TMCP #661: ASK RICK – The ROI of Going to the SEMA Show and Fun Before Halloween Car Flips – Corvette vs GNX vs Zephyr!

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Ask Rick: Is SEMA Worth the Trip?
(Plus) Spooky Cars to By and Flip Before Halloween!

It is October and time for spooky scary fun, as well as another great Ask Rick episode! Before you take the kids out to get some chocolate and hard SweeTarts, check out this insider knowledge from the mind of Rick Schmidt.

SEMA is coming up, which means shops, manufacturers, builders and media are all making decisions about Las Vegas. But should you actually go? Rick sees a pretty clear difference between businesses that should attend as exhibitors and those that should simply walk the show. For truck shops that sell lifts, winches, accessories and other products, he thinks there is real value in seeing competing products in person and meeting manufacturers directly. A successful shop may even be able to move from buying through a reseller to becoming a direct warehouse distributor. That comes with a price, though. Rick points out that becoming a direct buyer can require an initial investment of $5,000 to $10,000, along with purchase requirements that need to be maintained.

For exhibitors, his advice is even more direct: have a reason to be there. SEMA is expensive, and between preparation, travel, setup and the show itself, the commitment can consume a huge chunk of a business year. If you’re bringing a genuinely new product to market, demonstrating something people need to see firsthand or have a clear marketing objective, it can make sense. Showing up with the same product you’ve sold for 20 years and hoping somebody wanders into the booth is another story.

For media, it’s different. Rob still needs to be there because SEMA is an enormous source of content, trends and industry connections.

Rick also makes an interesting comparison to the Hershey swap meet. Both events have changed because so much business now happens online, but there is still something valuable about seeing people in person and maintaining relationships that were built over decades.

What If NPD Didn’t Exist?

Then I threw Rick a question I don’t think I’ve ever asked him before: If National Parts Depot didn’t exist and he could start over anywhere in the automotive business, what would he do? His answer wasn’t another parts company. Rick says he’d probably become a classic and enthusiast car dealer, traveling to auctions, buying cars, selling cars and putting everything he’s learned about restoration quality to work. He knows how to spot reproduction parts, questionable restorations and the difference between a car that looks great under showroom lights and one that is actually right. He also understands the business side of it. You make your money when you buy the car, and Rick remembers his father telling him that some rough project cars could produce dramatically better margins than expensive, highly restored cars. The market for a high-dollar car is simply much smaller.

Rick on Cars: Make Some Halloween Cash

We are looking to make some fast cash to throw a Halloween bash! Which one of these three affordable cars could we buy, fix up, and sell quickly for a nice tidy profit this month? The price limit on purchase is $10K!

2001 Ford Mustang GT Bullitt

Here is an eBay 2001 Mustang GT Bullitt with a five-speed, 134,000 miles and a $6,500 asking price. It needs paint and interior work, but Rick sees potential in the New Edge Mustang and likes the fact that it could be driven while being cleaned up.

1988 Chevrolet K2500 4×4

Next was a very clean 6.2-liter diesel K2500 asking $9,800 with only 69,000 miles. Rick knows the old GM diesels have their weak points, particularly the injection pumps, but he also sees something important for a quick flip: this truck has a much broader potential buyer pool than a collector car.

1988 Chevrolet CK Pickup 2500 Silverado 2500 4×4

1967 Ford Mustang Coupe

The third choice was a ’67 Mustang coupe on Bring a Trailer, with bidding at $7,600 when we recorded. Rick liked its white interior, classic styling and old-school wheels, but he suspected the auction would consume the opportunity for a quick resale profit.

Auction update: The Mustang ultimately sold for $20,000—double our purchase budget! That reinforces Rick’s point: an attractive bid with several hours remaining isn’t the same as an achievable purchase price.

So Rick picked the K2500. His reasoning was simple: buy it right, detail it, make sure it’s mechanically ready and then sell it to a much broader market than just collectors.

Rick on Cars: Think Ahead to Next Halloween

Then we changed the rules. This time Rick gets a full year, the budget disappears, and every car has to be black.

1957 Chevrolet Corvette

The first candidate was a black ’57 Corvette with a dual-quad 283. It has the iconic styling, but Rick’s experience with C1 Corvettes makes him cautious. While selling his late uncle’s award-winning fuel-injected ’57, he brought in experts and discovered that the car wasn’t authentic as represented. That experience reinforced how important expert verification can be when buying a valuable Corvette.

Rick also prefers the driving experience of the later C2 generation. For this challenge, the question isn’t simply whether the Corvette is collectible—it’s whether he would enjoy owning it and still have room to make a profit.

1941 Lincoln Zephyr Coupe

Then came a 1941 Lincoln Zephyr three-window coupe with its original V12 and an asking price of $90,000. Rick already owns a ’40 three-window Zephyr and likes the design, the rarity and the fact that this is a car he could actually drive and enjoy while waiting for the right buyer.

1987 Buick GNX

Finally, we looked at a 30-mile 1987 Buick GNX, already sitting at $265,000 with a day left in the auction. Rick has one too, and his own experience gives him a fascinating perspective on the car’s condition. He points out that some of the early GNXs developed surface corrosion underneath because of how they were stored and moved during production. The GNX might be incredibly desirable, but tying up that kind of money for a year while barely being able to drive the car isn’t particularly appealing to Rick. He believes he could actually enjoy the Zephyr, make some improvements, and still have a chance to recover his money and make a profit when it comes time to sell.

Auction update: The 30-mile GNX ultimately sold for an incredible $427,000! Rick expected bidding to climb past $300,000 and possibly $350,000, but the final result exceeded even those expectations. That adds another layer to his decision: the GNX clearly attracted serious collector demand, but buying it at that price and reselling it for a profit a year later would be a very different challenge.

And Then There’s the Halloween Wild Card

Rick got one final car, but it technically didn’t qualify because it wasn’t black.

1976 Cadillac Fleetwood Castilian Wagon

A wildly unusual custom wagon listed at $25,000. Rick says only 11 were made, and the combination of rarity, space and unmistakable 1970s Cadillac styling makes it exactly the kind of strange collector car that could get attention. When I asked whether he’d take it over the Lincoln if it were eligible, Rick didn’t hesitate for long. He said yes. The reason? He could actually drive it, take people with him and enjoy it. And because it was sitting on eBay rather than in one of the more obvious collector-car marketplaces, Rick saw the possibility of a sleeper.

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