The Best Collector Cars Were Hard To Sell!

[423REED]

Back in 1969-1970, I was selling Fords for awhile. My Ford dealership was not really known as a "perfomance" dealer, but we still received in a 1970 Mustang BOSS 429 fastback, Grabber Blue in color. It took forever for the dealership to sell that car (months and months). They lost their ass on it financially, and they had to give it away. They also had to restrict people from walking in off the street and taking test drives, because everyone wanted to come in and pretend to be interested just to get behind the wheel. We also had a lot of 428CJ-R Mach I's that were also very hard to get rid of!

The point I'm making is that some of the best, fastest, most powerful and the highest valued collector cars of today were sales dogs years ago. Look at how expensive the perfect versions are today. Now they're real collectible today, but they were not way back then. You had the cost of the car, which was always much higher due to the big block engines and all extra performance equipment. You had much higher insurance and gas expenses to bear. Then you had to live in constant fear that someone might steal your wheels/tires, or the whole car.

Think about that the next time you look at the sales numbers for the 2003-2004 Marauders. And remember that over the next 20-30 years, the total number of surviving Marauders will continue to dwindle every year. I'm not suggesting that our MM's will be extremely valuable, but they most certainly will be collectible cars. They'll be prime examples of the automotive performance and style that will no longer be existant in the future times.

Enjoy your new Marauder everytime you wash and wax it. Everytime you take a drive in it. savor every minute with it. Lite it up whenever you get a chance. Enjoy the roar of the DOHC V8 muscle car engine every time you lite it up. It loves to be driven hard, fast, and flung around corners fast. And it looks just fantastic sitting there all freshly washed and waxed with its big 18" wheels and tires.

_________________________
2004 MARAUDER - DTR
1994 TAURUS SHO - DK GREEN

[Slowpoke]

..... that says it all!

[Bluerauder]

..... that says it all!
Excellent perspective ^^^^^^^ what he said. I am enjoying the ride. :drive:

[Marauderman]

What 423REED says^^^^^^^^^^ is so true..I have been there....My Dad owned a Chevy Dealership from '48-'58--and one special year, 1957, Chevy lost their axxx to Ford --2 to 1 in sales--yet today --whose car is the most collectable and worth the most---try buying a prestine '57 Chevy today ---and to think it sold for $2700---so, if we can keep our MM's around long enough with trashing them, maybe, just maybe...like he says....we could be holding on to some precious metal........Tom...

[2003 MIB]

Back in 1969-1970, I was selling Fords for awhile. My Ford dealership was not really known as a "perfomance" dealer, but we still received in a 1970 Mustang BOSS 429 fastback, Grabber Blue in color. It took forever for the dealership to sell that car (months and months). They lost their ass on it financially. They had to give it away. They also had to restrict people from in off the street and taking test drives, because everyone wanted to come in and pretend to be interested just to get behind the wheel. We also had 428CJ-R Mach I's that were also hard to get rid of!
Great story! I (for one) would like to read more about your experiences in the "storyboard". Grannies driving big blocks, kids trying to test drive powerful cars etc... I betcha got a few good ones.:)

[2005Marauder]

Went to our local car show with some 400+ entries and I did not see ONE SINGLE MERCURY. I took the time and there were several of every other brand that I could think of but ZERO Mercs, even a couple of the Boss 429 you refer to. I used to have a '71 Comet GT--which is very rare. Several Mavericks. Even a couple of '71 models.

[423REED]

What 423REED says^^^^^^^^^^ is so true..I have been there....My Dad owned a Chevy Dealership from '48-'58--and one special year, 1957, Chevy lost their axxx to Ford --2 to 1 in sales--yet today --whose car is the most collectable and worth the most---try buying a prestine '57 Chevy today ---and to think it sold for $2700---so, if we can keep our MM's around long enough with trashing them, maybe, just maybe...like he says....we could be holding on to some precious metal........Tom...The first car that I ever fell in love with was a 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible! It was used in the early 1960's, I think it was in 1963 or 1964. They wanted $ 1000 for it back then. But a $ 1000 bucks was a lot of money back then. I was still a little too young, maybe 15 or 16 years old. I've always loved convertibles, even as a young boy. I pleaded with my mother and father. But they wouldn't or couldn't buy it for me. So, after all these years, I still have a little soft spot in my heart for these beautiful '57 Chevies. And today they sell for enormous prices. I think that quality and classic designs are always a thing of pride, no matter how many years pass by.
___________________________
2004 MARAUDER - DTR
1994 TAURUS SHO - DK GREEN

[FastMerc]

:wave: Yes a true way of a muscle car,A dealership that a neighbor worked at had a untitled 69 429 BOSS untile 1971, they got tirerd of moving it around and sold it cheap.He was gonna buy it, you know the old saying snoose ya loooooose :(

[jakdad]

So you gonna make a convert out of your Marauder?

