Thread: Need some help I am VERY new at this

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Hi, I am VERY new to this, and I have an offer from someone to
trade my 1976 Viking 35' Sportfisherman boat for a a 1932 Ford
3 window coupe streetrod.

The car is all Ford, 302, C4, 8"rear.
Electric windows, auto. transmission, A/C.
It's dark blue with a/c, elec. windows, auto trans.
The engine has chrome valve covers,air cleaner,
alternator, oil pan, etc.

I really need to know what a car like this is worth, and how
difficult it would be to sell. I really need the cash to
pay off some debts. Are there any key things I should be
looking for? Are cars like these usually new (replicas)
or restored antiques? How difficult are they to sell/what
would be a range of values in todays market? Thanks.

Some photos of the car are attached. Thanks for any
advice you all may have

Mark

This is a tough one for a few reasons, so the only way we can offer any help to you is to be as frank as possible. Sometimes that comes off as not being kind or sympathetic, but you want the truth.

First some questions:

What is the Deuce made from, glass or steel? If steel, is it original or some other manufacturer?

How about the fenders and running boards, fiberglass or steel?


The reason I ask is that if it is an original Henry Ford it will have a certain value, and if it is a reproduction or glass body it will have another value altogether.

Now, I have to be honest from my own perspective on what I see with this car, looking at it as if I were considering buying it from you. On the surface it has a certain WOW factor that most chopped Deuce coupes have. Nice rake, I see what looks like good suspension with some chrome up front, and shiny wheels and paint. But then some things start to turn me off about the car. The tires and wheels are just a little big on the back for my tastes, and stick out beyond the fenders ala 1970's style. Not horrible, but they do.

Then the absence of a gas tank between the bottoms of the fenders leaves it sort of looking "undone" to me. The huge headlights are ok, but for some reason on this one look particularly big and prominent. However, all in all it seems from the pictures you have posted to be a pretty good car.

We can't see the undersides and running gear, and that is the acid test in a hot rod. Shiny stuff only goes so far, and some very nice looking rods have hidden some horrible construction down below. Being new to this, you need to have a knowledgeable (MAKE THAT VERY KNOWLEDGEABLE) hot rod shop go over it with a fine tooth comb. There are a million ways to build a hot rod, and you want to make sure this one was done right.

Now let's talk about your boat, because that is what I do for a living. Viking Sport Fish boats are very cool, but a 1976 boat is very old. Again, not being cruel, but simply honest. Unless the boat has been completely refitted with modern power and upgrades in the last 5-10 years, it is also a tough boat to sell, especially in todays depressed market. We deal in big boats, and our yard is loaded with 2000 model year up boats of this same type, and they are going for a fraction of what they once did. If your boat is gas powered that is even a bigger problem.

The last thing I have to say is that generally trading something you want to sell for something else you want to sell doesn't work out too well. It would be different if you were saying you wanted to keep the Deuce, but you are evidently having problems selling the boat so you think this 32 might be easier, and it might. If they were comparable in value, I do think the 32 Ford would be easier to unload than a 32 year old boat, so you may be on to something there.

You have probably researched what your boat is worth. What is that number in the real world? As for the 32, without knowing the questions I have asked you I would have to say if it is fiberglass the value might be $ 25,000 to maybe even $ 50,000. If it is original steel, it would be worth a lot more IMO. Steel bodies alone bring in the $ 20,000 plus neighborhood, so this one could be a $ 50,000 on up car easily, depending on lots of other factors.

Final note. Everything I have written above is simply my own opinion and could be 100 percent correct or 180 degrees off. But that is all you are going to get from anyone who posts a reply to this question.........simply the posters opinion. To get a true answer you need to have a marine surveyor go over the boat and the have a local appraiser come up with a number. (but even that sometimes falls apart until someone actually reaches into their pocket and hands you the cash) Then you need to have a knowledgeable hot rod appraiser go over the 32 and do the same thing. Then you will have a better idea of what the expected values of each is worth.

Maybe some other, more knowledgeable members on here will have some better input.

Good luck,

Don

Everything Pops said and more. The chop is a bit deep for the rest of the style of this particular car. Not a problem if you find the "right" buyer, but it reduces the market size otherwise. The car has a good rake, but sits too high, again relative to the other styling elements of the car. The rear wheels sticking out as far as they do, and the depth of the spoke portion of the wheel indicate that the rear end is too wide for the car (to my eye about 6"). This is a building mistake that is a red flag to search for other "issues". In the front the wheels are just too wide and have too much offset. You didn't show the interior, so that too makes it hard to put a good value on it. If it shows wear or is a very dated style and/or fabric, that's more "negatives". Here's what happens if you don't find that perfect butt for the seat; the potential buyer, if he's any kind of informed, starts doing the math in his head on what it will cost to fix the "problems" (so far we've only talked about the visuals, if it drives "bad" then add more minus signs) and he deducts that from whatever his perception of market value is. To prove Don's point, IMHO $25k, in this market, especially going into winter when it's tougher to sell a rod, would be generous for a glass car of "average" quality.........BEFORE making deductions for building errors/dated themes. Admittedly I may not be a typical buyer, but in this current market you're dealing with a higher percentage of "picky" buyers (dare I say more knowledgable) who recognize that there are a glut of glass cars available at "move it now prices". Don's comments about your probable experience with selling your boat should equally (at minimum) apply to the experience the car seller is having. If it were a good market for both/either you guys probably wouldn't be talking to one another. Now from a positive perspective, if you can ride out the fall/winter seasons, and the market for boats, particularly of your vintage, looks to be slower to recover than the rod market, next spring might be a better time to move the '32. If your boat is worth well under $20k you might just come out on the deal (but again, we don't know enough about either to gaurantee that).

