Jeff:
Just because the car was auctioned in AZ doesn't mean it had an
absolutely pristine body and was simply tired looking otherwise.
Let's face it, in 48 words they couldn't go into a lot of detail about
its condition. Mr. Martin may have his finger on the pulse of the
auction market, but I doubt he could determine what is truly good
or bad Tiger, like most people on this list could. You notice he
only comments about superificial things.
For a very tired Tiger that probably had more than a few surprises
awaiting its new owner (i.e. improperly repaired accident and/or
rust damage, bondo hiding who knows what, low engine
compression, etc.), $9600 probably wasn't a ridiculous price. For a
clean car, it was a good deal. Here in the East I hear about truly
clapped out pieces of garbage with shiny red paint jobs - Tigers
that left coasters wouldn't touch for $4k - selling all the time for $8-
$11k.
It's a damn shame, but more often than not purchases are made
75% on price and 25% on how shiny the paint job is, not on overall
quality. It's only when the new owner has begun to educate
himself and has started pulling the car apart for a "retoration" does
he realized he's got a mess on his hands. He should have paid
more for a better car and/or been more patient in his search.
The days of cars being restored in drives due to rising prices - a la
the late 80's - are long gone. Tigers never went up as much as
comparable cars and they didn't come down as much either.
Prices for most collector cars that mere mortals can afford seem to
be pretty stable, despite what "market watchers" like Mr. Martin
think. Buy a Tiger or any other collector because you love it, not
as an investment. Face the fact that if you place a dollar value on
your labor there's almost never any way to make money in this
hobby. If you're lucky, maybe you won't lose. Simply enjoy your
Tiger and don't worry so so much about what it's going to be worth.
And don't forget, a new Geo Metro in 6-7 years will have a date with
the scrap man, while your Tiger will still be worth plenty and will
continue to give you many years of enjoyment.
My $0.02.
Gary Schotland
> To all:
> Check out the March 8 issue of Autoweek (page 28) for a lesson on how to
> keep Tiger values down, down, down. A 1966 Tiger went for a puny $9,579 at
> the Silver Auction in Scottsdale. Jeez, that's cheaper than a Geo Metro. All
> the guy had to do is spruce up this puppy and my guess it would have gone
> for a lot more. And kept the value of all Tigers out of the gutter.
>
> Shame. Shame. Just kiddin',
>
> jeff the tigerman
>
>
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