LS1TENNESSEE

iTrader: (12)

I need your opinions! My buddy's wife has a 2002 true ws6 ceta car with 90k miles. Always lady driven and bone stock. It was involved in a front end collision a couple years ago and insurance totaled it due to the price of pontiac replacement parts. She bought it back and had it fixed at a high end body shop and they replaced both front fenders, hood, bumper and support and radiator support but no frame damage other than the front horns turned down. They were straightened back up. They done a great job fixing it and it looks great. She has decided to sell it and is asking $14k for it but said i could have it for $12000!! Am i crazy for considering this?? Please put me in check if i am because i dont buy cars for retail usually but i am wanting thhis thing bad lol . Is 12k way too unrealistic or is it ballpark because its a ceta car. I tried to compare them to online listings but i cant find but just a handful and they are all super low miles. Thanks for any input

Vegas02ta

iTrader: (5)

You are not crazy. Now if it was taken care of right then just get it . These vehicles are far and few that is a fair price . I would get it .

FH212

iTrader: (4)

I think its crazy personally. It comes with a branded title which really hurts the value of it. I wouldn't pay a dime over $9k for it. And it would have to be in perfect condition for that. There are a few on Auto Trader with around 80k miles on them with clean titles for $13k. But beauty is in the eye of the beholder.......

7072

What is a ceta car?

reedld

iTrader: (7)

Collector edition Trans am- last year, yellow only

http://www.78ta.com/HTAF/index.php?topic=41856.0


Rebuilt title/ prior total hurts resell value a lot. do some research on what a rebuilt title does to the value, may be 20-30% less ( or more) than her asking price. Then again, if you know the car and feel confident, go for it. You may experience issues if you ever re sell it.

hardbones

Branded title kills the value of the car no matter how well it was fixed and 90K miles just would finish it off
For $12K you could buy a car that will hold its value and probably have half the mike's on it

madmike9396

iTrader: (29)

12k could get you something way better IMO

Mappinsj

you're effing nuts if you buy that, absolutely worthless car, will never have collector value with a branded title

Vegas02ta

iTrader: (5)

To add a car worth what it is worth in the eye of the beholder . The salvaged title hurts the value . If it had 53,000 miles yes his number would be close. In the real world economy $8,200 on a good day is what it would sell for here in Las Vegas . The original amount he wanted to sell it for would be like new to me .

groundZ-28ERO

a buddy of mine bought a ceta with 52,000 miles on i a few years back. car is mint. he paid 14 for it.

LastPewterZ

iTrader: (1)

With 90k miles and a salvage title, that car's no longer considered collectible. Wouldn't pay anything over 8 grand for it

LS1TENNESSEE

iTrader: (12)

Thanks alot guys! I buy and sell f bodies as a hobby and i usually dont get excited over them lol but i really liked the yellow. I offered her 8000 and she said she would get back to me. I dont need the car by any means so i will probably just pass on it. Thanks for all your input!!

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

Way too many miles and too poor of a history to be worth anything as a collector example. I would walk away from this one, unless the price drops WELL below 5-figures.

Firebrian

CETA's and 1999 Anniversary WS6's were saved in pretty decent numbers. You will always be able to buy a nice one if you have the available cash. A 38K mile CETA in my area was listed for sale and apparently sold for around $16K. With low miles I'd figure one of these at about 10-15% more than a regular 2002 black/red WS6 in identical condition. I would consider the salvage title on this one as a 30-40% deduction since the damage was fairly extensive. The owners should have taken that insurance money and just bought another CETA. It's nice that they saved the car but it will always be in the bottom 1-5% of all CETA's remaining. A 90K mile CETA w/o damage and depending on A4 or M6 would probably be worth $10K-$13K. It's not easy to find higher mileage clean and unmolested ones.

JC316

iTrader: (1)

For the whole "collector market" argument, that only takes place right now. Later down the road though, it won't make a difference. If you see a 69 Z28 with high miles and a rebuilt title, do you really think that it's not going to sell for $40k?

Once they hit that collector stage, no one blinks at the mileage, they just care how it looks and drives. They wont blink at a rebuilt title, just so long as it actually HAS a title.

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

1969 Z28 is not comparable as there are significant drivetrain differences, and options, that separate them from other V8 Camaros of that year/era. The problem, from a collector perspective, with something like an '02 CETA is that it's just another Trans Am under the skin....nothing special at all other than color and graphics. Sure, all else being equal they will likely retain greater value than a non-CETA (though some might argue that the 30th Anniversary models are better poised for this, due to more universally appealing cosmetic treatments), but enough of them have been tucked away with low miles and in super nice condition that it would likely be a lifetime before one with this sort of history and mileage would be sought after by a collector willing to pay a big markup for CETA status. Unlike the old muscle cars with special engines/transmissions/axles/etc., you won't get extra value from a CETA due to its drivetrain/performance abilities because it's the same as every other LS1....so mileage/condition becomes an even bigger factor, as cosmetics are the only thing that make them special to a collector.

The primary market that I see for an example such as this is someone who really likes the CETA cosmetic treatments but either can't afford the super nice ones or doesn't want to pay the premium for a super nice one just to modify it into a race or street/strip car. Either way, those are people looking for a bargain of sorts, so really you can forget about any significant "collector" premium on an example such as this IMO.

Firebrian

It depends. Serious collectors of a '69 Z28 will expect that rebuild to include NOS or high quality used body panels rather that cheaper repros. There are some quality repro's out there but you can still tell the difference in most cases. Original body panels is what I would look in a top notch car. In my mind, a car with every body panel replaced (2 fenders, 2 quarter panels, hood, and trunk lid) isn't really "that" car anymore, whether originally a Z28 or a 4 door wagon. This takes us back to restoring a vintage Z28 from a rusty door hinge and a VIN tag...the only original parts surviving from the orig car. With enough replacements, it just isn't the same car that left the factory, and the price it will bring will reflect those "alterations" and replacements. No doubt there are enough Z28 repro parts out there to rebuild most any wrecked or rusty hulk. It's just not going to be an honest Z28 any more. What brings the big bucks are original panel-rust free cars, preferably with panels that have never been removed off the car. The quality of the car's originality/rebuild/restoration determines how closer to a pristine original car it will fetch.

It certainly still makes a difference as the more virgin and bullet-proof the documentation, the more it brings. Rebuilt titles aren't so bullet-proof. Even on a 1 of 14 1971 Hemi Cuda convertible, that rebuilt title will make a huge difference unless the car was rebuilt perfectly with mostly NOS parts and has a lengthy documentation trail behind it.

99Custom

iTrader: (9)

Cars that have been in accidents will never be collectible. People get turned off by minor fender benders.