Very good points Bob. If the builder would have found a proper width rear axle, or spent a few bucks to narrow this one a little, it would have tucked the tires up inside better. To a potential buyer it puts up a flag that other corners might have been cut too, as Bob mentioned.

Also, some very minor stuff like the trunk pinstriping are sometimes a deal killer. Some people would love it and some would be looking for a way to erase it. I agree with Bob also that it appears both you and the other guy are having trouble getting a buyer and are looking for other avenues.

With a boat you are at a bigger disadvantage than he is though. Every month you are incurring docking fees (unless it sits behind your house), and the elements are working on the boat even further. Bottom paint, wax jobs, mechanicals that are aging, etc all are costing you money even if the boat is sitting unused, so the clock is ticking faster for you than for a car owner.

Isn't boating FUN!!

Don

What's the boat worth to you, and what's the hot rod's value according to him? I like the hot rod. Every boat I've owned, except one has been an endless hole that money flew through. If you use the boat regularly and enjoy it, I'd keep it. If you have little to no use for the boat but would like a hot rod, that blue coupe looks sweet to me. Don and Bob are reliable voices of reason, so their advice rings true. Look to your needs, and heart and the decision will be clear. Either way you will end up with at least one nice toy to play with!

Mark, you are getting some great advice from 2 knowledgeable and well respected members and Don's marine experience is a definite plus. I'm a rookie here, I joined to learn all I can about building a car like the '32 3 window in your pics. Even being a rookie, one of the first things I noticed about the car was the tires/wheels protruding from the fenders as mentioned by Don and Bob. In my opinion, that alone takes away from an otherwise nice looking Deuce. Is it possible to show pics of the underside of the car, particularly the frame, front and rear suspension, and a couple of interior shots?

Mike

Itoldyouso gave you some real good info on both markets . I will add if time allows start searching them out to see value and if the cars where original . Alot of kit cars out there which do bring a decent dollor amount . I have seen real barn finds go on ebay like mentioned in the 20K area on a unrestored original and rusty 32 . A lot of info is needed to market a car just like a boat .

*THANKS* to everyone who responded!!! I just went out to look at the Deuce in person, and underneath and in the engine compartment everything looks fairly immaculate, chrome intact, engine sounds good; I did not test drive it; it was getting late. I took some photos of the engine, interior, and trunk space.

The body is all fiberglass, except the hood and front-sides which are steel.
I'm not sure who built this rod, maybe the photo I took of the trunk will help identify that. The gas tank is in the trunk (odd huh) but I wouldnt want to get rear-ended and have the gas tank explode, so that is a plus for me for safety (although I realize that doesnt look quite right).

The rear tires on this car seem wide, don't they? I don't like that. Not very nostalgic. Would getting narrower rims and tires be a possibility on a car like this, or is it tied to the axle length?

Great advice about the markets; you're 100% right, I am paying a boatload of $ just to keep my boat in storage, and it is not worth it to me, since we don't use it. (My wife is afraid of the water). We would take the car to shows once in a while, which would be fun.

The car fits in the garage.. That's a big plus. Actual values aside the car eats nothing when it's not in use and a boat, especially a big one, is a huge liability and it's getting harder to find folks that want to own them. If the values are close at all I'd be all over the hot rod.

Originally Posted by Daffy427

The car fits in the garage.. That's a big plus. Actual values aside the car eats nothing when it's not in use and a boat, especially a big one, is a huge liability and it's getting harder to find folks that want to own them. If the values are close at all I'd be all over the hot rod.

I agree, but if you are truly only looking for a way to get cash then you are in a difficult position. The true "worth" of either the boat or the '32 is determined by finding the right buyer - the guy or gal that is willing to hand you cash for your product. Appraised values, replacement costs, and all of those "worths" are good for insurance and talking points, but the amount of hard cash you can get is a factor of marketing your goods and finding the person that has cash, and wants your goods - the market value. Selling the '32 when you know nothing about it will be a negative, IMO.

I agree with the assessment of the car and will add this. Don't pay a lick of attention to any appraisal, especially the seller's, they are almost always way higher than market value. Look around at what similar cars sell for and figure no more than wholesale because you now have to still sell something to get your money.
I recently had to nurse a friend through a similar situation as he was trying to unload an aging airplane in a plummeting market. He considered many offers to take partial trade so he could make the sale. One in particular was a 54 Belair 2 dr hardtop. I helped him evaluate the car and they figured it was worth about double what it would actually sell for.
That being said, it is all relative. If you are getting a good price from the boat and the trade value of the car is very reasonable then that is attractive. And if you actually like the car and want it then all the better.