To Paint Original Lime Gold or non Orginal Nightmist Blue

[Chris Thauberger]

Gary, you indicated the Rick Nash car had a triple gold, would it have done this with a color change?  If you have a standard 68 FB with a 302, go for it as the color won't matter to most in that price range.  Change a Shelby and you will be limiting your potential buyers or you will be taking a monetary hit. 

Buyers today are more educated and pickier than ever because the cars have became investments.

Not a chance. Colour change is an automatic disqualification for gold as it should.

Too many interpretations of the word restored, it has a defined meaning; repair or renovate (a building, work of art, vehicle, etc.) so as to return it to its original condition "original" being the key modifier.

If its not original it's not restored, example: Keith and eleanor's cars both colour changes so NOT restored. Nothing wrong with either of the cars, I'm sure they are happy with THEIR choices just as I am happy about my choice to restore my car to concours. For the life of me I don't understand why there is so much animosity between the so called "drivers" and "concours".

[427heaven]

Back in the mid 2000s when you could actually contact a bidder or buyer of an item on Ebay I did my own survey on color changed Shelbys. Of course those bidding or buying didn't care about originality. Enough of them sold for me to justify color changing my 68. Bill Collins once said on this forum there are 3 types of buyers.....

I hear you but that was 15 - 20 years ago, and the prices are not the same.  When these cars went 6 figures the ball game changed.

Sold my 68 in 2013 and after Rick Nash got a 130K(143K buyers premium) for a triple gold winning lime gold  68 GT350 FB so, no, the prices have not changed on 68 GT350s since I sold mine in 2013.....Of course my car was NOT a triple gold and the whole drive train was NOT numbers matching and I knew the market of original color cars. Mine brought MORE than others selling at the time in Hgreen when comparing apples to apples(non concours non original drivetrain). In 30 years of color changing Mustangs(first in 79 and last in 2008) not one was ever hurt value wise when I sold it but to be clear there are some cars I would NEVER color change but the OP stated his intentions for his car and to me that means "go ahead and color change it".  And I do do my cars with an "end monetary result" in mind. Gary

This is a great discussion.  I personally believe changing the color is one of the greatest mistakes that a person can make when restoring a car and expecting a monetary gain.  I also believe, it's your car, it's your money do what you want.

Gary, you indicated the Rick Nash car had a triple gold, would it have done this with a color change?  If you have a standard 68 FB with a 302, go for it as the color won't matter to most in that price range.  Change a Shelby and you will be limiting your potential buyers or you will be taking a monetary hit. 

Buyers today are more educated and pickier than ever because the cars have became investments.

I personally look at it the opposite way! When purchasing a car I look for all the things I want in a car, and if its got an ugly color,let me rephrase that a color that I cant get past with ownership. I paint it a color that I love and is MORE appealing to the masses. That formula has never let me down, Fords Porsches Ferraris it doesnt matter, if its done right people will flock to get a look at the car, like a moth attracted to a flame.

[Chris Thauberger]

So as you can see from all the replies, its a personal choice that likely won't likely impact the value of the car in question.

Does the same hold true for engine swaps? What about tranny swaps? These are all "bolt on" changes that can be reversed much easier than a colour change. IMHO

Its you car so reguardless of if you choose to restore it to concours or change the colour / tranny / engine / seats/ wheels etc do what makes YOU happy.

[shelbymann1970]

LOL I "knew" what you said thanks to Google. Its cool tool to use. Heck I even use it to confirm "stories". LOL https://www.google.com/search?q=translation&rlz=1C1VFKB_enUS749US749&oq=translation&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l6.2959j0j8&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

I gotta use Google translate more often.  Seeing how I am Linguistically challenged.

QSS

QSS I got friends who post from other countries on FB and even some on their websites so I use a translation tool when I need to. I had no idea what Tony said until I translated it. I only know the language of my country. Never learned another. Gary

[shelbymann1970]

Back in the mid 2000s when you could actually contact a bidder or buyer of an item on Ebay I did my own survey on color changed Shelbys. Of course those bidding or buying didn't care about originality. Enough of them sold for me to justify color changing my 68. Bill Collins once said on this forum there are 3 types of buyers.....

I hear you but that was 15 - 20 years ago, and the prices are not the same.  When these cars went 6 figures the ball game changed.

