Crazy prices

[doclip]

Hi there
Regrettably I’ve been out Caterhams for about 7 years since last owning an HPC Evo
Was driving down to Kintrye yesterday and a convoy of Caterhams passed by and I thought you know what I miss that experience, even though I now have my free bus pass courtesy of Nicola president of the people’s republic of Scotingland
I am hoping that feeling will pass as I even dreamt about my old BDR last night and woke up with a broad grin on my face ,and no nothing else last night happened as far I am aware
Then I idly looked at prices on PH …..
Wow what happened over the past few years , prices have gone mad !
Even humble crossflows and k series are asking silly money
I wonder what my old HPC BDR which I sold 16 years ago would be worth now ?
I appreciate there is probably pent up demand wrt lockdown and home working etc
There is clearly a lot of spare cash around at present for boys toys I guess
In contrast the prices of Westfields seems a lot more sensible
I had a Westfield V8 previously but never really jelled with it
Interested to hear other people’s views on comparative prices
Presumably prices will surely drop again in winter as they normally do

Edited by doclip on Sunday 20th June 11:52

[Kenty in Weardale]

I suspect as the ban on ICEs approaches that prices will rise even further given Caterham's lead times on ordering new cars. I'm not sure how long the wait is now but in the past it has been 9 months from order to delivery and I guess that this is even higher now

[blackmamba]

Similar issue across the car market, especially sports cars. Prices are booming at the moment.

[doclip]

So why has this not also hit the price of used Westfields -is it just down to desiribility?

[BertBert]

doclip said:

So why has this not also hit the price of used Westfields -is it just down to desiribility?

Hasn't the price of used Westfields gone up as well?

[sociopath]

BertBert said:

doclip said:

So why has this not also hit the price of used Westfields -is it just down to desiribility?

Hasn't the price of used Westfields gone up as well?

Yep I would say it has, the main difference other than the lower starting price for Westfields in the first place, is that there's a wider range of Westfield prices, based on how well they've been put together and their age, whereas caterhams (in my opinion) tend to be more closely priced.

[PH User]

Caterham prices seem to have been high for a good few years now, I don't think covid has made a huge difference?

[doclip]

sociopath said:

BertBert said:

doclip said:

So why has this not also hit the price of used Westfields -is it just down to desiribility?

Hasn't the price of used Westfields gone up as well?

Yep I would say it has, the main difference other than the lower starting price for Westfields in the first place, is that there's a wider range of Westfield prices, based on how well they've been put together and their age, whereas caterhams (in my opinion) tend to be more closely priced.

Presumably you’re not suggesting that kit built Westfields of built any less well than kit built Caterhams
Surely depends on the expertise of the particular builder rather than the kit per se

[BertBert]

doclip said:

Presumably you’re not suggesting that kit built Westfields of built any less well than kit built Caterhams
Surely depends on the expertise of the particular builder rather than the kit per se

As an aside, let's not get into a Westfield v Caterham debate we've done enough of that!

In general with complete kits, it has very little to do with the skill of the builder and everything to do with the quality and fit of components.

If the build involves lots of sourcing, bespoke designing and fabricating, then yes it's the builder that counts.

[sociopath]

doclip said:

sociopath said:

BertBert said:

doclip said:

So why has this not also hit the price of used Westfields -is it just down to desiribility?

Hasn't the price of used Westfields gone up as well?

Yep I would say it has, the main difference other than the lower starting price for Westfields in the first place, is that there's a wider range of Westfield prices, based on how well they've been put together and their age, whereas caterhams (in my opinion) tend to be more closely priced.

Presumably you’re not suggesting that kit built Westfields of built any less well than kit built Caterhams
Surely depends on the expertise of the particular builder rather than the kit per se

No, not suggesting that at all, a Westfield can be as good or as bad as the builder that put it together

My point was that the starting point of a caterham is higher, and older westfields with pintos and crossflows etc will be a lot cheaper than a new duratec or honda powered one, so there's a wider range of prices.

Caterhams on the other hand don't seem to have as wide a market price range

[doclip]

sociopath said:

No, not suggesting that at all, a Westfield can be as good or as bad as the builder that put it together

My point was that the starting point of a caterham is higher, and older westfields with pintos and crossflows etc will be a lot cheaper than a new duratec or honda powered one, so there's a wider range of prices.

Caterhams on the other hand don't seem to have as wide a market price range

Hmm -what about comparing a Caterham Xlfow or VX 8v or older K series vs a Caterham Duratec or Sigma -a huge price differential right there

I previously had a Westie V8 built from scratch as a kit by a time served engineer [a real labour of love ] and the quality and attention detail was incredible much better than the quality of say my previous kit built Caterham xflow or twincam . Then again a friend had a xlfow Westie which was previously kit built which was horrid and another friend recently built a Sigma Caterham from scratch and was rather shoddy all round as hes not an engineer and was likely out his depth .
So its more down to the expertise and dedication of the builder .
TBH I have never ownded a factory built modern Caterham Sigma or Duratec so I cant talk to build quality -bear in mind these are likely built in unit time by someone who isnt invested in the whole process ,while a kit built example will often be a labour of love and pride .

[doclip]

BertBert said:

As an aside, let's not get into a Westfield v Caterham debate we've done enough of that!

In general with complete kits, it has very little to do with the skill of the builder and everything to do with the quality and fit of components.

If the build involves lots of sourcing, bespoke designing and fabricating, then yes it's the builder that counts.

Be interested to know if any of you have ever tested out H2H say a duratec powered Westie vs Caterham
Is there a big difference there ?

[BertBert]

I've not driven a westie let alone compared. But I have looked at buying and I bet they are superb too!