So, Would It Be Possible............?

So, Would It Be Possible............?

Author
Discussion

namastebuzz

Original Poster:

34 posts

92 months

Monday 7th December 2020
quotequote all
.........to buy and run an Atom for a year and then resell it without losing too much money?

I've always wanted an Atom. Being a biker, it seemed the next logical step from a big sports bike. I've never had the disposable income to splash out on such a toy but now we have a sizeable lump sum that's earmarked for a house - but in a few years time.

So, could one buy an Atom, run it for a year and then sell it without incurring too much depletion of the initial investment? I realise there'll be upkeep,consumables and proper storage required but the thought of driving an Atom round Aberdeenshire and the rest of northern Scotland for a season is certainly alluring.

Any thoughts?

PS It would probably be an Atom 3 supercharged version. I was tempted by the V8 on the Ariel website as I'm sure there'll be minimal depreciation there but I can't see Her Indoors going along with £170k of our housing budget being "invested"! 😄

spikeyhead

17,966 posts

204 months

Tuesday 8th December 2020
quotequote all
I paid £45k for mine in new 2011, and would probably get £38k for it now. There aren't many cars that depreciate so slowly.

I'd budget £500 for a service at Ariel, and similar for a new set of tyres, but apart from that, there is very little else to spend money on.

namastebuzz

Original Poster:

34 posts

92 months

Tuesday 8th December 2020
quotequote all
Thanks spikeyhead. That's music to my ears.

That really is an incredible lack of depreciation. You'd lose more than that on a £16k Focus in three years.

What kind ofmileage does your have? Would putting a biggish mileage on one knock down the value by much?

spikeyhead

17,966 posts

204 months

Tuesday 8th December 2020
quotequote all
Mines at about 22,000.

I don't think my back would take doing many more miles than that, unless I drove it more through the winter, then I'd probably freeze to death...

but the biggest problem you'll have is that you won't want to sell it. Keep the car, live in a tent and dump the wife in preference to selling it. ... but you're still far better off regretting doing that than regretting not ever buying one smile

namastebuzz

Original Poster:

34 posts

92 months

Tuesday 8th December 2020
quotequote all
Ha ha! Yeah I'm sure I won't want to get rid of it.

I guess we could buy a smaller house or sell off one of the kids. Or both....

namastebuzz

Original Poster:

34 posts

92 months

Saturday 27th March 2021
quotequote all
So, finally did it.

Was offered a lovely 2015 3.5 SC from a forum member who'd bought it off the factory. They'd used it as a demonstrator originally. 6000 miles.

Excellent spec: Alcon Brakes, Bilstein Shocks, LSD, adjustable brake bias, removable steering wheel, stainless fixings, side panels, tracker, spare wheels etc etc.

The seller sent it to the factory for a service and MOT as part of the deal and I drove down with a trailer to pick it up. It was a 1200 mile round trip from Aberdeenshire. Drove down overnight, arrived about 5am. Parked up in a quiet lane and kipped with a sleeping bag for a couple of hours then loaded the car up. Steve at the factory was super helpful, gave me loads of advice and even reversed it on the trailer for me! Still a long haul back home though.

What a cool place to visit! Amazing stuff to see and everyone there couldn't be more keen on what they do.

I believe I got the car for a very good price too so let the experiment commence. I'm planning two years of ownership the reselling. I'll keep track of the overall spend and see how I come out.



Randomly, I'd been looking for a Carcoon Veloce (the one with the frame that you leave up and drive in and out of). I found one on Gumtree for £100. THey tend to go for £3-400 on Ebay. The bloke selling it was old school - everything over the phone and cash on collection. No PayPal and courier options. Thing was, he lived five miles from the factory so he drove down and met me there first thing and dropped it off to me.



Blenkiboy

143 posts

115 months

Saturday 27th March 2021
quotequote all
That’s fantastic. Great cars. Doubt you’ll lose much on it. Man maths at its finest. Keep us updated.

spikeyhead

17,966 posts

204 months

Sunday 28th March 2021
quotequote all
good luck with it.

rooney1000

122 posts

219 months

Wednesday 7th April 2021
quotequote all
V nice - I was looking at this one for a while but timings didnt work, although have a v nice one myself now.

Just need the weather to improve, must be worse up there for you ! Enjoy it, wonderful experience but my 500 miles so far tell me that you need to learn to drive it as super rapid. Take care in it !


cheeky_chops

1,603 posts

258 months

Monday 12th April 2021
quotequote all
fantastic! Had mine 3 years and similar to you, used the art of man maths on a 2014 3.5 SC

UTH

9,519 posts

185 months

Monday 10th October 2022
quotequote all
6 months to go until it's been two years......still going to sell it?