The L.e.n.o effect

[izzo]

FS by me

 

one owner, custom hood.  15k

 

[MicroMachinery]

[Bradinnes]

There is no L.e.n.o. effect happening here. Just that the Datsun and in particular the 510's, are coming into it's own. Here's an article on Petrolicious .......    Poor Man's BMW  .

[qwik510]

There is no L.e.n.o. effect happening here. Just that the Datsun and in particular the 510's, are coming into it's own. Here's an article on Petrolicious .......    Poor Man's BMW  .

Agreed. I always expected the 510 to move up in value and when compared to Alfa GTV's, the 510 is still a bargain.

 

Enough B.S. about Leno.

 

510s Rule with or without Jay Leno's endorsement.

[its_karl]

it's not just 510's, it's alot of things automotive that seem to be boosted lately

[king bee66]

 

 

the price isnt outrageous to me- if its truly a fully restored car, it essentially like buying a brand new car. although it does make you question why they would choose to restore a car that would never give a great return. but what i find odd is that they are charging that price, but what replace the speedo cable.   for 18 grand, id assume not having to do any work, other than basic maintenance for a LONG time

[john510]

No Leno effect ? is it just me thats noticed all the " i want a 510" adds recently ? something has changed recently with the Datsun thing.Look at all the crap on Craigslist that people want big bucks for.Maybe coincidence i dont know.

[jrock4224]

i guess we shouldbe glad we are inthe game already ..and not trying to get in

[izzo]

^^ Hahaha right!  I got my 510 bitches, where's yours?

[67_1600]

No Leno effect ? is it just me thats noticed all the " i want a 510" adds recently ? something has changed recently with the Datsun thing.Look at all the crap on Craigslist that people want big bucks for.Maybe coincidence i dont know.

Spring has always been a pretty traditional time when people start looking for a new ride for summer...

[danfiveten]

the price isnt outrageous to me- if its truly a fully restored car, it essentially like buying a brand new car. although it does make you question why they would choose to restore a car that would never give a great return. but what i find odd is that they are charging that price, but what replace the speedo cable.   for 18 grand, id assume not having to do any work, other than basic maintenance for a LONG time

Thats your opinion on that, yet i know a better preserved 510 that sold for WAY less than that and is like its from the show room.  Anything over 14k for a 510 unless a bluebird is ridiculous. 

[its_karl]

in 1980, people would have said anything over 2k is rediculous....

 

1990, 3k

 

2000 5k

 

2010 8k

 

2013 14k

 

hold on to your 510's ....... or maybe the bubble will burst, and then we can complain that no one pays enough for great cars again.

[qwik510]

Anything over 14k for a 510 unless a bluebird is ridiculous. 

 

 

Come on Dan, that is a huge generalization. Certainly there are 510s out there that are worth more then $14K. Maybe not your money but other people will certainly pay for it. 

 

A Ground up restore on a stock or lightly modded dime will cost over $25K (if you can find the NOS parts to put on it) plus the cost of the donor car. So if what you say is true, Someone will lose half or more the cost of building it? I think not.

 

Add an SR20DET that has been rebuilt with larger turbo, intercooler, Bigger injectors, big brakes, ECU tuning, etc. and the cost will go up another $10K. 

 

A good quality paint job cost around $5k these days and that is w/o body work. 

 

Look at these numbers:

 

$5000 - Decent 2 door donor car (minimal rust and complete and running)

$5000 - Good Paint Job

$1000 - Upgraded Suspension

$1000 - Upgraded Brakes

$1000 - New Wheels and Tires

$1000 - Straighten and re-chrome the bumpers

$ 500 - Upgraded cooling system

$2000 - Redo the interior, headliner, dash pad, door panels, seats, carpet, etc

$ 500 - Upgraded Stereo system

 

That is $17k and I never even mentioned an engine or transmission  or diff yet.

 

Nor did I mention any money for Body work.

 

or NOS tail Lights, Eyebrow moldings or upgraded headlights, or an $1800 SSS grill.

 

And some of the prices I listed are probably on the low side.

 

$1000 for a suspension is certainly low.

 

$125 - new centerlink 

$150 - Ball Joints and Tierods and Idler Arm

$400 - Sway Bars

$600 - Rear Coilovers

$600 - Front Coilovers

$200 - New Bushings

 

That is over $2000 and just for the parts? No labor. 

 

Starting to see the picture?

 

NOS Seals are quite pricey too. The aftermarket seals are used by some people but they seem to crack after only a year or so. So for a good quality restore, NOS seals are preferred. A pair of NOS front and rear windshield seals goes for $500 or so. I have seen the 2 door quarter window seals sell for $700 for a pair. 

So just NOS seals could cost over $2000 if you can find them. 

 

And don't even talk about an NOS dashpad. $500-$700 is the going rate. 

 

$500 for a  Subi LSD Rear. How about an adjustable rear Crossmember? The Penultimate is $500 plus shipping plus your core. Or the weld yourself kits are over $200. Rebuild the rear halfshafts? New rear wheel bearings?

 

People tend to overlook all the little stuff that adds up to big dollars. 

 

A nice aftermarket steering wheel with hub could be $200-$300 and how about side mirrors? Another $100 or more.

