Whats a Chimaera worth in pieces?
Discussion
Lets say you have an early Chimera (93) and its sitting pretty with 73k on the clock and 12months test. What would be the value of the car if you broke it? Basically ive just placed a deposit on a chimera but it does hold a Cat C write off against it in the past. Ive driven the car and it drove very well and ive had it on the ramps and given it a good going over and cant see any damage or poor repair work. But I understand people shy away from Cat C's and come the time when I resell it, breaking it maybe the only option I have open to me to facilitate a sale. So put my mind at rest (or indeed make me fear the purchase of this thing) and give me some idea of second hand prices on say, interior, body, engine, running gear etc.
Err, no. I'll spell it out.
You haven't even bought the Chimaera yet and your first post on the TVR forum is to ask how much it is worth if you broke up a roadworthy car when you've finished with it.
You shouldn't buy it.
Look up the word filicide and you'll maybe get close to understanding what you've asked.
You haven't even bought the Chimaera yet and your first post on the TVR forum is to ask how much it is worth if you broke up a roadworthy car when you've finished with it.
You shouldn't buy it.
Look up the word filicide and you'll maybe get close to understanding what you've asked.
A parent killing their own offspring is what i think your getting at... I would argue that matter cant be destroyed though, and as such from "death" (if you could ever argue that a car is living in the first place) breeds new life...
As for the 1st post business, everyone starts somewhere. Im not implying that I will break the car, hell its not in my nature or indeed within my hetic schedule to start pulling cars apart, even ones ive not yet collected yet. Its just a question of damage limitation. If theyre worth the best part of naff all broken in pieces then maybe and just maybe i should re-evaluate the purchase of a cat class car that will, it stands to reason be harder to sell on, whenever that time arises.
As for the 1st post business, everyone starts somewhere. Im not implying that I will break the car, hell its not in my nature or indeed within my hetic schedule to start pulling cars apart, even ones ive not yet collected yet. Its just a question of damage limitation. If theyre worth the best part of naff all broken in pieces then maybe and just maybe i should re-evaluate the purchase of a cat class car that will, it stands to reason be harder to sell on, whenever that time arises.
Surely it all comes down to price ?
You've (nearly) bought it, presumeably at a price that takes into account the cat C, so why shouldn't someone else in the future buy it from you if price is right ?
Bit like FSH, some wouldn't touch a car without it, others may take the gamble again if price is right. After all full service is good but doesn't gaurantee the engine won't go "bang" !
I would think long and hard before breaking a car that is basically complete/running. Some bits may sell quick and easy but could take a long time to find buyers for many of the bits ? The main body tub for example has a value to someone who's just made friends with a tree but that person may not come along for a long time ?
I get the feeling from reading Forums like this that most people want nice new bits or even upgrades when mechanical items fail, not cheap second hand just to get car back on the road ?
If you're happy with the car and price you've agreed, buy it and enjoy !
@ TVR moneypit, that all sounds quite tempting! Price? Link? Fancy a Cat C in part ex? :-P
Im sure me coming on here making posts about breaking an overwise quite nice example will naturally put peoples backs up. Ive been on forums long enough to know that its never a topic people want to read about.
I should maybe have started with saying, that personally I dont care about history, mileage, Cat C / D, etc. If the car is structually ok, and a nice car or could be restored to a nice example then what the hell. I appriciate this is a personal point of view, and its not to everyones ideal. As such it will always be a limited resell field. And however much I like the car , lets face it, there will inevitably be a day I decide to sell it. But you buy cheap, you sell cheap. Thats accepted. So maybe, the more accurate question should be whats the lowest price anyones seen a Chimera with 12months MOT sell for. Which Im guessing will also just happen to be a high mileage early model with a Cat history...
All this stems from reading an older post on this forum, which just so happens to feature my new car. It was mentioned by a member, that there was good reason not to go there. (Maybe my new car is known on here for not so good reasons, or maybe its just that its a generic Cat C example) Well given I have gone there, im a bit worried that ive missed something out... Up to this point, I was really very excited about collecting the car, but now ive a worry that ive missed something.
I dont want to mess the seller about, and I loved the car, however if I have overlooked something, then what the hell do I do when I get it home and discover it has all the lines of a banana and the repaired fibreglass develops cracks and drops off 3 months down the line. Worse case scenario Id have to sell it in this state for a low premium, or break it for spares. Which really was what i was trying to get at. Its not something I envisage or would want to do, but its a worse case scenario if all this turns sour.
Basically if it all goes wrong, what sort of money are we talking about clawing back from breaking. And yes, valid point that some parts will hold different values to different people and obviously some parts may have a very limited audience.
Does anyone have a guide price for say a rolling chassis, or a complete engine & gearbox for instance?
Im sure me coming on here making posts about breaking an overwise quite nice example will naturally put peoples backs up. Ive been on forums long enough to know that its never a topic people want to read about.
