swappedsr

Hey guys, new to the forum, but not new to car forums. Got a question here. I have a guy selling a 54' 98 convertible starfire and trying to guage what it may be worth. The car has around 30k original miles. I haven't seen the car yet personally, but I really can't find too much info on this particular car elsewhere. I haven't even seen one for sale in the classifieds here on this forum or anywhere else for that matter, which leads me to believe this car is rare. I went on nada and the range was low 40's up to around 140k. I found one that sold in 99' on Barrett Jackson auction and it went for around 30k. I know condition is everything, but just trying to figure out if anyone has seen or heard one that has sold recently.

Thanks in advance.

Bob

D. Yaros

The only input I would have is not to rely on either NADA figs, or B-J sales. Neither is a reliable indicator; both being way too high in my opinion.

I can also tell you the car is 1-of-6,800 manufactured.

Tedd Thompson

Swappedsr,

Quite a rare car I would think, rule of thumb on a car 50 or more years old is only about 1 to 2% survive, probably fewer if it was a convertible.And that is the reason you will have problems determining a price from NADA or other price guide, the pool of sold cars are few and far between. Without detailed pictures it would be very hard to come up with anything but a WAG price, there are so many factors that can change a $40000 dollar car to a $10000 dollar ride. Shoot us some pictures and let us WAG it. Some of this group are very knowledgeable on this era car.If nothing else it will be fun...Lost in the fifties ..Tedd

swappedsr

Looks like everything there is original, he still does have the original hood, but I believe he said there was damage to it, don't know the extent of it. Not the best pics, but gives you an idea of what it looks like. About 30k original miles, however, a rebuild was done at some point because he had some stuck valves. The back end was repainted also at some point. Obviously the car needs to be painted anyway if you wanted it showroom condition, but he was probably better off leaving it the way it is to show how original it truly is. This thing is truly stuck in time here. Any ballpark number as to what it may be worth?

swappedsr

More Photos.

swappedsr

.....

redoldsman

54 Starfires are actually more common that Super 88 convertibles. They come up 2 or 3 times a year in Hemmings. A 54 Super 88 might come up every 2 or 3 years. The car looks like a good solid car that will need freshining up. Hagerty puts the value of a #3 car at $45,499. That seems a little high to me. You can find lots of different values. Here is the link: http://www.hagerty.com/valuationtool...port?vc=238882

swappedsr

Well, at 2% of the 6800 produced leads me to believe there are only 136 on the road and this is a convertible, probably bet that 1/2 of those are not verts, so this car is extremely rare. Very doubtful that there are 2 or 3 sold a year, but I could be wrong.

Olds Dad

I'll take it

swappedsr

You would take it 'olds', for what price?

Tedd Thompson

He just dreams of 50's drop tops pay no attention . Does the driver side rocker panel show rust through or is it just the way the picture looks on my computer? If no rust and the engine / transmission proves to be sound I would WAG it at about $30,000.There will still be a lot of work to get top money even though that car looks very complete but any rubber or rotating / moving parts that are over 50 years old will need to be addressed to some degree but what a good start on a fabulous car.

If 54's are some what like 55"s as far as scarcity is concerned I doubt that more than 60 or 70 are still on the road today and that's a WAG also.....Tedd

swappedsr

LOL...Anywho, I saw that in the pic of the driver side, not sure if that is rust or what. I am sure he can send some more pictures. In the end I don't think I will be buying it, but if anyone is interested please contact me and I can put you in contact with the owner, I am sure they would negotiate on the price. Could be a good buy for one of you.

HonestDave

What a beautiful car. Perhaps one day I'll get me a fifties rag top !! So far I haven't been able to dig that deep into Scrooge's mony bin. I seem to gravitate to the ones I can get for almost nothing, and then spend forever looking for parts cars. Not really sure why.....

Olds Dad

Tedd's right...but if one comes along for the right price, I could do it...after all, my daughter is named Starfire, so I owe it to her to own one someday

Already have the Holiday for my oldest daughter

redoldsman

All Starfires in 1954 were convertibles. I have been following 54 Oldsmobiles for several years. I can assure you there are at least a couple listed in Hemminngs each year. It is still a rare and desireable car. It was the most expensive Oldsmobile in 1954.

54Olds98convertible

cool, i HAVE one!!!wonder what mine would WAG at after total rebuild and a rebuilt spare and complete together running 324 and box, all the other spares i have for it too. it will be fresh & mint! (with more new parts gathering and labour lol) cheers steve

Tedd Thompson

Just a WAG using my car as some what of a comparison, somewhere in the $75000-80000 range and maybe less if this recession continues. Five or six years ago probably $90000-100000. I've never seen a 54 or 55 go for anything near the quoted $140000 price but again I haven't seen all of the sales either......Tedd

54Olds98convertible

Oooooh, nice one. Ta

redoldsman

Two years ago at the Leake Auction here in Dallas, there was a car exactly like Tedd's with a fresh frame off restoration that bid to $60,000 and did not meet the $80,000 reserve. It could be they did not have the right people at the auction. Who knows.

redoldsman

Here is a link to a very nice 54 Super 88 convertible that has been on ebay for a while. It started off at a little over $50,000. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Oldsm...ht_3310wt_1161