Prices...

[Skyedriver]

Over the last few months I've thought prices generally were dropping, asking prices not being met etc. Certainly the case with TVR.
Not today though, watching the auction at Mathewson and a few at CCA. After the first few, only sold provisionally at Matheson the rest seemed to be hitting the mark or higher. Imp, Wolseley Hornet, Mini etc getting good prices, Jag XJ, XJS, not so, though. Automobilia selling really well, way over estimate.

[4rephill]

Skyedriver said:

Over the last few months I've thought prices generally were dropping, asking prices not being met etc. Certainly the case with TVR.
Not today though, watching the auction at Mathewson and a few at CCA. After the first few, only sold provisionally at Matheson the rest seemed to be hitting the mark or higher. Imp, Wolseley Hornet, Mini etc getting good prices, Jag XJ, XJS, not so, though. Automobilia selling really well, way over estimate.

As Aristotle said: "One swallow makes no summer, nor does one day!".

You can't base a trend on one sale.

The full impact of COVID 19 on the economy is still to be felt, along with job losses, and the impact of Brexit has not been felt yet - There's a lot of economic uncertainty still to come, that could have a negative impact on the classic car market.

[Skyedriver]

4rephill said:

As Aristotle said: "One swallow makes no summer, nor does one day!".

You can't base a trend on one sale.

The full impact of COVID 19 on the economy is still to be felt, along with job losses, and the impact of Brexit has not been felt yet - There's a lot of economic uncertainty still to come, that could have a negative impact on the classic car market.

Agree but I'm interested in buying another car and am watching many makes/models rising in asking price by the week and some are making a sale...

Certainly at the moment I cannot legally travel to view anything.
Importing from abroad could become problematic in a few weeks although buying something at a lot of money (to me) without seeing it whether in he UK or abroad

I do wonder if CV19 and redundancies bring about a price drop or with bank rates still at all time lows will people continue to "invest" in older cars.

[Ozzer2006]

I will be looking to buy a new (classic) I thought most of the cars at Mathewson's had softened a bit. I think that they will drop a bit more for some but the modern classics seem to fetch strong money.

[restoman]

Seems to me that most of the prices being asked for by private sellers and dealers are in cloud cuckoo land.

[Skyedriver]

Can't understand (maybe I can) why an XJS or one of the number of XJ whatever saloons fetch very little yet the bubble car goes for about £12k.
I'm in no rush to buy but often think I've missed out as (asking) prices rise by about a grand a month on some models.
What I'm finding in private sales is the "want £xx and not bothered if I don't sell it" and the "it stands me £xx so I won't accept less than that". The second of those comments came from someone who wanted the car sold before Christmas.

Genuine auction is the only way to value something close to accurately and even then it depends upon location of the auction, the day, the weather and if folk can actually get to view something what with CV19 etc.

[restoman]

Skyedriver said:

Can't understand (maybe I can) why an XJS or one of the number of XJ whatever saloons fetch very little yet the bubble car goes for about £12k.
I'm in no rush to buy but often think I've missed out as (asking) prices rise by about a grand a month on some models.
What I'm finding in private sales is the "want £xx and not bothered if I don't sell it" and the "it stands me £xx so I won't accept less than that". The second of those comments came from someone who wanted the car sold before Christmas.

Genuine auction is the only way to value something close to accurately and even then it depends upon location of the auction, the day, the weather and if folk can actually get to view something what with CV19 etc.

I suspect all the exposure on TV has attracted more bidders to Mathewsons and driven up prices.

[Ozzer2006]

I wonder if the useable stuff will continue to increase and the not so useable will not. Cars from the 30s and 40s seem reasonable where as the more modern stuff is silly money. Especially if it has a ford badge on the front.

[markbigears]

As you say, automobila has sky rocketed of late, especially enamel signs.

[sixor8]

I'm not sure why you think you can't legally go to view anything, of course you can. All traders and shops are open, as long as you take precautions regarding a mask, distancing etc. Private sales / viewings are perfectly 'legal' as long as you meet outside, even in tier 3.

I had an appointment for a 1 hour viewing for some of the cars in the last classics auction at Brightwells last week.

[shed driver]

I'll be watching this with interest - I'm looking for my first classic as my retirement present. I'm on track to retire in June next year and looking at P5B coupes or saloons. Hopefully prices won't shoot up out of reach.

SD.

[P5BNij]

shed driver said:

I'll be watching this with interest - I'm looking for my first classic as my retirement present. I'm on track to retire in June next year and looking at P5B coupes or saloons. Hopefully prices won't shoot up out of reach.

SD.

I don't know what your budget is SD but there a few for sale at the moment hovering around the £20k mark which haven't shifted for most of this year, some of them have been re-advertised several times, so you should be able to get a very decent one for less than this. It might be worth posting a wanted ad on the P5 Club forum as some of these fine cars change hands without being advertised....

https://roverp5.proboards.com/forum

It's often very quiet on there, but it's still worth a punt

Some for sale here....

https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/cat/3/40/p5b/

This one has only recently come on and looks very tempting even at £20k, looks like the details often missing from restored P5Bs are all present and correct, nice colour combo too....

https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C1284220

Edited by P5BNij on Monday 14th December 12:11

[shed driver]

P5BNij said:

I don't know what your budget is SD but there a few for sale at the moment hovering around the £20k mark which haven't shifted for most of this year, some of them have been re-advertised several times, so you should be able to get a very decent one for less than this. It might be worth posting a wanted ad on the P5 Club forum as some of these fine cars change hands without being advertised....

https://roverp5.proboards.com/forum

It's often very quiet on there, but it's still worth a punt

Some for sale here....

https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/cat/3/40/p5b/

This one has only recently come on and looks very tempting even at £20k, looks like the details often missing from restored P5Bs are all present and correct, nice colour combo too....

https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C1284220

That's about my budget, sadly I've got to wait until June to access the lump sum portion of my pension. If I had a spare 20k lying around I'd be wiping drool off most of these already. As it is, I'll have to hope the prices stay pretty stable.