:lol: :lol: :lol:





The first car that I ever fell in love with was a 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible! It was used in the early 1960's, I think it was in 1963 or 1964. They wanted $ 1000 for it back then. But a $ 1000 bucks was a lot of money back then. I was still a little too young, maybe 15 or 16 years old. I've always loved convertibles, even as a young boy. I pleaded with my mother and father. But they wouldn't or couldn't buy it for me. So, after all these years, I still have a little soft spot in my heart for these beautiful '57 Chevies. And today they sell for enormous prices. I think that quality and classic designs are always a thing of pride, no matter how many years pass by.
___________________________
2004 MARAUDER - DTR
1994 TAURUS SHO - DK GREEN

[423REED]

So you gonna make a convert out of your Marauder?

:lol: :lol: :lol:
No, I'm not looking for a convertible at this time. But that Marauder convertible concept car was really sweet. Its a shame that the Marauder program didn't last a couple more years. I've owned a number of convertibles over the years, as follows:

1965 Chevrolet Corvair Monza conv., 1966 Chevrolet Corvair Monza conv., 1975 Pontiac Grandville conv., 1984 Ford Mustang LX5.0L V8 conv., and a 1987 Ford Mustang GT 5.0L V8 conv.

So, for now I'm staying with my two performance car sedans.
___________________________
2004 MARAUDER - DTR
1994 TAURUS SHO - DK GREEN

[kurly]

[QUOTE=423REED]Back in 1969-1970, I was selling Fords for awhile. My Ford dealership was not really known as a "perfomance" dealer, but we still received in a 1970 Mustang BOSS 429 fastback, Grabber Blue in color.

That 1970 Mustang 429 sure was sweet! However, when I got back from Vietnam, I bought a 69 AMX which demanded complete and total loyalty for many years! They are very rare but never have seen one considered as or sold as a "classic"? :cool4:

[Cobra25]

Back in 1969-1970, I was selling Fords for awhile. My Ford dealership was not really known as a "perfomance" dealer, but we still received in a 1970 Mustang BOSS 429 fastback, Grabber Blue in color. It took forever for the dealership to sell that car (months and months). They lost their ass on it financially, and they had to give it away. They also had to restrict people from walking in off the street and taking test drives, because everyone wanted to come in and pretend to be interested just to get behind the wheel. We also had a lot of 428CJ-R Mach I's that were also very hard to get rid of!

The point I'm making is that some of the best, fastest, most powerful and the highest valued collector cars of today were sales dogs years ago. Look at how expensive the perfect versions are today. Now they're real collectible today, but they were not way back then. You had the cost of the car, which was always much higher due to the big block engines and all extra performance equipment. You had much higher insurance and gas expenses to bear. Then you had to live in constant fear that someone might steal your wheels/tires, or the whole car.

Think about that the next time you look at the sales numbers for the 2003-2004 Marauders. And remember that over the next 20-30 years, the total number of surviving Marauders will continue to dwindle every year. I'm not suggesting that our MM's will be extremely valuable, but they most certainly will be collectible cars. They'll be prime examples of the automotive performance and style that will no longer be existant in the future times.

Enjoy your new Marauder everytime you wash and wax it. Everytime you take a drive in it. savor every minute with it. Lite it up whenever you get a chance. Enjoy the roar of the DOHC V8 muscle car engine every time you lite it up. It loves to be driven hard, fast, and flung around corners fast. And it looks just fantastic sitting there all freshly washed and waxed with its big 18" wheels and tires.

_________________________
2004 MARAUDER - DTR
1994 TAURUS SHO - DK GREEN Point well made. All the more reason to enjoy them while we have them.

[the fat bastid]

i remeber hearing about superbirds sitting on the lots for years now look at how much one goes for.

[stevengerard]

yes and a lot of the pace cars had to have their stickers taken off before they got sold. The Olds Ralleye 350 had yellow bumpers and those were occasionally switched back to chrome.

I still think the majority of the expensive cars are now the rare versions of those that sold well, like Shelby Mustangs, Superbirds and LS6 Chevelles. Though there were more LS6s made than LS5s