I should maybe have started with saying, that personally I dont care about history, mileage, Cat C / D, etc. If the car is structually ok, and a nice car or could be restored to a nice example then what the hell. I appriciate this is a personal point of view, and its not to everyones ideal. As such it will always be a limited resell field. And however much I like the car , lets face it, there will inevitably be a day I decide to sell it. But you buy cheap, you sell cheap. Thats accepted. So maybe, the more accurate question should be whats the lowest price anyones seen a Chimera with 12months MOT sell for. Which Im guessing will also just happen to be a high mileage early model with a Cat history...
All this stems from reading an older post on this forum, which just so happens to feature my new car. It was mentioned by a member, that there was good reason not to go there. (Maybe my new car is known on here for not so good reasons, or maybe its just that its a generic Cat C example) Well given I have gone there, im a bit worried that ive missed something out... Up to this point, I was really very excited about collecting the car, but now ive a worry that ive missed something.
I dont want to mess the seller about, and I loved the car, however if I have overlooked something, then what the hell do I do when I get it home and discover it has all the lines of a banana and the repaired fibreglass develops cracks and drops off 3 months down the line. Worse case scenario Id have to sell it in this state for a low premium, or break it for spares. Which really was what i was trying to get at. Its not something I envisage or would want to do, but its a worse case scenario if all this turns sour.
Basically if it all goes wrong, what sort of money are we talking about clawing back from breaking. And yes, valid point that some parts will hold different values to different people and obviously some parts may have a very limited audience.
Does anyone have a guide price for say a rolling chassis, or a complete engine & gearbox for instance?
have a look on ebay rear end of body shell,wheels,engine,front clip,doors etc all on there and loads of money.
i paid just under 4k for my chim with no mot and i was only bidder on ebay.i thought oh well if it all goes wrong id do the same and chop it up.i cant afford to lose that kind of money but it was the only way i could afford to get the car of my dreams
end of the day if your happy with it thats all that matters.
sye
i paid just under 4k for my chim with no mot and i was only bidder on ebay.i thought oh well if it all goes wrong id do the same and chop it up.i cant afford to lose that kind of money but it was the only way i could afford to get the car of my dreams
end of the day if your happy with it thats all that matters.
sye
If it's super cheap for what it is then you might have a bargain. How good the car is no one can say without an inspection. I think the bast way to sell the idea to yourself is (assuming the car checks out okay) to look after it and keep it in tip top condition, get it known to a few other fellow TVR'ists, go to events, TitT's etc etc and it will soon earn a healthy reputation if it is indeed a good car.
Best thing to do is look at the prices the likes of Douglas Valley and Bell Hill list stuff for on eBay and half it. eg IIRC they want £705 for a rear quarter, I paid £650 for a front bulkhead back tub a while back.
Engines get a "TVR premium" on ebay but aren't worth much, gearbox isn't worth much as its an LT77, maybe 1k for a rolling chassis so long as nothing is rotten etc, seats you may get £150, the rest of the interior about the same. As an aside you never get your money out of a car immediately when breaking a car, you might get a few big ticket items sold straight away but the drips and drabs over the next few months is where the value all stacks up, and you have to offset that against the hassle of storage etc.
Regards
Iain
Engines get a "TVR premium" on ebay but aren't worth much, gearbox isn't worth much as its an LT77, maybe 1k for a rolling chassis so long as nothing is rotten etc, seats you may get £150, the rest of the interior about the same. As an aside you never get your money out of a car immediately when breaking a car, you might get a few big ticket items sold straight away but the drips and drabs over the next few months is where the value all stacks up, and you have to offset that against the hassle of storage etc.
Regards
Iain
axnutty said:
Lets say you have an early Chimera (93) and its sitting pretty with 73k on the clock and 12months test. What would be the value of the car if you broke it? Basically ive just placed a deposit on a chimera but it does hold a Cat C write off against it in the past. Ive driven the car and it drove very well and ive had it on the ramps and given it a good going over and cant see any damage or poor repair work. But I understand people shy away from Cat C's and come the time when I resell it, breaking it maybe the only option I have open to me to facilitate a sale. So put my mind at rest (or indeed make me fear the purchase of this thing) and give me some idea of second hand prices on say, interior, body, engine, running gear etc.
To give you a comparison, I have a '94 Chim, it was recorded as a cat D in 2006. It has a totally refurbed chassis, new suspension, uprated brakes, a 4.6 V8D big valve head engine with only a couple of thousand miles on it, T5 gearbox, new wheels & tyres, & all ancilleries, like starter motor, alternator etc, are new also. I paid £5,500. All the work was done by Dulfords to a high standard so it wasn't a difficult decision for me, but it is a keeper for me so resale value is not that important. I am having her resprayed soon & am refreshing the interior as well, so will be better than new for just over £7k ( had a slight non fault bump over Chrismas so half of respray cost is from his insurance).
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