Thread: A couple of questions.

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I just registered here, I'm only seventeen so bear with me if I begin to sound immature or as I have no idea what I'm talking about(chances are, I don't).

My father passed away some time ago, the only thing he left as inheritance was a 51' Custom truck he had built from the ground up. The hood and bed of the truck are fiberglass, made himself, very nice work I've been told. I know only a few of it's specifics but he told mother, "If you want a ford to run you have to put a chevy engine in it."

So, it harbors a 63' chevy engine, ripplewall tires, a brand new distributor, magnesium alloy wheels and it's stacked on a Camaro frame(again, forgive me I know nothing about what any of this means, I just know it means something).

In the past two months, because of my pitiful living arrangements it's been stolen twice and recovered both times. In all, through my adolescence it's been stolen 3 times. And to the reason I come here today...

I'm only seventeen. I don't have the capability OR the spare time between classes to keep it in check. It's a nice vehicle, but I'm still learning to drive, and I don't have the insurance money for a truck with no seatbelts and a fiberglass frame. It runs, it needs a few more lugs for the wheels, but that's a minor trip to the auto shop.

I was going to see if I could get some rough estimates on what you think it might be worth now, I know it's difficult without a photo, but I'll try to post one soon. I've been told by one man trying to buy it from me he'd give me two thousand, which to me sounds pitiful. It IS in running condition. On another side one of the police officers who helped me recover it the second time claimed twenty five thousand, at least, which to me sounds over the top.

I'm not sure of any of this, and any help would be fantastic. I'm still young, but if I can get a safe, fuel efficient car out of it, I think I'd be alright. If you're uninterested, or if this is in any way rude, I am sorry, I haven't been anywhere near the hotrod community since father passed away, last time I was I think I was only 12 years old.

Thank you, and have a great day!

Welcome to CHR, sounds like a unique truck your father left you! Anxious to see some pics. We have a few others about your age on here, I'm sure they'll be around to introduce themselves.... Absolutely nothing rude about your post, and welcome back to the world of Hot Rodding!!!!

If that 1963 Chevy engine is a 283 ? I know the right guy to help you turn that thing way up Your in the right place . We Love this stuff

Glad you posted on CHR. Never feel bad about asking questions as I'm 64 and do so all the time. As far as prices $2,000(NO,NO) the guy knows it's worh more than that and $25,000 you might never know. Really need some pictures.

If you lived nearby I could help you more, but the next best thing would be some good pictures. Even at that opinions will vary, but at least you'll be able to narrow it down some. As Bart said, it's LIKELY (but not absolutely) that the $2k is low, and VERY LIKELY the $25k is WAYYYYYYYYYY high. Just a general rule of thumb that will serve you well throughout life, and not necessarily only with cars; the value of something is only set when a willing seller and an able and willing buyer agree on a price. Everything else is just talk. Money on the barrel head is real, opinions are just gas. Sounds cynical, but's how the real world works.

We're in a soft market right now compared to a year or so ago, and sometimes timing has a lot to do with it. If there's not somebody out there looking for something like you've got it won't sell for anything. If there's more than one potential buyer looking, you're in a good position.


I'll give you an example of what I've got going right now to give you an idea of the market. I'm not saying you should do things the same way I do, and with school and storage prorblems you've described it wouldn't be practical, but it will give you an idea of what you're up against. For the past several months I've been trying to sell a '40 Ford sedan project. It was a pretty complete car, only missing an engine and trans. So, not driveable was an issue but not unusual for this type of car. Some people think '40 Fords are very desireable, and comparatively they are. But right now, the market is a little more picky so the most desireable body styles (coupe and convertible) are moving, but not so much the sedans. I advertised in a number of reliable venues that have moved cars for me in the past and got quite a few replies, but mostly online/phone "tire kickers". Nobody came to look. Generally that's not a good sign. Usually the first diagnosis that would be logical would be that I was overpriced. This is where opinion needs to be tested. My solution (again, not saying it would be best for you, but then again it might be) was to sell the car off in parts. Several knowledgeable friends told me I am crazy (and there's a 50/50 chance they're right), but none of them put any money on the table to back up their opinion. As a seller who needs the space I need cash buyers. So last weekend I changed my ads to read selling an almost complete car in parts. The emails and phone calls came rolling in, people came over, pictures of Ben Franklin changed hands, and the car is going away..................a piece or 10 at a time. I'm on track to end up with somewhere about $2k more in my pocket than I was asking for the car as a whole. While that's nice, the back side of that is I'm having to work harder to get the money, but at least now the car is going away instead of sitting there.

The point is, we may not be in the kind of market where you can get best dollar for what you have. And if you can't play the parts game as in my example above, then you may have to take less for the truck just to move it if that's your primary need right now. So, give us some help identifying what you've got (with some good pictures) and we'll try to give you our best guidance. But be prepared, as we'll only be giving you a best GUESS, unless someone here is willing to put their money where there mouth is.

