redcarcurse

Need some quick advice. I have a friend with an 88 GTU with 15,000 original miles on it. The car literally looks like it just rolled off the showroom floor. super super mint, he's the original owner, (old guy), doesn't have time to drive it, and wants to sell.

The paint is mint, the interior is mint, the car has been garage kept, runs 100% amazing, it's super quiet, etc. I'm literally afraid to touch it.

My question is, how much is something like this worth? I figure it's a collectors item, are there people willing to pay big bucks for an NA FC?

thanks

RRTEC

iTrader: (13)

Impossible to tell.... What's it worth to you? If it is cheap enough then buy it.. If you are buying to resell you better get it well under $3000 to make it worth your time... An 88 gtu is not a desireable model.. But that one is desireable because of the miles... I dont feel that car is an investment..

Rob XX 7

iTrader: (8)

its not a super valuable collector item, but hopefully it stays in the condition its in and continues to lead a easy life and not end up drifted into a light pole

I would say it can fetch $4500-$5500, maybe a little more by capturing the attention of that one guy who is willing to pay more for it

redcarcurse

that answered my question. thanks guys.

HOZZMANRX7

iTrader: (43)

Just to add, a friend of mine just purchased an '89 Black on black GXL, automatic transmission, with 63,000 miles on it for $2,200. Saw it in person and the overall condition from every nook and crany I looked suggested the low mileage was legit.

SirCygnus

iTrader: (1)

actually, the 88 gtu is an awesome model. its the best na s4 model you can get.

arghx

iTrader: (3)

I had an 88 GTU. They ARE awesome. Mine had the T2 seats with T2 style door panels and cloth interior (yet with crank windows). It had a sunroof but a base model audio system. It had power steering, 4 piston brakes, LSD, and hard suspension. It was such a fun car and I miss it. Too bad it's dead now. I sold it to a friend and he got nailed in an intersection.

Still, I agree that it wouldn't realistically get more than $5k. It's still a non turbo.

jerd_hambone

I bought an 89 GTU with 56k for $400. I then bought a 90 GTU with 62k for $600.

The car is really worth what someone will pay for it, and that may be a little, and that may be a lot. But I'd say no less than $2000.

arghx

iTrader: (3)

The '88 GTU is basically the equivalent of an '89 GTUs. The 89-90 GTU is the base model.

SirCygnus

iTrader: (1)

hence why he paid so little.

id say the guy could sell it for 8 grand if he wanted. id offer him 7.5. that means the engine is good for another 150+K miles. everything in it works. nothing needs replacing for 15 more years. its worth 7k.

jerd_hambone

I just don't pay much for N/A's haha. The first one I bought was the most expensive at $1800, but I was dumb then.

The only problem with a car that's sat so long, is the fact that things do deteriorate with age. Rats/mice will get into it. Electrical connections corrode.

I, personally, wouldn't pay more than 2k for it, and if someone told me they wanted 7k+ for it, I'd probably laugh in their face. Because to me, it doesn't matter the features, miles, condition, etc. It's still an S4 N/A. They are a dime a dozen, and for 7k you can take a clean S4 roller and make one hell of a car.

But this all a matter of my opinion haha

Evil Aviator

It isn't a collector's item at this time. Even the rare 10th Anniversary and GTUs models don't sell for much more than comparable models.

The advantage of that car is its low miles, but the value would depend on its mechanical condition. When you use the word "mint" to describe such an old car, then I know you have no idea what you are talking about. I recommend taking it to a qualified mechanic who can at least give an accurate mechanical assessment.

The Sport is generally considered the best S4 NA performance model, but the GTU is a close second.

bac22

An engine/power train with low miles on a car that is now 23 years old is not a good thing unless properly maintained and stored. You're friend is going to be disappointing with the offers he gets as educated car buyers will know better.

clokker

iTrader: (2)

I would posit the exact opposite, that in an older car, condition of the body/paint/interior is far more important than the engine/mechanical...mainly because the cosmetics are so much more expensive and time consuming to fix.

Figure a (very) worst case scenario- a total engine rebuild with some new parts (housing/rotor/plates?) and paid labor...say, $3.5-4K maybe?
That same $4K is the starter price on a decent paint job around here (Denver).
Figure in interior work/replacement and things can get very pricey (and increasingly difficult to source parts).

