I don't care - that's not why I bought them. - but there's a lesson in there somewhere?

Besides cars, I also bought up some vintage guitars and some art. Those two categories have gone bananas over 20 years...the cars? Not so much. LOL, I bet if I did it the other way around, the opposite would have happened. I can never predict that stuff.

My family deals in cars for a living and enjoys them as a hobby, too. I taught my son early on that there are 2 kinds of cars; commodities and possessions and to not get them mixed up.

We often spend money and time on the possessions that don't necessarily make financial sense. But as long as it's reasonable and enjoyable, and that's how you want to enjoy the fruits of your labor then go ahead. Just don't make that mistake on the commodities.

The difficulties come in when we confuse the 2 at some point or another.

I bought my '65 Coronet 500 for $1500 in 1980. I"ve spent a ton of time and money on it and it probably isn't worth half of what I've put into it, maybe even less. I'm starting to think it is time to sell it since I don't think I want to keep putting money into it.

I know what you're saying, but here's an apples to oranges comparison:

Yesterday, for the Alabama vs Georgia game, I was invited to a friend's house (he's a dedicated Alabama guy...at least a generation deep) and I volunteered to bring German potato salad.
It cost me roughly twice the amount it would have been to buy some from Publix, Not to mention the effort involved, but everyone LOVED IT!
Sorry, what was your question???

Bought my 69 Super Bee in 1987. Spent three years restoring it, showed it and drove over 52,000 miles for 30 years. Sold it in 2018 got back every dollar I put into it. Didn’t make a profit off it but I had 30 years of enjoyment out of it. Priceless!!

Too easy to focus life on making money back or never taking a loss...no one on their death bed is thinking about their investments.

You may not "make" money on old cars, but it sure beats the depreciation hit you take buying a new daily driver from the dealer. See what that's worth after 5 or 10 years.

I drove my road runner for 15 years and sold it for about 5 grand more than I bought it for. I figure I put about 5 grand of work into it over that same time. So net gain of zero and a lot of fun over 15 years. Not a bad deal at all when you are talking about a "hobby"

With inflation you lost money

Mopars have been one of my top investments. I can looks back on several decades of all the friends I've made through my cars, shows and cruises I've been to, satisfaction I've gotten from doing a repair or upgrade, and more.
Financially sure, if I'd spent all my car budget investing in mutual funds I would have a higher net worth, but unless you are having trouble making ends meet, why worry too much about net worth? I have stock market investments and they give me stress from taxes, and I can't say I've ever derived any fun from stock market investments like I have with cars.

When it comes to buying cars their resale value never crosses my mind. I couldn't care less because I buy them for the enjoyment and always intend to keep them forever. And if it does turn out I sell them, any loss I take is made up for by all the things I don't spend money on such as going to movies, eating out, and other so-called entertainment expenses that many indulge in.

Maybe since things have got kind of crazy lately they may not be the best investments for making money especially in the higher end builds we see on Mecum going for a fraction of what someone put into them but I bought my 68 Charger back in the 90s for $2800 and have put some money into it to make it a really good driver. But I know I could sell it and make more that triple the amount I have in total investment.

I bought my Dart in 1982 for $400.. it is a race car now and I have well over 50k invested and its worth maybe between 25-30K , I am still investing $ in it because I love it!! same with my 92 D150 I bought new and still have I paid 11K for it new it might be worth that now or a little more with all the mods... good investments ...No! I have no intentions of selling either of them , the fun and good times I have had with both far exceeds the $ value.. my recently traded 08 H.Q.C. was probably a good investment I got a really super deal on it when I bought new in late 08 for 22K after 58,000 miles and 13 years I got 12K for it.

Do you love the car? You’ve had it for 40 plus years...

I have NEVER viewed any of my hobbies (classic cars included) as investments.
Just stuff that I do for fun and personal enrichment on while I am stuck on this big blue marble!

The enduring friendships made and met through the car hobby have enriched my life well past the point of
any assignable dollar amount.

A whole lot of pretty important milestones in life would not have happened without the car hobby. The skill set developed because of
the hobby....although far from guru status, is up there much higher than I ever believed possible when I started.

I've never gone into debt for any of it, and whatever I or my heirs can get out of it monetarily pales in comparison to the way
it's intertwined with the rest of my life.

It's a little odd that it isn't as high a priority with me as it should be. It's constantly pushed aside for other things.

No worries here.

What would a lifelong education cost ?
Add the friends, experiences, and often being able to apply that knowledge to other facets of life?

I've been fortunate in that the only cars I've lost money on have been racecars, where I don't care.
I don't necessarily plan it that way, I just don't pay myself a wage for the work I do !
I'm also pretty selective (and lucky) about what I've bought.

I bought my Savoy for $450 back in 1991 and I will probably never sell it. My wife says it has become part of my identity. I always have offers when I take it to the track but I couldn't replace it for what I could get for it.

Gus

No, it is just a car. I've worked on the car for 40 years and it has been with me for most of my life, but I won't have any trouble selling it when the time comes. At a certain stage in my life I'm not going to be hot rodding anymore so there is no reason for me to have a hot rod taking up space in the shop. My kids aren't interested in it so no point in me saving it for them.

very well said

Dollar for dollar I'll be right side up on both cars, by a good bit...until you factor my labor, but it IS what I do for fun. Like said above, the lifetime friends just add to it, maybe the whole point of it. But, in the end none of the value when I'm done with them will matter. Both of sons will wind up with one of them. So, none of it is about money to me.