get sold off for scrap when they're gone.

I’m sorry I painted a bleak picture. The reality is cars as a hobby isn’t dead,    Yet! 

 But the numbers sure are getting smaller. Question me?  Look at the stands in any professional auto race. Where once were packed stands fully sold out today there are plenty of empty seats.  

AJFoyt Mario Andretti Dale Earnhardt  etc used to be regularly on the news.  Today I don’t even hear who won unless I search it out  

In reply to frenchyd :

True... can't argue with you there.  

In reply to Ian F :

I just ran into the classic answer. A fellow bus driver was telling when he disposed of his fathers car collection, er, projects not finished collection. He went around town looking for buyers. 

Finding none he had a guy who hauled off scrap iron pay him $200  for 10 cars and their parts. Included in that was a partially finished 1936 Buick roadster with a body like the car in the movie Topper.  ( including the tailfin!!! )  mechanically it was restored and the main body work was pretty close to finished. 

I double checked, the real topper car still exists.