When I look at older cars, I basically ignore the mechanicals, figuring I'll be going through them anyway as part of basic maintenance.
Besides, 90% of mechanical work I can do myself in the garage, not true of paint/bodywork.

farberio

iTrader: (7)

^+1, if its really in that good of shape I would want to make an offer!

kkiley

The latest trend in auto collecting is unrestored cars. If you are going to drive it your money would be well spent elsewhere. If you are going to use it for Saturday show night, it would be a good one.
And Clocker is right, the mechanicals are way less expensive than body work on these cars. Paint is only original once.

daviddeep

iTrader: (4)

As always, the value of this car will be determined by the demand.

I presume it's in Chicago because that's where the OP is from. It's a huge city with lots of potential buyers and FC fans, plus it's a rust belt location where clean FCs will be rare. I would think that if this car is worth a substantial premium anywhere, this would be the place.

On the other hand, it will get no attention from younger buyers who typically have tight budgets and will prefer cheap speed over low miles and originality. As has been mentioned, you could build a much faster TII project car for $5000+, so this car will need to find a future collector/well-heeled FC fan.

I bought my '88 GTU in 2007 for $6000. It's mint and Brilliant Black, had 27,000 miles on it. It was pretty much the way I'd have ordered one if I'd had the money to buy one new in 1988. The sellers were looking for $12,500 which I thought was insane. At the time, there were quite a few super clean, super low mileage NAs trading on eBay in the $6000 range, so I used that as my argument for "comps." The sellers initially refused my offer, but after a couple months they realized that was top dollar. And this was in 2007 when the economy was a lot stronger than today.

It is getting much harder to find clean FCs, especially in places where they salt the roads. No, this is not really a "collectible" car yet, but most serious collectible cars cost a lot more than $6000. I'm going to guess this car's present value in Chicago would be $5000-7000 if the seller is patient. If he's in a hurry, he'll have trouble finding the right buyer and may have to settle for half that amount.


I don't know that there is an official consensus, but I have also seen the Sport mentioned as the best S4 NA. I don't really understand this though, because the '88 GTU has the same equipment as the Sport, only it also adds LSD. I guess the '86-87 Sport may be a few pounds lighter, you're more likely to find an '86-87 Sport with the aluminum hood, and some prefer the duckbill spoiler to the S5 rear wing that debuted on the '88 GTU and TII.

Evil Aviator

If you really think your car is mint then I have a challenge for you. I am willing to travel to your location and give you $20,000 if you will give me $500 for each part on your car that I can find in any condition other than mint. What do you say?

Everybody has their own opinion on the subject. The main difference is that the Sport has the best aerodynamics package of the FC models. Some people think the Sport package is ugly and they don't care about the actual performance. Regardless of the opinion, the Sport package is unique, an LSD isn't. Most RX-7 enthusiasts consider the Sport to be the more premium S4 NA perforamnce model, but of course there is disagreement.

RX-7GTU

+1 i want to see pics too

jerd_hambone

+2

rxse7en

+1 for the Sport.

kkiley

The OP said u guys answered his questions.

jerd_hambone

That doesn't mean the thread is dead. This is still an active discussion.

daviddeep

iTrader: (4)

Fair enough. I guess the term "mint" is pretty imprecise. I should have said "superb for its age," or maybe, among the best I've seen. I think it could be easily mistaken for a 2-3 year old car in terms of condition. There were a couple pieces of interior trim with slight cracks when I bought it, but I've replaced those. Would a brand new one look better in terms of there not being light corrosion on some fasteners under the hood and chassis? Yes. Your challenge would trip up all but those cars that have just come out of a true ground up restoration. And doing that would cost a lot more than buying a really nice original car at a premium price.

As for the aero package, the '88 GTU had all the pieces found on the Sport (rubber wedges in front of all four wheels, short foam front lip spoiler and aluminum undertray) aside from the different rear wing. Also the '88 GTU had the vented side mirrors instead of the solid ones. I like the aero package a lot too.

arghx

iTrader: (3)

My '88 GTU had a T2 spoiler and front lip spoiler. It looked exactly like a T2 of that year except for the hood and wheels. It had the s4 GXL nonturbo limited slip and sunroof.