I'm goanna call the resale market for muscle cars officially "stagnant"

[AKcharger]

I think high end cars, R/T's Hemis #s matching cars are safe but anything that isn't in some way special aren't going to move. ESPECIALLY "Project cars" the parts flows just aren't there.

[b5blue]

I noticed the trend several years ago with COVID cutting up the supply line. Recent political stunts like tariffs have upset the market even more.   

[AKcharger]

Well id argue covid gave the market a bump as people stayed home and focused on projects but agree on supply chain. Parts are NOT coming back

[426HemiChick]

Hi AKcharger,          05 April 2026

So what does this really mean? Is this a market collapse or just a temp correction?

I seem to remember prices going up and down years ago. Having had a Hemi Daytona I had received high offers early on and then they collapsed then recovered.

I'm no expert on the subject but have seen the market bounce around. If you're in a hurry to sell then you have to accept what the market currently offers or wait it out.

Had we taken some of the early offers we had for our Daytona, we could have made a bundle then bought it back at a later date.

A lot of life is a gamble. Hopefully we make good decisions and end up on the winning side.

We still have three cars that we may decide to sell. At the moment we are not in a sale mode.

Hope you end up on the positive side.

Chris

[496polara]

I love your car and would happily pay your asking price if I could afford it.

I think the younger crowd does not have much interest in our old cars. Couple that with the crippling cost of living and many can't afford these types of toys. Not like we can finance one as easy as a newer car.

[70 sublime]

I have been whatching the prices on stuff also and some have not got the memo yet that things are not moving up like they were but sellers still want to make the big bucks so they just sit for sale for a long time

Was whatching a video on youtube last night and a guy had saved 10 cars that went through the big auction ring in 2023 and the exact same car went through again in 2026 8 of them got less the second time and only 2 got more $$ ( a 70 GTO and 63 Vette) I whatched to the end but none of them were mopars Guess the guys that bought the mopars were happy to keep them

[AKcharger]

Hi AKcharger,          05 April 2026

So what does this really mean? Is this a market collapse or just a temp correction?...

Howdy Chris! good points all and I'm not sad or negative just "it is what is is". Now you're spot on, the market fluctuates and prices have always gone up and down but I'd argue that was pure economics, people have $$ buy toys, no $$ no toys. What I submit is demographics is now driving the market; it's not money it's people and there's not enough of them to buy the glut of 50-year-old cars for sale.

Remember you had Boomers, the LARGEST age group in history who is now selling. The next biggest generation, Gen X who is also hitting retirement and selling excess cars as THEY move deep into retirement. So ask yourself Who is buying? Millennials, the next group, If there goanna buy something it's going to be an investment as much as a toy. So a rebodied '67 Charger with a Motor home 440...probably not going anywhere quickly

- Polara you're right young people today have difficulty affording a house let alone $$$ for an old car!
- 70 Sublime Ouch! that's gotta hurt! and considering with inflation our car "gained" about 20% in value thats crazy. Glad I'm not an "auto investor"

It's life, no regrets though! love my cars!

[Mike DC]

 
The US public is in bad shape financially.  Inflation/living costs are kicking everyone's ass no matter how much they earn or how they invested it.  That's the biggest driving force right now.   Even the people wealthy enough to be 'safe' may be helping out other family members who are struggling.  Nobody is immune to society-wide effects.   

The baby boomers are the biggest thing shaping the classic car market overall.  But their exit is a long gradual decline.  The younger boomers won't be aging out of driving until the 2040s.  And plenty of Gen-Xers are still pretty deep into these cars.  I don't think the demand for muscle cars REALLY dries up until Gen-X is dying off (or they can't afford to eat).     


I think the biggest threat to the hobby's future is the resource distribution in our society.  Young people either have enough money to mess with old cars, or they have enough time & workspace.  Not both.  The good-paying careers come with heavy schedules in expensive cities. 

 

[moparstuart]

this

[AKcharger]

I think the bottom line is find a car(s) that truly make you happy and stick with it. The days of "flipping" are pretty much over.  People need to factor in how much useful life they actually have and divide it by projects. for example, your 50, that's 15 years of safely saying you can crawl on over under your car to repair and restore it. So average 5 years and $25K to restore a "good" car. that's not much time. and remember ...you have a family and other hobbies. be realistic my friends.

[Kern Dog]

I think the bottom line is find a car(s) that truly make you happy and stick with it. The days of "flipping" are pretty much over.  People need to factor in how much useful life they actually have and divide it by projects. for example, your 50, that's 15 years of safely saying you can crawl on over under your car to repair and restore it. So average 5 years and $25K to restore a "good" car. that's not much time. and remember ...you have a family and other hobbies. be realistic my friends.

No offense meant here but your coming across as a bit pessimistic. Maybe the market isn't flaming hot in your area but it is in no way dead, nowhere close. "They days of flipping are over" is not true at all.

[AKcharger]

No offense meant here but your coming across as a bit pessimistic. Maybe the market isn't flaming hot in your area but it is in no way dead, nowhere close. "They days of flipping are over" is not true at all.

perhaps, or perhaps being realistic. You can absolutely still flip but you need buyers...few buyers vs. surplus of cars...it's just math.

[Charger-Bodie]

i feel the market is softer now than in quite a while. Chargers dont seem to me as affected as most others though. atleast not 68-70

[Mike DC]

 
Prediction:
The value of early Mustang convertibles will fall a lot when the boomers age out. 

I'm talking about this car.  We have all seen this car too many times to count.  The owners were ALL boomers. 






When I say this, the response goes: "I know a younger guy who wants an early Mustang."

