“Rare” today can mean not so rare tomorrow, in my experience. Over the 9 years or so that I have been in this hobby items once rare and impossible to find come up and then come up again and again, then disappear again, almost like waves.
The thrill of the hunt is definitely more fun than those caught after a while, the shine fades as the trill dies off a bit, but it sure can be exciting to find that long sought after car or engine.
I might suggest spending some time looking at the hundreds / thousands of photos and making a list of cars that appeal to you, or that you find exciting, the ones you see often are most likely less rare whereas those seldom seem are most likely rarer.
On all questions of value, just skip it over, this is a hobby and like any hobby there is a cost which cannot be recovered. Ever try to sell an older used boat for what you paid for it, how about a used pool table, or classic car you restored, there is nearly always a loss, sometimes big sometime small, but plan of playing to have played with anything. There are exceptions, but I have found them few and far between, especially in this hobby.
