Barrett- Jackson auction

[BOBBYR]

Hi Gang,
I was watching the auction yesterday and they had a A.H. 3000 on the block.The auction price was $105,000. At this point,I wouldn't sell mine,but it is nice to know that the automobiles that we are working on ,are well worth the investment.I thought this might be interesting to all of you.Have a great Day.
Bobby R

 

[tahoe healey]

This reminds me of the old joke, "Now that we have established the profession, let's dicker about the price". Do we have a price we would sell out Healeys for? Would you sell your children? Personally, I think I will let my heirs worry about it.

 

[TomFromStLouis]

I was just reading the origin of that "old joke" on Lady Astor's Wikipedia page:

And in another similar instance with Winston Churchill in his fabled tangle with Lady Astor, who'd allegedly said she'd probably sleep with him for a £1 million.
When Winston suggested £10, Astor snorted: "What kind of woman do you think I am?"
To which Winston is said to have replied: "We've established what you are; now we're just haggling over the price."

 

[Johnny]

Hi Gang,
I was watching the auction yesterday and they had a A.H. 3000 on the block.The auction price was $105,000. At this point,I wouldn't sell mine,but it is nice to know that the automobiles that we are working on ,are well worth the investment.I thought this might be interesting to all of you.Have a great Day.
Bobby R

The soaring price of Healey's is a two edged sword. Yes, it's nice to know you could sell one for a profit, but, guess what it costs now to have one restored? Everyone knows how much there worth and price their work accordingly.

 

[Dave Richards]

And, even the project car prices have become crazy!

 

[HEALEYJAG]

The Barrett- Jackson auction Palm Beach started yesterday....the show you watched was a repeat...Only one Healey went through a heavily modified BN-1 for $45,000

 

[ModifiedBJ7]

I'll get flogged for this...

My personal opinion is Healey prices will drop a lot within the next several years. I just don't see the younger generation connecting with our cars- hopefully I'm wrong.

My eyes see the sexiest lines of any car ever made. I'm afraid their eyes see a very uncool, skinny tires, slow & clumsy car. They are about as interested in Healey's as I am with an original Ford Model A. So without renewed interest after our generation dies, who would spend this incredible amount of money for a Healey? Besides, if I was spending $100k for a car, I'd buy a Porshe 911

BTW, I'm 50. How old would you estimate the average age of a Healey owner?

 

[Ed_K]

Charlie,

Someone conducted an age poll on this forum last year. I think the average age was 54 and 1/2 for all big Healey owners on this forum. ..( so does that mean the average age is now 55 ? Or is this like the question about if a fly's weight counts toward the total weight of an airplane if he is flying around inside the cabin ? )

 

[BOBBYR]

Hi Gang,
I think the difference with Healeys is that they are collected all over the world.I don't think the value will decrease for quite a while.I think there has been some good points brought up but I can't imagine selling one ,once you get it.
Bobby R

 

[Ed_K]

I would love to drive around in an old model A. But I would stay close to home with it.
Seriously,
I am always being approached by people ( many younger people )
asking about the car. Some younger ones even know what it is.
Since the price of everything is going up, even if interest starts to decline on our cars, the prices paid for individual cars is not likely to drop. I am not talking about the inflated prices seen on the B.J. auction but the normal prices found in the back of our national club magazines , etc.
But that is just my opinion.
Ed

 

[JodyFKerr]

Hey Folks,

I'm going to lump myself into that younger generation (I'm 33). For those at my age you'd be suprised how many of us there are that have interest in these cars. But, most of my generation (and this saddens me) doesn't know how to do even the most basic care on their current cars, let alone the fiddling necessary to keep an older one on the road or to do a restoration. I find it interesting that the most popular article on my web site (from search engines) is how to change the oil in a toyota corolla.

Now, on top of this, look at the entry prices on healeys. If you want an ok running car it's at least 25K. We don't, as a whole, have the spare cash around to buy into these cars. Heck, I wouldn't have the luxury of messing around with an Austin Healey 3000 if it hadn't been handed to me. I'd still be playing with Jensen-Healeys, late model MGs, and straight six American cars (Original V-8s are now becoming too expensive for many of us to buy in to).

