Well, what do you think?

If you had to guess what you could get for your car right now, and if you sold the exact same car in 3 years, do you think you could get more money in 3 years?

 

I keep asking myself that question. I know they are going for the same now as they were 2 yrs ago in my area (give or take). I figure that they won't depreciate markedly but it costs so much to maintain that it all evens out in the wash.

No clue how the RX-8 will change things if at all.

 

I forgot where I read it, I think in the general auto forum, but the FD is the only used car to actually gain value in 2001.

 

I haven't even had mine a year yet and ones on the lot are advertised for up to $5k more than I paid for mine. The govt changed the law down here to prevent them being imported from Japan unless 96 or newer.

Yee-hah

 

99.9% of cars are a negative investment. RX-7's are no exception.

 

two words, hell no. unless you don't put any miles on it for the next three years, there's no way it'll appreciate.

 

Agreed. A '95 with 13,000 miles like mine (if it were completely stock) is now worth less than $20,000. I see no evidence to indicate that 3rd gen. RX-7s, even low mileage cars, are appreciating in value.

There may have been a fluctuation in private sale prices following the release of TFATF, but I think some people just want to think that their cars are more special than they really are...

 

Where can you buy a '95 with less than 13,000 miles for less than $20k? Damn I would be all over that. Actually you have to state whether we are accounting for inflation. Not accounting for inflation I think you will see gradual appreciation over time assuming the car remains frozen in time, but the way I drive my car, I'll be happy if its RUNNING in 3 years .

 

why does it matter if you keep your car? thats what i figure, if i was looking for a car that i would sell in 3 years id look into it but when i get my black FD im not going to sell it anytime soon

 

In the Next 3 years I wil agree w/ Jim - No appreciation for FDs
, BUT looking in the 2012+ time frame (ie 10 years after cessation of production of the 2002s) yes I think CLEAN, UNMODIFIED fd will appreciate significantly.
In 1974 I bought a 8year old E-type Jag for $1650, did lots of work restoring it an in 1976 could only get $1700 for it. BUT buy 1990 it would have gone in the $15-20k range and now would be worth $35k+
In general any car depreciates for 10 years to a bottom "salvage" value then stays there for a period of time. For reconized collectables that time may be as little as 2-3 years. For undesirable MASS Production cars the bottom may last 30 years (Ford Model T's from the 20s did not start to really appriciate untill the 60's)
The FD3S has all the traits needed to become Collectible:
Limited Production,
Unique/Unusual Engineering (Rotary Engine, Sequential Turbos), Aclaimed Styling,
Broad Appeal.

 

Jim: I would feel that a car like yours (less than 15k miles and a rare 95 model) could get closer to $25,000. Still close to a $15,000 loss, but thats not what Im going for here.

I was interested in lets say I buy your car for $25,000. In 3 years, do you think Id be able to sell for that much or more? I certainly think its possiable, as shown by the fact that prices have no changed since about 3 years ago...

An interesting thing to consider...

 

with all these young kids buying them and totaling um...**** in three years there's not going to be to many fd's left....so i'm thinking if you have a stock fd in good shape and don't abuse it...i think you will atleast get your money back in three years...


although, good luck with that...it's a disease...you can't leave it stock and i wouldn't sell mine until i started going hungry....then it would even be a tough decision...

 

If you found the right enthusiast or collector, you might get $25,000 for a stock '95 with less than 15,000 miles. And then again, you might not.

Most of today's potential (younger) buyers don't have pockets deep enough to pay cash, and as time goes on, banks and credit unions are less likely to finance the cars, not to mention financing them for values in excess of the book value of the car itself. Which is exactly what you're talking about if there are modifications involved, or if the car is low mileage or limited production. The problem is that it's not widely recognized as "rare" beyond a relatively small group of enthusiasts.

Try selling a bank on the premise that a particular RX-7 is worth more money than NADA lists because it's one of only X 1995 cars, or because only Y number were made in that color... and the bank could care less about mileage, except where it affects what they could possibly recoup from the car if you defaulted on your payments.

At some point, people can't justify paying so much for a stock RX-7, even if it is low mileage, because they can buy a new(er) car with, in some cases, as good or better performance for the same amount of money and not deal with some of the hassles of rotary ownership. Or they can buy an older RX-7 which already comes with modifications for quite a bit less money, if they're limited by budget or financing. The only person to which a low mile '95 would really be worth something is a collector, and I'm not aware that there are any collectors snatching up low mileage FDs due to speculation that their value will increase in the future. Are you?