Welcome to the forum, So sorry to hear about your Dad's passing.

By your own admission, and some of the things you have said in your post, it's obvious you aren't sure exactly what this truck is, or what has been done to it. We need lots of pictures as the others have said. It could be that the guy who offered $ 2000 was trying to steal it (as if it hasn't been stolen enough times already ) and it could also be that the cop is talking out of his butt and doesn't know what the truck is worth either. To fetch $ 25 large it would have to be a very nice, well done truck IMO.

But until we see pictures everything is just talk. Even then it is hard to put a value on something. The TRUE value of a car or truck is what someone is actually willing to dig into their pocket and pay for it. Up to that point it is all speculation, at best.

BTW, part of me is a little skeptical of the story (please forgive me for my honesty) because of the part about it being stolen and recovered so many times. Washington State must be populated by some very inept car thieves. Sometimes we get people who like to come on and play a little with us, so certain things make my radar go up. But from the rest of your post, you seem legitimate.

Get us those pictures and we can go from there.

Don

I stole a pig once, but it squealed on me!!!

Originally Posted by Itoldyouso

Welcome to the forum, So sorry to hear about your Dad's passing.

By your own admission, and some of the things you have said in your post, it's obvious you aren't sure exactly what this truck is, or what has been done to it. We need lots of pictures as the others have said. It could be that the guy who offered $ 2000 was trying to steal it (as if it hasn't been stolen enough times already ) and it could also be that the cop is talking out of his butt and doesn't know what the truck is worth either. To fetch $ 25 large it would have to be a very nice, well done truck IMO.

But until we see pictures everything is just talk. Even then it is hard to put a value on something. The TRUE value of a car or truck is what someone is actually willing to dig into their pocket and pay for it. Up to that point it is all speculation, at best.

BTW, part of me is a little skeptical of the story (please forgive me for my honesty) because of the part about it being stolen and recovered so many times. Washington State must be populated by some very inept car thieves. Sometimes we get people who like to come on and play a little with us, so certain things make my radar go up. But from the rest of your post, you seem legitimate.

Get us those pictures and we can go from there.

Don

Oh don't worry, I expected you'd think I'd taken it or something, but the first one was tried in court and sent to rehab THEN prison, the second got off free because there wasn't enough evidence and the third remains uncaught, but they're all stoners and they brag about it in the bars.

One man in particular "bought" it from two people who didn't even know me or my mother, claiming he paid "A ****load." That couple remains unfound, suspiscions are that he stole it. I try to stay out of the policeman's affairs and business, but what can I say, I'm 17.

Originally Posted by brianrupnow

I stole a pig once, but it squealed on me!!!

HOGwash Brian.

Don

Oink Oink!!!

I don't have much more to add than: a) seatbelts are an easy add, and b) there's no way you have a fiberglass frame.

Fiberglass parts, maybe, but the frame is is from a Camaro, and it will be all steel.

Photos will tell a lot. Grab a digital camera and post 'em up. Oh, and don't give the car away until you get some more info. Someone WILL steal it again if you give them the chance.

http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/7...ruck015ev6.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/3...ruck017ys6.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/2...ruck011sv3.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/8...ruck012eu4.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/3...ruck014gz2.jpg
[Photos were very big, this link allows you to see them in full glory.]

Did I say fiberglass frame? That was a mistake, I meant the body(hood runningboards and bed).
Sorry this post is late, I could have sworn I posted this yesterday but when I logged on it hadn't been added... Sorry, and again, thank you all very much!

http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/7...ruck015ev6.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/3...ruck017ys6.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/2...ruck011sv3.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/8...ruck012eu4.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/3...ruck014gz2.jpg
[Photos were very big, this link allows you to see them in full glory.]

Did I say fiberglass frame? That was a mistake, I meant the body(hood runningboards and bed).
Sorry this post is late, I could have sworn I posted this yesterday but when I logged on it hadn't been added... Sorry, and again, thank you all very much!

(I'll try posting again in a different browser, please forgive me if it posts twice)

http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/7...ruck015ev6.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/3...ruck017ys6.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/2...ruck011sv3.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/8...ruck012eu4.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/3...ruck014gz2.jpg
[Photos were very big, this link allows you to see them in full glory.]

Did I say fiberglass frame? That was a mistake, I meant the body(hood runningboards and bed).
Sorry this post is late, I could have sworn I posted this yesterday but when I logged on it hadn't been added... Sorry, and again, thank you all very much!

http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/7...ruck015ev6.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/3...ruck017ys6.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/2...ruck011sv3.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/8...ruck012eu4.jpg
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/3...ruck014gz2.jpg
[Photos were very big, this link allows you to see them in full glory.]

Did I say fiberglass frame? That was a mistake, I meant the body(hood runningboards and bed).
Sorry this post is late, I could have sworn I posted this yesterday but when I logged on it hadn't been added... Sorry, and again, thank you all very much!