Are Firebird bowling ball caps a desireable item, In other words, do people pay for those things and how much?

 

Very open ended question. Sure they are desireable to someone who wants them. I see them on ebay every once in a while. Don't think they are that popular. Are you wanting to sell some?

 

No, but I saw a set at a junkyard...Soooooo, The minds always clicking. I'll sign on to Ebay and see if anybody's bidding.

 

Actually there a hot item with the KITT people, there always looking for a set... Get the rims too...

There was 2 versions, a 14" and a 15", the 15" are more desirable, obviously...

Like anything, they are worth what anyone is willing to pay, I would not give you $25 for them...

John

 

Thats a hard question to answer. The Knight Rider geeks will pay just about anything. I could see getting $150-$400 from one of those wannabes.

In the real world, as far as junkyards, swapmeets, hub caps dealers, most prices I see are around $5-$20 per cap. I did see one hubcap dealer that wanted $75 per cap but I'm sure they saw what the KR guys were paying and raised their prices.

 

Well then, *** bless the Knight Rider Geeks...If they got money burning a hole in their pocket....

 

I'm still keeping my eye out for the 15's with the caps. I'll even piece them together if I have too....if anyone has some or knows someone who wants to get rid of them for a good deal let me know. Not a lot of junkyards have any early 3rd gens around here.

 

Theres a guy that sells sets of 15" Knightrider "bowling ball" wheels and cap sets for $1500!! on E-Bay
His 14" sets are a LOT cheaper if I recall
I dont know his name or anything...the price always catches my attention when I'm on there searching
Please dont flame me...I'm just passing on what info I have...I find find stuff like this interesting
Later
Steve

 

Yah, I've seen them on Ebay for about that much. I'd never pay that much, and if anyone else does, I hate to say it, but they are stupid. it's not worth it, and it never will be worth it. Their HUBCAPS! I don't know who thinks up these prices and thinks they are worth that much...what makes them so "valuable"???? I wouldn't spend more than $25 a piece.

 

"Who thinks up these prices?"

The buyers do. If you watch some auctions, you'll see people bidding on things for unrealistic prices. That's how sellers know what to sell items for. If you want to see things sell for unrealistic prices, watch Barrett-Jackson Auction later this month on Speed. The people with the $$ are the ones setting the prices.

 

On a knight rider conversion, you NEED these hubcaps to finish the car. They are as important to the look as the nose, wheels make for about 1/3 of a cars look, so that's why people bid them up.

Put on regular 15 inch formula wheels, and you havent got a knightrider conversion, you have a firebird with a different Nose.

 

Good call... However I guess you could paint the 16" Formula Rims Black with a polished alum ring and it will look close, but its not the whole enchelada...

The reason for the over priced wheels and hubcaps... Demand... There are things we need and things we want, those things we want usually sell for much more... Seems backwards, but its the human experience.

John

 

Yah, well, I also NEED the hubcaps to complete my restoration. To me they are more important to my TA than a "KITT" conversion. And if they are so needed why do people try to use Daytona wheels or Recaro seats?

Also for the earlier post...do you see any 3rd gens on the Barrett-Jackson autions?? No, and you probably wont for a LONG time. And it's only the VERY rare or special cars that get alot of money from them, I'm sure you wont ever see a KITT conversion either unless it was a vehicle actually used in the show, and even that is pushing it. . Also, a Knight Rider conversion IS a firebird with a different nose.

I don't think they buyers make up the prices, it's the sellers. If some idiot buys something for a certain price it doesn't mean it's worth it or that other people will buy it. I don't get the facination with Knight Rider and why it makes these parts worth so much more. At this rate pretty much all of the remaining '82 TA's should all be KITT's by now right?? Everyone that has an '82 want's to make it a KITT or at least that is what the sellers of parts think.

 

There is a difference between the average stock 82 TA restorer and the Knight converter, namely how much money they spend on their car.

Have you seen the prices for those Knight specific parts? It makes the price on bowlingball hubcaps look like peanuts, it's like $10 000 just for the dash and electronics, and thats just the beginning. After thst you'd need steering wheel, pods, various interior pices and so on. And of course the exterior has to paid for as well.

THey make glassfiber replica's of the hubcaps which are not cheap, and it's not the sellers that dictate the price, it's the demand, as it's always been.

 

Let me tell you guys this,15" N89 turbo cast rims "Knight rider rims" were only made until may of 83.I have a # from a credible source that only est 130,000 15" wheels TOTAL were made PERIOD.So the short production and the fact that the bowling Ball caps fell off in the 80's when the cars where still relatively new and all was left was the naked rim,Made the rims ugly and unwanted.You guys don't even know how many people I have talked to have told me they threw out "those" wheels along time ago.So that explains why they are very expensive.Don't just blame the knight rider people for the prices.My 2 cents

 

I can still remember throwing a set away

 

Knight rider is the only thing to blame for the high prices. That, and the a**holes that sell them for those high prices. lets just say there were 150,000 wheels made. Divide that by 4 and you get 37,500 cars with those wheels. Thats a lot. So, why the high prices?? Come on KR geeks...explain that one. Ha, Knight Rider

 

I can still remember almost throwing up the last time I saw a KR replica. LOL!!!!

 

If there where so many of those wheels around, why aren't they for sale all the time? I'm not into making a Knight conversion, but I do like those wheels and caps and would like to have them, but there are very few left of them.

So it's the seller's who are *******s? What about all those guy's who threw them away? They are just as big asses to me, cause they are the ones that is responisble no one are left. But of course, you say there's lot's left... Show me, show me where there are lots left of those hubcaps for a reasonable price.

