KEEP FILLING THE PENNY JAR!

I received several phone calls this week from people wondering what the future of the collector car market is going to be in the face of the scary national economy. Sorry I don't have a crystal ball, but I do not see any signs of disaster either.

I know just a few things:

1- I've been in this hobby for 35 years and it's weathered many storms

2- The richest guy I personally know has always recommended cars and warned me about stocks. He doesn't have any stocks - just cars. And he stays away from borrowing money as much as he can.

3- If you leveraged everything to buy houses, cars, ponies and stocks, you are probably in trouble. Sell at a loss. You need cash.

4- If you have old cars and don't owe anything but a modest mortgage each month, you're probably doing OK. . . if not great.

5- If you're a dealer with 20 Corvettes sitting in the showroom you're probably willing to sell that $125,000 Midyear big-block for, say, $89,000. If you have one Model T in your garage and it's paid for, it is worth at least as much as it was a month ago and maybe even a little more.

6- It is a good time to BUY collector cars if you can pay cash for them. If you can't pay cash, sit tight and keep filling the penny jar.