According To You: The One That Got Away

Hagerty loves stories about cars almost as much as they love the actual cars and trucks themselves. From a member story of a vehicle passed down from generation to generation, to the famous Ford-powered race car that beat Ferrari, there are fantastic stories in every corner of our hobby.

Recently, though, we wondered about the tales that could have been, particularly in the form of cars that got away. We asked members of the Hagerty Community for their thoughts on the matter. And yet again, you folks did not disappoint.

Hertz, don’t it?

@JJC: Early 1967, local Ford dealer had five Hertz GT350’s for sale $3500.00 each. I was in the process of buying a new Camaro L30/M21 at the time for a few hundred bucks less. I couldn’t see the logic in paying more money for a “used” car. Bad investment decision, but I did love the Camaro, wish I still had it. Ah well…

@Squier: In the late 60’s one of my salesmen was driving a Hertz Shelby 350H, black with gold stripes, stick (one of about 90 sticks—before they switched to automatics) as his daily driver. He grew tired of the stick and decided to sell it. I had driven it several times so he offered it to me for $2,500. I had a young family and no place to park it so I reluctantly decided to pass. I kick myself regularly and have a picture of that car as my screen saver on my phone.

No Slacking at Swap Meets?

@Mike: A 1972 Karmann Ghia Convertible at the opening of the Iola Old Car weekend in WI about six years ago. Just entered the swap area and this very nice car was up for $6500. I had the cash on me. I walked past after inspecting it and went to the loo telling the owner I would return. When I came back he just took a fat stack from the lucky buyer. Car was worth at least double…

Take Action at the Impound Auction

@David: Had a tip on a ’69 Camaro Z/28 at a city impound auction back around 1985. It was a mess; heads and intake were missing too. It was winter; cold and muddy but I brought a stack of bills. When the auction came to the car the auctioneer passed on to the next vehicle. I interrupted to ask about the Z and the auctioneer said it was already sold. Guess I never really had a chance!

Passed On Perfection?

@Wade: While renting a house and already having too many non-essential vehicles almost 11 years ago, I picked up my still-going commuter car (2005 Civic EX) for $5300. Approximately one week after that purchase, I found in my town a solid blue 1976 Chevy K5 Blazer, on the front lawn of the original owner.

Asking price was $6500 OBO and it checked every box of desirability for me: original condition (zero visible modifications), single ownership, “never seen snow, always garaged” (this was in Maine), 4×4, 350, 4-speed, white removable top, etc. Everything I could lay eyes on was legitimately near-perfect (…or perfect), down to the USA-1 plate on the front bumper. For many reasons, this truck was not an option for me at the time. Yes, I took pictures and yes, I review them occasionally and of course, I hate myself a little more every time. Still the most ridiculously clean K5 Blazer I’ve seen, for sale or otherwise.

I called the land line number scrawled on the cardboard in the window a little over a year later while in a better position but ignoring the impossibility of this thing not having sold in 2013. It was gone, naturally, and I’ve never seen it around.

Appreciate Before It Appreciated

@MtnCamantalope: During my first year of community college, strolling across the parking lot at the end of the day I saw a beautiful red NSX parked crooked all by itself in the back of the lot. I’d never seen one in person before and man, that thing was awesome. I went home and started searching for one of my own. Decent shape they were running $10-12k, $15k for a really nice one. I could have made it work, but it would have been my daily driver. I decided it would be irresponsible and I’d probably crash it anyway (definitely true). I said to myself “wait a few years so you can more comfortably afford one.” Yeah…

Intercepted By Your Bank Account

@TG: A Jensen Interceptor III. My local fairgrounds holds an annual swap meet, and I saw it there—running but not perfect—for 10K. I had never seen one or heard of them before, but I loved it… the ultimate sleeper car. Unfortunately I did not have 10K in discretionary capital at the time and had to pass. I have seen very few since, and none in running condition anywhere close to that price.

Don’t Judge Me

@MeJ: I guess mine was a ’69 GTO Judge. It was the 1990s and I owned an ’80 Corvette. I saw the Judge and inquired about a trade. The guy said the car had been there for a while and said it was doable. I thought, “Okay, I’ll be smart and think it through the weekend.” Sure enough, I decided it was a good deal, and a much more collectable car. I drove out ready to make the deal and—drum roll please—of course, it was sold.

@James: While traveling as an auditor in the late 90’s for a major bank that financed car dealerships, I would always drive by this body shop that had a 1971 Pontiac GTO convertible for sale in their lot for a few thousand dollars. I said, one day I’ll stop in and buy that vehicle. Then the department was sold and so went my job. I never saw that vehicle again. I also never knew that GM only made 17 of that model. Dohhhhh!

Don’t Check Facebook on Vacation?

@Bernard: This one wasn’t too long ago, on FB marketplace a few hundred miles from me, a pristine 2002 Miata with the LSD and the bigger of the available bodykits, unfortunately I only saw it due to being on vacation. By the time I could talk to my bank about getting the money it was in the wind.