My answer:  Yeah, and he probably wants a 67-68 fastback.  He doesn't want a 64-66 ragtop. 

[AKcharger]

Lol, those Mustangs...top down they're OK...Top up BARF!

[Mike DC]

Lol, those Mustangs...top down they're OK...Top up BARF!

That's why they never made a ragtop Charger.  The shape of the cloth top nukes the styling.

It's possible to make a cloth top with the swept-back rear pillars.  That helps, but it's only half the problem.  The other half is the 4dr-style taller windshield on convertibles.  That also screws up the styling compared to a hardtop Charger.   

[RallyeMike]

I think you called it. It has been coming on for awhile and will continue. High dollar and "done" cards will still bring the bucks for awhile yet, but there is less and less interest in project cars and they are not selling well.The group of people willing to put the time and $ into restoring an old car that underperforms a Honda is aging out.

[Mike DC]

 
It's not that these cars are low-value now, it's that they were over-valued in the 1990s-2010s.

We've had several generations of car guys all competing for one generation of cars.  Every Boomer & Gen-X gearhead in America wants a '69 muscle car.  How many of us are hot for a 1949, 1959, '79, '89, or '99? 

It also doesn't help that the population has roughly doubled since the 1960s.  The supply of 1960s cars did not double with it.     

Restorations cost stupid money today because we are fixing un-restorable cars.  The good candidate cars were already restored decades ago, because there has been too much demand for that narrow slice of cars. 

[marshallfry01]

I've noticed that 68-70 project cars aren't selling as fast as they were 4-5 years ago. Obviously the rare good deals will go pretty fast but I've seen a lot of cars that have been on the market for months.

 I do think we are to the point in time where it's hard to find a "good" project car. Majority of the stuff nowadays needs every piece from AMD to be fixed correctly. People can't afford an all out project like that.

[INTMD8]

Market doesn't matter to me.  Really, gaining value does nothing but increase insurance cost for me.

I've had many try to buy my car. I won't sell it.


I do find this amusing.  The 68 Charger I bought I think 10 years ago for a little over 40 is back on vanguard site for 159. Very nice car but that's a lot of coin for a 383 auto.

https://www.vanguardmotorsales.com/inventory/5602/1968-dodge-charger

[Mopar Nut]

Market doesn't matter to me.  Really, gaining value does nothing but increase insurance cost for me.

I've had many try to buy my car. I won't sell it.


I do find this amusing.  The 68 Charger I bought I think 10 years ago for a little over 40 is back on vanguard site for 159. Very nice car but that's a lot of coin for a 383 auto.

https://www.vanguardmotorsales.com/inventory/5602/1968-dodge-charger

What did you sell it for, that's a nice looking Charger.

[426HemiChick]

Hi INTMD8,           24 Apr 2026

Nice looking car. Someone with a few extra Shekels may snap it up and take their prize home.

Seeing what everything costs these days it won't surprise me. Kind of reminds me of 1992 when I went to Mexico to live and work. If I remember correctly 1000 Pesos was worth US $0.25 (25 cents). Eventually, the Government revalued their money with a "New Peso" valued at US $0.25. If you think this isn't going to eventually happen here, you are living in LaLa land.

I'm sure you have noticed TV ads for precious metals. Folks with extra money are buying up the stuff.

If I had a few extra million $$$, I'd be buying it myself. It's called a "Hedge against inflation." These old cars can also be hedges. These are also called "Hard Assets."

Chris

 

[lloyd3]

These are trying times for many folks (& what I'm about to say won't be popular here).

Muscle cars are a remnant of a now-distant past in this country that doesn't fit well with many modern sensitivities.  Love 'em all you want, the day will come were the basic economics of them simply doesn't work for the average person anymore.  The standard of living in these United States has declined to a point where many folks simply can't justify owning such an adult "toy" and while they may still admire them from afar...they are simply caught-up by a life in basic "survival" mode.

It's coming down to the "haves" and the "have-nots" in a big way here now, where a Honda Civic (or even a Nissan Leaf!) makes much-more sense than a "thundering big block anything". I am ever so-grateful to have lived through the era of their creation and then their daily enjoyment but...that window seems to be closing. 

Environmental laws, expensive gasoline, tires, insurance, storage, parts, etc....have all contributed to this situation.  This is even furthe⁷r complicated by now multiple-generations of children who aren't remotely capable-of or even interested-in anything automotive (my 22-year old son tells me that many of his college classmates don't even have driver's licences, they count on public transportation or even Uber when they have to!).

These cars truly are "dinosaurs" now and their "Jurassic" period may be coming to a close. Hang onto them because you love them but don't plan on any of them being a great investment going forward.

The bloom has simply gone off of that rose.

[426HemiChick]

Hi lloyd3,           24 Apr 2026

Don't think any of us has a lock on what's going to happen in the future, including near and far. Some of us will make good choices, others will make questionable ones, and others will just drift along.

Five or six years ago I couldn't have imagined the world we are living in today. There are those that would love to tear this country apart and create a Socialist Utopia. It's been tried before and has yet to work for the common folk, the ones that work their asses off so the "Guberment" folk can live the good life telling us prols how and where to live. Something I hope I never see in my country.

Why do I say "My Country?" Because I devoted 9 years of my life in service to the USA. Many others have devoted even more, their health, Lives and some of the stuff folks endure while in the Services. I thank all who have served.

I definitely don't deserve anything special; I was assigned to a top secret project that has, so far, kept the world from Nuclear War. My hope is nuclear war never occurs so we can keep our families and friends safe and happy and continue playing with our beloved toys and living great lives.

God Bless the USA !!!

Chris