<VV> protecting Corvair worth, was: arrogance WAS tele column

[airvair at earthlink.net]

People here on VV have on occasion questioned the value of belonging to
CORSA. If anything, this should give them an idea. The value of a strong
marque club goes a long way in promoting and preserving the value of any
marque. Illustrate the point by what one person once said about F**ds -
that the only reason they were worth as much as they are is because there's
a strong (inter)national F**d club behind them. Truth is, your membership
in CORSA has many more unseen benefits than you realize, such as preserving
and promoting the value of your Corvair. People just don't think about (or
even realize) that.
 
Heck, just the value of a standard set of national concours rules is
reflected in the market value of our Corvairs. It is why I pushed for them
back in the early '70's, and ended up writing them myself! So to further
advance the cause, and to put us closer to a "Bloomington Gold" standard
for Corvairs, is the work that the Stock Corvair Group is trying to
accomplish. Anyone who values their Corvair should be just as actively
supporting the SCG's efforts.
 
True, I don't expect Corvairs to ever reach the values of Corvettes. But we
have no one to blame but ourselves for its languishing values. Establishing
a "Bloomington Gold" standard for Corvairs will be a giant step in that
process. Protecting Corvair parts from scavengers is another. Even fending
off continued attempts by the media to incessantly link Corvairs with
Ralphie is still another. And we all must work on it, in whatever ways we
can.
 
I'm doing what I can. Are you?
 
-Mark
 
> [Original Message]
> From: kenpepke at juno.com <kenpepke at juno.com>
> Subject: Re: <VV> arrogance WAS tele column
>
> Mark has always stood by his own feelings and has also always
acknowledged the right of others to have their feelings. All is well with
that but, there can come a time which one becomes arrogant in their
judgment of the arrogance of others.
>
> Past experience tells me Corvette guys and gals are generally 'old car
people' just the same as Corvair fans. Most have an interest in Corvairs
and many have a Corvair. And there are quite a few Corvair owners that have
a Corvette as their second car! Corvette people value parts and pieces so
they swap and sell just like the rest of us if there is a market for their
items.
>
> Both Corvettes and Corvairs come from pretty humble beginnings even
though early Corvairs certainly did better in the market place than did the
Corvette. They are both unique vehicles and I do not believe anyone would
deny Corvair is even more unique than Corvette. Some would even claim,
because of passenger space, Corvairs are more family friendly. Corvettes
did cost more new and they do cost a lot more to restore BUT they are worth
a whole lot more once done. Spending more for parts can now be seen as good
business sense. 
>
> The question then becomes WHY so much difference in value?
>
> The national organizations of Corvette groups has to be a major factor.
Back in the day when these organizations were founded a concerted effort
was made to create judging procedures and establish judging awards which
provided certificates of authenticity. It took a great deal of study and
record keeping to establish those high standards with which Corvettes are
judged ... Today a Bloomington Gold Award or an NCRS Flight award provide a
prominence which adds to the real market value ... and saleability ... of
the vehicle.
>
> Corvair, without the benefit of such an organization and with no
universally recognizable national awards, lag behind in market values. That
can be OK because it allows the vehicles to be available to more people. On
the other side of the coin, it also makes less business sense to invest in
a really proper restoration even though today, through the efforts of Mark
Elis, Dave Newell, and others much more information is available. 
> Ken P
>
>
> *******************************
>
> airvair at earthlink.net wrote: [in part]
>
> Second, what's worse is that many Corvette people disassemble them, use
> only the parts they want, and then THROW AWAY THE REST. This has caused
not
> only the entire assembly market to dry up, but also made any
> repair/replacement parts impossible to find. This has proven particularly
> devastating for finding any late style parts to repair or upgrade existing
> cars, and particularly concours-intended cars ...
>
> ... As I've said for years, many Corvette people have more money
> than brains. That fact makes them arrogant. They feel that they have an
> absolute right to own anything they want. All they have to do is simply
> keep bidding up the price until their opposition/competitor runs out of
> money. And it's that arrogance that offends me the most.
>
> I've also often said that Corvettes are too rich for my blood. So I
> appologize to everyone for not being wealthy enough to outbid Corvette
> people on some things. I accept that this is a free market economy. So be
> it. But I won't appologize for resenting their arrogance, or their
> callousness and disregard for Corvair history. And my Corvair hobby.
>
> -Mark
>