The $5,100 AC Cobra

@Danny: It was 1987 I was coming home from a golf tournament through Pine Hurst N.C. I saw a sign for 1966 Cobra for sale for $5000. I stopped, looked, and it was an AC Cobra. The man would not take a deposit. I was an hour away from home had to get a trailer and come back to get it, and he said that would be ok.

When I pulled back into his driveway another person was loading it up on another trailer. He had offered him $100 more. I was mad and disappointed but what can you do? He showed me another car he had beside his garage he said he would take $500 for it. It had a rusty floor board and I had no desire for that rust bucket. Would love to have it now because it was a 1955 Porsche 356. Live and learn.

But They’d Rather Crush It

@BMD4800: Mid-1996, I was a poor college kid in Phoenix. Desert Valley Auto Parts was clearing out their less popular inventory and had them in line for the crusher. I spotted a ’63 Wildcat coupe with right quarter damage behind the door. I asked about it, the counter guy said it ran and drove, but no one wanted it so they were going to crush it. I asked the price, $2,200. All the cash I had to my name was $1,900. I offered $1,800. They said no. I offered $1,900 cash, they said no. I said I’ll go apply for a credit card and pay $2,200. Nope. Cash, or it was crushed. I watched them crush that car and swore I would tell everyone I could about that day: Desert Valley Auto Parts in Phoenix.

A “Minor” Problem With A Unimog

@Jeff: Around 20 years ago I had a handshake deal on a 1961 Unimog 404 Swiss Troop Carrier with only 14,000 KM. It was in excellent condition, including all the canvas. It even had the original tool kit with it (tools as in shovel, axe, etc). I was soon to purchase a 40 acre parcel of land where it would have been very handy. The seller had it priced at $7500. I told him I wanted it, but needed to arrange financing. We shook on it and a deposit was not needed (my mistake).

A few days later when I had the money and I contacted the seller, he told me that he had someone come by with cash and due to the urging of his wife, he sold it to that guy instead of waiting for me. I saw the same Unimog listed at a dealership a few weeks later for $17,500. So what did I do with the cash earmarked for the Unimog, I bought another vehicle of the same vintage but of the opposite variety, a 1961 Morris Minor.

“No Way”

@Brett: I know most will say “no way”, but when I was 12-13 and visiting my uncle outside Cleveland, my dad and uncle would go golfing. My cousin and I would go along and search for lost golf balls to sell later. On the ride to the golf course, I saw a car in a field on a trailer and I told my dad that it was Ferrari. My dad and uncle blew me off but on the drive back I made them stop.

I waded back through the weeds and there was a ratty looking faded red car on trailer with a roll cage an grooves cut in the hood that you could see the velocity stacks sticking up from the V-12. I was now convinced it was a Ferrari. My cousin and I knocked on the door to the house closest to it, and a lady came to the door with a couple small kids around her, we asked if the car was for sale. She said her husband generally never sells anything, and that was it.

About 10 years ago I saw an article about Innes Ireland being reunited with the Ferrari 250 GTO he raced back in the day with pictures of a faded red car, in a field, on a trailer, in a field of weeds, in a rural area outside Cleveland. Needless to say, the memories all rushed back, as there was the car. The one that got away. Go Google the article for Innes Ireland 250 GTO, it is a great read and some of the ones that come up have old pictures of the car.

@Gary: In 1984, I was offered a very nice Ferrari 250 convertible (I don’t recall which version) for $25,000. I had just started working full time and had just bought a house and it didn’t seem to be a prudent decision to buy a Ferrari. The seller was even willing to take monthly payments over three or four years with no interest added. By 1989, that car was worth more than $500,000 (to my recollection). Clearly I didn’t make the right decision. Nowadays it would probably cost nearly $25,000 to rent one of these for a day!

@Harry: Early ’70s, needed a car to drive 35 miles to work and back. Wound up in a Renault agency in West Chester PA, looking at R5 Le Cars. The manager had a car on consignment for $10K—a Ferrari Fantuzzi Special, V-12 red, beautiful, but it had no top—built as a spyder. I couldn’t see parking it in the street at work every day, rain or shine, so wound up with new Le Car. It was a bunch of fun to drive, but it certainly wasn’t a Ferrari.

Come Back, ‘Cuda!

@Ed: It hurts just to think about this car even today, though I lost it back in the mid 80s. It was a crushing blow that just gets deeper each year I see prices for just a rolling chassis of this car continue to climb.

I bought mine from the original owner for about $600. It was dark blue in and out, a 318 2 bbl auto, bucket seats with console, and only 1 dent under the driver’s side rear frame channel. It drove fine for about 3 yrs, then wouldn’t start and I couldn’t get inspection to renew plates. Then my apartment complex made me move it, I so moved it to my dad’s house. Then a neighbor called local city on it for not being currently licensed. There was no place found to store it, it was almost impounded, so I had to let it go to a junk yard for $50!

Now the kicker: it was a base example of my dream car…. a ’71 Barracuda with a perfect grille & straight sheet metal. Still got the production code sheet from the back seat. I need a stiff drink and tissue paper now.

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