I think Classic Cars prices/values are now softening?

I think Classic Cars prices/values are now softening?

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Discussion

Shezbo

Original Poster:

602 posts

137 months

Saturday 5th August 2023
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Sold my last car about 2 months ago and have really invested time - looking at all sorts.

OK some Dealers are still asking some very punchy prices, however, I have rung a couple of them up and they are really desperate to get out of old stock. One dealer said that he was going with POA rather than a asking price and negotiating the price right from the first call!

Auction's, quite a lot of cars are not reaching reserves and stuff that is selling suddenly looks very reasonable.

So for the first time for quite a while (like houses and watches also seem to be etc.) are Classic car prices now going south?

Glassman

23,115 posts

222 months

Saturday 5th August 2023
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Shezbo said:
I think Classic Cars prices/values are now softening?
Parts prices aren't.



williamp

19,556 posts

280 months

Saturday 5th August 2023
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Ive been keeping an eye on bmw e30 convertabkes for a while. They sell at auction for about half what they are advertised for.

Maybe its that classics arent selling, and prospectors are hoping to cash in and waiting??

av185

19,432 posts

134 months

Saturday 5th August 2023
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POA normally associated with a stregthening not weakening market.

GoodOlBoy

583 posts

110 months

Saturday 5th August 2023
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Classic car prices have definitely fallen. Not unexpected really in the current financial climate.

As always, there's the odd car that bucks the trend, but I'd say it's generally good news if you're looking for a classic, not so good if you're selling.

Skyedriver

18,871 posts

289 months

Saturday 5th August 2023
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Watched a couple of auctions on internet a couple of weeks back, Manor Park and another can't remember but with some exceptions there were a lot "sold subject".
If E30 M3 prices drop to what I sold mine for I'm in.....


(£8K)!

vpr

3,795 posts

245 months

Saturday 5th August 2023
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I wouldn’t disagree in the main except that an exceptional and original example of anything will always make the money.

Run of the mill examples down for sure

Pistom

5,575 posts

166 months

Saturday 5th August 2023
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The every day classics have certainly fallen. Anything but the best E-types and certain Morgans have been hit hard.

Anything needing minor work are generally not getting what they were a year ago.

Projects look surprisingly strong.

My opinion only and the woman who knows me best tells me I'm usually wrong so take this with a pinch of salt.

Xcore

1,371 posts

97 months

Saturday 5th August 2023
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Ate early 90s stboxes now losing their “future classic” title?! Shame.

aeropilot

36,559 posts

234 months

Saturday 5th August 2023
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Shezbo said:
So for the first time for quite a while (like houses and watches also seem to be etc.) are Classic car prices now going south?
House prices aside, but all 'collectibles' that have gone ballistic in price over the past decade, have done so because of the almost zero interest rates, and people have looked to something else that is better than 'money in the bank'......so, classic cars, quality watches, limited edition prints, vintage firearms, collector vinyl, vintage 'mid century' furniture, almost anything like that have gone up and up.....and as soon as interest rates go up, the other stuff will come back down.


GTRene

17,762 posts

231 months

Saturday 5th August 2023
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yep, also don't forget every year some 'new' old classics come on top of all that already goes around, every year more on the market.

so at one point the market is 'full' ad that on top of the expensive climate and old people collectors giving up their collections, filling the market more, can see some softening at some part of the market.

good if you want to buy one :-)

I see some holding on on the top of market prices (for years) and some say same sort cars going for a lot less.

I guess keeping a good eye on the market can pay out, although no guaranty when its the best time to step in goming to 2030-35 with new rules, new market, money robbery from tax payers and great reset shi+ and you will own nothing and will be happy, plandemic and climate fakery things, nothing is 'sure' how it really wil go.

POORCARDEALER

8,542 posts

248 months

Sunday 6th August 2023
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These online auction platforms are that plentiful and desperate for classic stock they are allowing vendors to put ludicrous reserves on stuff just to get them on the platform, this is influencing asking prices from private sellers in the normal classifieds.

Current situation is classic sales are a bit slow (normally are in July/august) and usually pick up in September, however sensibly priced cars are still finding buyers, and often the unsold stuff at auction, is unsold for a reason when seen in the flesh or simply too highly reserved.

There are still a lot of very unrealistic vendors, private sellers who refuse to accept their cars are not worth lock down money & dealers who have bought at yesterdays money.



maz8062

2,608 posts

222 months

Sunday 6th August 2023
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ULEZ will impact classic car prices for sure. If one lives in the ULEZ zone and buys one of these cars, it’ll cost a fortune to run. £12.50 for going to Tesco, MOT, Service, Sunday drive. ULEZ is 24/7 as well.

This is the real reason why there’s a big fuss about it. The wealthy can see ULEZ impacting their wealth and will fight it. Widening the scrappage scheme is a step in the right direction, but it won’t offset the drop in values that these cars will experience over time.

