OK, somebody give me a d@mn good reason not to buy this:
Should I tick another of life's "I want" boxes?
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- Rated: 27 ↑
Nov 3, 2008 2:13 p.m. Deke Martin:
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- Rated: 58 ↑
Nov 3, 2008 2:25 p.m. yettoblaster:
Kinda pricey for a four-door sedan with likely a 235c.i. six and a three-on-the-tree.
It's just an old car for too much.
Now if it was 2-door V8 in that shape it could be worth it, but the market is not for 4-door sixes even if they've put BabyMoons on it.
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- Rated: 30 ↑
Nov 3, 2008 2:26 p.m. JazzBoxJunky:
I'll give you a good reason, cause it's a 4 door......Just kidding Deke, if you dig it, buy it! I'll warn you though, everyone is gonna say, too bad it's a 4 door.
Ha, Yetto beat me to it.
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- Rated: 212 ↑
Nov 3, 2008 2:31 p.m. Proteus:
It's a four-door post sedan, in the pecking order of 50s body styles barely one notch above the two-door post sedan which occupies the bottom rung.
It has a six, and looks like 3-on-the-tree.
The economy has gone half the way to hell, and may go the rest of the way, in which case any vehicle that isn't solid practical transportation is going to feel like "maybe I shouldn't have done that."
'57 Chevies seem in retrospect the be-all and end-all of fifties automotive culture, and have become an icon of the era. They represent a nicely done update of the '55 (which is just as good, in a more refined, classic way) and are better than the '56, but there are any number of other fifties cars which excel the '57 in design, performance, and quality.
That does appear to be a good price for a '57, at least at first glance, when over-restored BelAirs were going for close to a hundred grand a few years/months ago. (I haven't looked lately.) And that example looks honest (though I wonder about the mileage). It has all that going for it. But it's not really a GREAT price for that model.
Cars from the 50s are easy to repair, restore, and keep running - in their way - so there's THAT too. In a world where anything that rolls under its own power will do (say, a world with an economy like Cuba's, and assuming there's fuel), a stovebolt-six 50s Chevy may turn out to be a good thing.
But otherwise, it's underbraked, undersprung, under-equipped, and generally under-safe.
If the violence done to the iconic lines by its 4-door-postness, its lack of identifying BelAir trim, the undesirability among collectors (I don't say unsuitability) of the drive train, the uncertainty of the economy (hey, frivolous collector items may go lower yet!), and the hassle of getting it from Detroit to England don't give you pause, then you really have 57-Chevy disease BAD, and should go for it!
If I was shopping for a car from the 50s now myself, it would be a '57 Buick Super or Roadmaster, or a '53 Stude coupe, or a '56 Continental MkII.
But before looking for THOSE, I'd be after a late-40s long-wheelbase Cadillac or Buick fastback "sedanette" - or a '60 (NOT a '59) Coupe de Ville.
All a matter of personal taste, of course, but I just think Tri-5 Chevies have been overexposed and done to death, and are less suited to a Gretsch guy that something a bit more...unusual.
Random opining, worthy of little regard, I'm sure.
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- Rated: 11 ↑
Nov 3, 2008 2:34 p.m. Tux:
Do it, Deke...or weep when it shows up on R&M Classic Car Auctions (ESPN) for $75,000 in a few years.
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- Rated: 13 ↑
Nov 3, 2008 2:39 p.m. Catdaddy1967:
You bringing it back to the UK then, Deke? Can I borrow it for a photoshoot? Lol!
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- Rated: 212 ↑
Nov 3, 2008 2:49 p.m. Proteus:
I doubt a 4-door post sedan is ever going to appreciate to 75K - if any cars continue to appreciate before most of us retire and need the money, or drop dead.
The generation that most cares about these cars is passing through the mid-life blow-money-on-nostalgic-old-cars phase. That happened long ago to cars from the teens, 20s, 30s, and 40s, and cars that once commanded big bucks have seen their values slip when younger buyers entering the disposable-income-for-toys phase don't care about older rides.
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- Rated: 27 ↑
Nov 3, 2008 3:03 p.m. Deke Martin:
Proteus said: The generation that most cares about these cars is passing through the mid-life blow-money-on-nostalgic-old-cars phase.
Have we met?
There's a few words of wisdom here that have made me see sense, and I thank you all for your input.
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- Rated: 7 ↑
Nov 3, 2008 3:06 p.m. garageink:
my reason is 57's are played out, get a 54 chevy, 63 caddy or a 49 ford
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- Rated: 212 ↑
Nov 3, 2008 3:08 p.m. Proteus:
Have we met?
Well...I was speaking from personal experience, of course, and have the garage full of cars which have lost their 15 years of "appreciation" to show for it.
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- Rated: 7 ↑
Nov 3, 2008 3:19 p.m. garageink:
I think looking at a vintage car as an investment sitting in a garage waiting to pay your kids collage loans is the wrong outlook. these machines are meant to cruise the main drag on a saturday night. just as a guitar should be played not kept in a vault. if it appreciates thats great, but if you are looking to make money invest in energy and oil, not cars and guitars. just my 2 cents
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- Rated: 11 ↑
Nov 3, 2008 3:21 p.m. Tux:
Anyone know Pro's street address?
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- Rated: 212 ↑
Nov 3, 2008 4:33 p.m. Proteus:
I don't look at them as investments; I bought them primarily as self-indulgent pleasures, and they've cruised many a main drag (though I prefer a gently winding country road at dusk, between fields and the treeline of a stream). I drive them; none has ever been on a trailer.
But when you're 40 - 60, and you consider buying something expensive as a personal toy, it weighs on your mind whether you're throwing the money away or you stand a chance of getting it back, someday when you might no longer be able to enjoy it, and may need the money more than the bauble.
The collector car "hobby" (called an "industry" by those who sell the magazines, the cars, the parts, and the services) survives – and thrives – on promoting the notion that the cars will at least hold their value over time. I've read any number of accountings purporting to show that a guy has owned his classic car for 25 years and broken even or made a buck.
I think that's where most collector/drivers are; the guys who buy sell and turn speculatively are the minority, and they're the ones looking for the riches of outrageous appreciation. They've had a run first with full classics (now declined), then with Tri-5 Chevies (ready to turn), now with muscle cars, and always with exotics, which have gone through numerous bubbles.
As it happens, I've at least broken even when I've sold a couple I had for a few years and could no longer justify. That was nice. I'm just hoping I don't have to use the ones I have left as daily transportation, or as chicken coops.
