At what age are cars the least desirable?
Discussion
At what age are cars the least desirable? I'm sure some cars are exempt (Ferraris, limited runs for example) but most cars seem to reach a minimum value and then at some point, the few that survive if in clean condition will appreciate slightly or perhaps alot in value again.
So what age is it? 10, 15, 20 years old? My car is 10 years old, in decent nick but was pretty cheap and not exactly a desirable model. At the moment it's a reliable means of transport for getting from A to B but if is started throwing up big bills, I would probably be getting rid. Having said that, the Subaru that I used to own was the same age but was maintained regardless of cost because I really loved the car. My current car is fairly undesirable now but I suspect in 5 years time would be even less desirable.
How about 20 years old? Well, when did you last see a mk1 Mondeo or a pre-facelift mk5 Escort? Are they past their minimum value now thanks to their rarity? If you wanted a cheap 5er, an E34 would have probably been your best bet a few years ago but now you would probably be able to get an E39 for less.
Same with Porsche, the 964 used to be the least desirable/cheapest 911 but now decent 964s have gone up in value and a 996 is the cheapest way into a 911 (don't think the 993 was ever cheapest)! Will 996s be more revered in a few years time, as the first water-cooled 911 or first modern 911 or the one without the round headlights?
So what age is it? 10, 15, 20 years old? My car is 10 years old, in decent nick but was pretty cheap and not exactly a desirable model. At the moment it's a reliable means of transport for getting from A to B but if is started throwing up big bills, I would probably be getting rid. Having said that, the Subaru that I used to own was the same age but was maintained regardless of cost because I really loved the car. My current car is fairly undesirable now but I suspect in 5 years time would be even less desirable.
How about 20 years old? Well, when did you last see a mk1 Mondeo or a pre-facelift mk5 Escort? Are they past their minimum value now thanks to their rarity? If you wanted a cheap 5er, an E34 would have probably been your best bet a few years ago but now you would probably be able to get an E39 for less.
Same with Porsche, the 964 used to be the least desirable/cheapest 911 but now decent 964s have gone up in value and a 996 is the cheapest way into a 911 (don't think the 993 was ever cheapest)! Will 996s be more revered in a few years time, as the first water-cooled 911 or first modern 911 or the one without the round headlights?
I think 15-20 years old is probably the low point for most things. At that point they are old but not classic, after that the rarity starts to make values go up again. Unless of course it's something dreadful like an old Hyundai in which case it bottoms out at scrap value at about 10yrs old and stays there 
.
.No.
It's a unique combination of how rare and how desirable a car is/becomes that gives it it's 'value'.
So for every model of car, the magic age will be different.
Very rare but poor cars like (off the top of my head) the Delorean are valuable, but not that valuable as they are only desirable to a few.
Dang - I want one now.
It's a unique combination of how rare and how desirable a car is/becomes that gives it it's 'value'.
So for every model of car, the magic age will be different.
Very rare but poor cars like (off the top of my head) the Delorean are valuable, but not that valuable as they are only desirable to a few.
Dang - I want one now.
Edited by Orangecurry on Friday 28th February 16:59
I'd agree with about 15-20 years too, 10 years to me is still a new car. Less if you cannot get the parts or depreciation was stratospheric. E.g Yugos etc
If they can survive this period the survivors stand a better chance. It's why I'm hanging onto my 205 GTi :-)
If they can survive this period the survivors stand a better chance. It's why I'm hanging onto my 205 GTi :-)
Edited by 23rdian on Friday 28th February 16:58
Orangecurry said:
No.
It's a unique combination of how rare and how desirable a car is/becomes that gives it it's 'value'.
So for every model of car, the magic age will be different.
Very rare but poor cars like (off the top of my head) the Delorean are valuable, but not that valuable as they are only desirable to a few.
Dang - I want one now.
This. Plenty of cars will end their lives valued by how much MOT is left.It's a unique combination of how rare and how desirable a car is/becomes that gives it it's 'value'.
So for every model of car, the magic age will be different.
Very rare but poor cars like (off the top of my head) the Delorean are valuable, but not that valuable as they are only desirable to a few.
Dang - I want one now.
Edited by Orangecurry on Friday 28th February 16:59
A year or two ago when all the MOT data got opened, the honestjohn website did some analysis. The pass rate was lowest at around 1995-1998 (ie. 14-17 years old) which seems about right.
Past that you're not necessarily into "classic" status, but they will have to have passed the point where a fair bit of money will have been spent to keep them on the road. Anything just used and abused with minimal spend won't have made it that long - although I think it's got rather longer since manufacturers started galvanizing cars properly from the mid-late 80s onwards.
Past that you're not necessarily into "classic" status, but they will have to have passed the point where a fair bit of money will have been spent to keep them on the road. Anything just used and abused with minimal spend won't have made it that long - although I think it's got rather longer since manufacturers started galvanizing cars properly from the mid-late 80s onwards.
white_goodman said:
At what age are cars the least desirable?
Hard to generalise but one thing is certain - every time there are significant fuel price rises the "desirability" and price of used cars with big engines simply plummets to the floor.There are tales of the 1970s where cars like Jensen Interceptor (6.2 litre Chrysler engine, 12 mpg) were completely unsaleable and Jaguar E-Types (19 mpg) were going for small change.
Fuel hasn't gone up for about 4 years so get ready for some cheap Audi/BMW/Jag/Mercs as the global economy picks up and demand pushes up petrol price.
Good example of this is the BMW e30. A few years ago you could hardly give these away, and now they are worth MUCH more than the e36 variants.
Some cars just dwindle away and never become sought after, so it's a bit unpredictable which cars will increase in value after a certain point. The RX7 recovered a bit, but these are specialist cars. I can't see the RX8 recovering.
Some cars just dwindle away and never become sought after, so it's a bit unpredictable which cars will increase in value after a certain point. The RX7 recovered a bit, but these are specialist cars. I can't see the RX8 recovering.
STW2010 said:
Most Some cars just dwindle away and never become sought after.
Typically a car loses half its value every 3 years through depreciation. Arithmetic therefore says that unless a car has some special appeal it's going to be worth very little after 10 years. Even if a car survives to 15 years the first "expensive" bill after that point will almost certainly kill it, so they don't sell for much money.Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff