Pawn Stars is the most successful reality show that History Channel has ever produced and broke all sorts of TV records in the process. It spawned short-lived offshoots (Cajun Pawn Stars) and longer-lasting spin-offs (Counting Cars, American Restoration), and made the Harrison family both famous and wealthy. Thanks to the show, Gold & Silver Pawn Shop in Las Vegas went from having 80 customers a day to over 1,000, with a line around the block at all times. Rick Harrison and his son, Corey, even stopped working regularly at the pawn shop because it’s became so crowded. But when a big potential buy arrived, you can guarantee they’ll be front and center of the cameras, eager to haggle. The show continued with the notable absence of the Old Man, after his unfortunate passing.

Updated January 2022: If you're a fan of Pawn Stars, you'll be happy to know that we've updated this article with even more info about some of the best and worst car purchases the Harrison family ever did on the show.

Cars tend to be dubious prospects to pawn because you can never be sure what can go wrong with them, if the parts are original, or if the estimated value of a car is what you’ll actually get at auction. There are many times when Rick bought one of these big-ticket items that he quickly learned the restoration costs involved and found himself in a hole. Actually, more often than not, it seemed like buying cars isn’t the best purchase a pawn shop can make. But people love cars. And people love Pawn Stars. So every once in a while, Rick will make a big buy and sale that will negate the losses he might’ve made in the past.

11 Big Loss: 1964 Austin-Healey Sprite BRG

via James Edition

The Austin-Healey Sprite BRG was such a popular car in its day that it even has a forum dedicated to it. Another cool little car from the UK, this Austin-Healey Sprite BRG looked beautiful when it showed up to the shop, but the engine wouldn’t start. The owner said it must have been a dead battery and Rick agreed (big mistake). The owner wanted $10,000 for the car but settled for $5,000. When Rick took it to his mechanic, he found out that he was looking at $6,000 in repairs, making this car cost more than he could sell it for, as many of these cars were selling for less than $10,000 at the time.

Related: Lost Marques: A Look Back At The Austin Healey Frogeye Sprite

10 Best Buy: 1967 Shelby GT350

via YouTube/Celebrity Cars

The Shelby GT350 is a legendary car, there’s no doubt about it. When it came into the Pawn Stars shop, Rick and the gang knew they had to have it. And they spent a pretty penny to get it. They spent $100,000 in fact, which seemed like a lot. It took a while to get rid of but didn’t need any fix-ups, and ended up selling on eBay for $133,000, which was just $1,900 less than the original price on the auction website. It only had 62,000 miles on the clock, was completely original with its 289 K Code Hi-Performance V8 engine and four-speed transmission, and was a good buy and sell for the Pawn Stars.

9 Big Loss: 1940s Indian Motorcycle

via Julien's Live

We aren’t sure how much Rick Harrison spent, originally, on this 1940s Indian motorcycle, which is a classic by all accounts, but we do know how much he lost on the bike. It was part of his world-class loss at an auction in which he was trying to turn a quick profit but ended up taking a big hit. Such is the nature of his business. He took this Indian with a sidecar, a Vic Flick-owned Stratocaster guitar, and some other items, and took them to Julien’s Auctions in LA. He told the Indy Channel that he ended up losing $100,000 that day: $29,000 on the motorcycle, $35,000 on the guitar, and various other losses. Ouch.

8 Best Buy: 1951 Chevrolet Styleline Deluxe

via Parade

This beautiful, Sunflower Yellow 1951 Chevrolet Styleline Deluxe was once owned by Steve McQueen. Giving it celebrity provenance boosts the value, of course, and it ended up fetching a price far above average at an auction event in 2013. It was used on screen in McQueen’s last film, The Hunter, and was bought by Rick Harrison for $37,000. It was price-valued somewhere between $50,000 and $60,000, which would already be a good profit for Rick, but he ended up selling it at the auction for $88,000, thanks to the previous celebrity owner of the car. It still sported its original 92-hp, 216.5ci Stovebolt six-cylinder engine and column-shifted three-speed transmission and had been restored about 10 years earlier.

