JCW Mini is a possibility one day. I don't see the Celica GT-S going far, to be honest. It wasn't a huge icon then. Civic Si has more fans.
JCW Mini is a possibility one day. I don't see the Celica GT-S going far, to be honest. It wasn't a huge icon then. Civic Si has more fans.
I agree on the original R32, really really great cars.
Celica was really nothing special outside of the GT4 from the 90's
Cars of the 80's are beginning to be an interesting phenomenon. When my wife sets up as a vendor to sell specialty car insurance at shows, we usually take our 85 Celica GT-S because of the attention it garners. At the FL Carlisle show in March the guy in the space next to us called it "the most photographed car at the show" for the steady stream of people the stopped to look. We fielded probably 30 inquiries about if it was for sale even though there was no price on it. It's interesting how many people have owned one or know someone who did in high school.
It'll still be a while before they are worth something - people in high school when these were new are still putting kids through college. Give it another 10 years until that group has disposable income like the 60's muscle car wave and the recent uptick in the interest in the truly awful build quality mid 70's car that is happening now.
Okay, that Celica GT-S. To be honest, I was picturing the later ones.
glueguy wrote: Give it another 10 years until that group has disposable income like the 60's muscle car wave...
Nice Celica!
The next generation will not have anything like the amount of disposable income that the boomers do. Law of large numbers -- nowhere near as many of them, and they (and their kids, grandkids, etc.) will have to shoulder the burdens of exponentially increasing social costs, at least until the 'math' finally wins. Some individuals will have the money, but collectively, far less will be available. The good news is that at the same time that dynamic is working itself out, many of those boomer's estates will be trying to get rid of all the cars that they're buying up right now - so the long term value proposition of many of those collectibles is questionable - especially at the prices they're paying today. A round-a-bout way of saying, at some point, there'll be good deals on some of those cars. Lots of cars in the market and not as many buyers = lower prices!
So, if you're young, I wouldn't buy now. I'd get ready for 20 years from now.
David S. Wallens wrote: JCW Mini is a possibility one day. I don't see the Celica GT-S going far, to be honest. It wasn't a huge icon then. Civic Si has more fans.
Maybe on the JCW... MINI built a ton of them... desirable among the MINI faithful, but pretty much ignored by everyone else, even those who know what they are (GRM types).
I disagree about the Celica GT-S/AE86. I have to admit that after watching Initial-D, I want one. JDM and RHD, of course. 
I happened to see a MkIV R32 this morning during my drive into work. I do like those, but I have an unnatural thing for MkIV's.
Ian F wrote:David S. Wallens wrote: JCW Mini is a possibility one day. I don't see the Celica GT-S going far, to be honest. It wasn't a huge icon then. Civic Si has more fans.Maybe on the JCW... MINI built a ton of them... desirable among the MINI faithful, but pretty much ignored by everyone else, even those who know what they are (GRM types). I disagree about the Celica GT-S/AE86. I have to admit that after watching Initial-D, I want one. JDM and RHD, of course.
Yeah, my bad on the Celica. I thought we were talking 2000 and up. If we're going back to the '80s then, yes, the AE86 and other '80s Toyotas are totally on the list.
In reply to David S. Wallens:
True... the thread is supposed to be about "this century"... thread digressions-r-us... 
I think my list has been covered already:
Laguna Seca edition Mustang
Lotus Elise / Exige
Unmolested Evo
Latest version of the Thunderbird
David S. Wallens wrote: JCW Mini is a possibility one day. I don't see the Celica GT-S going far, to be honest. It wasn't a huge icon then. Civic Si has more fans.
I want a JWC-GP now. I wish they would depreciate a bit more. I just sold my R53 last Friday and am now MINI-less.
racerdave600 wrote: I want a JCW-GP now. I wish they would depreciate a bit more. I just sold my R53 last Friday and am now MINI-less.
R53 or R56?
Low mileage R53 GP's seem to be fairly stable in the low $20K range, with high mileage ones a variable amount less. I vaguely remember seeing one for the low teens, but it had a lot of miles on it (nearly 200K).
R56 GP's are new enough that they still seem to be in the low-mid 30's.
wvumtnbkr wrote: I think my list has been covered already: Laguna Seca edition Mustang Lotus Elise / Exige Unmolested Evo Latest version of the Thunderbird
Good list. Elises are already climbing as it's hard to find a non-totalled car.
Good call on the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca Mustang.
