This weeks Classic Irish bargains that I'm not buying

Arthur Daley

Caused by too much casual exposure to wheeler dealer repeats

zinzan

If someone actually pays that, I may be tempted to dig up the Renault 4 that's buried on my Uncle's farm!

RobAMerc

In fairness to the BMW - if you paid 5k for it and invested 20k** having it restored for you - you'd get 40k on the open market I think, which wouldnt be a bad investment ( especially since classic car prices seem to be going only one way ). It is still a fairly desirable, rare, classic.

**I dont know if 20k would cover it - this is just a guestimate.

Gravelly

RobAMerc wrote: »

In fairness to the BMW - if you paid 5k for it and invested 20k** having it restored for you - you'd get 40k on the open market I think, which wouldnt be a bad investment ( especially since classic car prices seem to be going only one way ). It is still a fairly desirable, rare, classic.

**I dont know if 20k would cover it - this is just a guestimate.

I can absolutely guarantee you 20k wouldn't get it anywhere near half done. That car, like almost any classic (barring stuff like a Ferrari 250 or a DB5) would cost considerably more to restore to a saleable standard than it is worth. I know this from my own experience and that of many others. It would cost €20k to restore a fairly bog standard 60's Ford to a high standard from that condition, you sure as hell won't do that car for it.

kev1.3s

Gravelly wrote: »

I can absolutely guarantee you 20k wouldn't get it anywhere near half done. That car, like almost any classic (barring stuff like a Ferrari 250 or a DB5) would cost considerably more to restore to a saleable standard than it is worth. I know this from my own experience and that of many others. It would cost €20k to restore a fairly bog standard 60's Ford to a high standard from that condition, you sure as hell won't do that car for it.

It depends on how bad it is, one things for sure tho it ant getting any better lying in that field.
I'd consider it for €2000 if the body was any way repairable.

Gravelly

kev1.3s wrote: »

It depends on how bad it is, one things for sure tho it ant getting any better lying in that field.
I'd consider it for €2000 if the body was any way repairable.

I'd consider it myself for about €500 if I didn't already have my next money pit project already parked in the garage. It would make little difference how bad it is - I've a friend in the UK who recently spent £30k restoring a Jensen Interceptor that had passed an MOT less than 6 months before he started stripping it. You can't do a proper resto on a high worth car for small money.

kev1.3s

Gravelly wrote: »

I'd consider it myself for about €500 if I didn't already have my next money pit project already parked in the garage. It would make little difference how bad it is - I've a friend in the UK who recently spent £30k restoring a Jensen Interceptor that had passed an MOT less than 6 months before he started stripping it. You can't do a proper resto on a high worth car for small money.

No you can't but If the car is complete it's half the battle. I've spent 6 or 7 years scouring the globe for parts for my fulvia and that's where most of the money went. €30,000 would do a lovely Resto on that car if you were prepared to some of the work by youreself.
Drop a car off at a specialist and the bills could climb pretty high pretty quick.

Gravelly

kev1.3s wrote: »

No you can't but If the car is complete it's half the battle. I've spent 6 or 7 years scouring the globe for parts for my fulvia and that's where most of the money went. €30,000 would do a lovely Resto on that car if you were prepared to some of the work by youreself.
Drop a car off at a specialist and the bills could climb pretty high pretty quick.

Very true. I do as much as I can myself, though I detest doing bodywork, and I can't spraypaint well. I'm sure you're acutely aware that the Lancia is unlikely to be ever worth what you spend on it, as I am with my cars.

kev1.3s

Gravelly wrote: »

Very true. I do as much as I can myself, though I detest doing bodywork, and I can't spraypaint well. I'm sure you're acutely aware that the Lancia is unlikely to be ever worth what you spend on it, as I am with my cars.

I know the lancia isn't going to be worth a fraction of what I've put in, especially in this country. That BMW I'm ny mind would be a break even car, however if you were to add all the hours you put in youreself that would be a different matter but that's not why most of us do it.

Gravelly

kev1.3s wrote: »

I know the lancia isn't going to be worth a fraction of what I've put in, especially in this country. That BMW I'm ny mind would be a break even car, however if you were to add all the hours you put in youreself that would be a different matter but that's not why most of us do it.

Yeah, exactly what I was saying - it's a fools game to restore a classic in the hope of recouping the cost, but that's what happens a lot of people - you see the ads like those above where people either think the non restored car is worth a lot because the finished car would be, or they think the car they've spent €30k on must be worth that and more, when it might not be worth half that.

type85

Gravelly wrote: »

I can absolutely guarantee you 20k wouldn't get it anywhere near half done. That car, like almost any classic (barring stuff like a Ferrari 250 or a DB5) would cost considerably more to restore to a saleable standard than it is worth. I know this from my own experience and that of many others. It would cost €20k to restore a to a high standard from that condition, you sure as hell won't do that car for it.

I can never understand statements like this ( and i don't mean to target yourself). But...a "fairly bog standard 60's Ford" has about the same amount of Glass, Metal, Carpet, Rubber and other materials as the Bmw E9, with spare/replacement available at a similar cost.(http://www.bmwclassicparts.com/bmw/cs-engine-bay.html)
So why is it acceptable to pay a premium for the work on these types? It shouldn't take much more time to complete one car v's another, nor is any one classic car extremely more complex to work on than any other.
A man hour is a man hour and metal is metal....