 

High prices don't necessarily indicate high demand. In the case of Knight Rider stuff, its LOW demand! These parts aren't exactly flying out of all the KITT conversion companies. They are lucky to sell maybe a couple KITT turn keys car a year and maybe a few parts a week. If they were selling 10,000 KITT fiberglass nose pieces a year they would be $150.

130,000 N89 rims is a $hit load! On my '71 T/A there were only 2,116 Trans Ams made that year with the KN code 15x7 rim. Only about 5-10,000 455 HO single booster carbs used that year between Formula/TA/GTO. That makes it rare. Not 130,000 .....

In all reality, the ONLY people that are paying high prices for 82 T/A parts is the Knight Rider people. When you are paying $7,000 for a KITT dash and you find a set of rims for $1000, it sounds like a good price.

 

I agree that the Knight Rider people are the ones paying the high prices, but obviously the sellers are taking advantage of them. Check out this site I found about searching the junkyard
to find knight rider parts.

Rims: At least $30 each
bullet Hubcaps for rims: not more than $10 each
bullet Complete center console with shifter **** $50
bullet PMD seats: at least $30
bullet Back seats in good condition, no rips $50
bullet Complete interior: carpet, door panels, plastic trim, consoles: $100
bullet Stock front bumper $75 - $125 in great shape
bullet Rear Bumper $65
bullet Tail Lights, three piece set: not more than $30
bullet Correct hood: not dented $75 - $150

Now considering that the junkyard is the only place to find the parts, unless someone is parting out a car, what makes these parts jump up from about $120 for a set of wheels to $1,000 plus for a set? A set of caps for $40? I've seen them go for hundreds. Obviously this guy knows that these prices are more realistic.

 

Why dont you learn to read? Im not the one who said there were so many of the wheels made. If you would read up a couple of posts youll see that "3rdgenparts" is the one who said it.

 

What are this and what do they look like? I know dump question, but I have no clue

later and

GB

rick

 

I think I remember someone saying his bowling ball caps were stolen, and he thought it was because they were worth a lot...

 

Bowling ***** in all their glory. If you have a dog they are great for going to the park. You don't need to bring a frisbee, just pop off one of the hub caps.

 

I didn't say you where the one that said that either. You'd see that if you read it carefully. It was a responce to the topic in general, but the first part was a responce to your. Bah, starting to get confused here...

 

The math of 150,000 hubcaps made divided by four equaling 37,500 cars outfitted with those particular caps is probably not accurate. Many of those caps were held in reserve for parts.

 

The guy who said 150,000 was just making a guess .After I said the # was around 130,000

The correct # is more around 130k 15" N89 wheels.

 

I remember driving around the Los Angeles Fwy system back in '82-'84, and I remember seeing tons of these hubcaps laying on the side of the road!
For some reason they didn't seem to stay on too good!
I guess the fix was putting on tape to built it up so it fit tight onto the wheel.
I think this may have been why they were unpopular.

My take,

George

 

I've read about people using zip-ties to hold them on permanently

 

I guess that would be fine until you got a flat

John

 

theres a bird down the street from me thats parked in front of a tow company and has been in that same spot for almost 2 years now,its really dirty and looks like it might be getting a 1 way ticket to the j/yard soon,anyways,its got the 15 turbs with 4 of the black caps still on.I asked the dude one day if he would sell the rims,he said no and was a real dick.My friends keep telling me to go late one night and pull a jack move on the caps.But im not a thief but then again the guy was a dick and im affraid that the only one that will benefit from those caps is the crusher at the yard...................

 

A set *just* sold for over $200, and they were sorta beat. No wheels either, just the caps.

 

Haha, it's not your fault if your friend takes them lol, but if they end up on your car... that doesn't work.

 

hey...those are some nice wheels up there.
Anybody interested?

Check this out 82 wheels

Starting price=a mere $1800
not worth it in my opinion despite the 2000 miles detail

When i sell my set, the starting price wont be half that

 

If you plan on ebaying those suckers you better start the auction real low.All in one box those N89 wheels and caps weigh over 70 lbs.You living in Hawaii the shipping cost will be

 

Not with FexEx Ground. Its still flown over to the "mainland" and then trucked to where it has to be. Four rims from Hawaii to the east coast will be well under $100.

 

Yah, I saw those on Ebay also. Nice looking wheels, but they are definately not worth the price he's starting it at. You can easily get a "used" set and refinish them to just as new condition. I've seen it done and it's not hard if you put the time into it.

 

Ive seen 82-84 T/a sell for that much with the rims and caps!

 

I actually bought my 82 for that much (plus 200)

 

i just checked on those N89 Turbo cast wheels. They sold for $1,825. Not bad for a set of 15x7's At least i know there is definately a market for 15x7's...
turbo cast wheels auction

 

THAT is insane!!! I would think that someone would make a recreation for that much money...

John

 

people are idiots.

 

Anybody want to inform the bidder that he payed about $1,700 too much?

 

that would be wrong... Funny, but wrong...

John

 

I just did...let see if he responds

 

I may be able to copy one... Here where I work we have the technology to copy things like that... I would not know if it would be a success or not unless I try...

Any one have just one really nice one they would part with??? that I could copy?

John

 

That would be sweet. How much would it cost to do it though...expensive??

 

There are a couple people out there making fiberglass hubcaps for these rims. These are supposed to stay onto the rim better than the stock ones.

http://www.knightsofengland.fsnet.co.uk/

This place sells them under the "products" tab and under the "rims/hubs" link. They sell for £125.00 per set of four out of the mold (which equates to $233.21) or black-gel coated for £50 a piece ($93.28) according to www.xe.com

http://www.adiautotech.com/

This site sells them under the "conversion accessories" link. These sell for $85 a piece and come black-gel coated.

Has anyone out there ever bought these hubs?

 

Don't bother john.I have already investigated this and talked with gm it wouldn't be worth the hassle and cost.At least not yet.