Do any Japanese cars qualify as "collector cars"?

Some exceptions to the rule:

1950's and 1960's era Land Cruisers - sales were in the hundreds per year so they are rare.

1966 - 1967 Toyota 2000 GT - fewer than 300 sold, even rarer.

I would think that an original Datsun 510 or 1600 Roadster would be considered collectable for some -

Jack G.

"Ray O" wrote in news:2aa31$427becdb$44a4a10d$ snipped-for-privacy@msgid.meganewsservers.com:

Datsun 240/260Z, early Mazda RX-7.

The MR2 is an up-and-comer, but it needs to get past the "old car" phase first. Give the Mk1 another ten years or so...

I have a 94 MR2 which had something like 800 or so produced for the US. The

95 was in the low hundreds and some would call that a collectors car.

I would think the Mazda Miata may become a collector's item. I remember how hot they were when they first came out in the early 1990s.

I am a collector that goes to old car show all over the country. One does see a 'Z' or RX7 on occasion, at a classic car show, but that is about it. I think it has more to do with the TYPE of buyer that buys Japanese cars. They buy cars like they buy appliances, to use them till they rust away or they can't afford to fix them anymore. They have no more love for the cars then they have for their stove or refrigerator.. It is not just imports because there are plenty of British, German and even Iranian cars from the seventies among the American cars. Many of which are econoboxes, like my 71 Pinto, or a simple 4 door sedan that comes from the same time period when the japanese market was growing, but no similar Japanese cars

mike hunt

A A wrote:

"Josh" wrote in news:pTSdnWL-FJQ snipped-for-privacy@ptd.net:

Well sure, but who's going to pay "collector car" prices for that thing?

Ultimately, prices determine collectibility.

Was that the Paykan? If it was, those are among the worst cars ever made.

What are collector car prices? 94s sell for 10-15k and 95s fetch 15-25K a low miliage mint 95 will fetch upper 20s

Collectible only need to be 31 years old. Heck, I have a Honda 90 with a collector plate and permannent registration.

Let's see...tops would be a 1968 Toyota 2000GT; most people would want the convertible, but I'll take the coupe. Fair shape will get $25-40,000, a mint example goes $150,000 to the sky.

Then there's a 1970-1 240Z. They can be had reasonably in fair shape, but a good example gets about $25,000.

For nostalgia there's the Datsun 510. Some would want a stock edition; I'll look for one with a bunch of Nismo parts on it. Plan on spending anywhere from $100-8,000.

"hachirokus" are going fairly well; the drift scenec eats 'em up. Start at $800 and work up.

Supras are starting to be desired, they can be had cheap, but from

1987-1998 they were made in fewer and fewer numbers, starting at 16,800 for 1987 and working downward. They're still selling for Used Car prices, expect this to change in the next 5 years for primo examples.

Don't you just love those automatic spell checkers? ;)

mike hunt

badgolferman wrote:

I dunno about anywhere else but there are a lot of Supra collectors in my city. A couple guys here travel around Canada buying them, bringing them back, and then heavily modifying them for car shows. I dunno what the requirements are for a "collector car" but they pay exorbant amounts of money for good, clean cars and collect them.

This I agree with. You buy a Japanese car for its reliability. You could get

15 years out of them, maybe more if you push it. First 10 usually trouble free. After that, they go bye bye. If you want a collectible you get a European or and American muscle car. I am a Toyota guy myself, owning new 4runner and a Sienna, but I am picking up a new Dodge Charger soon.

There's a couple of original Honda Civics' here in town, the real small (early 80's?) one's. I look at them and think "classic" now.

AFAIK, only 2 convertible 2000 GT's were made, of which only 1 was factory. The factory one was custom made for "You Only Live Twice" and is at Toyota's museum. The second was done by a friend of mine who took a coupe and converted to a duplicate of the factory one.

Pictures?

You can google "1967 Toyota 2000 GT" or "1968 Toyota 2000 GT" for photos of coupes.

Here is a link that shows my friend driving a 1968 one at a vintage race:

04&S=VINTAGE&E=Goodwood_Festival_of_Spee/SundayHere is a link to Toyota Motor Co's museum page: enough, Toyota has many non-Toyotas in their museum!I couldn't find any pictures of my friend's convertible - I suspect that he didn't take any pictures of it. I don't know if he still has it or sold it. Google James Bond Toyota 2000 GT for pictures of the factory convertible. According to one web site, the factory made 2 convertibles for the movie although one of the originals is MIA.