**cliffs notes at the bottom since this is long**

So as a few of you know I have a 1967 Ford Mustang convertible. I love the car, its the first car I ever wanted and I took my first job in order to buy one. I earned enough to pick up a piece of shit, then bought a restoration book and went to work. Five years later I had a finished product that I was extremely happy with.

Anyway, recently I've been thinking about selling it. I have talked to quite a few older guys who tell me their biggest regret was getting rid of their 60's muscle car. I've assured myself I would never go down that path, but I have a hard time justifying why I still have the car.

The car used to be my daily driver my first year of college. I put about 10k on it in two years and then blew a head gasket. Since then (about 4 years) I've driven the car a total of about 1000 miles. The car either sits in the garage or comes out with me on the weekend.

I've recently moved up to Oregon (car stayed in the Bay) for law school. I've got at least three years up here (assuming I find a job back in CA) and I am not going to be able to drive the car much. My parents still plan on taking the car out on the weekend when the weather is nice, but otherwise it just sits in my garage.

I considered selling it at one point about 3 years ago and got some really, really great offers. I am not in need of money at the moment (granted I have drastically changed my lifestyle since quitting my job) so there isnt urgency in this situation. I've often thought about selling this one and picking up another 67 and starting over, although realistically I have zero time at the moment and dont expect to have much free time for the next couple years.

ANYWAY, assuming I stil have some readers, talk me out of this.

**cliffs notes**
-Have 67 Mustang
-"restored" it myself
-Used to drive it a lot
-Moved to Oregon, Mustang is in CA
-Isnt driving much
-Considering selling it, been given some great offers
-Why should I keep the car

I am so sorry for writing so damn much

 

don't sell the car

great offers now might not be as good as "greater" offers in 5 years

 

Giving up on any car one has spent several years restoring or building is a difficult choice. Let me ask you this: Not been able to drive the car, does it still give you a sense of enjoyment just knowing that you have it? Or could you use the money to do something or buy something for yourself that would give you greater pleasure? Is the appeal monetary? Are you hoping that the car is appreciating in value? I don't know how your car is optioned, and subsequently can't even guess at it's value in years to come. Please don't misinterpret this, but not all cars will reach the status of coveted collectible. My 67' Shelby certainly did, but others I've owned haven't. I guess what I'm trying to say is don't look at monetary reasons for keeping or selling your car. If money isn't really an issue it should be an easy decision. If its a part of you and gives you pleasure beyond just driving it, I say keep it. If it's something you can throw the cover off while it sits in the garage and you spend hours looking at every curve, crease, and panel its best to keep it. And of course if you love the times when you drive it, even more the reason not to sell it. Subsequently if its something that has become distant to you over time and is becoming almost a liability, it may be time to move onto something else and let someone else enjoy it.

Hope I was helpful and my advice was appropriate. I've been very fortunate to have owned a few interesting cars throughout my life. The longest I've had has been a Grand National that gets driven approximately 100 miles a year. Tonight I was in the garage looking at it for about thirty minutes. It won't be sold. I've had others that I've sold that would have been worth more today if I had kept them. I have no regrets, however, about having letting them go. Good luck to you. It's NEVER an easy decision.

Terry

 

Since you are not in need of the money, I would just keep it for aslong as possible. I am eyeballing this Datsun 260Z (for sale for quite some time near my home) for the purposes of restoration and recreation.

Good post Terry.

 

http://www.oldride.com/classic_cars/ford_mustang.html

 

pics of said car?

 

Terry-I still enjoy the car quite a bit. I dont expect it to keep increasing in value, I don't look at it so much as a monetary investment. A guy that I worked next to has a beat to shit Shelby that I've been after forever. I'd like to get ahold of it and start over, but as mentioned before, I dont have time for another project, although that idea appeals to me. I'm just concerned that I wont be driving the car enough to justify keeping it (especially since I have no garage up here and have to keep it in my parents - thats quite a lot to ask for)


cTLgo -

 

Don't sell it!!!!!