Edited by maz8062 on Sunday 6th August 09:01

aeropilot

36,559 posts

234 months

Sunday 6th August 2023
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maz8062 said:
ULEZ will impact classic car prices for sure. If one lives in the ULEZ zone and buys one of these cars, it’ll cost a fortune to run. £12.50 for going to Tesco, MOT, Service, Sunday drive. ULEZ is 24/7 as well.
confused

ULEZ has almost zero impact on classic cars, as anything in historic VED class and over 40 years old is exempt.

Even some 'modern classics' that are not yet 40 years old are ULEZ compliant.

larrylamb11

625 posts

258 months

Sunday 6th August 2023
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maz8062 said:
ULEZ will impact classic car prices for sure. If one lives in the ULEZ zone and buys one of these cars, it’ll cost a fortune to run. £12.50 for going to Tesco, MOT, Service, Sunday drive. ULEZ is 24/7 as well.
Err.... you appreciate classic cars are ULEZ exempt, right? Anything classed as 'historic', so over 40 years old doesn't need to pay the ULEZ charge, or road tax... nor do they need an MoT. Arguably that makes them a better choice as a car for London and may help support prices.

I agree that all the mediocrity cars from the mid '80s onwards that aren't ULEZ compliant may suffer from indiscriminate scrapping by Londoners as part of the scrappage scheme and that may include some 'classics', but ultimately that will reduce the numbers of those that remain and constrain supply. If demand is solid and supply is reduced, prices will increase accordingly.

The real issue here is that, as always, classic car prices are affected by supply and demand... the same for any market. If demand falls and supply remains constant prices will fall and that's what we're seeing now. There is still plenty of supply in the classic car market (arguably it's even increased). What is lacking is the same level of demand.... Demand has been reduced as people have less £ in their pocket because the govt. have stopped giving out free money, interest rates have gone up and inflation in everything else has sucked up a lot of the free consumer spending cash that people might otherwise have splashed on a classic car....

Pistom

5,575 posts

166 months

Sunday 6th August 2023
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Bloody hell, I thought I'd got it wrong over ULEZ for a moment. My plan to dodge ULEZ or similar was to run a practical classic from the 70s.


NIgt3

619 posts

181 months

Sunday 6th August 2023
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Pistom said:
Bloody hell, I thought I'd got it wrong over ULEZ for a moment. My plan to dodge ULEZ or similar was to run a practical classic from the 70s.
No, you didn’t get it wrong, just somebody on the internet talking st3 as usual!!

lowdrag

13,032 posts

220 months

Monday 7th August 2023
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Jaguar prices peaked six years back in 2017. I have been writing articles on auction prices for years and, just as one example, restored early E-types were fetching up to £300,000 - or that was the asking price. Although what are known as "The OBL models" of which 500 were built at the very beginning in 1961 fetch the most. If you want to see examples of prices way over the top look at New Forest Cars for some example prices of wishful thinking. Yet the very early cars with outside bonnet locks are still holding up. This year an OBL roadster sold for $450,000 and a rare (20 made) coupé for $600,000, It also seems to make a difference if a later car is 1961 and not 1962 for some reason. Prices peaked in 1991 and slumped sharply a year later. My roadster was insured for £75,000 in 1991 and back to £25,000 a year later. Indeed, one of the most collectable with a £70,000 restoration sold at auction for £22,000 in 1992. A concours 1968 coupé sold for £37,000 earlier this year, and my car (1961) has halved from the peak prices in 2017 to £125,000. Just have a look here to see all auction prices from 12 months back to now.

https://www.glenmarch.com/cars/results?make=183&am...

And even those who bought modern "replicas" of C, D, XKSS and E-types, built by Jaguar themselves and sold for £1.5 million, are falling below the sale price in 2015. And you can't even register those for road use in most countries in the world!






Edited by lowdrag on Monday 7th August 09:23

cayman-black

12,921 posts

223 months

Monday 7th August 2023
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Thanks for that link lowdrag. I see restored cars at the dealers from £125k upto £200k on average, being unsold where as C&C are selling them at around the £100k the last green 4.2 series 1 coupe going for £107k. this is for series 1 3.8/4.2 FHC cars.
A lovely 4.2 just sold on C&C for £85K but was a 2+2 .

lowdrag

13,032 posts

220 months

Monday 7th August 2023
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You will note just how many cars with high reserves just didn't sell? There was a rusted out wreck of a 1961 flat floor that made over £60,000 and that was the second time it had gone to auction, the previous buyer having spent a fortune on replacement parts including body parts and then sold the lot for less than he had paid at the first auction. I saw that car, and you good see the floor through the bonnet and wing - outer and inner. The cars that seem to be fetching much less are the V12 models, especially the coupé.