GT6 Opinions on what a rust free GT6 is worth

[tdskip]

As a follow-up to my transmission question I need some coaching on a value range for a GT6 project please.

She needs a lot of work to be usable on the road but is a genuine 61,000 miles car with a healthy engine. Needs new bushings and shocks all the way around, mostly from dry rot Southern California. Gas tank break so does clutch master and clutch slave. Will need to be retrimmed at some point as the interior sun baked.

Not an overdrive car.

The body is very straight with some dings and dents but fine as a driver.

basically think of her as a very good shell and engine.

I am not current on GT6 values so please take me to school.

Thanks

 

[dklawson]

Sources like NADA Classic and Hagerty can give you an idea of what the car is worth. For example, NADA says that in my area the price for a '70 GT6 can range from $5600 to $15,000. For a '71, Hagerty lists the range as $4200 to $12,400.

My personal experience is that once you start fixing things it is hard to stop until you have the car the way you want it. I don't have the discipline to buy a car as a driver and not fix things that bother me. As such, it is easy to put more in the car than you will ever get back.

Check the online guides for the value but take their information with a grain of salt and weigh it against your intentions for the car.

 

[karls59tr]

I was very surprised to see an add on Craiglist a few days ago for a rust free,never seen salt,never winter driven GT6 MkIII in Duluth Minnesota for $2500. The ad only lasted one day so somebody snapped it up.

 

[Brinkerhoff]

GT6s are pretty cool little cars but just as expensive to restore as anything else therefore you could probably dump 20 grand into one if you weren't careful. But it might be a good car to buy and hold as an investment , if you can buy it right.

 

[TomMull]

Rust free is a big deal where I am. It is also very hard to find and many "rust free" examples turn out to be varying degrees less than rust free. A truly rust free car is probably worth more here than in California, but unless they get sold unnoticed, as some do, they are worth whatever you have to pay. Of course that would often mean that they become expensive but fine restorations.
Tom

 

[Geo Hahn]

Dave Porter in ABQ (possibly better known to Healey owners, certainly better known to cyclists) has one on Craigslist that looks pretty good for $9,000 -

https://albuquerque.craigslist.org/cto/5458167138.html

 

[Marvin Gruber]

$1500- $2500 as you have stated condition. Start with $1500
Marv

 

[tdskip]

Thanks. Appreciate the feedback and points of view. The seller wants 5000 for the car and it could be darn close to 10,000 before she's really nicely usable, and then she still going any paint.

 

[trrdster2000]

TDSkip, I tend to agree with Marvin as we have just done the GT6/Spitfire, using the Spit body only. It has been not only time but money, as you have said, all the rubber bits were shot. We got lucky on the engine and rear end, but the transmission will need a rebuild.
Lots of money to be saved if no rust, even our hood (bonnet) needed us to cut up a good Spit one for all that was needed in the front.
Our body was rusted from hood all the way back on the passenger side and the rear lower panel was gone. As the Spit body was not too bad the choice was simple. Still lots of things had to be changed off the GT6 body panels.
This may be one you need to walk away from at that price.

Wayne

 

[TomMull]

I sure like Marvin's numbers but I think the seller might be less impressed.
Tom

 

[tdskip]

I sure like Marvin's numbers but I think the seller might be less impressed.
Tom

Ha, that is the way it usually works, yes.

Thanks guys, will let you know if anything develops here.

 

[GB1]

I am supposed to be picking one up this weekend. I looked at it 12 plus years ago and the owner wanted 8k, I offered 2k. It has been in storage for about 30 plus years. As I remember it was very clean, rust free, complete and straight. My concern is if it is ceased. Well last weekend he told me I could take it for $2k. Wish me luck after 12 years to bring it home. If I do get it, I am unsure what I will do with it, but can't let it sit in that garage for another 12 years.

I have been pricing them on the inter-web for the past week and have seen some as high as 25K. From what I am seeing it easy to spend that much restoring one.

Pat

 

[TomMull]

Clean, rust free and complete cuts the restoration costs dramatically. Think about a driver quality job rather than the frame off too. Good luck.
Tom

 

[tdskip]

Hi guys - looks like I am bringing one home this weekend too

I am not planning on doing any body work but instead get her running / driving and live with her for a year before spending any money on cosmetics.

I'm going to be paying a bit more than the numbers above, but not much.

Pat - please keep us posted on how you get on with yours this weekend!

 

[dklawson]

Congrats to both Pat and Tdskip. Please post pictures when you get the cars home!

 

[tdskip]

Well, maybe Doug. I found some off stress cracks I just asked about.

 

[Bob Claffie]

Forgive me for being cynical BUT it seems pointless to me to buy an old sporty car to fix up / restore UNLESS you have a real passion for that particular car. Invariably restorers end up spending way more than the car will end up being valued at and for the most part take three times as long as anticipated.

I have been lucky to "restore" a few cars to the point where I made some money from them (figuring I work for 10 cents an hour) and the therapeutic value priceless but I am extremely careful on what kind of car I choose to spend my time and talent on. Just to do it for the sake of doing it seems counter productive. While slogging away on this example (GT6) you may very well have to pass up a car the really grabs you.

However If I came across an 52 or 53 Ford Conv I would ignore all my previous advice because I would have a real passion for that car as it would mimic one of my earliest and favorite cars in my life.

 

[glemon]

I will come at this from a totally different direction than Bob, if you are buying a relatively cheap car that is basically sound and but cosmetically challenged, annd you can live with the cosmetically challenged part, you can get about as big a bang for the buck and your collector car fun that there is out there. The body and or chassis doesn't even have to be rust free, though that is certainly a bonus, but it does have to be solid enough to be safe to drive. If the engine and tranny are good and you like to tinker you can have a good time getting it back to driver status by messing with hydraulics, electrics and the rubber bits for hopefully not to much money, and at the same time enjoy driving a fun old classic car.

If you start worrying about cosmetics/originality/perfection the money and time committment gets much higher, nothing wrong with that, tdskip seems to have a similar goal in mind (drive and have fun, fixing minor faults as he goes). Doing this can also be pretty viable from an economic standpoint, as a running driving car will always be worth more than a non or poor runner.

I am sure there are deals to be had out there in the range Marv posted, he has probably snapped most of them up himself by now, . I wouldn't see 3K or 3.5K as a bad deal at all on the car as described.

My only downer comment, sun roached or dry rotted interior, if you want to make it nice to day it is harder to cut corners or DIY the interior, unless you have a vastly different skill set than I, I spent more on the interior of my TR250, because everything needed to be replaced, than I did on the motor or the body.

 

[tdskip]

Thanks guys, very much appreciate the feedback and coaching on this thread and on the regarding her sills.

I ended up passing on the car, it basically needed everything (complete braking system, clutch system, interior needed to be redone ASAP as it was totally sun baked and dusty, had a transmission linkage issue as well) and I was going to end up into her for more than the amount of desire I had even before dealing with any body issues and a repaint. Basically the point Bob was making. My significant other would call that a moment of personal development for me, ha.

This is a decent starting point for someone that really wants a GT6 and is going to focus on it, I can put you in touch with the seller if interested. PM me.

Again, thanks for the coaching.

 

[dklawson]

Sorry it didn't work out but I completely understand. The only reason we went through the rebuild on our car is that it has been in the family since new.