motorpoodle Posted March 7, 2021 Share Posted March 7, 2021 https://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/cto/d/hayward-1980-datsun-280zx/7284949552.html For $1800 it's so tempting. I had the same car in high school but metallic blue. I loved that car but that was in Ohio and the whole bottom rusted out really bad from the salt. I could get this one and probably sink 4-5k into interior, paint, brakes,etc Drive it for a few months while I work on another car relive high school...then maybe turn a decent profit on it. NADA has average retiail at around 15k. I know my 4-5k isn't gonna make it the slickest one out there and I have zero time to do like any of the work myself except to drop it off at shops Maybe I invest into the interior and any mechanical issues and leave paint to the next person. Anyway I'd love to hear opinions on whether I can pull off getting to drive it for awhile and come out ahead Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewZed Posted March 7, 2021 Share Posted March 7, 2021 29 minutes ago, motorpoodle said: .then maybe turn a decent profit on it. NADA has average retiail at around 15k. Anyway I'd love to hear opinions on whether I can pull off getting to drive it for awhile and come out ahead You can almost certainly get it running but almost nobody makes a profit restoring these old cars. Get it running >>> yes, make a profit >>> not likely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motorpoodle Posted March 7, 2021 Author Share Posted March 7, 2021 I'd like to hear more about that. I've seen a lot of more extreme examples than this one. But if average auction price is about 15k and average NADA retail is around 15k and you see prices like this https://classiccars.com/listings/find/all-years/datsun/280zx It's very tempting but I don't know if it's realistic to go by those sites. I've seen vettes, mustangs, fairlanes, el caminos that don't need that much work with a bigger margin. I don't really know. There's TV shows of people doing it. I don't even need a car but the 280zx is sentimental and if I can make it nicer, drive it and and then make some money it would be fun. But I don't need my money tied up or lose money on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewZed Posted March 7, 2021 Share Posted March 7, 2021 It's the cost of parts needed to bring up the value that will get you. Nickels and dimes. Mustangs and Chevys have a huge aftermarket network making parts. The 280ZX, not so much. If you're really thinking about investment then a simple spreadsheet of costs should throw some light on it. Here's a couple of web sites that sells ZX parts, for starters. You could probably just get it running and clean it up for a small profit. But restoration will be expensive. http://www.zcarparts.com/ https://zcardepot.com/collections/280zx Look at the quality versus price on your future competition and estimate how much you will have to spend to get there. Good luck. https://bringatrailer.com/datsun/280zx/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
79datsun280zx Posted July 27, 2022 Share Posted July 27, 2022 I think you should fix it up and keep it for yourself to enjoy because those are really nice cars to drive around in Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
260DET Posted September 30, 2022 Share Posted September 30, 2022 What NewZed said "You could probably just get it running and clean it up for a small profit. But restoration will be expensive." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.