Chelsea Cars - SOR - Any Experiences ?
Discussion
I'm still selling Dad's classics - I recently sold his TR7 V8 but it's hard to sell the more expensive ones privately
I'm not keen on auctions and have been approached by a few Dealers to sell them on Sale Or Return
I'm naturally wary of giving someone the keys and V5 to cars worth £40k -100k I'm well aware of many horror stories - hence this thread has anyone got experience dealing with Chelsea cars on SOR ?
I can't find much on the internet and they only have 20 Google reviews which seems low
Thanks
I'm not keen on auctions and have been approached by a few Dealers to sell them on Sale Or Return
I'm naturally wary of giving someone the keys and V5 to cars worth £40k -100k I'm well aware of many horror stories - hence this thread has anyone got experience dealing with Chelsea cars on SOR ?
I can't find much on the internet and they only have 20 Google reviews which seems low
Thanks
The point of sale or return is to show people with more money than sense, the same car in a fancy showroom at a higher price - and it works
If it didn't, businesses wouldn't invest in the fancy showrooms
Auctions only work if you either desperately need to sell the car or if you have a highly desirable example ie a Ferrari 250 GTO or a highly popular car like a Sierra Cosworth
Dad's cars are neither and whilst I have been selling them by advertising on the various online sites the more expensive cars are taking an age to sell - there are very few people who want a 1937 Chrysler !
It is entirely possible that a less desirable 20k car could sell for sub 5K at an auction
Hence I'm not interested in any auctions and can see the benefit of SOR as long as it's a trustworthy outfit who aren't going to disappear with the car / money
If it didn't, businesses wouldn't invest in the fancy showrooms
Auctions only work if you either desperately need to sell the car or if you have a highly desirable example ie a Ferrari 250 GTO or a highly popular car like a Sierra Cosworth
Dad's cars are neither and whilst I have been selling them by advertising on the various online sites the more expensive cars are taking an age to sell - there are very few people who want a 1937 Chrysler !
It is entirely possible that a less desirable 20k car could sell for sub 5K at an auction
Hence I'm not interested in any auctions and can see the benefit of SOR as long as it's a trustworthy outfit who aren't going to disappear with the car / money
KTMsm said:
I'm still selling Dad's classics - I recently sold his TR7 V8 but it's hard to sell the more expensive ones privately
Thanks
Are you pricing these right? advertised asking prices don't really tell much and a lot of classic car owners tend to overvalue, owner's groups often the worst for it .Thanks
There's members here who have sold expensive cars privately, the trick is to price somewhere between trade and forecourt retail, rather than dealer prices.
Also be patient, anything 'specialist' you need to find the right buyer, and certain marques just aren't worth what they were nowadays.
Valuations also distorted when classics remain unsold for months or even years (maybe worked for some in the past with appreciating modern classics values and low interest)
As a buyer I'd prefer to meet vendor in person and arrange inspection and a road test, something big value-added for me that auctions don't offer.
Maybe a companies house check first on the business before any prospective SoR deal
Tyrell Corp said:
Are you pricing these right? advertised asking prices don't really tell much and a lot of classic car owners tend to overvalue, owner's groups often the worst for it .
There's members here who have sold expensive cars privately, the trick is to price somewhere between trade and forecourt retail, rather than dealer prices.
There aren't similar cars in a lot of casesThere's members here who have sold expensive cars privately, the trick is to price somewhere between trade and forecourt retail, rather than dealer prices.
Of the two I have that there are, I've priced ours at £29k the others are at £45 and £100k
The second car I've priced at £55k, a tatty one is £35k and one that's slightly nicer than ours is £100k
If anything I'm too cheap but I have a lot of cars to sell
Don't turn this into an advertisement.dudleybloke said:
That's the trouble with SOR, there's been several trustworthy companies ended up untrustworthy once a few bills start piling up.
Big names too.
There has been too many horror stories with SOR. I wouldn't take the risk after reading about experiences of how things have gone wrong. Big names too.
KTMsm said:
.........It is entirely possible that a less desirable 20k car could sell for sub 5K at an auction
Hence I'm not interested in any auctions .........
A 20K car will only ever sell for sub 5K at auction if the owner hasn't put a reserve on it - You're not obliged to sell your cars with no reserve if you don't want to.Hence I'm not interested in any auctions .........
If the auction house try to insist you sell with no reserve, simply don't bother using their service, and find another auction house that is happy to let you sell with a reserve on the car.
Driver101 said:
dudleybloke said:
That's the trouble with SOR, there's been several trustworthy companies ended up untrustworthy once a few bills start piling up.
Big names too.
There has been too many horror stories with SOR. I wouldn't take the risk after reading about experiences of how things have gone wrong. Big names too.
A mate of mine sold a couple of older cars last year with Historics Auctions and was pleased with the results. (A modified MGA and a modified MK1 Escort).
KTMsm said:
There aren't similar cars in a lot of cases
Of the two I have that there are, I've priced ours at £29k the others are at £45 and £100k
The second car I've priced at £55k, a tatty one is £35k and one that's slightly nicer than ours is £100k
If anything I'm too cheap but I have a lot of cars to sell
In my experience, classic cars are quite an illiquid investment - unless a popular modern classic perhaps. Even in a hot market they can take ages to sell as the prospective market is so small.Of the two I have that there are, I've priced ours at £29k the others are at £45 and £100k
The second car I've priced at £55k, a tatty one is £35k and one that's slightly nicer than ours is £100k
If anything I'm too cheap but I have a lot of cars to sell
(I've been watching Stags and Lotus Esprits recently, same old ads month after month, mostly the same prices and very few dare to put them to auction. The slightly scruffy s4 here on PH auction a few weeks ago I thought got pretty strong money)
A thread here recently mentioned TVR's being difficult to sell, and dealers wanting very big margins on them. Probably applies to anything specialist or pre 80's now
Your dilema being waiting for ages - even on a sor at a dealers, or taking a risk on the auction(s), or get relisted with a lowered reserve .
For insolvency or estate purposes, auctions are considered the open market price. (I inherited a car as part of an estate that I was executor- whilst a duty to get the best price, legal advice was a quick easy trade sale )
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