Why pay so much for a clone??

[SilverChally]

How many people honestly spedn 20-30k on a pro paint job for a clone, thats insane.

[A383Cuda]

I've heard of people that own decent drivers to begin with, paying $50,000 for a rotiserrie restoration. That's with them already having the car. A top notch paint job today, especially when asked to include the bottom of the car will easily run $10,000 of that. You then have to consider searching for correct, dated parts and possibly refinishing those to correct appearance, stamping, chalk marks, etc. That alone covers the body and interior on any car, be it a 318 or 440. Now you pay an additional $15-20,000 for the Hemi motor, and you're at $70,000. Consider that then you'll have to get correct brackets, motor mounts, K member, etc. Then you figure a waiting time of 6 months to a year while you go through the process. I can see why they get it. Certainly anyone can buy a Hemi and install it in a 318 car for less, but the two cars would not compare when done. It's the attention to details that get's expensive.

[hotrod98]

I sold my real 71 shaker hood cuda a couple of years ago and built my 71 cuda clone the way that I wanted it and ended up with enough money to build my wife's cuda clone as well. Don't regret it one bit. I just sold my 70 challenger convertible hemi clone for 35k more than I had in it. That just about paid for new building.

[jeryst]

You think they're expensive now...just wait a few years. There are less cars available every year due to accidents, fires, etc and there are more and more new drivers out there looking for a musclecar.

I somewhat disagree. There are literally tens of thousand of these cars (maybe many more) being restored across the nation. Guys like Moparclown and Farmboy70 have the talent and will to save cars that were previously written off as hopeless. Even the ones being wrecked and burnt are being restored, so there are actually more coming onto the market every day. The younger generation does not generate as much demand for these cars, and us boomers are rapidly dying off, which is a double whammy, because more cars are being made available, while demand is decreasing. Although the authentic rare cars will always demand a premium, the others will not fare so well, because as  the prices go up, the pool of buyers shrinks. If 10 people are willing to pay $50k for a clone, only 7 will be willing to pay $60k,   5 willing to pay $70k, etc. That's what makes prices top out, Once appreciation slows and prices top out, investors will bail out of the market, which will burst the bubble. Clones will be the ones that lose value the fastest, because there are more of them out there, and simply put, they're fakes. Rarity is what promotes value, not copies of rarity. If the Mona Lisa is worth $10M, do you think anyone would pay $1M for a good copy? We've seen it everywhere else (from real estate to Beanie Babies), so there's no reason to think that muscle cars won't follow economic rules. Also, what would happen if something happened like a major recession? The cars (along with practically everything else) would quickly lose value. I agree that muscle car prices may be higher next year, but what about the year after that, or the next? It's just rediculous to believe that they will keep going up indefinitely. Do you think anyone would pay $1M for a cloned 318 with a 440 stuck in it? We're already seeing signs of softening, so it's only a matter of time.

[SilverChally]

I can't see and I think its stupid to use date correct and correct other parts they use on the concours type restos for a clone!  Let that stuff go to the real cars!  Its a clone, doing a hemi, add the torque boxes and such and let it at that.  Prices arent going to drop for the general cars we see for sell.  The might level off, but with inflation and everything else, they maybe seem less, but can't see the bottom dropping out.

[bb71challenger]

I can't see and I think its stupid to use date correct and correct other parts they use on the concours type restos for a clone!  Let that stuff go to the real cars!  Its a clone, doing a hemi, add the torque boxes and such and let it at that.  Prices arent going to drop for the general cars we see for sell.  The might level off, but with inflation and everything else, they maybe seem less, but can't see the bottom dropping out.

I see your point but I think you are stressing over something you have no control. The lowly slants and 318's were built on the same line so they are real cars. If someone wanted to gold plate every part on the car who is going to stop them? I dont konw but it seems you are placing the "real cars" on a pedestal so high they are out of sight while you kick rocks at the base cars in the 6' hole 

[wiiildcat]

I can't see and I think its stupid to use date correct and correct other parts they use on the concours type restos for a clone!  Let that stuff go to the real cars!  Its a clone, doing a hemi, add the torque boxes and such and let it at that.  Prices arent going to drop for the general cars we see for sell.  The might level off, but with inflation and everything else, they maybe seem less, but can't see the bottom dropping out.