Sold my 68 in 2013 and after Rick Nash got a 130K(143K buyers premium) for a triple gold winning lime gold  68 GT350 FB so, no, the prices have not changed on 68 GT350s since I sold mine in 2013.....Of course my car was NOT a triple gold and the whole drive train was NOT numbers matching and I knew the market of original color cars. Mine brought MORE than others selling at the time in Hgreen when comparing apples to apples(non concours non original drivetrain). In 30 years of color changing Mustangs(first in 79 and last in 2008) not one was ever hurt value wise when I sold it but to be clear there are some cars I would NEVER color change but the OP stated his intentions for his car and to me that means "go ahead and color change it".  And I do do my cars with an "end monetary result" in mind. Gary

This is a great discussion.  I personally believe changing the color is one of the greatest mistakes that a person can make when restoring a car and expecting a monetary gain.  I also believe, it's your car, it's your money do what you want.

Gary, you indicated the Rick Nash car had a triple gold, would it have done this with a color change?  If you have a standard 68 FB with a 302, go for it as the color won't matter to most in that price range.  Change a Shelby and you will be limiting your potential buyers or you will be taking a monetary hit. 

Buyers today are more educated and pickier than ever because the cars have became investments.

no but at the same time the cost of doing that  car to triple gold and what he got out of it I'm betting I made a LOT more from the sale of my black Shelby. Lets be clear here: I have owned a lot of Mustangs since 1977. I NEVER lost money on any but the first which I had to sell or get kicked out of my parent's house. Many I have color changed. Again it DEPENDS on the car in most cases. My 70 Gt500 DP I color changed set the RECORD at BJ early 2000s for a 69-70 Gt500 and held it for a few years before prices shot up. I sold it for a lot less 12-14 years earlier in 1991. My 69 black boss 429? Color change? NO way. My vert? Almost did to black but no factory black cars so I stayed with red. While you say changing the color you are limiting your buyers well having waht is considered an ugly color to many buyers is also limiting your buyers. Don't take my word for it ask Bill Collins. A shelby dealer for a long time. He chimed in on this subject years ago. Could Rick's car done triple gold with a color change? Well that is a question for the judges as I do not know the rules back around 2010-12. At one time they were thinking of having a Marti report with a car. You can restore a car and change all the tags to match the paint. So how would a judge know the true color other than a Marti report? so could it have won gold back then and now? Well that is a question for the gold card judges. My car was a non matching car with non smog heads for a 4 speed. Repo intake and air cleaner. Perfect choice for a color change on a really clean original panel car. Back in 70 someone decided to put a 428SCJ auto in my Gt350 and the car sat from early 1970s until I put it back on the road around 2008. Like I said I got more for it in black than if it was in green. Gary

[shelbymann1970]

Back in the mid 2000s when you could actually contact a bidder or buyer of an item on Ebay I did my own survey on color changed Shelbys. Of course those bidding or buying didn't care about originality. Enough of them sold for me to justify color changing my 68. Bill Collins once said on this forum there are 3 types of buyers.....

I hear you but that was 15 - 20 years ago, and the prices are not the same.  When these cars went 6 figures the ball game changed.

Sold my 68 in 2013 and after Rick Nash got a 130K(143K buyers premium) for a triple gold winning lime gold  68 GT350 FB so, no, the prices have not changed on 68 GT350s since I sold mine in 2013.....Of course my car was NOT a triple gold and the whole drive train was NOT numbers matching and I knew the market of original color cars. Mine brought MORE than others selling at the time in Hgreen when comparing apples to apples(non concours non original drivetrain). In 30 years of color changing Mustangs(first in 79 and last in 2008) not one was ever hurt value wise when I sold it but to be clear there are some cars I would NEVER color change but the OP stated his intentions for his car and to me that means "go ahead and color change it".  And I do do my cars with an "end monetary result" in mind. Gary

This is a great discussion.  I personally believe changing the color is one of the greatest mistakes that a person can make when restoring a car and expecting a monetary gain.  I also believe, it's your car, it's your money do what you want.

Gary, you indicated the Rick Nash car had a triple gold, would it have done this with a color change?  If you have a standard 68 FB with a 302, go for it as the color won't matter to most in that price range.  Change a Shelby and you will be limiting your potential buyers or you will be taking a monetary hit. 

