I hope they go up in value. I bought my El Camino in 1983 for $2800, and I probably have close to 30 K invested in it now.
I have been saying this for at least 15 years = I feel that G Bodys will be like 55-57 Chevy cars. At one point they were real cheap and easy to find, then they become expensive and rarely seen on the road. I remember in the late 90s, I had several G bodys in my yard. Some were parts cars and others were future builders. I remember buying an 86 Regal for $100 that did not run. It had a stopped up filter at the carb and the sock was deteriorated in the tank. Drove it for awhile after that. I bought an 87 turbo T in 1999 with a primered door and fender for $2500. My banker called me one day in about 1995 and asked me if I'd be interested in an 85 Regal Limited that his mom just wrecked for $500. It had 33,000 miles on it and had always been garaged. It still smelled new. The frame was bent so it got parted out. I put the 3.8V6 and trans in my 46 Plymouth business coupe. I turned down an 84 Hurst Olds because I wanted a black 83. I think it was $2000. When we moved from the country in 2001, I called the local salvage and they took 7 G bodys. Fast forward to now. I check craigslist daily and rarely see cheap G bodys. Hurst Olds are bringing as much as Buick Grand Nationals. Never thought I'd see that! Anyways, if you've found a dead G body sittin somewhere and you got the room to store it, I think the investment is there. Around here there are LOTS of dirt tracks. Most of the local G bodys have been ruined and rarely do I see any on the road.
Still have the regal? And where are you locatedTimes are changing but I feel G-bodies are not pulling the money they should. Cash for clunkers took most of the cars from that era, insurance companies got in the salvage game, and junkyards are rapidly disappearing. Despite becoming rare the G-bodies were never considered muscle cars (exc GN) and I don't think they will ever pull the big bucks. I see G-bodies w/ extremely low mi.'s that are bargains not selling. I personally had a beautiful 81 Regal w/ 21,000 original mi that wouldn't sell till I gave it away. I currently have an 81 GP for sale for 6 months w/o even an inquiry. Also have an 86 turbo regal body and frame for $350 w/title no hits. I believe the collector car market has peeked and is declining but it will always be there.
The uptick in aftermarket parts (sheet metal especially) may drive the price of these cars up a little. I agree that the majority of the lines were made with non performance in mind, so if you don't have a muscle car base for the purists to restore and sell as an investment, they will never be in the Camaro, Chevelle, Mustang range. Still, they are getting hard to find cheap, and the junk yards are drying up with G-Body parts cars. Driving an hour in any direction, there is only one yard with a G in it, and it's picked clean. If I had the money and space, I would prob start putting a couple good examples aside for the future.
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