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If I Won The BIG Lottery, I'd Fulfill My Automotive Desires By... - READ ONLY

9 messages,  Last post on Sep 28, 2011 at 10:36 AM

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Messages Page 2 of 2

#3 of 9 Re: If I Won The BIG Lottery, I'd Fulfill My Automotive Desires By... [andre1969] by hpmctorque

Sep 25, 2011 (12:58 pm)

Replying to: andre1969 (Sep 25, 2011 10:33 am)
"I guess it would all depend on how big of a lottery win it was."
 
Use your imagination. Big, but maybe less than enormous. I don't know; think $10,000,000 or $20,000,000, just to throw out a number. And, oh yeah, that would be after taxes. Now that may be big to some, huge to others, and enormous to still others. But, then, to Gates or Buffet it would be chump change.
  
"Just seems wasteful to me..."
 
I wouldn't consider it wasteful because the next owner(s) would enjoy it until it's used up.

#4 of 9 Re: If I Won The BIG Lottery, I'd Fulfill My Automotive Desires By... [hpmctorque] by fintail

Sep 25, 2011 (1:35 pm)

Replying to: hpmctorque (Sep 25, 2011 12:58 pm)
If I had say 20M, I would move to somewhere in central Europe, maybe around the Germany-Switz-Liechtenstein triangle, and open a center for MB from fintails through W140. Have it be on par with the MB Classic Center, but specializing in closed cars of lesser value that people restore for irrational reasons. I'd also want to dabble in veteran cars and some motorcycles. If it broke even, I would open a NA branch.
 
I'd also build a facility somewhere to keep interesting heaps from being scrapped.

#5 of 9 Re: If I Won The BIG Lottery, I'd Fulfill My Automotive Desires By... [hpmctorque] by andre1969

Sep 25, 2011 (1:35 pm)

Replying to: hpmctorque (Sep 25, 2011 12:58 pm)
I wouldn't consider it wasteful because the next owner(s) would enjoy it until it's used up.
 
True. Plus, you mentioned buying used, late model cars, so you'd be getting them after someone already took the initial hit in depreciation.
 
I think it would take me awhile to adjust to swapping cars every 6 months, though!

#6 of 9 Easy answer... by lemko

Sep 27, 2011 (8:08 am)

...provided it was a huge fortune I couldn't possibly burn through no matter how prodigal my spending, I'd amass a large collection of pristine 1950s though 1970s Cadillacs and Buicks, a huge climate-controlled warehouse in which to store them, and enough fuel to run them for the remainder of my lifetime.

#7 of 9 . by fintail

Sep 27, 2011 (11:18 am)

Oh yeah, I'd give my own fintail a concours quality nut and bold restoration, and also get involved with frankencars - specifically high power diesel and tuned AMG engines put into conservative looking older cars.

#8 of 9 Re: Easy answer...(fintail)[lemko] by hpmctorque

Sep 27, 2011 (12:49 pm)

Replying to: lemko (Sep 27, 2011 8:08 am)
Hmmm, it sounds to me like you guys would corner the market on '50s, '60s and '70s Mercedes, Buick and Cadillacs, kind of like the Hunt brothers tried to corner the silver market in '79. Your motives would be different, of course, and hopefully it would end better than it did for them.

#9 of 9 Re: Easy answer...(fintail)[lemko] [hpmctorque] by michaell

Sep 28, 2011 (10:36 am)

Replying to: hpmctorque (Sep 27, 2011 12:49 pm)
So, $10-20M after taxes, huh? Certainly more than enough for me ...
 
In no particular order:
 
1) Find a '67 Mercury Monterey coupe with the 390 engine. Why? My maternal grandmother owned one and I was fortunate enough to drive it on occasion. It's not particularly desirable, collector-wise, just a sentimental choice. Buy the best one I could find.
 
2) Take my current DD - 2006 Saturn ION 2 sedan - and turn it over to a tuning house to convert it into the only (AFAIK) RedLine sedan. Take the 2.0L turbo engine from a Cobalt/HHR SS or ION Coupe or Sky and transplant it and the 5-speed tranny into my sedan. Add some 17" wheels and tires, tune the suspension and have a real Q-ship. Irrational, yes, but this would be a lot of fun.
 
3) American muscle - Mustang Shelby or Boss 302. Nothing like the sound of an American V8.
 
4) German muscle - I've always liked the idea of a big engine in a wagon, and for some reason, the Germans have been doing this better than anyone lately. E63, S4 or S6 wagon with the V8 - new or used - would fit the bill perfectly. As an alternative, I could get a shop to transplant the V10 from an M5 into a 5-series wagon and create my own.
 
5) Japanese muscle - can you say GT-R? That, or a classic RX-7 twin turbo from the early 90's. Either way, it would satisfy my inner "Fast and Furious" persona.
 
I like the idea of buying and donating used cars each year - there are always those in need of reliable transportation. In addition, set up an account that would fund gas / insurance / maintenance for a set period of time - 6 or 12 months. For many people, buying the car is the easy part; it's the ongoing costs that can be onerous.
 
Beyond, that, it would be good enough to know that I could buy / trade anything I wanted, anytime I wanted. Not so much on a set schedule - just know that I have the ability to buy and drive the latest that comes on the market.
 
Would also like to get into racing - nothing too serious or expensive, but having something I could take to HPDE's.

Messages Page 2 of 2

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