Buyers today are more educated and pickier than ever because the cars have became investments.

I personally look at it the opposite way! When purchasing a car I look for all the things I want in a car, and if its got an ugly color,let me rephrase that a color that I cant get past with ownership. I paint it a color that I love and is MORE appealing to the masses. That formula has never let me down, Fords Porsches Ferraris it doesnt matter, if its done right people will flock to get a look at the car, like a moth attracted to a flame.

of all the cars I have owned I never got more thumbs up than my 68 Shelby painted black/red. Speaking of Rick Nash's gold winning 68 GT350 he came to the local Mustang club show from a SAAC national convention where he had won gold with his 68 and RED 66 GT350. When the judges came by to ask where my dash card was I told them I was display only-no judging. They pretty much told me if I entered it for judging I would win and Rick's 2 cars were in my class. Hey my car was REALLY nice and detailed out but far from concours correct even though I took it as far as I could go with the little things like correct hardware and such and having an original unrestored interior in mint shape other than the console. So why my car over a 135K 68 and a 195K 66(both sold at BJ the next winter)? The COLOR combo. BTW I passed on entering and Rick's 66 won I think. I'm not into trophies and the enjoyment I got out of my 68 was priceless to me in black other than Hgreen which I hate and it was a new paint job(well 10 years old single stage sitting in a basement) I painted over when I bought the car. Gary

[Bob Gaines]

Back in the mid 2000s when you could actually contact a bidder or buyer of an item on Ebay I did my own survey on color changed Shelbys. Of course those bidding or buying didn't care about originality. Enough of them sold for me to justify color changing my 68. Bill Collins once said on this forum there are 3 types of buyers.....

I hear you but that was 15 - 20 years ago, and the prices are not the same.  When these cars went 6 figures the ball game changed.

Sold my 68 in 2013 and after Rick Nash got a 130K(143K buyers premium) for a triple gold winning lime gold  68 GT350 FB so, no, the prices have not changed on 68 GT350s since I sold mine in 2013.....Of course my car was NOT a triple gold and the whole drive train was NOT numbers matching and I knew the market of original color cars. Mine brought MORE than others selling at the time in Hgreen when comparing apples to apples(non concours non original drivetrain). In 30 years of color changing Mustangs(first in 79 and last in 2008) not one was ever hurt value wise when I sold it but to be clear there are some cars I would NEVER color change but the OP stated his intentions for his car and to me that means "go ahead and color change it".  And I do do my cars with an "end monetary result" in mind. Gary

This is a great discussion.  I personally believe changing the color is one of the greatest mistakes that a person can make when restoring a car and expecting a monetary gain.  I also believe, it's your car, it's your money do what you want.

Gary, you indicated the Rick Nash car had a triple gold, would it have done this with a color change?  If you have a standard 68 FB with a 302, go for it as the color won't matter to most in that price range.  Change a Shelby and you will be limiting your potential buyers or you will be taking a monetary hit. 

Buyers today are more educated and pickier than ever because the cars have became investments.

I personally look at it the opposite way! When purchasing a car I look for all the things I want in a car, and if its got an ugly color,let me rephrase that a color that I cant get past with ownership. I paint it a color that I love and is MORE appealing to the masses. That formula has never let me down, Fords Porsches Ferraris it doesnt matter, if its done right people will flock to get a look at the car, like a moth attracted to a flame.

of all the cars I have owned I never got more thumbs up than my 68 Shelby painted black/red. Speaking of Rick Nash's gold winning 68 GT350 he came to the local Mustang club show from a SAAC national convention where he had won gold with his 68 and RED 66 GT350. When the judges came by to ask where my dash card was I told them I was display only-no judging. They pretty much told me if I entered it for judging I would win and Rick's 2 cars were in my class. Hey my car was REALLY nice and detailed out but far from concours correct even though I took it as far as I could go with the little things like correct hardware and such and having an original unrestored interior in mint shape other than the console. So why my car over a 135K 68 and a 195K 66(both sold at BJ the next winter)? The COLOR combo. BTW I passed on entering and Rick's 66 won I think. I'm not into trophies and the enjoyment I got out of my 68 was priceless to me in black other than Hgreen which I hate and it was a new paint job(well 10 years old single stage sitting in a basement) I painted over when I bought the car. Gary

FYI most concours judged venues have adopted the process of judging against a standard of excellence instead of each other. You could hypothetically have 4 good cars that all get the same level of award if they are in the range of points needed for a award in that class.

