Good price for a 98 RT/10?

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My buddy is looking at a red w/black interior 1998 RT/10 bone stock with a little over 20k miles, both tops with 2500 miles on new tires and I thought I would get an idea on what a good price would be to buy it at with the present market? Any guess? I'm figuring at most mid 20's? :dunno: It's a 3 owner car with minor body scratches. Car location is South Carolina. Thanks! :2tu:
 

propsail

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I'm gonna hope people say high twenties, just for my own piece of mind. I would hate to think my 94 might be worth less than 20k, even in this market.
 

eucharistos

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hate to say it, but w/ minor scratches and 20k mi, your assessment is probably a good one
 

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I'll hope so. 15k on mine, but pretty pristine. I'll try and feel better about myself:D

Sounds like a bargain for your friend

craig
 

Brian GTS

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I'd say upper 20's if in decent shape. Are there cosmetic issues on most all body panels? Are most of scratches within the clear coat surface or are they deeper? What about the rims...any curb rash? Windshield chips / cracks? Interior condition?
 

Bill Pemberton Woodhouse

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Key item is there were very, very few 98 RT-10s ever built, first year for the tubular headers and this car has both tops ( not common , and the top is worth it's weight in gold ). With 17 inch rims , the headers, etc. 98s are very quick and many say the lightest of all the Gen IIs. Since finding one is quite infrequent, and it has all the right stuff, I would definitely say it would be worth low to mid 30s retail.

The top is the key, and new tires sure doesn't hurt.
 

99VPRGTS

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Can you post pics of the scratches you are talking about? If they are only minor (as in, hardly noticable until you're a few inches away) then I would think the car would be worth 27-30K. Like Bill stated, there were not that many RT's built in 98 and both tops are a huge plus in resale value.
 

Ray W

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Isn't it great how we can beat down the price of a fellow owners car? :(Without even seeing it. Therefore making everyone able to afford Viper ownership. Is this site a great buyers' tool or what?
 
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I'd say upper 20's if in decent shape. Are there cosmetic issues on most all body panels? Are most of scratches within the clear coat surface or are they deeper? What about the rims...any curb rash? Windshield chips / cracks? Interior condition?
No curb rash on the wheels. Interior is nice and scratches are superficial with one rocker that will probably have to be painted. Lower lip has a crack from a curb as well.
 
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No curb rash on the wheels. Interior is nice and scratches are superficial with one rocker that will probably have to be painted. Lower lip has a crack from a curb as well.

Did he buy it already? Or did you......
 

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Well, I must say, this could be a depressing discussion... considering I have a solid red '98 RT/10. I actually wasn't interested in the hard top, at least when I was buying, so I looked for the lowest mileage clean RT I could find at the time. Bought with 5,200 miles, car cost just under $36k (5/08)...of course, immediately had to replace original tires with new ones.

The thing for me is that I never intended to sell the car once I bought it, so resale is not as important. Of couse, I don't like hearing that my car isn't worth that much....just not nice to hear, but I'm thick skinned...:nono:

Thanks.
 
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Did he buy it already? Or did you......
He passed the deal up Venomiss. The guy sold it for a little over 30K. As it should be! :2tu: I really didn't want to see it go for less as that means my car is worth less! Obviously my buddy was a purchaser not a seller so he was hoping for a low price. WHO WOULDN'T?! Actually after looking around the net, most good looking Vipers are at a minimum of about 30K with decent mialiage it seems. :dunno: My estimate in the beginning was a little low!
 
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Well, I must say, this could be a depressing discussion... considering I have a solid red '98 RT/10. I actually wasn't interested in the hard top, at least when I was buying, so I looked for the lowest mileage clean RT I could find at the time. Bought with 5,200 miles, car cost just under $36k (5/08)...of course, immediately had to replace original tires with new ones.

The thing for me is that I never intended to sell the car once I bought it, so resale is not as important. Of couse, I don't like hearing that my car isn't worth that much....just not nice to hear, but I'm thick skinned...:nono:

Thanks.
This one had higher miles and had a few "OOPS'S" so I think you were right on!
 

MichaelP

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Well, I must say, this could be a depressing discussion... considering I have a solid red '98 RT/10. I actually wasn't interested in the hard top, at least when I was buying, so I looked for the lowest mileage clean RT I could find at the time. Bought with 5,200 miles, car cost just under $36k (5/08)...of course, immediately had to replace original tires with new ones.