 

Carpeting, sound deadening?

 

 

The list keeps growing. You can easily spend $30K or more to have a sweet 510. Many 510 owners have much more then that in their cars. A guy here on the east coast bought his 510 when they were still affordable and he is an ASE certified Mechanic and did all the work himself and got the paint done at half price and is still in his SR20 DET powered dime for almost $25K.

 

 

Bryan Feldman's Yellow Fever comes to mind as a 510 that was well over $14K. More then 2.5 times that amount and he still lost money on it.

 

http://www.bryanf.com/510/index.htm

 

 

 

Turbo Tom's old 510 was quite a bit more then the $14K you mention and would probably fetch 2.5 times that today now that it is finished.

 

 

 

 

The cost of everything for these great little cars has gone up over the years (or the dollar's buying power has deminished) and there are fewer of them out there and the demand for them is growing so it goes without saying the prices will rise.

 

Do I wish I could buy a fully restored 510 for $5000? You bet. It is going to happen? Not likely.

 

I am glad I got mine when I did. My first 510 cost me $50 in 1983. It was a wagon and it ran well. Got the fever then and it has never stopped. 30 years of 510 ownership. Long live the Datsun 510, at any price. 

[racerx]

They are only worth what people will pay for our cars. We all know that one easily drop 10k into our cars but that does not mean you will get that back.

[qwik510]

They are only worth what people will pay for our cars. We all know that one easily drop 10k into our cars but that does not mean you will get that back.

It all depends on the level of car you start with. If it is a rusted out, roached turd and you install an SR20 Turbo and updated suspension and brakes into it and it will take a $10K worth of body work to fix the rusty body, then no, you will not get your money out. 

 

The two cars I posted pics of in the post above, both sold for way over $14K. 

[danfiveten]

Thats why its my opinion, there are people out there that if they could would spend 100k for a 510 or the car of their dreams. Its all a matter of opinion with prices, in truth some of us have no opinion to bitch about what a person wants for their car, BUT, this is a open forum where people discuss and complain about things.  Prices will continue to go up on datsuns, the days of finding a shell for 100 bucks in someones back yard rotting away is pretty much done, but as i said myself, i wouldnt spend over 14k on a dime unless it was perfectly preserved or was one of the most badass 510's ever made. I would rather build it myself and be proud of it, than be proud of someone else's work.  The market is constantly changing, ill be curious to see what it is when my kid is my age. 

 

 

Also people ALMOST ALWAYS loose money when they build a car and then sell it, why its not smart to build a car to sell. Its more expensive to build than to sell, why i dont understand those people. If i built something i would keep it to show how much work i put into it, normally i notice the people that build a car and then decide to sell.....that theres something very wrong with the car for them to give up their passion, or they lost that passion.  Why its always nice to pick up someones abandoned project (if nothing is wrong with it) because it can save you a few bucks to finish it. 

[its_karl]

he did make that post after 7pm as well... did no one else read his disclaimer? 

[ArchetypeDatsun]

Anyone with a car they put money into are never gonna get back what they put into it that's just how it goes. It's a rare occasion when they hit it right on the money but that depends what car you built to sell. I'd say that about 50/50 510's are rightly priced the rest are an exaggeration until they show proof of receipts just my 0.02.

[danfiveten]

^ Got to remember though, those scripted shows on a&e make it look SOOO easy to buy, restore, and flip a car lol. Oh and make a profit.

[ArchetypeDatsun]

I wouldn't really know don't watch TV all that much, but I'm sure they make it easy because they got a bunch of people working on it all at once.

[danfiveten]

I wouldn't really know don't watch TV all that much, but I'm sure they make it easy because they got a bunch of people working on it all at once.

Yah they do, and they always magically find all the parts they need (alot of these shows have been called out as scripted and set up) only do rare projects if they have access to the parts. 

[devilsbullet]

Spring has always been a pretty traditional time when people start looking for a new ride for summer...

 

 

There is no L.e.n.o. effect happening here. Just that the Datsun and in particular the 510's, are coming into it's own. Here's an article on Petrolicious .......    Poor Man's BMW  .

only problem with that line of thought, and the reason that so many of us are saying its the leno effect, is because the major jump in want ads and the major jump in for sale ad prices happened within a week of the video coming out.  its not like 510's creeped up from 2-3k to 5-7k over the course of 2 or 3 years, like how most collector cars start gaining value. this was a doubling in price over the course of a couple days. and the only major thing that happened within those few days was the leno video.  even that article came out after the video, if it had been written before, it might swing some weight.

[racerx]

Fudge the leno affect, own a 510 because we want to and collect as many parts as you can cuz we need to anyway. Like anything else, there might be a bubble anyway. I've own mine for like 5 years and had 2 wagons. I'd say they have gone up by 30%. Even if i do sell, what else is there to own, maybe an ol skool econoline.

[racerx]

I mean i had mine for like 12 yrs.

[ArchetypeDatsun]

Yah they do, and they always magically find all the parts they need (alot of these shows have been called out as scripted and set up) only do rare projects if they have access to the parts.

I seen a few on YouTube sometimes when they come on my feed but there the really old stuff or new idk whatever they are they seems like the same old crap just updated.