Ed Vil.

Hello All,

I have recently become enthralled with the 1973 Carrera RS. I figure blowing the lion share of my net worth on a car to be a good investment, so what the heck!

Anyway, 2 quick questions:

1) Am I crazy?
2) Has anyone had experience with this purchase and could share any words of wisdom such as what to look for, concerns, expected price (I've heard $150K+), etc.

I currently have a 1989 964, but am looking for a true classic.

Thx.

JackOlsen

My advice: Do not buy it without someone who knows RS's going through it. There are counterfeits out there, and a lot of junk being sold for Barrett-Jackson prices to the uninformed. It's possible to lose a lot of money with these cars very quickly, in spite of the hype.

Clipboard

Jack's so right. There were less than 1600 73 RSs and 'cloning' is (relatively) easy. It would be cheaper to go that route. Hang around an HSR event, get to know the current real RS owners, etc. If you are serious, it might be prudent to remember that your 'net worth' can disappear is a flash or crash. Not to mention that US$150k will damn soon be only worth 100k Euros. Also recall the adage: don't buy a car as an investment; buy it because you love it. It for sure won't drive like a 964. All that said, PLEASE do keep the List posted on your quest. We're drooling already. 8-)
john

JCP911S

My 2 cents. I agree a car is not an investment. Real Estate is an investment. Stocks and Bonds are an investment

Buying an older "collector" car can be a way to drive a really cool car for relatively low life cycle cost, and sometimes you get lucky and catch a car that goes up later.... (I paid $10K for my 1970 S 12 years ago.... only car I ever owned that I could sell for more than I paid for it)... but it is a gamble.

Personally I beleive the collector car market is a speculation bubble right now.... I'd be a bit cautious... but thats just me. Also, I like to buy cars I can comfortably afford... then I can drive them without worrying about it. A good, sound, correct RS Touring is probably a $90K+ car and a lightweight could be twice that. Only you know what is comfortable for you.

If you like the RS as a car, I agree you can buy a beautifully done "clone" probably for $25 -30K there are probably 10 of them for sale at this very minute. My gut is there is a glut of them on the mrarket and you might be able to get a really good deal if you find an eager seller. Some of these are done on old 911 S, and can be purchased for less than an "S" in origional condition...

If you buy a clone just take it to a porsche expert to make sure the quality of the work.... they range from better than factory jewels to junk... a good one with a correct 2.7 motor (there are some out there if you look) would drive very similar to a real RS....treat it like buying a hot rod.

RJay

Yes, your crazy if your thinking of putting a big chunk of your net worth into a car, particularly this one. First of all you've already missed the boat, they may have further to sail, but I doubt it. When I was looking for a track car three years ago, I ran across a couple of supposedly (I never tried to confirm authenticity) real RS cars. At that time they were going for 60-80K. Three years later we are nearly at double. This strikes me as bubble territory. There are other cars from the annals of Porsche history, say, the SCRS or the Clubsport that are rarer and equally, if not more, interesting for substantially less money. At the moment the RS is an icon, but will this be true 20 years from now? I'm not up on my vintage prices, but what you qoute is well above speedsters, and perhaps even 4cam carreras which are already confirmed classics.

Ownership is done with the heart, investing is done with the head. Its risky to invest in cars, but if you do remember the goal is to buy low and sell high! Buy an M6 or a pristine late 80's Turbo if you insist on a Porsche. Maybe even a factory slantnose, especially as for the moment they are rare, but relatively out of favor. These cars IMO, have a far better shot at moving up in value.

GrantG

I agree with the above comments. I think the weak dollar has also contributed to the huge appreciation in RS cars lately (in dollars).

I love the original RS, but you can find clones that have better performance than the originals for a fraction of the price (I was thrilled to do so). I wouldn't be confident buying a real RS for $150k today. Yes, they could appreciate further, but I'd be worried that they could plummet too, unless that amount of money is trivial to you (which you said it's not).

Trader220

I have to agree with the board here. The collector car market has the feeling of peaking at this time in my opinion. Besides, are you really going to drive a $150k car and take a shot of having it destroyed or seriously wounded? Here are two excellent examples of clones that I believe you’d be much happier with. I have no affiliation with the sellers other than liking what I see.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/showt...0&pagenumber=1

and

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/showt...hreadid=210004

r911

Maybe he meant investment in driving enjoyment...

If not, then posts like this are a sign to sell an RS and maybe a nice S, then wait a couple years to buy one back at about half price. I'll be keeping my clone tho...

Trader220

Revenge of the Clones ?

Clipboard

Here's a deal for ya - buy a clone for US$35k (or have some fun building one) and send me the US$115k difference. 8-) Or Steve can build you one. Or Dave White. Or Alwin. Or...on and on.
But seriously, folks...I have etched in my mind (from 1989 when US dollars were worth something)the happy camper who drove off in a certain red 962 he got for US$400k. IIRC, they have 'appreciated' to the US$250k level. Yet, I've never seen that car at any HSR or SVRA events.
Now, go out and drive your 964 like you stole it!
john

Brian 96C2

As with many assets, timing is everything. I would agree with many here, the '73 RS is just about fully priced at the prices I hear about. It would be hard for you to find one that is below market price. The sharks out there will be ahead of you. There are just not that many RS cars that come up for sale and when they do they are bought for a high price.

There exists many mania-like markets these days, including real estate, equities and collector cars. Please put your funds in a FDIC backed account and ride out the financial Japan-like melt down that will be coming probably sometime this year thanks to Greenspan (and the Fed) and of course many other factors (collapsing $, quickly accelerating inflation, huge trade imbalance, etc.).

Pick up a classic car when they become much cheaper on the down side of this mess. If I was smart I would sell my car soon and take advantage of the appreciation over the last several years, but I am too bonded with it do that, so I will take my 'paper' loss and have fun with it in the meantime.