[tesgt350]

Just to toss a Monkey Wrench in to the mix.............................  Since you are talking color change and you like Blue, WHY bother with a Shelby Color?  Look at the late model Mustang colors like Sonic Blue, Cobalt Blue, Kona Blue, Velocity Blue, Ford Performance Blue, Deep Impact Blue, just to name a few.

[67 GT350]

Just to toss a Monkey Wrench in to the mix.............................  Since you are talking color change and you like Blue, WHY bother with a Shelby Color?  Look at the late model Mustang colors like Sonic Blue, Cobalt Blue, Kona Blue, Velocity Blue, Ford Performance Blue, Deep Impact Blue, just to name a few.

I think he want period correct. That is what I would do, if I was changing the color.

[The Going Thing]

I stayed with a factory color offered too. It makes sense because of what it is.  It's not a restomod because of a wheel change, which are also factory style 10 spoke rims in 17. It makes sense because of what the car is.  Many of us DRIVE our cars. I do at least twice a week when I'm home. 
There are a couple day two modifications, either they are for power or safety.

[oldcanuck]

My '67  GT-350 was originally lime gold. A PO had it painted many years ago raven black.  I wish the color change wasn't done so well and looks as good as it does, so I could have an excuse to take it back to lime gold.  Not my favorite color, but if done right..... it's right......IMO.   Just my $ .02

[Chris Thauberger]

Lets look at it from a completely different perspective, what if you own a clone/tribute/(fill in blank)?

Does it matter what colour it was or is going to be painted then? 

[Vernon Estes]

In the last year I sold a very nice car which had been taken from Lime to Brittany Blue..

The color change made no difference on the price of the car, as I expected. Sure, some people inquired and ended up not interested because its a color change car. At the same time, Lime tends to be a bit of an acquired taste so, had the car still been lime, it would have likely taken a while to sell for the same price.

I find Lime to be a pretty polarizing color. Most peopel are not a fan but then there is a small group of guys who are super fans and have to have that particular color.

In short, I dont feel changing the color of the car will hurt its potential resale value at all. If anything, it might make it more "sale-able" to a larger % of the market than the original ime color is.

Just my 2 cents...the advice is probably worth what you're paying for it 

Vern

[2112]

^^^

Good to hear. Reminds back of when color changes were commonplace as it was all about enjoying your car as much as possible.

[8T03S1425]

So, from this narrow survey, it seems that color may be the least important factor when one decides to buy a Shelby. That's how it is/was for me. When I was in the market, my critical factors, in descending order, were:

     1.  body style (convertible)
     2.  transmission (4-speed)
     3.  year (1st 1966, 2nd 1968, 3rd 1969/1970. The '66 convertibles were too rare to be a practical)
     4.  engine (1st big block, 2nd small block)
     5.  available options (air conditioning, tilt/swing away steering column, upgraded factory or after market radio, factory or after market wheels, LeMans stripes)
     6.  color (preferred white and would consider all colors)

No matter what color Shelby was for sale, if it wasn't a convertible with a 4-speed, I moved on. I knew I needed to be flexible, otherwise I might not ever own another Shelby, after I sold 6S2295. When I found a convertible with a 4-speed it also had a 428, A/C, and was white. Realizing that the car I found was as close to my shopping list as I was likely to find, I sealed the deal. Had it been any other color, I would have likely bought and used it until I found the Shelby I wanted. If the paint was in good shape, I'd keep it that color. If it needed a repaint, I might have painted it white, door jambs and trunk included.

I doubt I would have bought a '68, '69, or '70 GT350 convertible with an automatic, unless it had a special paint color and desirable options. If I did, it would be a car that could tide me over till I found what I was looking for.

Back in 1976, when I bought my car, Shelbys were more affordable and available, relative to today's prices and inventory, so I could be a little more choosy. Today's market conditions call for much more selection criteria flexibility, and I think that's what I'm learning from this thread.

Steve