Im thinking that the Elise will be the the coulda-shoulda-woulda car. It seems to appeal to almost all the segments of the hobby...There is something in that car for everybody.
Leo
In reply to Leo Basile:
Unless you are over 6ft., or have bad joints, or are a female in a dress
The Elise is a blast as a toy, but for for me it would be too much of a chore as a DD or even summer car. All the things that make it so nice as a toy make it too cheap for me to consider daily. It smells of fiberglass, is a PIA for entry and egress, the NVH sucks. Yes I know that's the point, but I could never justify a $30-40K car as a toy only. More power to those that can. Note, in my 20's I ran a fiberglass monocoque kit car as my only car for a couple of years. That didn't even have a heater and would have made an Elise look like an over stuffed luxo barge, but that was then, this is now.
Ian F wrote:racerdave600 wrote: I want a JCW-GP now. I wish they would depreciate a bit more. I just sold my R53 last Friday and am now MINI-less.R53 or R56? Low mileage R53 GP's seem to be fairly stable in the low $20K range, with high mileage ones a variable amount less. I vaguely remember seeing one for the low teens, but it had a lot of miles on it (nearly 200K). R56 GP's are new enough that they still seem to be in the low-mid 30's.
I wouldn't mind either version, but I would really like to have the R56 since I've been the R53 route.
My wife love wearing a dress when we take the Elise out just for that reason! LOL
Leo Basile wrote: My wife love wearing a dress when we take the Elise out just for that reason! LOL
I would demand pics of entry and egress, but I might get in trouble for that
Tom_Spangler wrote: Oh, also the 03-04 "Terminator" supercharged Mustang Cobras. Those seemed to drop down to about $20-25k a few years after they stopped production and have stayed there ever since.
Agreed
pinchvalve wrote:Tom_Spangler wrote: Oh, also the 03-04 "Terminator" supercharged Mustang Cobras. Those seemed to drop down to about $20-25k a few years after they stopped production and have stayed there ever since.
It's funny, they were great cars and I agree they will hold/increase in value, but even as a previous SN95 owner, the only two SN95's that hit my buttons are the 95R and the Bullitt edition
Ian F wrote: Ths issue with this crowd is resisting the urge to modify. If I've learned nothing else in the last 10 years of casually watchign the classic car market, it's that stock/original rules. Modifications hurt, even if they improve performance...
I couldn't agree more! That's why when I make "improvements" to my rides, I don't go all out. I only make changes that can be reversed and don't do any cutting. Nor do I change the stock color. I also save all the stock parts I have reason to remove to make the car more fun while I own it.
I believe the buyer of my formerly super-hot 240Z was as excited that I had and provided the original wheels and hub caps as anything I ever did to make it run better. So he bought a great, fast car for use right away. And I included enough original low or no mileage parts, including the 4sp transmission, prop shaft and totally brand new exhaust including factory manifold and original, non rusted muffler. So he could & did make a show car out of it when he got tired of terrorizing others with it.
Probably the one affordable model with growth potential of this century, to me, is the S2000. But if I had one, I'd work on it in the way I just described so I could enjoy it too.
Having said all that, I don't see anyone buying any car as an appreciating asset. Unless of course you have a sealed storage place & never sit in the car. Even then it's a real risk. Drive the damned thing!
I'm just going to put another vote in for the Elise/Exige and maybe the Civic Si.
I forgot, did we already mention the Integra Type R?
80s and 90s Japanese sports cars. Skylines (RWD and AWD), Supras, RX7s, MR2s, Integra Type R, etc. They are already reaching that status or have reached it. AW11 MR2s have shot up in price lately, one sold on Ebay for 18k (low mile supercharged) this past week.
I'm glad I bought my skyline when I did people are buying them for $14k now it's ridiculous. Not even GTRs.
Ian F wrote: So in a nutshell, you can place a bet on a minty & low-mileage car, but you will pretty much need to treat it as a "collectible car" now. If the thought is to buy something that may become collectible and then use it as your daily driver, then this may be wishful thinking. If you watch the auction shows, you see cars like this all the time. Cars that were put away when nearly new and kept original. Sometimes they even sell for more than the original MSRP.
So we should buy a car, put it away, and never enjoy it. Then, if we're lucky it'll sell for more than MSRP?
I'm into investments. After all, they helped me retire early. But I think cars as investments overall is a waste of almost everyone's time, effort, and fun. If you want art to look at and hope it will grow in value, buy art. If you buy a car, drive it!
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