Is it a proper question to ask...

[transam]

I'll tell friends , but strangers it depends on why they are asking. If someone is just nosey then i won't answer it but if someone is genuinely interested in building something similar then i will say you can expect to pay in the range of x x x x .

[DOOM]

I constantly get that question ! I'll tell someone I know but I will do the same with a stranger , if there asking because they want to know what to expect I'll tell them. But just to answer how much "ALOT" that's it. Most of the questions come from the the boards.

[TheJDMan]

I got that question just this past weekend at one of the very few car shows I go to. I told them what I paid for the car when I purchased it 43 years ago. Of course that is no where near what the car is worth today but I did answer the question. My experience with car shows in general is that people ask some pretty dumb questions and make some even dummber comments which is why I rarely attend them anymore.

[T_Raven]

It's not so much what people ask, but how they ask.

It gets pretty annoying that people who don't own classics have little tact when asking about, or commenting on a car.

Saying "Man that's a sweet car. If you don't mind me asking, what does it cost to build something like that?", is a lot nice than asking how much did it cost.

One that really grinds my gears is when they just walk up and ask "how much?" without even a hello. I tell them what I'd take, they say "it's not worth that", well it's not for effing sale! Though if they say hi, compliment the car, and ask if I'd consider selling it, that's much more polite.

When people really hound me about buying one of my cars, I'm like, if you really wanted one, you'd have one already. Go find your own. A lot of people think it would be cool to "fix up an old car", but they would lose interest if they had one, and that's why they never have had one.

I don't even like going to car shows because everyone's an expert that has to tell their kid or wife everything that's "wrong" with the car. I'll keep taking cars to shows for the sake of the people that want to see them and not pick them apart, and to support the hobby so that the younger crowd has something to get interested in, but I wish everyone would shut up lol.

[JsTA]

For me its a little different because I've never had a car that I have poured tens (or hundreds) of thousands of dollars into so that may change things. I also don't make the kind of money that a lot here do to afford to do builds like that. However, I would gladly tell everyone what my mental number is (I think most have a decent idea or ballpark) for how much it would cost to build a copy of my car. Just the same, I think salaries shouldn't be this super secret squirrel taboo thing either. I won't ever brag about how much I make but if someone asks I will tell them because I haven't ever understood why them not knowing is the better alternative.

I think someone asking politely like said above is okay because it puts them into the "genuinely curious" camp and maybe they are wondering what it would take to build one.

[ironworks]

If its anything less then a 15 minute conversation, I just say alot. If its longer then a 15 minute conversation we start with some simple item costs. Engine is .... Trans is....... Paint job is.....

Then some guy goes, you must have like 30k in this car....

[BMR Sales]

Pretty Rude Question! It's something you don't even want the Wife to know!

[Vince@Meanstreets]

When ever someone asks how much I have in it its always half, if someone ask how much I want for its always double.

[68Cuda]

Originally Posted by BBBluey

How much did you pay for it?

I answer truthfully: $350. But that was in 1988.

When they ask how much I have in it I can also answer truthfully: I don't know. Besides, it has evolved from a street racer to a cruiser, and now it is being redone again as a "Restomod / Pro Touring". So it has been 3-4 cars since I have owned it. Hate to label it, just doing with the car what I want so I can enjoy it.

How much would you sell it for? It is not for sale.

Pretty simple really.

As far as what it is worth or any other now moot questions, I really don't care. But I have spent so many years on it and the car has been with me my entire adult life, so all these things are kind of pointless.

It is insured for what it would take me to build something similar.

I think it is kind of a rude question unless you are in open negotiation for a purchase.

[214Chevy]

I don't ask a person what they paid for an entire car or build, because I can tell by looking if its, a $50k car or a $400k. I'm not an expert, but we all can tell when a guy spends huge dollars on a build by looking at it. Just like we all know what simple, daily driver looks like. I'm pretty sure we've all spent enough money on parts and do-overs to know what a person has in a car. If he starts talking aftermarket frame, supercharger, 3-piece wheels...along with the stuff you can see like a custom interior, later straight paint job....you already know that an easy six figure car. So therefore, I usually don't ask. If I see a part I like on a car and they guy says he had someone make it...you already know, custom one-off...you don't even have to ask. LOL!! But, if I see something like a part that I like I'd ask where'd you get it and snap a pic of it or something and try to find it.