The classic car v new car argument, 1980 style.
Discussion
I was sorting out my magazine collection today and I noticed I have a copy of Motor and a copy of “Thoroughbred and classic car” from the same month of 1980.
So, if I was a grown up in 1980 and not a 3 year old, what classic could I buy with my cash? Firstly, in 1980 I could have taken that job selling Datsun in London for £12k a year, and the chance of a Violet 1.6 Coupe as a company car (saving me the £4369 list price) but if I worked elsewhere and needed a car, what could I buy?
If not the Datsun, then the Alfasud? the 1.5Ti is £4300, a better bet then the Datsun, and £200 cheaper then a Capri. But if I were to roll the dice with the Alfasud, how about an Iso Rivolta 340GT for £4500 in excellent condition. Certainly more of a seductress then the Renault 18 advertised as such, but the Renault 5 really is thrifty and nifty at £3349.
Further up the executive ladder, what next? Certainly not a Lancia. They are buying back Betas due to rust. A Rover SD1 with the 2.6l engine for £6200 and a 12 month warranty. Maybe something a bit flash and foreign? A Merc 200 is £8394, Audi 100L 5S is £6690 and a Volvo 244DL is £6274.
BL??…er…sorry AustinMorris. Well, they have lowered the price of the Marina by 10% but £3466 for the 1.7 4 door is still not tempting me, not when they think there is a replacement model designed by Ital in the near future. Maybe next time, and it’s sure nice to know there are 1,900 dealers in the UK (!!!) to choose from
But hey. I’m a young exec and the really good metal starts at £10k: BMW 528i is £10,115, Saab 900 Turbo and V8 SD1 for about £10k. The 735 is a bit much at £15,395 when a Ferrari 308GT4 starts at £17,534. BMW 635 CSi at £18,740, slightly under the XJS
The Range Rover is nice at £12,396 which is cheaper then the cheapest Lotus at £13,623 for the Eclat 920: more than the Porsche 924 lux at £9103. And the 911 Targa is £16k. The cheapest Royce is £39k, Aston starts at £30k, yet you can buy a 2 year old V8 which won’t have the walnut interior for £16,500. An 8 year old V8 with the outdated fuel injection system for £6000. The sort of Merc driven by the most recent British F1 champion, the Merc 450 SEL 6.9 is £30,476. Huge money.
And what about the classics? Dozens of TR 4,5,6 etc for under £2k. A 62 E type is £4500, a 68 E type 1 owner with 48k miles for £3500. Gosh, if I can afford the 635CSi then I can afford the 1959 Merc 300SL roadster from 1959. All bills and service records present, naturally.
Racing cars could be fun: an ex Alan Jones (he’s in F1 at the moment…) E-type with lap records to its name is £9k, Chevron B8 for £7k and a Datsun 260Z for £3k. But a DB4 drophead is under £10k too. Mind you, there are two BMW 3.0 CSL for half that price. A “batmobile” and new Alfasud for the price of a 528i...
Aston DB4,5 or 6 can be had for anywhere from £5k to £10k, but the Saab 900 Turbo will be quicker in the real world surely?
Very few Ferraris for sale at the moment. A few Dinos for £7250, but they are a few years old now and Ferrari don’t make a V6 anymore. Better stick with a V12: a Daytona is £7500. A Scirocco Storm with automatic gearbox is more.
Wacky Racer said:
Invoice for one of my Ford Capris...the prices make interesting reading...(1978)
Love the price for a full tank of fuel 
In Sept 1980, I went to look at a '68 Mk2 998 Cooper, Snowberry White with Black roof as a first car, was up for sale at £495.
Insurance was just a bit much for me though at 17, was only 100 quid less than the cost of the car per year, and having only just started work on 35 quid a week it was a no-no
ReaderScars said:
Wacky Racer said:
Invoice for one of my Ford Capris...the prices make interesting reading...(1978)
Done a quick adjustment of your image as the original film/paper was a bit shifted toward the red end of the colour spectrum:
williamp said:
A BMW 635 CSi at £18,740.... if I can afford the 635CSi then I can afford the 1959 Merc 300SL roadster from 1959.
That would have been quite the investment.https://www.classic-trader.com/uk/cars/search/merc...
Lowtimer said:
Depends which index you like. More like £4 on RPI. Possibly more on average earnings, which were around £6K then. Makes me realise how lucky I was in my first job.
I do remember a pint of Sam Smiths Old Brewery Bitter being 38p that year.
Exhibition beer (Geordie land) would have been about 30p a pint in 1980. £1.34 for a pint of Sam Smiths mild a few weeks ago, I made my excuses.I do remember a pint of Sam Smiths Old Brewery Bitter being 38p that year.
Gassing Station | Classic Cars and Yesterday's Heroes | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff