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The classic car business has grown sigificantly in recent years. One of the major contributing factors is the exposure of the business by Barrett-Jackson and other auction companies via their televised auctions.

The prices generated by many vehicles sold on thse auctions may have piqued your interest, but it is not a business that you should enter without serious consideration.

First and most importantly, you must have a lot of knowledge about classic cars. If you are a novice you will probably get "burned". The business is not as simple as buying a '57 Chevy convertible from a private seller for $25000. and doubling your money at Barrett-Jackson. There are lots of clones and incorrect restorations in all makes and models, and unless you are capable of determining if a car is authentic, you could lose lots of money. There is a market for all of these cars, but there is a big difference in the selling prices. A car with "matching numbers" (the original engine, transmission, differntial, and factory options) will in most cases command a much higher price than a clone. Bondo and paint can hide a lot of "sins" and it will come back to haunt you if the body work was done quickly and carelessly.

If you are considering high dollar "muscle cars", you must be extremely knowledgeable or you should do lots of research before buying one of these. You must know the number of cars that were built of a particular model, the available engine, tansmission, and differential combinations, and the available factory options. You should research the recent selling prices of similar cars and base your buying or selling price on this information. Even this information is not fool-proof. If you are selling a car at a "no reserve" auction, you could lose a lot of money.

If you have enough money to play with the "big boys" and are considering spending a million dollars or more, good luck. Quite frankly, I think you could make a better return on your investment in Las Vegas.

The current economic crisis has caused a significant reduction in the prices of most classic cars. For the buyers, it may be a good time to buy but I do not think the prices have bottomed out. It could take a couple of years for this to happen.

If you think that you can buy a "basket case" and restore it to pristine condition and make a lot of money, forget it. If you have to pay for the restoration, you will lose money, and if you do the work yourself, you will donate your labor. The only exception would be a rare,

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