Breaking up is hard to do.
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| I think that it still looks pretty good! |
This is a subject that non aficionado car owners, or just most people in general will find a bit silly.
Why does anyone care about what happens after you sell a specific car?
Why does anyone name their car? For the record, I have never given any of my cars a name.
I once described the experience of owning a classic Jaguar as a challenge, an adventure, and almost a romance.
Okay, that might be laying it on a little thick! But you can easily see that owning a vintage hobby car could be seen at least as a relationship. I mean, it's based on an emotional connection, not a rational connection. No one buys a vintage car just as transportation. Over time, the involvement with this car can lead to a sense of accomplishment, which often leads to a sense of connection and fondness.
There was a great exchange that Peter Egan wrote about between him and his Wife. She asked him why he was so ambivalent about selling one of his cars, He replied that it was so difficult because the car was so beautiful. She wisely replied that after he sold it, it would still be beautiful, it would just belong to someone else. It's hard to argue with feminine logic!
If you are selling a desirable car you might have several buyers lined up. If you are selling a less desirable or a car of limited appeal, you might have to beat the bushes to find a buyer.
Then there's the matter of trying to find a "good home for the car" as if the car was a beloved pet that you are forced to part with.
The alternative would be taking the pet to the "pound," and we all know how that ends!
There are a few problems with selling my Mustang,
First, it's not really a desirable model, though it is starting to become collectible. The '96 Mustang took a lot of guff when it debuted. The styling was not universally appreciated, and the loss of the venerable 5.0 was unforgivable to some. Eventually the modular motor would win back fans as it gained considerable power over the years. The fearsome Coyote 5.0 is the spiritual successor to this 215 hp. motor.
Second, while well maintained, my car has very high mileage. I've spent a lot of money on repairs and maintenance over the 13 years that I've owned it, with thousands of dollars in receipts. But 218,000 miles is a lot of miles, no getting around that. It doesn't mean that the car is a piece of junk, lots of Lincoln Town Cars and Ford Expeditions are selling with mileages well over 250K.
With the amount that I drive, now that I'm retired, it could take ten years to reach 250K. maybe longer, since I've got several other cars to drive. My Mustang is a true hobby car that will see little use. I had decided to get a newer, lower mileage Mustang, so that I wouldn't ever need to rebuild the engine. I'm sure that a potential buyer would be thinking the same thing. The next buyer might be a driver that plans to drive it into the ground, then junk it. Especially if you factor in the price that I want for it. Reasonably, I think that 2,500 is a fair price, though I could probably be talked down quite a bit from there.
Third, since it's V8 Mustang, insurance would be high for a younger male, rates don't start to go down until a young man is over 25 years old. That's why my insurance is so low! A young guy that's going to have to pay higher premiums is likely to want, and be able to afford, a much newer model. Honestly, I see the ideal buyer as a middle aged or older person that will use the car as I do.
It is the perfect beginner's collector car. It's in good original shape. It runs well and has had a lot of things replaced over the years. It is over 25 years old, so it qualifies as a historical vehicle, it is AACA friendly, and someone could have a lot of fun taking it to Cars and Coffee events, and local shows as a "survivor."
An original well preserved Mustang of this vintage is a lot like an original vintage Acura Integra, getting pretty hard to find. Most have been "modded" and "riced out" until it's not feasible to return it back to stock condition.
Then there's that "relationship" thing. I've referred to my Mustang as my "no drama" car. If something went wrong, I just fixed it, and it's as good as new. It's not some fussy thing like my old Jags, that's why it's still around. I made a commitment to keep it in good running condition, something that I feel that I could drive anywhere, at a moments notice. I'm pretty much stuck to that plan.
I'll admit that it was not my first choice, and that it started out as a "pairing" of convenience, ( I just can't bring myself to use the metaphor of a marriage!). At first, I didn't particularly like it's looks, but it was a good car that I could afford. Over the years I've come to appreciate the design more and more. At first I couldn't accept it as a true classic Mustang, but I now see it as a modern interpretation of the original Mustang concept, without resorting to overt retro cues like my '06. It is a modern car with ABS, air bags, and a competent chassis. It's fast enough and the fuel injected engine gets good gas mileage. I find that is relaxing to drive, the engine is mellow and relaxed and sounds perfect through the FlowMaster exhaust. Not too loud or harsh, but just so smooth and mellow.
