[L78M22Rag]

Other than our family driver, I’ve never had the urge to walk into a dealership and drop a large sum of cash on a new sports car that will be worth 60% of that price tag when I’m bored with it and looking for something else. That’s just me... I’d rather plunk less money on a car that’s already depreciated in value and will hold its value for the foreseeable future while I enjoy it.

Whenever you think you understand the market, there are other factors that you could never have anticipated and the market goes in a direction that you never expected. As was said about the brass cars... and other antiques like Model A’s, etc. Many have predicted those markets to crater as their caretakers passed on. When a market softens, a lot of things happen. Some “investors” panic and sell, while other lurking investors perk up and notice the opportunity.

I don’t have any idea where the musclecar market is destined to go, but I’m in it for the enjoyment of my cars... they’re all drivers. I’ll jump into my 1970 LS5 convertible survivor to drive 400 miles through the Rockies if the forecast looks good. I’ve done that with my L89 Chevelle too. If they’re too nice to drive, I’ll soon be bored with them. I think that’s partly why survivors are rising in popularity. They can and should be driven to maintain them.

I too believe that the elite cars hold their value just like a Picasso painting holds its value. I think there are followers of factory built musclecars and there are other followers of dealer modified cars. That’s what makes us all different. I do, however, think there is a trickle down effect as the elite dealers sell their second tier cars, the second tier investors will seize the opportunity to buy those second tier cars and sell their less desirable cars, and so on. Personally, I see more and more enthusiasts becoming aware of “original paint” and “born with” drivetrains, so I believe the survivor market is still strengthening or developing to some degree. Perhaps that’s attributable to collectors wanting to drive their cars?