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Classic Cars Buying Luxury used cars
411 messages, Last post on Jul 13, 2009 at 10:22 AM
You are in the Classic Cars Forum. Your Host is mr_shiftright
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Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Jan 02, 2009 12:32 pm)  ...I know in those inflationary times, those things had amazing resale value too...I have some NADA/KBB books from 1976, and late pagodas booked at nearly original MSRP. Is there a luxury car that isn't risky? Even the old Japanese makes have their drawbacks. The bigger they are, the harder they fall...anyone want a 1983 Rolls? Didn't think so.
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Replying to: fintail (Jan 02, 2009 1:15 pm) One thing you have to do is really study the reputation of various cars. There's a good deal of "collective wisdom" out there which is often worth ten Haynes manuals or 100 Klick and Klack radio shows. Some luxury cars, I'd bet on, and some I'd bet against. BWM 3 series? Replace the radiator, thermostat and water pump and be happy for the duration. BWM 5 series? I'm betting you'll be pretty much okay. BMW 750 series? May God have mercy on your soul. Audi Allroad? Good luck, you'll probably need it. Jaguar X Type? you poor thing Mercedes 300E -- I'd bet in your favor here. 83 Rolls? BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA 
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Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Jan 02, 2009 1:21 pm)  For some reason I think of old "Dallas" reruns when I see these '80s Rollses.
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Replying to: lemko (Jan 02, 2009 2:09 pm) You could double the price of the car in one visit to the repair shop-----EASY. I just saw a repair bill for a 71' Corniche.....brakes, tires, suspension, blah blah...car has 88,000 miles on it....the bill? $19,500. |
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Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Jan 02, 2009 1:21 pm) A coworker of mine has an Allroad...bought to replace a V70 that was out of warranty and nickeling-and-diming him to death (he's pretentious and hauls a couple dogs - he sees himself as being above a Subaru). Now the Audi is getting expensive, apparently an involved brake job is required now.
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Replying to: fintail (Jan 02, 2009 6:29 pm)
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Only a fool or someone who's insanely rich would buy, or even lease, a car that's virtually unfixable today, or one where the cost of repairs and maintenance are unjustifiable. I look for sales of high end cars to remain depressed for a long time to come, as Americans increase their savings rate over the next several years. Also, credit will probably loosen up, but it's highly unlikely to be as readily available as it was in recent years. Times have changed. Near luxury ($29,900-$39,900) is the new mid luxury ($40,000-$59,900), and mid luxury is the new high end.
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Replying to: hpmctorque (Jan 02, 2009 9:53 pm) Used luxury cars, unless they are extremely rare, will NEVER bring big bucks because of this repairability issue. Let's face it, if a 25-30 year-old luxury car can't even bring $5,000 today, it's not ever going to be valuable. It's had enough time to start to appreciate. It's about time to let go of that 1980 Blimp-mobile you've been hoarding, insuring and repairing for 30 years. There is no gold at the end of that rainbow. Ditto a 1990 Lexus LS400 and ditto a 200X BMW 7 series or MB luxury sedan. As for luxury coupes and ragtops, well the scenario may or may not be different. Certainly a 1980 Mercedes 450SL or SLC hasn't moved very much in price these past ten years (if at all), and all 90s coupes and convertibles are behaving like used cars, depreciating every year. There may be a few rare, specialty-built luxury cars that will remain valuable. "Investment" aside, you have to be the very opposite of risk-averse to buy one of these out of warranty. I just can't imagine, with these cars using their multi-plexing circuitry, containing over 75 microprocessors, that even the cleverest of computer gurus is going to go in "cold" and fix a very glitchy wiring harness, unless they have a complete set of schematics, lots and lots of time, and your blank check in hand. |
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All the points you made conspire to increase depreciation, and, therefore, the cost of ownership, which is why I feel that sales of new high end cars, especially sedans, will remain under pressure for many years. The days when used Cadillacs and Mercedes' held their value well (the '50s-mid '60s, and the '70s and '80s, respectively) won't return. So, yeah, the way to go with used luxury cars is to buy a well maintained one, drive it for 5,000 - 10,000 miles, then sell it while (fingers crossed) it's still intact.
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Replying to: hpmctorque (Jan 03, 2009 11:19 am) But then if your brake fluid motor and pump go out (just a little light on the dashboard as you're driving home), that's $2,300 bucks. Ouch! If you lose the transmission, which can certainly happen on a higher mileage car, that's $5,600 bucks. This is on a $10,000 car. I guess you could argue that lots of used cars have transmissions that cost 1/2 the value of the car, but you know with a Taurus or a Corolla you can fix it a lot cheaper or buy a used unit. |
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