Whats a better investment?

[LETHAL GTS]

Which is a better investment a 02 ACR or a 02 Final Edition??
I'm looking at both and wondering which is going to be the most desirable in a few years.
I guess there is a final edition ACR also.
Does anyone know how many of each is or has been built?
Thank you,
TJ

 

[Snake Bitten]

Neither is an investment, but the one that will lose LESS value over time...ACR

 

[Birvini]

I agree w/ Snake Bitten. The ACR will probably hold it's value the best.

 

[LETHAL GTS]

How do you define investment snake??

 

[Snake Bitten]

Investment: The outlay of money for income or profit.

Cars depreciate, just a fact of life...

 

[Snake Bitten]

TJ

You should have known that occasionally, posts here get analyzed, twisted, distorted, trampled, and taken to a whole new level of scarcasm...one false use of a noun and you could be nearly pummelled to death...so without elaborating on your investment strategies

my original vote stands...ACR

 

[LETHAL GTS]

Thank you Snake Bitten,
your right.
As for the cars, I have an real deal starring me in the face on a new ACR.
I also know of some Final Editions available.
I think I would lean towards the ACR myself, taking price etc. etc. into consideration.
TJ

 

[jrkermode]

Serial production cars hover on the fringes of the collector car world and are generally not viewed as investments. However, in that realm, the cars with the most options usually do best; a Final Edition ACR with Comfort Package.

I don't think Snake was suggesting you can't make money on cars, he was simply noting that cars, dollar for dollar, typically underperform as investments.

For example. You've made 10k on your RT. On this website, 94 RT's are advertised for mid 30's to mid 40's so we'll asume they actually sell somewhere near there, 40K. That leaves 30k invested over 6 years to net 10k profit. Thats roughly a 5% annual return on investment. You likely spent some money on maintenance, insurance, taxes, fees or finance charges, so you made less. Not what most people would call a "good" investment.

 

[dblankenbaker]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Which is a better investment a 02 ACR or a 02 Final Edition??<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I vote for "02 Final Edition ACR".

 

[LETHAL GTS]

What is a good investment these days?

1. Stocks? Pretty volitile! Whose fudging the books today?

2. I know, Internet! Hmmm, no not good either, maybe doen't really exist, can't touch it.

3. AH HA, Viper!!! Go fast, spend lots on gas and insurance. Whats the return.
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMM P*ssy!
YAAAAAAAAA passing the cops going the other way at 150 MPH and your going soooo fast that they pretend not to see ya! (True story, I'll share it with you all some day)
ZZZZZZING passing those Japanese Crotch Rockets if you don't run over em 1st!
Every kids hero, cause you drive a Viper!
The rush of knowing you can blow the doors off almost anything you encounter on the streets!
The list is long.
Cheers,
TJ

 

[jrkermode]

Over the past 6 years, #1 & #2 outperformed your Viper investment. Over the next 6 years, #1 & #2 will outperform your Viper investment.

So, forget about the investment angle, pick one you like and get on with #3.

 

[joe117]

Bigfoot,
You say you have a 94 R/T that you can sell for $10k more than you paid for it six years ago. I don't say that this is not true, however, if it is true then you paid a very low price for your 94 R/T. You must have bought it from someone who wasn't interested in getting even close to a fair price. Or perhaps you have a 94 R/T that is worth more than any other I've seen. I think a claim such as yours, in response to someone telling you that cars depreciate, requires some actual numbers to back it up.
If you can buy either of the 2002 Vipers you are asking about at the kind of discount you got when you bought your 94 R/T when it was only two years old, you will have an investment. If you have to pay about the same price that anyone else for the 2002 Vipers I think it will be decades before they will be worth what you paid for either of them.

 

[Eddie N]

there are 360 final editions and only 34 of them were ACR's..

i say go for a final edition acr.. the color combo is pretty (although i would have liked silver stripes more than white), and the rarity of the car will definitely help hold its value..

if not, then just go acr, although lately i have been seeing them selling for only a small premium over regular GTS ..

edit: i flubbed a stat - there were only 360 final editions, not 380...

- eddie -

 

[LETHAL GTS]

Thank you Joe117
Its amazing what kind of deal you can get when someone needs money BAD!
Hmmmm Viper or my business. I guess the guy wanted his business more.
And I've found another similar situation with a slightly used ACR.
Hmmmm Viper or my business. We'll see which he wants more.
I'll keep you posted.
By the way $10,000 CAD thats roughly $6,500.00 USD at todays exchange.
And I think I might just keep the RT/10 for what I've invested, it owes me nothing.
Cheers,
TJ

 

[SERPENT INDIANA]

There were 159 total ACR packages sold for 2002....THEY ARE ALL RARE...34 of these were "Final Editions"

 

[joe117]

So the question about buying a 02 ACR or a 02 Final Edition means that you can get a "fire sale" price on either one?

 

[Dixter]

Man, I'd love to have a Final Edition ACR....

