It IS a buyers market, and prices ARE down from what they were a year or so ago. The impact on the high end cars has not been "as noticable", but it has had an impact in a number of cases. Shelbys, Kirkhams, ERA's and SPF's are (generally speaking) holding their value well in this down market. BUT occasionally some great deals have been seen even with these high end cars.
Patience is the key to finding a good deal. Not all Cobra sellers will want to negotiate, they may not acknowledge that the market is down on THEIR car (wether it's true or not).
Simply offer what you think is a fair price, and move on. If you MUST have an SPF you will PROBABLY pay close to last years market value. If you want something else, you could save a LOT of money over last years prices by looking at other cars.
The older SPF's do not have the "enhancements" of the newer ones. Which is no doubt true of ALL Cobra margues. A #300 series SPF would not be as "desirable" to me as say a "higher number" SPF with those refinements. HOW you could use this to your advantage in gaining a better price would be to know WHAT those enhancements were, how the cars have changed over the years. I'm no SPF expert so I will pass on commenting as to what I THINK those changes are and what they mean. But if I was "shopping" for one, I WOULD know exactly what it all means!
I settled on Classic Roadster and Excaliburs for my personal choice of a Cobra. I STUDY the heck out of them and am quite knowledgable about the differences in the cars over the years. Quality car vary a lot!
With an SPF the differences are far more subtle, the quality is far more consistant. That is the MAIN reason they ALL pretty much sell for the same amount, with SOME exceptions to this rule.
Heres an interesting comparison between an ERA and an SPF as far as price goes! It appears to me this particular ERA is an "excellent" buy. If I had to choose between a similiar SPF and this ERA at the same price, I would go with ERA everytime!
http://www.clubcobra.com/forums/show...295#post369295
Ernie