|
I am sorry you think it is this way. Cars
are not cheap things. Old luxury cars is not a cheap hobby. Buying
new cars is not cheap, either. Have you looked at rare books, stamps or coins?
Whew!!! Yes, you see things priced at ridiculous prices, but how many of them
actually sell for that? It is unfortunate that there are people who are
"investors" and pay ridiculous prices for things. Sometimes, they
actually make a buck. Most often, when people who don't really know what they
are doing, but have some money to chase the latest hot market get in, the top is
here. Real hobbyists just hunker down and wait them out. While it
may be a little off the Imperial topic, there was a time not long ago when
Ferrari's were so hot, not even the hot money could keep up with
them. An auto magazine mentioned the fact that counting the number of
Ferrari's sold at auction, the total production of them had been moved twice in
that year. The price of Ferrari's has tanked since those lofty
days. I recall back in 1976 when Cadillac announced the last 200
Convertibles that would be made. I knew a guy who borrowed my trailer to
bring a brand new one home. He put it in a sealed bag with a nitrogen
atmosphere to prevent oxidation. I told him he should drive the thing on
nice days, keep it running, and nice. He has a dry rotted car, everything
that is not steel is cracked or dry rotted, but it has 4 miles on it. His
estate got just about what he paid for it, 30 years ago, because
someone has to go through and replace all the soft stuff.
Look at what an Imperial is. Look at what a
similar Cadillac or Lincoln goes for. Look at what something like a 60s
Mercedes or Jaguar goes for. I'm sorry people, take that
back, there is nothing to apologize for--Imperials were not designed for
sports car roads, although surprisingly enough, Imperials comported
themselves extremely well for a 20 foot long 5,000 lb machine on twisty
roads. Packing 6 full sized adults and the luggage for 2 weeks into a
Mercedes or Jaguar sedan of the same price as an Imperial just didn't
work. Loading an Imperial with 1,000 lbs doesn't have a whole lot of
effect, unless you put it all in the trunk. You don't put 6 people in a
Mercedes 220 SE,, because it s a 4 passenger car, 5 if one is real
small. You put 2 adults in the back of a Mercedes 220 SE, and you
have a different car. 400 lbs of adults in the back seat, another 400
lbs of luggage in the trunk, and you think are driving a Corvair. I had
one. I thought it was a neat looking car, at the time. What a
POS! When you compare the cost of keeping
one drivable between an Imperial and a Mercedes, an Imperial is an
economy car. Let me clue you, a 60s Mercedes, back in the 60s, was not all
that different from a British car--all the parts falling off this car are
of the finest British/German workmanship. When I returned to America,
I bought a used Olds 98; my roommate had a VW. True, the Olds
got 10 MPG in town, 20 on the highway, while the VW got 20 going to work, and 30
on the road. The Olds didn't change lanes on the freeway when you passed a
Semi. You absolutely had to follow the VW maintenece schedule, which
was rigorous, or you would pay dearly, almost immediately. The Olds,
well, as long as you kept the fluids up, and didn't hit things much bigger
than it was, you could just keep driving it. Remember, VW was one of the
great imports. Some of them were truely crap. Can we mention Renault
Dauphine? You can buy a lot of 25 cent a gallon gas for what a $60
starter cost. Even if you run out of gas, you don't have to lay on your
back in the snow to fix your problem.
If you think Imperial parts are expensive, try buying
parts for a Mercury. And far too many of them fit Fords.
|
Back to the Home of the Forward Look Network