Cubans can be come millionaires selling those antique automobiles. They are fantastic! nt

[Jitter65]

[HassleCat]

1. My friend Arnold says they would not sell.

I told him the exact same thing you posted, and he said no way. He said his relatives own several old cars, and not one would be for sale at any price. I said, "ANY price?" And he just shook his head emphatically no.

[gordianot]

2. Most are modified with new parts not original.

[Adrahil]

13. pretty much just frame and body work is original.

Many have crappy soviet-era engines, and pieced together interiors.

[pmorlan1]

3. Yes they are fantastic

Some millionaire will give them pennies on the dollar to get those cars.

[HooptieWagon]

4. No, probably not.

None of the cars is pristine or original, and would require a sizeable sum to restore. Even then, they're $25-30,000 cars. I only know of one ultra-rare and valuable car in Cuba, a Jaguar D-Type. It would be worth nearly 1 million, but has been much modified and hacked up, so might only be worth 100K as is.
Remember, they haven't been able to get any replacement parts for 56 years now, there's a whole lot of baling wire and duct tape holding those cars together.

[pinboy3niner]

6. Agree. They can't qualify as 'classics' because of the bastard mods.

I sold a Jaguar E-Type for more than I paid for it new only because it was a true classic.

[HooptieWagon]

8. Most of them would cost more to restore to original than they would be worth.

They have some value as a surviving driver, but it's 10 or 20 cents on the dollar, and less than the price of a new car. A 4-door 1950 Chevy from Cuba is about a 4 or 5 thousand dollar car at best.

[pinboy3niner]

10. They certainly won't make any Cubans millionaires. nt

[ozone82]

11. And Many Of The Original...

American engines have been replaced by Russian or old East German motors. Read somewhere that parting them to the US could be very profitable.

[hunter]

5. If you can accept the Soviet tractor engine under the hood...

... and replacement parts made with a hammer, a file, and a rock. Which, truth be told, are probably more reliable than the OEM parts ever were. I remember the 'sixties, and cars from the 'fifties. They sucked. Or maybe that was just our family cars.

I live in a city with a big antique car community. A lot of machine shops around here modify modern parts or fabricate replacement parts from scratch that are better than anything Detroit made in the 'fifties and 'sixties.

I don't have that kind of money. I drive a mid 'eighties automobile that I keep running using a hammer, a file, and a rock. If a bit of trim falls off my car I don't replace it. I might fill the holes left with Bondo. I might not.

[Throd]

7. Most of them would not even qualify as "parts cars" in the USA

As an old car enthusiast, I truly admire their ability to keep them running.

[linuxman]

9. Lol, no.

These aren't million dollar cars to anyone. Maybe a few grand for some, just for the bodies and frame. 50 years of jerry rigging, home mods, and whatever degree of bubblegum and chicken wire repairs were made to keep them running pretty much makes them useless to collectors, unless they are in the market for a curiosity.

[Monk06]

12. If they have some Studebaker Champions, Starlite Coupes or Split Window Volkswagens then that

would be worth something

50s Chevy and Ford four door sedans aren't worth much in North America even in decent restorable condition

Just not rare enough and butt ugly

Except four door hard tops from the late fifties and early sixties