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B-J auction

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Wow! A BJ8 went for $110,000! Others went in the high 60's to 80's. I guess the guy who said the Healeys were ugly should eat his words (I didn't see that, part only heard one of the Speed hosts said that).
 
Quick thoughts on BJ prices.

1. Last year's success brought out the greedy little devil in some Healey owners and restorers, causing them to believe that it was time for them to get their piece of the Healey pie. Of course, they didn't consider that other Healey owners and restorers had the same idea. 14 Healeys is a lot of Healeys, and they overloaded the market. Supply and demand is a basic principle of economics.

2. Healey as a commodity? Per Reid's blog, when the same cars keep coming up on the block every few years, one cannot help but wonder whether there's any point to buying a Healey other than to sell it again in a year or two. I have no clue who buys a Healey at B-J (since I'm certainly not part of that crowd), but the description began to smell like buying pork bellys rather than Healeys, with the only purpose being to get rid of it at a profit as quickly as possible. Why, I keep asking myself, are these people trying so hard to get rid of Healeys? It doesn't make me want to buy one.

3. Relative value is relative. The spread on these many, many Healeys had become huge last year. We're getting down to some pretty picky differences between the BJ8 that sells for $60k and the one for $150k. Are these distinctions really worth that much? If there's some missing piping on a seat, can't these buyers figure out how to call Heritage and fix it rather than spend another $20k for a different one? Let's face facts, quality control and consistency at the factory was never a strong suit, so how many of these cars are better today than they were the day they were delivered?

4. It's still a Healey. They got 'em in the paper, on eBay, in Hemmings, at clubs. Not quite common, but hardly rare either.

5. Kurt Tanner is the only guy who seems to show any vision. The two non-original color Healeys were very cool. I like the sage green, but really loved the gun metal grey. It just looked classic without being sissified. It had an edge that said Healey. I don't blame anybody who wants an original color, but at least he was offering something special. So why were the other Healey's there? We all know the simple answer to that question.

Next year, let's keep the number down to, say, 5 total BJ8s and make them special. There's always eBay for the others.
 
My thoughts...
I doubt Healeys will ever become a commodity. There aren't enough of them. Some things have persistent appeal, which promotes high value. Think Corvette, with production numbers far greater than those of the Healey, Corvettes continue to hold their value. As for minor differences in fit and finish creating disproportionate differences in value, I think this is valid. Oftentimes those minor imperfections are an indication of the quality and condition of the overall product. And as for folks trying to score a quick buck by "flipping" a Healey. I don't think buying/selling restored Healeys is going to make anyone rich. I rather think it's a case of already rich collectors who buy a car, experience ownership for a few years and then get bored or want/need a “new car” fix. According to Reid's blog, most of the resold Healeys actually lost money for the seller.
 
SHG, Maybe he just be hedging his stock fund?---Keoke


P.S. These professionally restored Healeys are ten times more accurate than those that came out of the factory. However, IMOP they ain't no better than the factory built cars cuz they still Healeys.
 
Keoke said:
These professionally restored Healeys are ten times more accurate than those that came out of the factory. However, IMOP they ain't no better than the factory built cars cuz they still Healeys.

Exactly. Nobody at the factory worried that they put a phase 1 rearview mirror on a phase 2 BJ8, or that the next batch of paint was a little different from the last one.

Funny that a poor restoration can be really obvious, though. It isn't that they got it wrong, but that they tried to get it right and still got it wrong.

So this year's numbers were way down from last year on the high end? Time to trade it in for that Hemi 'Cuda? Not for me.
 
SHG said:
So this year's numbers were way down from last year on the high end? Time to trade it in for that Hemi 'Cuda? Not for me.
--------------------------

I hope the BJ crowd is over Healeys and moves along to some other genre of car that it can push through the price ceiling. IMO Barrett-Jackson and the Healeys sold on it have nothing to do with us or our cars--I doubt we'll ever see one of the Healeys acquired on BJ at a Healey club event or for on the road except perhaps in a parade.

BJ is great viewing but so is COPS--it's always perversely entertaining to see some other guy getting it stuck to him!
 
According to Reid's Blog, most of the resold Heakeys actually lost money.

Nevets, what else dos he have to write off on his income tax!---Keoke- /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif
 
Just to add gas to the fire, anyone see the VERY, VERY wrong '66 MGB that went for $24K?? /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/eek.gif

And/or hear Mike Joy's comment that Tanner actually told him he did the Champ.Ice one WRONG on purpose so that it wouold bring more $s?? /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/eek.gif

Geesh.

Ed
 
tahoe healey said:
Wow! A BJ8 went for $110,000! Others went in the high 60's to 80's. I guess the guy who said the Healeys were ugly should eat his words (I didn't see that, part only heard one of the Speed hosts said that).
Ha Ha, I guess the only person that thinks a Healey is ugly would be "Edsel Ford", couldn't resist that one.
/bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/smile.gif
 
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