The thing for me is that I never intended to sell the car once I bought it, so resale is not as important. Of couse, I don't like hearing that my car isn't worth that much....just not nice to hear, but I'm thick skinned...:nono:

Thanks.

With only 5K miles and very good condition I think you did well. I think it would still sell for around 35K.

IMO 1k - 1.5K depreciation per year isn't bad.
 

Vipuronr

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So, reading all the comments in this post, I decided to do a little exploring of my own. Went to Cars.com and Autotrader.com to see what was out there. What I noticed is that there are a number of RT's going for mid-to-high $30's and some in the $40's. Now, being realistic, I know these are sellers and sometimes dealers who have no idea what they have. I did also notice that many of the cars had 15k and above miles....many in the 30-40k range....and, still going for pretty good prices.

I pride myself in taking good care of my RT - always garaged and covered, always waxed, always "Tatorized" when needed. This is a nearly bone stock car, with only smooth tubes/hi-flow air filters and MGW interior accents. A non-smoking car with seats that look almost not sat in. Bought last May with only 5,200 miles, the car now has (only) 6,400 miles, as I only use the car for my pleasure and do try to keep the miles down.

Two observations:
1) I found only a couple of Gen II's with very low miles AND they were extremely high priced (too high in my opinion).
2) I found only a couple of '98 RT's, both with miles in the 30's and both were priced in the high $30's.

My conclusion is.....you get what you pay for, even in this down market, a real buyer who is looking for a quality Viper is going to end up paying a decent price.

For me, I was not interested in the hardtop - no place to keep it and don't particularly like the look. If anything, I would prefer at some point to by the aftermarket top with the vent.

So, I am comfortable in knowing that my car would be worth somewhere in the mid-to-high $30's, despite the fact that it is red.... It also has one of the best motors of the Gen II period.

Thoughts? Comments? All appreicated.

Thanks!:2tu:
 

Vipuronr

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And, just take a look at some of the cars listed on here...
 

MichaelP

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So, reading all the comments in this post, I decided to do a little exploring of my own. Went to Cars.com and Autotrader.com to see what was out there. What I noticed is that there are a number of RT's going for mid-to-high $30's and some in the $40's. Now, being realistic, I know these are sellers and sometimes dealers who have no idea what they have. I did also notice that many of the cars had 15k and above miles....many in the 30-40k range....and, still going for pretty good prices.

I pride myself in taking good care of my RT - always garaged and covered, always waxed, always "Tatorized" when needed. This is a nearly bone stock car, with only smooth tubes/hi-flow air filters and MGW interior accents. A non-smoking car with seats that look almost not sat in. Bought last May with only 5,200 miles, the car now has (only) 6,400 miles, as I only use the car for my pleasure and do try to keep the miles down.

Two observations:
1) I found only a couple of Gen II's with very low miles AND they were extremely high priced (too high in my opinion).
2) I found only a couple of '98 RT's, both with miles in the 30's and both were priced in the high $30's.

My conclusion is.....you get what you pay for, even in this down market, a real buyer who is looking for a quality Viper is going to end up paying a decent price.

For me, I was not interested in the hardtop - no place to keep it and don't particularly like the look. If anything, I would prefer at some point to by the aftermarket top with the vent.

So, I am comfortable in knowing that my car would be worth somewhere in the mid-to-high $30's, despite the fact that it is red.... It also has one of the best motors of the Gen II period.

Thoughts? Comments? All appreicated.

Thanks!:2tu:

I would have to agree

With less than 7k I think you are right on the button you could get mid to high 30s .

I would also agree if a person is looking to spend less they can find an RT with higher mileage and not as nice condition for low 30s. Maybe even high 20s if the person selling REALLY needs to sell fast.
 

Vipuronr

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Thanks Michael. I suspect if my car had the optional factory hardtop, it would go for something in the low $40's It is certainly not a show car, has a few scuffs under the front bumper, but it is a very clean car. It has just gone through a complete wetsanding and compound/polish and really looks good.

The shame is, that while they made very few '98 RTs. they have produced many Red RTs and I think that tends to diminish the overall value of the car....condition aside.
 

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