But, give us another 10 to 20 years. Once the kids are gone to college and we have more [censored] around time & money it'll be a different story. I think what we will really start to see is that fully restored and sorted vehicles will retain their values, but those cars that need signiciant work fall to an increasingly smaller population of restorers. As general skills drop across the generation this will become more and more true.

Go survey your friends and find out how many of their kids (or your own) know how to fix and/or maintain anything anymore. If I hadn't grown up as my father's assistant (slave-labor) I wouldn't have the skills either.

Jody

 

[ModifiedBJ7]

Ed,

I would have guessed the average age of a Healey owner much higher, but glad I'm wrong!

My opinion about the younger generation not appreciating Healey's was based on personal experiences. When I first bought my '53 BN1 I proudly showed pictures of the car to whoever would look. The 20 something crew just didn't get it- I still remember one guy asking why in the heck would I buy a car like this when I could have had a Supra. We both looked at each other like the other was nuts.

I bought the BN1 for $17k in 2001. Sold it 2-months ago for $35,102. Turned around and bought a '63 BJ7 good body & frame w/ new ok paint for $5k (less engine). Sometimes I just sit in the garage and admire the car from different angles. There are still great deals on Healey's! :thumbsup:

 

[Editor_Reid]

See attached image of page 32 of the August 2007 issue of HEALEY MARQUE magazine where the article appeared.

A major point being that, if you accept the premise that Internet usage goes down as age goes up, the sample is not representative of all Healey owners; it may be representative of Healey owners who make frequent and extensive use of the Internet.

If you don't already get HEALEY MARQUE magazine each month, please consider this an invitation.

 

[GregW]

Hi Reid,
You mention the "Future 50" twice in that article. What is it?

 

[Editor_Reid]

Hi Reid,
You mention the "Future 50" twice in that article. What is it?

"Future 50" is the AHCA's program to encourage and welcome young people to develop an interest in Healeys. Ben Moore, mentioned in the article, heads it up.

 

[Dave Richards]

My older kids (oldest 23) lust after my Healey and scheme about how they can get one themselves, most of their friends call it the coolest car ever.

Some folks a little older than them, including neighbors, friends at church, and work, just don't get it. (oh well)

My 14 year old son goes nuts for cars from the early fifties, I think the spirit of what we enjoy is alive and well.

 

[steveg]

Charlie,
Here in So Calif, in my local area there are a number of 30-40ish guys and a gal who've gotten big Healeys within the last couple of years. Most of these folks work in entertainment and probably make better money than average.

The less well-to-do folks are getting Triumphs and MGs.

I recently corresponded with a 40-something Mom in Big Bear who just finished restoring her dad's old TR3. Her husband isn't even a car guy.

The interest is definitely there.

 

[glemon]

While I agree with the point that Healey interest seems to be highest in the over 40 or maybe over 50 set, and I think this will have an effect on prices, I don't see them falling much unless the economy really goes to heck.

More likely the same thing will happen as with T series MGs, Model As etc. they reach a peak of collectability and prices tend to stabilize and hold near that level for a long time, I think they are at, near, or maybe beyond peaked, but don't see a precipitous drop.

 

[AUSMHLY]

Barrett-Jackson talks about retro-mods now getting prices the same or sometimes more than stock restored.

One of the Healeys went across the block as having some modern upgrades. That Healey also included converting the rear wheels with disc brakes from a Jag. It retained the Healey emergency brake the announcer noted. (Maybe the rear end was a Jag too, not sure. Other may clear that up.)

Happy motoring!
Roger

 

[ModifiedBJ7]

With the values soaring, how many of you just automagically renew your insurance on the Healey without thinking about increasing the replacement cost? I was guilty of this until last year. Insurance was set at $20k when I bought it in '01, but realized the true value was over $35k in '07. You don't know what you don't know, and I didn't know!

I enjoyed telling my ex-wife how much I sold it for- hehehehe