There seems to be no end to the insanity surrounding rare OEM muscle car parts pricing and the reality is that it comes down to simple economics. Hey, they aren’t making 1970 Boss 429 Mustangs anymore and they certainly aren’t making OEM replacement parts for them like this either. The market value for nice Boss 429 Mustangs is pretty stout and if you were restoring one and wanted it to be a 100-point car, a piece like this could be what gets you over the hump, right? That being said…holy crap this is an $11,000 air cleaner. Is it really worth it?
For the majority of us that own multiple cars that still don’t total up to $11,000 this is complete insanity, but the reality is that we’re not the guys that the air cleaner seller is marketing to. He understands the reality of the situation and that’s the fact that the guy who needs this thing REALLY needs this thing and would likely be willing to pay whatever he needed for it. Note that the guy will not ship the air cleaner anywhere and demands local pickup. We’re thinking that is a smart idea as we have had more than our fair share of stuff punted, dinged, and bashed by (NAME YOUR FAVORITE SHIPPING COMPANY HERE).
So…what’s the next insanely pedestrian part that’ll hit eBay.
Thanks to Eric Marsh for the tip!
Here’s the text of the ad:
Original 1970 Boss 429 Mustang air cleaner
tray, lid, seal and snorkel!
Mint condition!
Note: 1969 Boss 429 air cleaner is
slightly different than the 1970 version.
Know your application!
The rubber seal is NOS Ford fresh from the Ford brown envelope! The lid, 1970 tray and snorkel are original;
that we have re-painted for show!
Will not ship! Repeat! Will not ship!
Local pick up only. That way buyer can inspect first-hand for quality. Arrangements to inspect the air cleaner have to be made in advance with us. No exceptions!
SCROLL DOWN TO SEE WHAT AN $11,000 AIR CLEANER LOOKS LIKE –
About 4 yrs. ago I did some research for a guy that wanted to build a clone, an air cleaner was 12 k, modified shock towers were 4 k! Then there are air pumps and special hoses etc. The engine alone would cost around 50k when done correctly, also parts like “t” handle shifter for a ’70 Boss was/is over 100 bucks. Kinda crazy, no?
Will probably bought by a http://www.peopleofcraigslist.org idiot haha
Yes it seems like a lot of money – but it really isn’t. A set of motor mounts for a 1970 Boss 429 (used) go for $1900. A NOS Holley carb for the engine is $4300.
Restored Boss 429s go for $250,000 to $350,000 depending on mileage and if it has the S code NASCAR engine (1969). Some have gone as high as $500,000 for a one owner low mileage all original condition car.
I’ve seen other uber- rare pieces like ZL1 coded Holley carbs and Super Duty distributors go for crazy money, too. But if you have one of those supercars and you need the part, you pay.
I have to say this kind of pricing personally shits me but the market is what it’ll stand… If somebody wants it bad enough he’s got a market and a sale. Looking at the quoted prices for Boss 429’s though….I can’t help comparing to Aussie XY GTHO phase 3’s…they’ve gone to over a million but theres no way the damn air cleaner ( even with shaker scoop ) would even go a quarter of this price….guess I won’t be buying a Boss 429 any time soon.
funny thing is in the 70’s this would have been the first thing to be thrown away
I got just 900 bucks for mine. That nice but no snorkel. Had it on eBay. A second one with the sides cut off to make it open element only fetched a hundred-something.
I could have used the $11,000.