There was a time that wasn't true. My dad bought a car in 1977 for $300 that now you couldn't buy in that condition for less than $20,000,and fully restored would go for over $30,000. A convertible version regularly sells for over 100K, and, 30 years ago you could pick them up for less than $1000.

here's his car that I'm restoring for him. http://ourimpala.com

the trick is to find a car that is old enough to be considered just a used car, but one that will have the nostalgia to elevate the price in future generations. I think the 3rd gen camaro WILL go up in value as the years go by, but nobody knows if, for example, you will see a fully restored IROC going for $40,000 in an auction. Most people say no, but I think in 30 years it's possible.

So many cars have been molested like the link the OP posted (don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful car I would love to have, but there's not much collectors value there) that the pool of original cars shrinks by the day. If somebody wants an original IROC or Z28, one day they will be very rare, and therefor the price will go up.

the 3rd gen is a piece of Americana, probably the icon for an entire decade of the American car industry. People who were teenagers in the 80's (like me) who have stupid money in their golden years (not like me) may be willing to pay out the nose to have a perserved piece of that history for themselves

 

That car is WWAAAAYYY to expensive and yes you can get an awesome 87 IROC for $3,000. I would never pay that much because i have had almost every year of a 3rd gen and they are not worth it. You can get a nice 4th gen ss for what they want for that car. You like the 4th gen much better anyway. If you buy an IROC drive it, its not an investment.

 

+1 I myself would love to have my old 85 IRoc again. It was very early production with TPI and was highly optioned. I paid roughly 15k for it and they are hard to come by today. I've seen maybe 3 on e-bay in the last few years. I will have another and expect to pay dearly. Nostalgia will play a huge part in what people are willing to pay for something. Along with condition, supply and their own resources.
For those who say old cars aren't good investments I say yes but an investment that gets my blood pumping is alot more fun.

 

What did you sell it for Pablo63?

I see a wide spectrum of prices for the IROC's 3k-15k This isn't a investment for me. I have a financial adviser take care of those details with my cash. I'm just talking about loosing money if by chance I had to sell it soon. But making 20k in 30 years wouldn't be to bad..

It looks like if I sit tight and watch I can pick up a decent IROC for less than 5K pretty easy. Finding one stock with options may be more difficult and thanks for pointing that out.

If anyone finds any other good deals in the midwest Iowa area please post them.