I'm sure that it sounds ridiculous, but I've got more of an emotional attachment to this car, than I have to my '06.
I didn't go through this much emotional turmoil when I sold my three Jaguars last year.
Sell your truck while it's still running, it's still the best advice.
I was recently using my Mustang to run a few errands. On the way back home, I noticed that the CEL was lit. I didn't notice anything different in how the car was running. I had the car smogged back in April. Hmmmm. it had passed by pretty fair margins.
I checked with a code reader, it returned with DTC codes of PO136 and PO141.
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| I suppose that these can't last forever. |
These are oxygen sensor heater circuit codes. Maybe it's time to replace the O2 sensors, the car does have over 200,000 miles. I recall how my Brother's BMW 320i needed to have the O2 sensors changed every 50,000 miles after it reached 100,000 miles. I've never had to change these sensors, but then again I've never had a car that achieved such high mileage before.
I can't easily sell the car unless I have a clean smog check. Sure, there might be someone out there that is knowledgeable, that would buy the car and fix it themselves. But they are only going to want it if it's really cheap! Do you know how hard it will be to find this person?
How much to replace all four sensors? Let's say 50 bucks a piece, that's 200.00 just for parts. I'm guessing it will run around 400-500 bucks to have a mechanic replace them. The registration is due in November, that's another 150.00, but at least it doesn't need to be smogged!
If I invest the money to fix it, will I recoup it in the sale? I doubt it. The most that I could hope to get for the car is 2,500.00. It does have a LOT of miles. Would I take 2,000, 1,500 or even 1,000 dollars for it? Probably.
I could take the loss of let's say 1,000 bucks and just donate it and walk away. Or sell it to CARB.
Not really, since I don't fall within the income restrictions to sell the car to the State. I'm not complaining about that!
A situation like mine arises when you start to accumulate too many low value cars. Since they cost so little, just a few grand, it's too easy to add another car without selling one. Much easier! It's all good until one of them develops a problem that prevents it from passing smog, which also prevents you from selling it.
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| The Saleen wing really makes the car. |
What now?
This situation reveals the ugly truth about hobby cars.
You can only sell them to someone that really wants one, because no one else really needs them!
The challenge is finding that buyer!
Not really a news flash, regular people are quite aware that they don't need or want any more automotive headaches than they already have.
When an enthusiast makes a commitment to restore, maintain, and preserve a favored old car, they are already setting themselves for possible disappointment in the future.
It's not that this activity is inherently bad, but it sets up a situation where spending decisions are made based upon emotion instead of a clinical cost/benefit analysis.
The enthusiasts might tell themselves that they will amortize the costs over the years, since they're going to keep this car "forever!"
Truthfully this approach is not a bad idea if you amortize the expenses by actually using the car.
Really none of this matters until you decide to sell the car.
That set of new tires that will last for another for fifty thousand miles, the new paint job that would shine for the next twenty years, the rebuilt engine good for at least another 150,000 miles. All of these expenditures are made with the optimistic vision of future enjoyment.
However even hobby car expenditures pale in comparison to the financial hit that a new car buyer sacrifices to depreciation. But these losses are tempered by the years of service that the buyer usually gets out of their purchase.
It is a rare person that buys a new car and doesn't drive it.
Cars are an expense, someone has to be paid for the transportation services provided. You could take public transit or call an Uber, but it's always going to cost you. Most of us enjoy convenience, so we buy cars and pay for the pleasure.
A lot of times the hobby car owner will try to rationalize the expenditures as an "investment" to their skeptical spouse. Surely that old car will increase in value exponentially, netting the clever hobbyist a tidy profit in the future.
If only we had a crystal ball that could reveal what cars will be desirable in the future, that would remove all the risk.
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