SD.

[P5BNij]

I think P5B prices will be pretty stable for a while so you might be in luck come next June. Best of luck

[Turbobanana]

Ozzer2006 said:

I wonder if the useable stuff will continue to increase and the not so useable will not. Cars from the 30s and 40s seem reasonable where as the more modern stuff is silly money. Especially if it has a ford badge on the front.

I've noticed this. A plan for next year is to sell my long-term Saab Convertible and replace it with something I might use more often (and, frankly, am not bored with). I started looking at cars from the 1930s, expecting them to be out of reach, but there's some really good, usable stuff that seems quite affordable.

[Skyedriver]

sixor8 said:

I'm not sure why you think you can't legally go to view anything, of course you can. All traders and shops are open, as long as you take precautions regarding a mask, distancing etc. Private sales / viewings are perfectly 'legal' as long as you meet outside, even in tier 3.

I had an appointment for a 1 hour viewing for some of the cars in the last classics auction at Brightwells last week.

AS far as I know and I don't follow the news much, Ms Sturgeon, up here is Scotland, has said we shouldn't move from one Tier level to another.....

[Skyedriver]

Turbobanana said:

Ozzer2006 said:

I wonder if the useable stuff will continue to increase and the not so useable will not. Cars from the 30s and 40s seem reasonable where as the more modern stuff is silly money. Especially if it has a ford badge on the front.

I've noticed this. A plan for next year is to sell my long-term Saab Convertible and replace it with something I might use more often (and, frankly, am not bored with). I started looking at cars from the 1930s, expecting them to be out of reach, but there's some really good, usable stuff that seems quite affordable.

It's a very varied market at the moment, Elans have stagnated but the +2 has increased dramatically. Esprit seem level but Excel/Elite range increasing slowly.
Lancia Integrale has just about plateaued the Fulvia is increasing by £2k/month
TVR (most from the 80's onwards) are dropping
The Imp range (Sunbeam/Hillman/Singer) ar increasing at £2k/month
Early Triumph TRs are now plateauing and the TR6 seems to be rising. Good TRs of all models seem on similar money now.

A lot of folk look like they are "cashing in" their classic as "it's not being used". My (biased) theory is that they are seeing another being advertised at a high price and believe they should crystalise their gains.

There was a comment about B&M last week, the white Capri which the guy had stored for 10 years after the death of it's owner. Chap believed it was worth £XXXX as he'd seen others for sale but reality was it needed a lot of repair work. Set a high reserve, never got anywhere near, he took it home and the PH comment on here was it'll go back in the garage for another 10 years and look even worse.
Another Capri the same week - owner said he'd seen that car "selling" (ie advertised) for £19k and expected similar for his. Again didn't reach reserve but he let it go anyway.
Now those B&M TV programmes are at least a year old now so we can't estimate whether prices are still going up in every case but from the ones I look at they are (except TVRs).

[Lotobear]

Skyedriver said:

It's a very varied market at the moment, Elans have stagnated but the +2 has increased dramatically. Esprit seem level but Excel/Elite range increasing slowly.
Lancia Integrale has just about plateaued the Fulvia is increasing by £2k/month
TVR (most from the 80's onwards) are dropping
The Imp range (Sunbeam/Hillman/Singer) ar increasing at £2k/month
Early Triumph TRs are now plateauing and the TR6 seems to be rising. Good TRs of all models seem on similar money now.

A lot of folk look like they are "cashing in" their classic as "it's not being used". My (biased) theory is that they are seeing another being advertised at a high price and believe they should crystalise their gains.

There was a comment about B&M last week, the white Capri which the guy had stored for 10 years after the death of it's owner. Chap believed it was worth £XXXX as he'd seen others for sale but reality was it needed a lot of repair work. Set a high reserve, never got anywhere near, he took it home and the PH comment on here was it'll go back in the garage for another 10 years and look even worse.
Another Capri the same week - owner said he'd seen that car "selling" (ie advertised) for £19k and expected similar for his. Again didn't reach reserve but he let it go anyway.
Now those B&M TV programmes are at least a year old now so we can't estimate whether prices are still going up in every case but from the ones I look at they are (except TVRs).

I've always thought Fulvia's undervalued for what they are - delightful little things with bags of character, the little V4 is a gem. The steering less so.

Not sure of Elan +2's and increasing values - there's a bargain on Ebay just now for £9,750. Prices are all over the place on Plus 2s but with a proper paint job costing at least 10k that's probably explains why. They are superb cars though when well sorted, so much so I've just embarked on another restoration as I miss my last one so much (even my Evora doesn't match the sense of drama or delicacy)

[sixor8]

Skyedriver said:

AS far as I know and I don't follow the news much, Ms Sturgeon, up here is Scotland, has said we shouldn't move from one Tier level to another.....

I wasn't aware you were in Scotland, I'm not fully up on the regulations there. My commiserations.

News just out that London is going into tier 3 now. Whole of Germany is now in the equivalent.

[Yertis]

Skyedriver said:

Early Triumph TRs are now plateauing and the TR6 seems to be rising. Good TRs of all models seem on similar money now.

Just to put this in perspective, a good TR6 is not much more now than a good TR6 was in the early pre-crash 1990s.