Setting the market for 124s?

[robpic]

I've read the wonderful info on this forum on what to look for when buying a Spider. Thank-you!

I saw this '82 124 sell on eBay today for $10,000. Looks perfect at 39,000 miles in California. After seeing some less than perfect restored cars at Andy's Spiders in Toronto going for $12,000 to $18,000...this eBay one looks like it sets the user end of the market for me.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Fiat-124 ... 33794cddef

Thoughts?

[RRoller123]

It does appear that prices may be increasing a bit. Everyone I talk to at various events comments that the Spiders are undervalued by the marketplace, and have a timeless beauty that is under appreciated. As they become more and more rare due to parting out, this trend may continue. Fiat's re-entry in the US market certainly helps too.

[azruss]

for $10k the car should be perfect. although when mine is done i will have far more than $10k in it and it will be far from perfect.

[courtenay]

Not sure why people think a Fiat should be "perfect" for $10,000...and then say they spent a hell of a lot more than $10,000 to fix up a $3000 car???
I paid $10,000 for my '80Fi. 62,000 kms - NO, and I mean NO rust anywhere - but not perfect - very good, but not perfect. I have spent maintenance dollars only on the car - timing belt, oil, trans fluid, water pump (only because I stripped one of the pulley bolts when I was doing the timing belt) and so forth. As far as I'm concerned, it was $10 grand very well spent, particularly when I read about so many others buying $3000 piles of rust and spending 4 times that much getting them into reasonable driving condition.

[Daniel]

maintenance is a loss on any car every thing from a KIA that cost 10k to a Jaguar 120k New no matter what you buy
and drive the up keep is part of the deal while driving a car. Fiat 124s are always going to decline in numbers till they
become rare enough where parting them out no longer makes sense verse saving the car as a collectors item.

[RRoller123]

Are there any estimates of just how many Spiders are left out there in running condition? Roughly 175,000 were originally manufactured.

Also, how many members do we have on the Forum? Seems like we gain an average of just under 2 a day. Very encouraging!

[mdrburchette]

That $10k Spider sure is a nice one. I think well worth the money.
Andy's Spiders may bring more since they're in Toronto and because a restoration by Andy can be as high as $35k so $12K is a bargain. The market has a lot to do with the price.

[spidernut]

When people say "restored", they all have different meanings. My '79 is restored and is about 95% original with 42,000 miles on it. It isn't a show car, but is really clean from top to bottom. I figure it is worth about $6,500 max. My '80 is fixed up (not restored), new paint, new interior, new door panels, new carpet, new top, rebuilt diff, new u joints, new driveshaft center support, all new trailing arms, new tires, new brakes, blah, blah, blah. I figure it is worth $4,500-$5,000 max.

I'm always game to see our cars sell for $10,000 and if all the work was done correctly (not like so many cars that have been poorly repaired), it'd be worth the money to someone who just wants a more trouble-free Spider and doesn't want a project car.

The problem is there are still a reasonable number of Spiders on the road - Heck - I'd probably take $10,000 if someone wanted both of my Spiders.

[burlybryan]

It really varies by region and market. Ebay not withstanding, restored Spiders (or most any other collectable car) can't easily return the investment of what it costs to do a quality restoration. There's a market ceiling on even the best ones. Spidernut summed it up well.

That said, just routinely looking at Craigslist in Minneapolis, you'll see completely trashed cars asking $2-$3K and perfectly maintained/preserved ones for around $5K. There's a nice red one in a western suburb I've been drooling for a few months now, but I went the buy cheap and fix it up route.

[4uall]

I have always thought a car will only be worth what someone else is willing to pay That being said there are too many variables like, amount of time invested, parts invested, economy, market value etc etc etc For me half of the fun is working on these cars and the other half is driving them. So when looking I guess it depends on which way your heart is leaning towards that day

PS mine is avail for a mere $999,999.99 (CDN funds)

[narfire]

piles of rust and spending 4 times that much getting them into reasonable driving condition.

Bruce you're being nice, can be 5 times...
From this

to this


There is no way I'd get anywhere near what I have invested, perhaps 50-75% thats it. You are so correct in that cars closer to original I believe will sell quicker and at a price closer to what you have invested if you had a good rust free car to start with.
I found that my car rattles a bit over lumps and bumps in the road while the unmolested one I had a couple of years ago did not.
Chris

[katsi]

Interesting topic
I purchased my 79 for 1,200.00 - it had some light rust on the floor pans but nothing to make a stink about. Yet it was not rust free. I have probably invested about an additional $3,000 - mostly on body work and paint. For insurance purposes I have an agreed upon value with the insurance co of $12,500.00. So, if it gets damaged and the repairs amount to over the 12.5 K, I just get a check for the 12.5K.

My point here is that - yeah, they are being recognized as semi expensive autos. CHA-CHING

[robpic]

Here's a '77 I looked at tonight. There's an ebay listing and some additional photos I took before my iPhone ran out of battery.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/?cmd=Vie ... 102wt_1167

https://picasaweb.google.com/TopGun930/ ... directlink

I couldn't see any rust, but that undercoating might have hidden it. The engine looked a little "shaky"..not sure if that's normal. The engine bay seemed to smell like gas...and the exhaust seemed to indicate it was running rich?

It didn't seem to have an overabundance of power...although I haven't driven many of these. And it seemed to pull to the right a little bit.

The driver's door didn't seem to align perfectly...and if you look at the photo of the trunk, it isn't aligned perfectly either.

I'll think about it for a bit, and maybe have a mechanic look at it.

[fiat218]

Not sure why people think a Fiat should be "perfect" for $10,000...and then say they spent a hell of a lot more than $10,000 to fix up a $3000 car???
I paid $10,000 for my '80Fi. 62,000 kms - NO, and I mean NO rust anywhere - but not perfect - very good, but not perfect. I have spent maintenance dollars only on the car - timing belt, oil, trans fluid, water pump (only because I stripped one of the pulley bolts when I was doing the timing belt) and so forth. As far as I'm concerned, it was $10 grand very well spent, particularly when I read about so many others buying $3000 piles of rust and spending 4 times that much getting them into reasonable driving condition.

I spend 8000. For my 69, to me it was worth it, there now way in hell u could fix up a 69 for less, hard to find one for sale I'm sure! And I don't even drive it

[narfire]

Hey Jim, this 68 is for sale for around $5000.00 cdn. It need shock towers re & re and some inner fender work. The fellow still drives it in the summer. History was it was bought in Europe ( Holland) moved to Spain and then here in 1980.
If I had the loot I'd bite if he would sell it for less.

I think you are not far off if you would invest 3-5000 thou on this, you would be at the $8-9000 total.
Chris