Auction time (Barrett Jackson)

[Michael]

Barrett Jackson prices, or bids are also fueled by egos and alcohol.

Yeah Heaven forbid there would actually be some growing appreciation for the marquee. No way anyone in their right mind would pay more than 30k for a stupid plastic car, lets blame alcohol and pride.

[PJ Grady Inc.]

Regardless of it's affect on current owners and especially new buyers the obviously increased demand, and therefore values, can only be a good thing for any collector car. Why any current owner would begrudge this makes little sense? Yes if you sell your car and then decide to buy another one later on you might pay more....other than that so what? Don't sell your car and you'll never have to pay more except for upkeep. The longterm upkeep will be much easier as a direct result of increasing value. I've noticed in our shop that current owners are much more interested and willing to pay to put their cars into the best possible condition. They know the value is there and unless the market tanks their investment is somewhat protected. Making a profit is still the American way last I heard if it can be done "the old fashioned way....they earn it"! Believe me longtime Delorean owners deserve it for keeping the dream alive. Profit is what keeps vendors supporting the marque not only in business but also reinvesting in new products and services for our beloved marque. As an owner snubbing the increasing values is basicaly cutting your nose to spite your face. Increased values is what insure that people will take care of their cars better and venders will gamble on resupplying increasingly obsolete or unavailable stocks of NOS parts. Your car will be better for it in the end. Relax and enjoy. Light a cigar if you wish because increased values is like have a free baby! Hell I would right now if I smoked.
Rob Grady

[dodint]

My understanding is that as the market price for the DMC rises the cost of parts will rise along with it. Current owners may feel that they're in danger of being priced out of their own cars as newer owners are willing to pay higher prices for parts, thus driving up the cost of maintenance and repairs. And it's not like vendors would turn down a wider margin on their parts and service.

I'm not saying I buy that reasoning, but I believe that's what has been conveyed.

As a relatively young (mid-30s) new owner whose earning potential will continue to climb for the next 20 years or so I'm not threatened by that. If I were approaching retirement it might be a scary proposition.

[PJ Grady Inc.]

My understanding is that as the market price for the DMC rises the cost of parts will rise along with it. Current owners may feel that they're in danger of being priced out of their own cars as newer owners are willing to pay higher prices for parts, thus driving up the cost of maintenance and repairs. And it's not like vendors would turn down a wider margin on their parts and service.

I'm not saying I buy that reasoning, but I believe that's what has been conveyed.

As a relatively young (mid-30s) new owner whose earning potential will continue to climb for the next 20 years or so I'm not threatened by that. If I were approaching retirement it might be a scary proposition.

I haven't seen any sign of that yet. Some prices could rise due to beneficial reasons however. As the car's value rises recreating some of the larger more expensive and better quality parts may become more feasable to produce. We for example sourced many of our remanufactured parts in the US back in the 90's but it became less feasable as cheaper, shall we say "offshore", parts were introduced by our competition. As demand dried up for superior quality parts we pulled back from new parts production to a large extent. Now as we see increased demand for better quality parts again we are ramping up our production of US made parts. These parts do tend to be more expensive but the fit, quality, and longevity generally far outweigh the increased cost. When time permits we will get more of them on our website instead of selling them mainly in house. We are also considering making some NLA interior parts which would make things easier when doing full restorations. The investment is substantial so we are still in the review stage for some items. The only way this investment can be recouped is if the values of Deloreans stay high enough to justify the cost of manufacturing these types of parts. This allows the owner the choice of shopping price versus quality instead of having access only to cheap but inferior quality parts. I try not to sell anything I wouldn't put on my own car and there is a lot out there that fits that description. Higher prices mean more options. The cheap stuff will likely remain cheap to be competetive as that is the only advantage over higher quality parts.
Rob

[sdg3205]

I haven't seen any sign of that yet. Some prices could rise due to beneficial reasons however. As the car's value rises recreating some of the larger more expensive and better quality parts may become more feasable to produce. We for example sourced many of our remanufactured parts in the US back in the 90's but it became less feasable as cheaper, shall we say "offshore", parts were introduced by our competition. As demand dried up for superior quality parts we pulled back from new parts production to a large extent. Now as we see increased demand for better quality parts again we are ramping up our production of US made parts. These parts do tend to be more expensive but the fit, quality, and longevity generally far outweigh the increased cost. When time permits we will get more of them on our website instead of selling them mainly in house. We are also considering making some NLA interior parts which would make things easier when doing full restorations. The investment is substantial so we are still in the review stage for some items. The only way this investment can be recouped is if the values of Deloreans stay high enough to justify the cost of manufacturing these types of parts. This allows the owner the choice of shopping price versus quality instead of having access only to cheap but inferior quality parts. I try not to sell anything I wouldn't put on my own car and there is a lot out there that fits that description. Higher prices mean more options. The cheap stuff will likely remain cheap to be competetive as that is the only advantage over higher quality parts.
Rob

Rob, I applaud your effort to develop and offer quality parts over cheap parts. I have learned the hard way that even with the DeLorean, you get what you pay for. Its very easy to get sucked into the mentality that buying cheap parts saves time and money. It does not.