Then, I'd stick a wing on it and exhaust and ah..and ah...

Well, I'd still love to have a Final Edition ACR.

Checked out a Final this morning... it was nice... and then
my son woke me up and says... you'll need to add the exhaust,
wheels.. etc..etc... and then reality set in once again...

I guess I'll stick with the ol 97... But I did get new brakes and
clutch today, so its a littler newer.

 

[Shakin Snake]

Hey Big,

I think any ACR especially the 02's will be very disirable to collectors, BUT it may be a few years of depreciation before the car will be worth more than what you paid for her. I predict there will be a 10 year period before we start to see the appreciation.

Biggest factor that could really change things is.....say Dodge never makes a Gen III GTS. If this should occur look out on the Gen II GTS resale values cause they could rocket and rocket soon. If DC brings out a killer GTS say in 06 it could be tough for the Gen II GTS resales for a long period of time.

I personally feel there will not be a Gen III GTS, but another type of Viper model called something else.

Values of the current GTS will depend a lot on what happens the next 10 years with the Gen III. How can you guess what will happen. You can't, we will just need to react when it does.

Regardless what occurs, I'm going to purchase an 02 GTS or 02 ACR anywhere between 17 months to 36 months. I want to buy it outright. It's going to take me that long, since a new house for the wife will need to come first. That's called putting the cart before the HORSE in my family. When I get there I'll have a permanent huge smile for the rest of my life.

Good Luck Big.

Shake

 

[jimandela]

my car is a investment in my sanity.

it is like therapy for me to go out and enjoy a drive.


viper ownership; PRICELESS

 

[genXgts]

Interesting topic considering your Canadian, as am I, I think this plays much into the overall scheme of things?

Your soon-to-be ACR or FE GENII, is it CDN spec from the factory or US import? That affects value for sure......

vipers are a relative steal for us Canadians as most are too cheap (or broke from our income tax system) to able to afford a car like a Viper. The market is thin, yet prices are reasonable in my opinion, I bought a VCA owned Cdn Spec GTS for low 40's US buck straight conversion on what I paid in CDN, not accounting for import costs, simply a point of reference. That's still a decent deal today on a mint GTS in US buck, comparatively a good deal. Yet only us Canadians can indulge in the buys at this discounted premium as Cdn to US imports require modifications as well, and as soon as the speedo is pulled value drops significantly as the true mileage becomes circumspect, take all the digital pictures you want with newspapers even, it's just the way it is......

personally I think trying to sell my Viper would be tricky for any substantial amount of money (quickly), I could care less however, so to each his own!!

Negative return (5mpg) here and loving it!!

good luck, let us know when you get your new toy.....

 

[LETHAL GTS]

Snake,
I guess to determine whether a car is an investment or not. You would first have to know what one is paying for it.
EXAMPLE: Is it possible that I could sell my 94 RT/10 for $10,000.00 more than I paid six years ago?
Yes it is possible, as a matter of fact I know I can, other wise I wouldn't be in the market for another right now.
Lets recap shall we.
$10,000.00 more than I paid and drove it for six years. Hmmmm sounds like an investment based on your definition Snake.
Yes, most cars do depreciate.
Does that mean that they are not an investment.
It's only NOT an investment if you don't get a return.
Dealers buy and sell cars everyday. For the hell of it, I think not. I believe they actually get a return on there investment (car).
That's how they are able to feed their families.
Just a fact of life.
Shall I continue...........
Anyhow I'm looking for opinions on which would be more desirable in the future an ACR or a Final Edition and not an education on what is and what is not an investment.

In the future I'll try to pick my words more carefully!!
TJ

 

[LETHAL GTS]

I'm not really buying or shall I say thinking of buying this car as an investment (figure of speech).
I'm buying it so I can drive real fast and get the ladies attention.
Other wise I'd wrap it in a diaper and park it in my garage and not drive it.
I'm really interested in VCA members opinions on which will be easier to sell down the road.
I'm waiting for a final figure on the used ACR, but it sounds like what I should really be doing is scraping some extra cash together and go for the Final build ACR! If I can find one. Was there any exported into Canada?
I would like to thank you all for your input. I can see clearly that the ACR is the way to go.
GenXgts,
You mentioned taxes, don't get me started. It is the worst tax system I've ever seen.
I'm in a 50% tax bracket, then 7% PST and don't forget the 7% GST, should be BST (Bull Sh*t Tax). That means if I make $200,000.00 I'm left with $72,000.00 at the end of the day.
Gotta love Medicare and our Government.

 

[Wayne Finch]

Definitely cheaper to buy a Canadian Viper than to import. Having said that, I did import my 02 Blue/Silver ACR as well as a couple of Prowlers. I only imported because these cars were NOT available in Canada. The only modification required these days is daytime running lights ($50) - speedos don't have to be changed. I believe sticker is Canada is about 10% less than sticker in the US (even the car companies understand how brutal our tax system is so they keep car prices down so the average Joe can buy one).

I would hunt for a Final ACR