 

yeah, i agree w/ ttrx7racer.. i'm keeping this car forever, no matter how many engines i go through or how many problems i encounter, this is my baby, other cars will come and go, but i never plan on selling this one, so who cares how much it sells for

 

no matter the time frame, there is no way this is going to appreciate unless you don't drive it. by 2012 or whatever, your cars are gonna have over 200-300k on them. they'll have non original engines, which hurt prices if it's gonna be a collectible. it'll have rust, gunk, paint chips, dents, etc. all the bushings will be shot, that's over a grand to replace. you could pay to have everything put back to as new condition w/ new motor, turbos, paint, etc., but it won't be as highly regarded. plus factor in that all that would cost over 15k, you won't get more out of it than you put in. unless you have a 95 w/ around 10k miles and you never drive it for the next few years there is no way it'll appreciate. plus, the fd has very little appeal because of it's reliability problems. i can't count the number of people that have told me they would love to get an fd were if not for their fear of blowing the motor or having little things go wrong all the goddam time. i'm sure it's in the hudreds.

 

If you're in this car for an investment then you are making a big mistake. You will get hosed with every car you will buy. Usually you take a 2 to 3 grand hit just driving a new car off the lot, and it snowballs from there.
Even if you did turn a profit on selling it, you really would take a loss due to mods and maintenance.
Drive the FD because you love it and not because Alan Greenspan recommends it.

 

Just FYI... I bought my car new in April of 1997, one of the last two '95s imported into the United States, for $37,500 with 104 miles on the odometer.

According to my 1998 NADA guide book, it was worth as much as $28,875 for high retail, and average retail was $25,900. It had (and still has) 13,108 miles of use.

Today, according to Kelley (www.kbb.com), it's worth (assuming it was still stock) $19,525 in a private sale, and $16,045 if traded in.

Today, according to Edmunds (www.edmunds.com), it's worth $16,879 at a dealer, $14,011 in a private party sale, and $12,290 trade-in.

And today, according to NADA (www.nadaguides.com), it's worth $15,950 trade-in and $18,500 resale, with a $2,900 adjustment for mileage.

Even with the mileage adjustment, $21,400 vs. $28,875 in 4 years isn't a huge amount of depreciation, but it certainly isn't gaining in value. When I checked last year, it booked for about $23,900 high retail.

1997 - $37,500
1998 - $28,875
1999 - $27,000 (est.)
2000 - $25,200 (est.)
2001 - $23,900
2002 - $21,400
2003 - ???

So what do you think it will be worth next year? Quite a bit less than the cost of the engine I'm putting into it, that's for sure.

 

Well, I happen to know a particular moron ( ) who just paid $22k for a '93 with 20k miles. So I know for a fact that blue book means didly. And if this particular moron had seen your (i.e. jimlab's) car for sale, he would have considered paying close to 30k for it .

 

Sounds like someone is trying to draw the attention away from themselves.

 

Boys and Girls

You just can't put a price tag on love.

 

As i recently read on a forum.. According to the NADA... The RX7 FD.s are the only car to increase in value over the last year..... +5.2% as i remember...Carter

 

I think you guys should read 2 of my old posts:
https://www.rx7club.com/forum/showth...dealer+auction
https://www.rx7club.com/forum/showth...dealer+auction

Now mind you, an FD isn't exactly the car dealers just buy. More than likely, a dealer will buy one BECAUSE they have a buyer for it.

Also, if I didn't buy an FD in hopes to make a profit. I bought it because I love the car. IMHO, the fun factor I have had with my FD FAR outweighs any negative or positive profits I could make from it if I were to sell it. You can't put a price tag on how much fun you have had with it.

 

im really upset that our cars aren't worth that much money

They really deserve to be worth more I think
there is no car that looks as good
the rx7 can also be pretty fast with a few mods.

 

Ummmm, agreed 100%. Maybe in 20 or 30 years it will have some appeal to collectors, but the cost of owning and maintaining will continue to skyrocket.

Mazda dealers have no incentive to stock parts now, so everything will have to come from Japan, and at a very handsome price. IF you can find it.

Boys and girls, if you want your car to maintain it's value: keep it completely stock, or make sure that any mods you do can be returned to stock physically and cosmetically. Keep ALL your stock parts - even if they are trashed - you have no idea how valuable they will become VERY soon.

Unfortunately, the car will not. Drive it because you love it. All cars suck as an investment - they always have. It's nothing more than a toy

 

Just wait. The Fast and the Furious 2 is going to come out. If they make the RX-7 a large part of the movie the price is going to spike!

-Charlie