...or give it to me.:wink:

 

very very nice....ill take it.... :wink:

 

damn that thing looks mint

 

Keep the car, if there is no need to sell it , Keep it

 

You will kick your own ass down the road if you sell it.

 

dont sell it if you do call me and ill come down to oregon and slap you in the face. also works before you sell. call me and ill come down and slap some sence into you.

 

man i would keep that!!

 

Thats hot, I wouldn't let it go anywhere if I didn't need the money

 

Nice looking car. The desire to start a new project and selling the old one isn't as uncommon as you might think. I've known several people who start looking for something else when the current restoration is nearly completed. Most of the cars I have restored I have sold as well. I do miss them, but don't regret the decision to move on to something else. And its great to know they went to good homes and the new owners enjoy them very much. If its only a matter of storage, perhaps you can find another locale. Let's say you managed to get a hold of this Shelby you're referring to, would you be more inclined to find storage for it? Maybe it's just time.

Whatever you decide, it looks like a great car. From what I see of the picture it looks like you did a great job. Kudos to you for undertaking a restoration and finishing it. I've seen so many throughout the years that people have either abandoned or turned out poorly. You'll find the others that follow will even be more enjoyable. For the past year I've been actively searching for 50's MGA twin cam to restore. Once the bug bites................

Terry

 

In 20 years, are you going to kick yourself in the ass for selling it?

If you think so, then try and hold onto it

 

I'm against everyone. I say sell it. Get as much $$ as you can for it now. If you keep it it's going to need maintance, some idiot may run into it, & as you said it's not going up in value much in the next 5-10 years.
You can't enjoy driving it, why keep it.
Take the $$ you get & put it into a high intreast account of some kind. Then in 3 years you'll have a ton of $$ to buy another project you can build.

 

^-If I didnt buy another to fix up or replace it, then yes I'd kick my own ass for selling it.

If I had the time to take on another project I'm sure I wouldnt be looking at whether or not I would regret anything because I would focus all of my attention to the new project. I think simply responding to basic questions has helped me fully realize that right now I wont be able to simply pick up another car and get to work.

My test now and for the future will simply be if I am able to dedicate enough time to completing a new project then I'd consider selling the car.

I also realize its hard for some people to understand why I would want to sell a car that is pretty much complete. I loved the entire process of putting everything together and watching the transformation. I was also happy with the end result. I got used to the end result though, and the car doesnt involve me the same way that it used to.

Regardless, even if I were to decide to sell it, it would not take place until next summer. I think about getting rid of it only when I look at possible restoration projects, so I guess I need to stop skimming the classifieds.

 

IF you're going to sell it, bring it down to Medford and that area, lots of retired guys who restore/collect cars and they'll pay top dollar.

 

i aint a fan of classic cars but dam those are rare! store the car and sell it in the future for even more!!!

 

Yeah, if it's not costing you anything to store it, you might as well keep it... once you get down with school and settle down, you might want to sell it to finance another project, but for now you might just want to keep it...

You already know what you're going to do, don't you ??

 

don't sell it. i regret selling every car i have restored. i am down to a 41 chevy that i am in the process of. i regret selling my 300f and 300g the most though. same guy bought both of them and had them shipped to sweden for his private collection. it was like losing 2 children watching them being put into a crate.

 

Yes I do. Although actually answering questions and writing what seems to be pretty obvious right now did help out quite a bit.

Car stays with me until further notice.

 

i'm not sure what the issue is.

it's not taking up valuable space, it's not a thief magnet, you're not in need of money (at least at the moment)...

i'm not sure why you're even having these thoughts. you bored with it?

 

^

ok, read the entire thread this time...

 

Yeah, it's nice to write out (or talk out) stuff like this... to much thinking about it is usually a bad thing... When you settle down and have kids, you might have to sell due to economics (kid needs braces, kids college tuition, etc) so you might as well hang on to it while you can...