Reatta as an Investment ???

[Top Down]

I vote NO.   When I bought my '89 Reatta in 1993, I thought that such a sporty looking car would hold its value and appreciate over time.   I based this logic on my '64 Corvette which I bought in 1968.   I paid $2450 for the Corvette and sold it in 1992 for over $20,000.   I thought that I could enjoy the Reatta and make money at the same time.   Unfortunately, the Reatta is now worth much less than I paid for it.    The question is WHY?    Certainly the Reatta looks as good or perhaps better than the mid year Corvettes which now sell for $50,000 or more.   True, performance is a factor for some folks.   However, I think the main reason is that the Reatta was targeted for the adult market, and when the original adult market aged out there was nothing left to keep the Reatta visible to the public.   To further compound things, the Reatta production numbers were low.

 

The analogy I will use is the success of the Corvette.   When I was going up, I remember seeing Buzz and Todd on the TV show Route 66 in their Corvette.    I can remember looking at that '62 Corvette and saying to myself that someday I will get one.   Well, GM benefitted from that and a legacy was developed where youth aged to adult hood and the Corvette came along in the hearts and minds of its following.   So the Corvette became America's sports car in the minds of the public.   Even though there are many, many, more Corvettes than Reattas, the rarity and looks of the Reatta fall on deaf ears as no one knows about them.   We all see folks say "what is that car" or "how beautiful the Reatta is" so we know that the Reatta is a desirable car but no ones that it exists.   The economic reality of supply vs demand applies here...........

[DAVES89]

Well spoken.

 The only thing that makes my Reatta viable is that I have used it as a work vehicle while making residential sales calls as an insurance agent. I now have just over 320,000 miles on the Red, with most of them business miles, my Reatta has actually paid for itself. I also had used parts and I rebuilt ABS sensor leads so I've done well. As a matter of fact selling ABS leads paid for my engine/transmission purchase and the labor I paid my friend for installing same.

 It owes me nothing...

[2seater]

I have never viewed a vehicle as an investment, so the Reatta value is not a disappointment to me. What it does do for me is make me look forward to the first drive in the spring after a winters sleep. Never fails to make me smile. I have never desired to be the member of a large group either. Not on the personal level, but that of things mechanical. Personal appeal is what I desire. After all, as I have mentioned in the past, my first brand new car was a first year AMC Pacer X in school bus yellow and ordered out by me😖

 

As mentioned above, if the vehicle has a following or personal nostalgia attached to it, the value shoots up. High school cars or ones lusted after during that time make up a fair amount of the market. Rarity doesn't seem to matter much. Just peruse the vintage car marketplace or auctions and a 1 of 100 Camaro will likely bring more than a 1 of 10 Mustang or possibly a 'Cuda. The Chevy will simply be more likely to have been in the buyers personal past. It just seems that simple to me. The Reatta won't be in many peoples past and the high schoolers of the era, now see it as an unusual used car. My two boys, classes of '89 and '93, each have one acquired through Dave, and I suppose I have something to do with it. Different era, different crowd.

[ship]

I've always felt that the price drop from what I paid for the car originally to what I sold it for was the difference in enjoying it while I owned it.

[Nailhed66]

One of the reasons I bought my Reatta is because it was so inexpensive, such a great value. I follow about 30 Reatta pages on Instagram and the majority of those owners are between the ages of 16-35, which is inspiring. I observe people at car events who excitedly approach my Reatta, saying to their friends “what is it ?” Then they look at the badge and sound deflated as they say “oh, it’s a Buick”. While the Reatta is not investment grade in terms of resale, it does pay dividends in driving enjoyment.

[DAVES89]

I like what is posted so far about our Reattas, keep them coming.

What I didn't think of and what 2seater pointed out is I sold my two Reattas to his sons.One might think I sold them too cheap, [$100.00 and $1000.00 each total $1100.00] . But I used them also to the tune of about 160,000 business miles. So if you had the two Blacks and the Red that's 360,000 business miles times 50 cents a mile equals $180,000 times a 25% tax bracket equals $45,000 in real money.

That is why 2seater's sons got the cars so cheap...

[Ronnie]

I don't ever buy a vehicle for an investment. I think the stock market is a better place to gamble on making money. I either buy a car for the service I can get out of it, or the smiles I think it will bring to my face. Purchase price is a important to me but the future resale value is never a consideration. I always drive my cars and don't worry about mileage and I tend to keep them for a long time.

[Top Down]

I saw my 1st Reatta driving on a freeway in Boston.   It was a coupe and I thought that it looked so sleek and sporty that I had to find out more about the car.   Finally found out what it was and kept it on my radar until I eventually bought the red '89 coupe.   Some 30 years later, I still have it and admire its timeless beauty.   I always had the mantra that if I am going to drive a car, it will have to be something that I enjoy driving.  The '89 Reatta lived up to my expectations and I have never looked back at the decision to buy it.   It was money well spent..........$11,500 spread out over 30 years or amortized at $400 per year plus the operating costs.   As a sidebar, this car has been so reliable that I hope that I am not going to jinx myself by saying so.   The worst things that have happened were a bad water pump, fuel pump relay, accumulator, and  headliner.   Knock on wood..............

[DAVES89]

Good diversion.

 I saw my first Reatta about 17-18 years ago. I was driving on a snow packed road up in Door County Wisconsin making insurance calls, when a guy pulled out in front of me driving a Burgandy car. I swore at him for pulling out on a slippery road like he did, but then said "That's a great looking car. What is it". So I pulled up real close to read "Buick" and went home and looked it up. After a bit of internet surfing and talking to my brother and his mechanic friend [who both work at a Buick dealership] who tried talking me out of it, I bought one from a guy in Fort Lauderdale and drove it home as a 50th birthday present. 

 Never regretted it.

Now who in Wisconsin drives a Burgandy Reatta??? 

[2seater]

4 hours ago, DAVES89 said:

Now who in Wisconsin drives a Burgandy Reatta??? 

Durned if I know👍🙂

[DAVES89]

I know of 3 Burgandy Reattas in the state of Wisconsin. Two are in the local You Pick yard and one is now super charged and has been to my house numerous times. I'm sure there are more, but looking back I'm glad the guy pulled out so I could get a look at my next car.