From Chris D. – Hello, here is a TRUE Indiana barn find and that adds more value then I would have thought. In 2009 I had a pool customer of mine state he had a classic car in his barn. I had asked him what it was and LOW AND BE-HOLD…. it was a 1965 Porsche 356 C! He had started a restoration, but the car was parked in 1984 due to owners poor health. His wife and him moved to Florida for retirement, so he left the car in with sister in-law in their barn 20 plus years. He had bought 80% of the new parts to complete the car, but never got it moved from Indiana to his new home in Florida. Once I saw the car, I called to see if he would sell and sure enough! I bought the car for $1,000 and sold it for a “wee” bit more to a local Indianapolis man that has begun the full restoration on it. I would love to see what this car looks like now. If you are out there NEW Porsche owner, please let me see the end result!
This is my first post but enjoy receiving barn finds everyday. I have a 59 TR3 that is about 85% done but is slow going these days. I read the note about how much the gentleman who initially bought it paid and got me to wondering if most people that look for barn finds are looking to flip or restore. In either case is the goal to pay the seller the least amount of money possible in order to make the most profit or is it to pay them a fare price, say 50 cents, on the dollar of what it is worth in current condition. Having watched way too many pawn stars I know that when someone brings in a signed 1st edition Sherlock Holmes and only wants $500.00, they tell them that it is probably worth 40k as is and I will give you 20K so I can make a profit too. Do barn finders feel the same compulsion? Or is it Caveat Venditor?
Good question James. I would guess that just like the pawn industry, the collector car market has all types. You have people who purposely take advantage and others who try to be honest. With the internet, everyone seems to know what things are worth these days though so it’s a rare event to have something happen like your Pawn Stars example. Normally, when I go to look at a car, the owner is already asking much more than it’s actually worth. They may have found a restored one that sold online so they expect their project to sell for similar money without taking into account the cost of restoration.
Classic cars are funny things. Many people believe that they shouldn’t be bought and sold in order to make money. It’s almost as though they are living breathing objects that shouldn’t be profited from. That may sound strange, but my point is proven in the comments below. Everyone hates the flipper, but who here wouldn’t be excited to find something like this? It’s easy to get upset when we hear about other people’s good car fortune, but if you found a killer deal at the grocery store would you feel a bit of shame for buying it? Maybe you should tell them what it’s worth and offer half…
Very interesting question. At a yard sale, I bought an old hand hammered, damaged, copper lamp for 3 dollars. I am not a lamp collector and I thought it was worth maybe 50$ after repair. It turned out it is worth $5000. I spent $500 to repair it. I could have gone back and given the people more money but I didn’t. The people weren’t old and not very nice. I did keep the lamp. Ten years later, I am still not sure how I feel about that, so many things to consider.
You sure took advantage of that poor old guy only paying $1000. It will catch up to you sometime.
MH…
I’m pretty sure the old man new what he was doing. The old man probably spent more than a $1000 just on the parts he bought to do the restoration. He knew what it was worth.
He just got tired of the thing.
LOL, If I bought a 356 for that amount I sure would keep it to myself to avoid the old man’s family from coming after me. “Grandpa sold the Porsche for WHAT!???”
Not too worry, the guy he flipped it to will probably 50% more than its worth to any other sane person, so it all nets out in the end.
Great flip. If you had the VIN number in your records you may be able to track down the car. Good find.
In 1975 I was working at a gas station in So Cal. ( remember full serve gas stations?) At sweet older lady had a beautiful spotless Kahrman Ghia, that I checked tires oil and battery, every time it came in. The car may have had 20k miles on it, but no more than that.
One day she came in, in something brand new, I don’t remember what. I asked what she did with the VW, and she said she sold it to the mechanic at the dealership, that had serviced it since new. She told me with a worried look on her face that she got $350 for it. She then asked me if that was ok, because that is what her beloved mechanic told her it was worth.
All of that to say, there is a huge difference, between getting a good deal and ripping somebody off. I never met her “mechanic” but consider him an AH
I always nicely ask the seller his bottom line. If it makes sense I buy it. If the seller asks me to give him a number, in most cases I will. If the seller doesn’t accept it, I wish him well and keep me in mind if there is a change in heart. As a hobbyist I’ve been playing with cars for 50 years (sheesh 50?). Knowledge is power. Sometimes I’ve been bitten, most times not so. It’s still my hobby and passion not my avocation. I’m with Jesse on his observations. Well done Chris. Saved a car, and hopefully made two people happy, the buyer and seller. Last time I looked this was America, home of the free market and capitalism.
I’ll sit down and wait for my flogging.
As an officer in a national car club and several local car clubs, I get the classic “I’ve been left with this car and I have no idea what it’s worth, can you help?” question all the time. Twice, I’ve ended up purchasing the car. The first time, it was from a friend and I provided him with a bunch of research and probably overpaid for the car, but it felt right (and I still own it and am very happy with it). The second time, I actually doubled what the seller said they wanted for the car (and it felt right, too). I ended up passing that car along for what I had in it. I’m am NOT against making a profit! But as an officer in the car club I feel we have a responsibility to those who contact us. I hope others in similar positions do the same sort of thing. Truth be told, most instances are like Jesse’s experience above, where they think the car is worth much more than it actually is.
I’ve been on both sides of it: The beneficiary of an inefficient market and the one someone else made a killing off of. When something has landed in my lap I’ve honestly told the person what it’s worth to me right then and suggested they could probably get more for it elsewhere. Sometimes they just want it out of their lives. Sometimes that works out for me. Other times, not so much.
Really, the fascination with a “barn find” (and the reason for this site) is at least partially in finding the farmer with the dirty old fuellie Vette who thinks it’s worth scrap value. Afterall, if he knew it was worth $50K he’d probably keep it somewhere other than a barn, or would have sold it long before.