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Comment by tslater2006 | Hacker News Reader

tslater2006

Yep! Can confirm I saw it at $10k earlier today as well.

Now it's at $100k!!!!!

At that price you could put someone through a glass blowing course and then have them work for a few months making thousands of these for you.

There's a reason early Model T's are collectibles, and why 1980s Ford Escorts are in junkyards.

I think Ford Escort means something different here in the UK. They've gone up in value hugely in the last 20 years and are generally worth a lot more than Model T Fords now. (Annoyingly they're worth much more than a contemporary Porsche 944, which was much more desirable when new. Annoyingly because I own a 944 and not an Escort).

https://www.silverstoneauctions.com/1980-ford-escort-rec0351...

https://www.evoke-classics.com/auction/1922-ford-model-t/

In fairness, that's the RS2000 which is definitely not a regular ford escort. An ordinary 1980 ford escort isn't worth anything like that much. Maybe 1/10th of the price if in really good condition.

Find me a regular Mk1 or Mk2 Escort in really good condition, and I will gladly pay you £3126.

Even the boring models command ridiculous values now: https://www.classiccarsforsale.co.uk/ford/escort/351743

For £6750 you can have one in really bad condition and with the steering wheel on the wrong side: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/234972695631

My grandfather was embarrassed because his family had a Model T in the 1940s. 20 years after the end of their production they were seen as junk that only poor people drove. It was better than the buggy his family used but everyone else had nice cars.

Model T's USED to be destined for junkyards.

The few that escaped that fate are now collectibles.

The Yugo used to be what your parents bought for you (paying just a little bit more than the 286 laptop they also got for you) so that you could have something to drive when you went off to college.

The vast majority ended up in junkyards.

Now they are becoming collectible: https://carsandbids.com/auctions/Km2odWYp/1988-yugo-gv

My first car was a Karman Ghia that I paid $500 for in the 90s. It was seen as junk. The floor pans were rusting out and it would have cost way more than it was worth for the owner to fix it up so rain didn't spray into the cabin from underneath while driving. Looking at the prices they go for now I highly regret driving it until it thew a rod and then junking it.

Ford Escorts will be the same one day.

Yugo: they sold for $4K new, so a 50% return on something I had to keep in the corner of the garage for 30 years is a pretty poor "investment". And that's assuming someone even wants it; just because it's for sale doesn't mean it's collectible. Model Ts are distinctly different, even in comparison to their younger brother the Model A. Yugos are just shitty versions of what you're driving now. I suspect one will find the same with Ford Escorts.

Or you can pay now and get it now, I guess?

It is intentionally priced “not to sell”, so the price should be irrational.

Still wouldn’t be too surprised though if someone bought it.

But if you wanted some of what makes this particular piece special you would also have to hire a camera crew to capture the backstory and provenance and an influencer to show it to most of a million people and care about it. The best art isn't just the end result!

My comment was intended to highlight that this kind of money can change someone's life - create a whole new career for them, give them employment. Translate it into developing country terms and you could do that for ten or more people.

Or you could spend the same amount to own a lump of pretty glass that appeared in a YouTube video. Which apparently makes it special for some reason.

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