A person that has allways wanted a hemi or big block cuda and can not afford a real one (including myself), can buy a base and restore it for to his/her level. But in the real world attention to detail makes or breaks a clone. Nobody wants to spend their hard earned money for a car that is going to get picked apart every time they show it. My 70 hemi Cuda convert clone. sold to a museum for 90k. I was offered 45k for the 1970 hemi unstamed motor in it alone. I paid 28k for the car, 18k for body and paint. 25k for the 70 hemi. and had receipts for more than 10k in labor, top, interior, and just normal things any restoration takes. Theres 81k invested, not counting the 2 years to chase down bracket's nuts bolts and lots of late nights putting stuff together. fighting with wife cause I was spending ALL our money lol. So I dont think most NICE clones are out of line in price.

[pink panther]

 

Haven't we had this discussion before? 

When I take the chally to a show it doesn't fall under clone class, but rather "modified"  I say build it how you want and spend as much or little as you want because it is your car.  Some people need the exact correctness to feel good about their ride and that is ok, but others want a car they can drive and not have to worry about any serious reprocussions from damage, theft, etc.

just my2

[cudabuyer]

great american debate   the cars cost   2 restore as clone /  tribute.  buy em, build em, drive em.

It is only worth as much as someone is willling to pay for it, i will have $100k in my 70 challenger convertible with the 540 hemi.

Everything from the front radiator to the tips is 2006.  Is 2 much invested now where i should have bought a 70 - 71 cuda convertible? -

but the WIFE BOSS  would have never allowed that large purchase, always easier over time 1 year to buy a few pieces at a time even if some are

2000 - 5000.

just my    WILL I EVER RECOUP MY MONEY - NO & I DON'T CARE - IT IS NOT AN INVESTMENT CUZ - i don't have a 45K car that will sell for 60 - 70K.  I see that my costs have already exceeded what hemified convertibles are selling for

a 70 cuda convertible pink had a recent buy it now for about 72K.  

[hotrod98]

Jeryst,
You're dreaming if you think these cars are going to come down in price anytime soon. They only built so many and that's it. Real estate is definitely not going down and only a total idiot would have bought beanie babies to begin with. Maybe the same guys that started their own ostrich farms.
Musclecars were a unique commodity. No other era has the following that these cars have had. Have you ever noticed that the music of the same era has the same strong following. You don't hear much pre 60's music or post 70's music being played on the radio. Most of the music in the movies even today was from the late 60's and early 70's. The cars and the music will live on for many more years. If you choose to wait to buy a muscle car, so be it. Meanwhile I've bought up over 30 just to make sure that I get my share. Lately, I've been buying as many second gen Trans Ams as I can get my hands on. The prices of the T/A's are reasonable and I sure can't find those mopars that everyone keeps telling me are still out there.

[kingtroll]

Mopars in the South Fla east coast are not very common at all. (for sale) Now if you want a Mercedes or BMW take your pick.

[jeryst]

Jeryst,
You're dreaming if you think these cars are going to come down in price anytime soon. They only built so many and that's it. Real estate is definitely not going down and only a total idiot would have bought beanie babies to begin with.

So you think prices will just keep going up forever? That someday, even slant-6 cars will be commanding six-figure prices? The two biggest forces driving the prices are investors, and baby boomers. Period. Investors are quick to abandon when appreciation slows, and move to the next big thing. Boomers are losing numbers, and the new generation does not put the same sentimental, nostalgic value on them that we do. It's true that they only made so many of these vehicles, but like I said, there are more coming onto the market every day. How many towns are there in the US? Fifty thousand? One hundred thousand? I'd feel confident in saying that there is at least one Mopar being restored in every one of those towns, right now. Hell, I live in a very small town, and I alone know of more than twenty Mopars being restored, and I know of at least another twenty just sitting there waiting. Supply vs demand controls everything. Period!

[Blackcuda]

I have to disagree on one point, I think there are many young people who are getting into the hobby that are very much into old muscle cars. I see it everytime I take my Cuda out to a show or just cruise around town with it. I sold my 71 442 Olds convertible to a 23 year old 3 years ago now the car is fully restored. Also if you seen Overhaulin, there have been several episodes where the owners of some muscle cars were in there 20's and early 30's. In our present day, there are very few new cars that don't look like electric razors. I believe the new generation of car nuts have plenty of respect for the classics.

[torredcuda]

Musclecars will come down in price,just look at what `20`s,`30`s & 40`s cars were selling for 10-20  years ago and see how much less they are selling for now.They will never again be dirt cheap but when the majority of us 40-50 year olds start retiring and selling off our cars (not me I`m going to be buried in mine!)the demand will fall and so will the prices.

[Moparal]

Well there's about 200 million baby boomers as you put it at we aint dieing all at once. We cammand the majority of the population. So try setting back and waiting for us all to die off