[YJK]

As a brand new owner I'm glad to see prices in that range. Every owner should. That means your car/ investment is going up and not losing value. If they go up in value, there will be more vendors making parts for an out of production car. All of us that own one will be able to maintain and enjoy that investment. And if or when you want to sell yours, I'm betting you would love to get those prices.

[Michael]

Logic: My Bitcoin doubled in value! Wooo hoooo!

DeLorean Logic: A car just like mine sold for twice what I paid....DAMMIT!

[sdg3205]

Logic: My Bitcoin doubled in value! Wooo hoooo!

DeLorean Logic: A car just like mine sold for twice what I paid....DAMMIT!

I don’t understand it either.

[Col Bennett]

Regardless of it's affect on current owners and especially new buyers the obviously increased demand, and therefore values, can only be a good thing for any collector car. Why any current owner would begrudge this makes little sense? Yes if you sell your car and then decide to buy another one later on you might pay more....other than that so what? Don't sell your car and you'll never have to pay more except for upkeep. The longterm upkeep will be much easier as a direct result of increasing value. I've noticed in our shop that current owners are much more interested and willing to pay to put their cars into the best possible condition. They know the value is there and unless the market tanks their investment is somewhat protected. Making a profit is still the American way last I heard if it can be done "the old fashioned way....they earn it"! Believe me longtime Delorean owners deserve it for keeping the dream alive. Profit is what keeps vendors supporting the marque not only in business but also reinvesting in new products and services for our beloved marque. As an owner snubbing the increasing values is basicaly cutting your nose to spite your face. Increased values is what insure that people will take care of their cars better and venders will gamble on resupplying increasingly obsolete or unavailable stocks of NOS parts. Your car will be better for it in the end. Relax and enjoy. Light a cigar if you wish because increased values is like have a free baby! Hell I would right now if I smoked.
Rob Grady

Amen Rob. Beautifully said.

I firmly believe that beautiful examples of the marque are worth their high values. I know. I was one of those rare DeLorean buyers willing to spend a shit-ton of money on their dream car - no compromise. I saved for over a decade to buy the right car and I continue to pour money into it today, not as an investment - heck, I know I'll never get back what I've spent. I just adore my car and want it to be as nice as possible.

Happy to see prices go up BUT I would say from experience that most of the high priced cars out there are outrageously over-priced. Most sales include poor photos, shoddy detailing and no underside pics. As far as I'm concerned, you should be able to eat your dinner off the underside of a high value car. Then there's the cost of modern parts to replace aging components. The cost of labor (if you don't do it yourself) can be considerable (again, from experience). Definitely not for the faint of heart. Things can get very expensive but it's worth getting work done by someone who knows what they're doing - like Rob.

PS. I'm booked in with Rob again next week for some more updates to my car. It's super important to support vendors like Rob. There's not many near-40 year old cars on the road with the parts, service and support network we have and it's important to spend with them. We'd be up shit-creek without a paddle otherwise.

[PJ Grady Inc.]

Amen Rob. Beautifully said.

I firmly believe that beautiful examples of the marque are worth their high values. I know. I was one of those rare DeLorean buyers willing to spend a shit-ton of money on their dream car - no compromise. I saved for over a decade to buy the right car and I continue to pour money into it today, not as an investment - heck, I know I'll never get back what I've spent. I just adore my car and want it to be as nice as possible.

Happy to see prices go up BUT I would say from experience that most of the high priced cars out there are outrageously over-priced. Most sales include poor photos, shoddy detailing and no underside pics. As far as I'm concerned, you should be able to eat your dinner off the underside of a high value car. Then there's the cost of modern parts to replace aging components. The cost of labor (if you don't do it yourself) can be considerable (again, from experience). Definitely not for the faint of heart. Things can get very expensive but it's worth getting work done by someone who knows what they're doing - like Rob.

PS. I'm booked in with Rob again next week for some more updates to my car. It's super important to support vendors like Rob. There's not many near-40 year old cars on the road with the parts, service and support network we have and it's important to spend with them. We'd be up shit-creek without a paddle otherwise.

You are spot on with your observations Colin. Only the properly preserved/restored cars deserve top dollar. Trophy cars should not apply but are rampant these days.
Rob