How many are out there today? Options

[mrdicb]

I'm stuck writing a research paper for school. (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/sad.gif) Fortunatly I had the choice of my own topic, so what did I choose? The 914 of course.

So here's the bad part-- I can't seem to find some vital information about them. Hopefully someone here can hook me up with some info (paticurally with a reference I can list as a sourse)

How many 914's are there currently estimated in the US?

[lapuwali]

The number of people who WANT a 914 bad enough to actually put the money down for one, is smaller than the number of cars left in at least a restorable state. If this were not so, the prices would be climbing quite steadily. It's very likely that in just a few years the supply of shells will actually fall below the demand level, and prices will climb enough that it will be economic to restore a rust bucket. We haven't hit that point yet. We may never hit that point. If and when we do, cutting up of shells will cease, and the supply of 914s will stop shrinking.

Rarity is NOT enough to guarantee value. As noted, there were over 80,000 914s sold in the US, yet they're nearly disposible. I can think of several cars sold it numbers of under 1,500 in the US that are just as disposible. Most of them are cars most people haven't even heard of, yet you can pick one up for $500 or less in drivable condition (certain Alfas and Lancias fit this criteria very well). Desirability is a key factor. For example, there were many more 356s made than 912s, yet 356s cost 5-10 times as much as 912s. An SWB 911 is quite a rare beast, yet generally fetches a lower price than an SC, even though there were 5-10 times as many SCs made as SWB 911s.

There were 5.5 MILLION "old" Minis made, but a nice condition Mini will fetch the same or more money than a nice 914. Despite the fact that there were so many Minis produced, there's a company in the UK making NEW shells using the old tooling, and getting good money for them. Yet, no one is doing the same for the 914, or even the 911. The same outfit is also making MGB shells, yet there were 500,000 MGBs made, so one presumes there are a lot more restorable cars out there. Still, it's economic to make new shells, because there are a lot more people willing to buy a new MGB shell than a new 914 shell.

One cannot blame a business owner for trying to run a business economically.