7 Big Loss: 1957 Chevrolet 150

via Barn Finds

While this late-50s Chevy looks awesome and has tons of history, it was an absolute horrible buy for the Pawn Stars group. This black 150 was at the center of a series of crossover shows on Pawn Stars: it was originally found and bought by the crew on American Pickers for $6,500. It was then sold to the Pawn Stars group for a small profit, then featured on American Restoration, where they paid a surprising $70,000 to restore it! The icing on the cake was that it was then gifted to the Old Man. In all, the Rick and his group were out almost $80,000, and to make matters worse, that $70,000 restoration didn’t include fireproofing, which was evident when the car later lit up!

Related: The Real Story Behind American Restoration

6 Best Buy: 2018 Dodge Demon

via The Blast

This one was an impulse buy from Corey Harrison, Rick’s son, and it actually didn’t take place at the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop at all. No, this car was put in a raffle at the Golden Gate and D Casino Hotel in Las Vegas, which Corey attended. He didn’t win the raffle but knew he wasn’t walking away without the car. A crowd formed around the winner and Corey Harrison, who had walked up to haggle with the man after he won it. Corey ended up getting it for $80,000. The fastest Dodge ever made, with 707 horsepower and a 2.3-second 0-60 mile per hour sprint time, this car is easily worth about $150-180,000 now, so even though it was an impulse buy, it wasn’t a bad one.

5 Big Loss: DeLorean DMC-12

via Autoblog

Who wouldn’t want to own a Back to the Future car? This is another iconic car that gearheads simply love because of the history, not because it was a great car (and it wasn’t—it was slow and lethargic and cost too much). But it had sentimental value for the Pawn Stars boys, which was the first rule of business they broke: buying based on emotion. Rick bought the car for $24,000 from the owner and despite it being a head-turner, that’s simply too much if you hope to sell this dud on four wheels for a profit. Back then, DMC-12s were listed online for $17,500 to $22,000, but if he'd waited until today, these days they sell from $35,000 to $100,000.

4 Best Buy: 1965 Shelby Cobra CSX4000

via Hemmings

There was a lot of dubious speculation when this beautiful 1965 Shelby Cobra came into the shop—and for good reason. Many original Cobras sell for seven figures at auctions these days, so why should this one be any different? Well, because it’s a CSX4000 model, which means it’s an original Cobra but not one of the OG originals. Also, it wasn’t the whole car: it had an unfinished aluminum body, without the powertrain, brakes, or interior. It was a CSX designation with no serial number on it. The questions started to mount but Rick got it for just $37,000. And even after getting it restored, he managed to sell it for $130,000, meaning he definitely made a nice profit.

3 Big Loss: 1932 Ford Model B Roadster

via Hemmings

Rick found this classic icon with his son, Corey. It was a hot rod designed by Henry Ford himself, with 500 horsepower, a folding convertible top, and roll-up windows. The only problem was the owner was asking $105,000 for it. Rick’s experts put the value between $70,000 and $75,000 and they finally whittled the price down to $68,250 (not a great buy, even at that valuation). However, afterward, other experts said the car, which was a hot-rod mod of the original, would probably only be worth about $50,000 in its current condition, which meant they’d need to spend money on getting it worked on and even then wouldn’t be guaranteed a profit.

Related: 10 Things You Didn't Know Were Fake About Counting Cars

2 Best Buy: 1932 Lincoln Roadster

via RM Sotheby's

This one has a pretty unique history in the Pawn Stars almanac, not because of the price or profit gained, but because of the way it was bought. During the episode where this car sold, Rick made the owner a special offer: this 1932 Lincoln Roadster was actually swapped for $95,000 worth of gold bullion! The owner obviously walked away happy because that gold is probably worth more than the cash. And Rick walked away happy because he could sell this thing for $120,000 to $130,000 as it was, or up to $170,000 restored. It ended up being a memorable moment for the show and everyone walked away a winner.

1 Big Loss: 1968 Ford Mustang GT

via Flickr

There’s no doubt that the Pawn Stars team has it in for Mustangs: they tend to buy them all the time, especially older models, because they’re popular, legendary, and usually fetch a good price. But that was not the case for this 1968 Mustang GT. It was ugly and rusty when it came in and Danny Koker estimated its current worth between $12,000 and $15,000, without any repairs. Rick got the car for $12,500 (already eating into his expected profits), and to make matters worse (and Koker probably knew this), the repair costs were exorbitant, making it very difficult for Rick and his family to make a profit on it.

Sources: Coin Talk, Automobile Magazine, Hemmings, and Vegas News.