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How much is this car worth?

FM Former Member
Hi guys,

I'm new to 356 replicas and would like some advice on what to offer for a locally available 356 Speedster replica w/ flares based on an early 60s VW chassis and built in 1991. The paint and interior look pretty good, with minor imperfections to both, including rock chips, a few small dings, slightly misaligned driver side door and trunk lid, and a couple very minor tears to the vinyl. In general the car looks very good. The pan was powdercoated and there is no visible rust. It has about 10,000 miles on the rebuilt motor. No upgrades were made to the suspension or 1600 cc engine. It does have an aftermarket exhaust of some kind. Other issues include improperly placed mirrors on the side of the doors making them totally useless (it was actually a bit scary test driving it since the rear view mirror was right in my center of vision and it's impossible to see out the side mirrors), non-working outside door handle on the passenger side, and some reception problems with the old stereo which may reflect a wiring problem. The car also pulls hard to the left upon braking, but the owner is taking the car in this week to fix that problem. I have a feeling the owner is ready to deal and the car looks and sounds amazing. The performance was very disappointing, and although I'm not sure what this setup can handle, I'm hoping to upgrade the suspension and engine to make it a decent road car. I would appreciate any advice. Thanks.
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FM Former Member
Hi guys,

I'm new to 356 replicas and would like some advice on what to offer for a locally available 356 Speedster replica w/ flares based on an early 60s VW chassis and built in 1991. The paint and interior look pretty good, with minor imperfections to both, including rock chips, a few small dings, slightly misaligned driver side door and trunk lid, and a couple very minor tears to the vinyl. In general the car looks very good. The pan was powdercoated and there is no visible rust. It has about 10,000 miles on the rebuilt motor. No upgrades were made to the suspension or 1600 cc engine. It does have an aftermarket exhaust of some kind. Other issues include improperly placed mirrors on the side of the doors making them totally useless (it was actually a bit scary test driving it since the rear view mirror was right in my center of vision and it's impossible to see out the side mirrors), non-working outside door handle on the passenger side, and some reception problems with the old stereo which may reflect a wiring problem. The car also pulls hard to the left upon braking, but the owner is taking the car in this week to fix that problem. I have a feeling the owner is ready to deal and the car looks and sounds amazing. The performance was very disappointing, and although I'm not sure what this setup can handle, I'm hoping to upgrade the suspension and engine to make it a decent road car. I would appreciate any advice. Thanks.
Alan MerklinAlan MerklinDrclock - Elkins, West Virginia Supporting Member

This is what I do as a hobby fix um up so I'll throw in my .02
A flared version tends to bring 1/3 less that a original body style, that's just the way it is....
The fact that the chassis pans are in good condition helps considerably as they can be expensive to have someone else do the labor portion.
Take good look at the axle beam vertical supports and frame head (where they are attached to) for rust or globs of undercoating.
The rusted frame head is often a big job. The brake issue is a minor one. Paint has been recently addressed here as one of the owners recently got a decent $350 job at Maaco.
Make a list of the cosmetic items and go to the Makers section here adding up the costs of what you'll need.
I always add in $1.200 or so for the unknowns and you'll have a ballpark investment figure.
So back to your original question "what's it worth?"
This depends entirely in what you feel is a worth
while investment. The flared speedsters in older adverage drivable condition tend to bring $5,500 to $11,000, I have seen these go quite a bit higher too, but this is an adverage.
Alan MerklinAlan MerklinDrclock - Elkins, West Virginia Supporting Member
If you can, shoot some good quality pics of all four sides, interior, motor, trunk, chassis, beam, top, windshield, dash and email them to me I can give you a more accurate idea.....However you can figure $10 -$11k in VG condition deducting the cost of parts and ......your time, to make it right. Be sure to add in that $1,200 additional fudge factor figure I mentioned.

Alan
WOLFGANGWOLFGANG'89 CMC FWB, FL Supporting Member
FiberFab (one of initial and largest kit building in 80's - must have had 25 different models) was bought be Classic Motor Carriages - CMC (they reduced variety of FF to just a few models - maybe 5) around '92 they went belly up -- but have been picked up again by Street Beast. So long time building kits but quality of finished product is result of individual builder time, expertise and investment. Original kit was 8k (in 1990 $) minus chassis, wheels, trans and engine. A completed, running non-rusty kit brings $7500 up. Incomplete kits seem to be in the 3500-6000 range. A completed car typically costs 11200-1400k but of course can go higher with fancy paint, nice interior, quality engine, and custom wheels. Check out the build manuals in the SO Library.
MusbJimMusbJim'14 VS SoCal Supporting Member
Bruno -

Based on your description, this 15-year old car with stock components (basic suspension, single-carb 1600, etc.) cosmetic imperfections, and body panel fit, I would offer between $6-7K (whatever suits your target budget). Keep in mind that as Alan says, this car has a relatively small niche market, plus the work needed to make the car 'right' further narrows that field.

I light of this, I would guess that the owner has the realization and may be motivated to sell for any serious offer - go for it!

And then post a picture of your new Speedy acquisition!!

Peace - Out!
FM Former Member
You guys are fantastic. Thanks a lot for all the advice. I guess buying a car like this is more art than science given the huge price range in the market and the potential for major issues. I'm going to ask the seller if he's willing to get a PPI to get a better idea what I'm dealing with.
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