FUTURE_OF_GM

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Current fleet: 1) '73 Camaro Z28/RS -- 15 years as of May, 2013 2) '68 Camaro SS -- 13 years as of August, 2013 3) '01 Mustang GT -- 3 years as of February, 2013 4) '06 GTO -- 1 year as of September, 2013 Past cars: '91 Lumina -- Roughly 1 year. (Sold for scrap) '87 Comanche -- Roughly 2 years. (Sold) '01 Focus SE -- Roughly 4 months. (Totaled) '01 Focus ZX3 -- Roughly 5 years. (Totaled) Bonus: '82 Starlet -- 31 years as of May 2013 (Technically my parent's car. Rode home from the hospital in it.)

These were featured a number of years ago during the Woodward Dream Cruise. (Yes, they were actual billboards) They are now available for purchase (in smaller sizes, of course) from www.gmphotostore.com And yes, I agree that GM should do more of this.

I like it.... Is it polarizing? Yes! Is it the same plain-jane vanilla $h! that virtually every automaker is shoving down our throats now? No! And that's why I like it. Need I remind you guys that 1) People incessantly bitched about the awesome looking Terrain when it first debuted. It's now, rightfully, a super star. And 2) People still buy a lot of ugly Toyotas: cars that look WORSE than this. That said, I do think Jeep needs to cool it a little bit with the weird styling... I don't really care for the new Grand Cherokee update, and I can definitely see where the Cherokee might be a step in the wrong direction.

Sorry to your thread, black-knight, but I want to ask FOG something based off of his comment above. What are you seeing, if anything, with the '73-'79/'80 and '85-'87 GM fullsize pickups? I know the '67-'72 models are now reaching higher selling/transaction prices, but I'm curious as to your perspective on the "square body" pickups. black-knight, to go back on topic, have you considered a pickup truck? Regular cab, 2WD, V8 (not manual trans though, at least not from GM). You could go all out and make it sporty looking. I know trucks aren't for everyone, but just askin'. I typed a response to this a few days ago, but my stupid iPhone deleted it. I'm pretty hesitant to answer the question because I'm no expert, but I don't think we'll ever see that generation of truck bring big prices. Like all aging cars, I think they'll see a gradual increase in price. But their exclusivity and popularity simply doesn't favor an investment situation. 1) At the end of the day, it's still a truck. I really hate that mindset and I think it sells a lot of great classics short, but most car snobs hold that opinion. 2) We don't even sell that many deep-70s C3 Corvettes (or for that matter rarities like Cosworth Vegas) for big money (relative to the market we sell in) Unfortunately, the mid-to-late 70s is stereotyped as a 'historically bad' time for cars. 3) The F2 Trans Am is CERTAINLY an exception to those rules. I think it's an exception for three reasons 1) It's obvious aesthetic ties to the real muscle car era. People LOVE outrageous looking Trans Ams because "that's the way a Trans Am is supposed to look". 2) Pontiac's dogged dedication to keeping the Trans Am a performance car above all else. Think about it, you could get a 455 T/A all the way through 1976. And 3) and most importantly: pop culture. The F2's place at the pinnacle of 70s pop culture is absolutely key to its newfound popularity. People have fond memories of these cars, and the youth they enjoyed with them. If you want an expert opinion on the subject, go to www. myclassicgarage.com and "Ask an Expert" Joe Carroll, the CEO of our company, will be happy to answer any question. (SHAMELESS PLUG: We essentially operate under four brands: RK Motors Charlotte, RKM Performance Center, My Classic Garage and the soon to be launched RKM Collector Car Auctions) black-knight: The MCG marketplace might be a good place to find a decent F2 as well.

Late model F2s are one of the fastest growing collector car segments in the market right now. At my place of employment, we consistently move Special Edition, Anniversary and Turbo cars for big money... It really amazes me how popular these cars are becoming.

Not to come in here and give you hollow reinforcement, but keep on digging! I literally looked at F4 Trans Ams, and then GTOs, for years. Of course, I've always been one of those people who browses Auto Trader and trade papers on a regular basis (So much so that my fiancé likens me to Joe Dirt) Anyway, my point is: I know it's frustrating, but you'll find something. What exactly are you looking for? I'd say the best place to find an F2 would be craigslist/trade papers (when factoring in price) As far as F4 Trans Ams go, that was one of my dream cars. But really nice examples are becoming really scarce and, as you said, good luck getting a bank to finance something that old. Those are two of the main reasons I started looking at GTOs. As far as GTOs go, I found the best cars at www.ls1gto.com These people are really passionate about the car, and offered NICER cars than dealers I found for BETTER prices.

Badass!

Charlotte Auto Show this weekend as well... The MKZ we had was absolutely stunning! Definitely the surprise of the show, for me.

My next step will be getting the fiance something she wants... The Camaros are slowly making it back to weekend warior status. (The plan: continue building -- one pro-street and one classic) The GTO, which was supposed to be the new daily has been repurposed as a semi-daily and long distance travel car; one of the original reasons it was bought. (The plan: hold steady) The Mustang, which was to be sold, has been granted a stay of execution and will continue as the daily for the forseeable future. It was granted a stay of execution because 1) Its cost is relatively low. 2) If I did sell it, I probably wouldn't get more than 2-3K and 3) Its a convertible. (The plan: Maintain and possibly eventually rebuild either for driver duty or as a drifter) The fiance's Power Wagon is sitting waiting its turn (The plan: retore... God knows when. And buy an old Air Stream to pull behind it. Maybe that'll happen in the next life) The fiance's Cavi will probably be the next to go. I want her to buy something fun but she's leaning toward practicality (what the hell is that? LOL) There are many possibilities for a commuter when the time comes.... The Volt, a Spark or Cruze, a small SUV (most likely) or a Mustang of some sort (She is a Mustang girl) I might exchange my Mustang for a cheap beater; focus? (if its health starts deteriorating rapidly)

Wow, I think that is a fantastic idea! 'Wanna go fast? Here's how/where you do it correctly.'

I agree... My first car was a high powered muscle car, albeit not a Ferarri, and I never wrecked or killed myself. I think this should come at the discretion of the parent. If the kid is responsible enough, sports cars are fine. BUT you'd better be damn sure your kid is responsible. Honetsly, I got real tired of every middle-aged hick in my town saying "Boy, you don't deserve that car..." Above all, this is just incredibly sad... I feel for the family.

I stumbled upon one Cosmos car during my shopping. Pretty cool and very rare. Not really my style, as I had settled on Phantom black, Brazen Orange, Quicksilver or *maybe* Indigo Blue. I think that color is called Slate Blue Metallic.

6.0 6-speed red interior.