Gravelly

type85 wrote: »

I can never understand statements like this ( and i don't mean to target yourself). But...a "fairly bog standard 60's Ford" has about the same amount of Glass, Metal, Carpet, Rubber and other materials as the Bmw E9, with spare/replacement available at a similar cost.(http://www.bmwclassicparts.com/bmw/cs-engine-bay.html)
So why is it acceptable to pay a premium for the work on these types? It shouldn't take much more time to complete one car v's another, nor is any one classic car extremely more complex to work on than any other.
A man hour is a man hour and metal is metal....

I take it you've never restored a classic car? The difference between the metalwork, cost and availability of parts (especially trim and interior), and the time involved is a world apart for, say a Ford Prefect and a Jensen Interceptor.
You statement that they have the same amount of glass, metal, carpet, rubber and other materials gave me a smile - I spent two years tracking down a set of picnic tables for a car I restored a few years ago - not something you'd have to worry about for an Escort....
The difference in trim and interior (the same car above had more than 30 different pieces of CARPET!!! to track down and fit, all available in a variety of colours!), the complexity of body parts, sills, etc, the ease of engine reconditioning, and a thousand other things vary enormously between different models from the same era. A 50's Jaguar is an entirely different prospect for restoration than a 50's Ford, in every possible way.

This is before you even begin to compare parts cost - a wing for a Ford of almost any era is available off the shelf - a wing for a more exotic car will quite possibly have to be hand made - that goes for sills, bumpers, and everything else.

*EDIT* Your post just reminded me of something that happened a while back - I was moaning to one of the lads in the car club I'm in about some part I was trying to track down, and he told me that a friend of his was restoring a 1940's Ford, and needed a track rod end - he brought the one off the car to his local Ford dealer, who handed him a track rod off a current model Fiesta - it wasn't exactly the same, but it fitted perfectly. I don't know whether he was getting a rise out of me or whether this is true!

oceanman

https://www.donedeal.ie/vintagecars-for-sale/spridget-austin-healey-sprite/16068946
not many of these around anymore.

Gravelly

LIGHTNING wrote: »

^ That seems good value to me although I have no idea what they are worth

If it's sound, it's great value. That's a big if though, they rust with great enthusiasm. Massive fun, doing 40 feels like you are doing 120mph.

Duke O Smiley

LIGHTNING wrote: »

^ That seems good value to me although I have no idea what they are worth

I dunno, seven grand for what is a rubber bumper Midget with a few modifications seems a bit excessive to me. Well, for a Midget it does but like yourself I have no idea what the modifications are worth or if they add substantially to its worth.

I actually had a '77 Midget a few years ago. A fun car to drive with the roof down and a raspy back box on a day like today. I'd probably go for an MGB for the extra interior space though. I found the Midget a bit of a nuisance to get in and out of and I'm 5'11

Gravelly

Duke O Smiley wrote: »

I dunno, seven grand for what is a rubber bumper Midget with a few modifications seems a bit excessive to me. Well, for a Midget it does but like yourself I have no idea what the modifications are worth or if they add substantially to its worth.

I actually had a '77 Midget a few years ago. A fun car to drive with the roof down and a raspy back box on a day like today. I'd probably go for an MGB for the extra interior space though. I found the Midget a bit of a nuisance to get in and out of and I'm 5'11

The MGB is a better car in almost every respect. The Spridget is worth what's it's worth because of its comparative rarity. I'd buy an MGB if I wanted a fun weekend drive, but the Spridget will always stand out more. I used to have an MGB and every time I went to a show it was like driving a Mondeo - there were loads of them!

Testacalda

LIGHTNING wrote: »

^ That seems good value to me although I have no idea what they are worth

I saw that car at the Show in Punchestown this year, paint work was unimpressive to say the least. Shame really, would be a fun car and a bit unusual.

Zoo4m8

Looked at it at Punchestown as well with another chap who turned out to be a painter, he reckoned it had been done with a roller..a couple of runs down by the left side bonnet catch, pretty rubbish alright.
And is it just me ? in the view from the back it looks to be dropped on the drivers side. Having said all that I'd still like it, with a decent hood and paint and assuming nothing else major it would certainly be an entertaining and fairly exclusive runaround..

Gravelly

Zoo4m8 wrote: »

Looked at it at Punchestown with another chap who turned out to be a painter, he reckoned it had been done with a roller..a couple of runs down by the left side bonnet catch, pretty rubbish alright.
And is it just me ? in the view from the back it looks to be dropped on the drivers side. Having said all that I'd still like it, with a decent hood and paint and assuming nothing else major it would be an entertaining runaround with the added bonus that it would be unlikely to meet another very often..

Bad paintwork on one of these is a dealbreaker unless you get it very cheap, as their chief asset is how they look. If it's dropping on one side it is a big warning bell - could be just a tired spring, but could well be bad corrosion either affecting the spring hangers or even worse, bad sill corrosion causing the body to sag.

Duke O Smiley

https://www.donedeal.ie/vintagecars-for-sale/mk-1-golf/16189304



Mk1 diesel automatic..strange

Gravelly

Duke O Smiley wrote: »

https://www.donedeal.ie/vintagecars-for-sale/mk-1-golf/16189304



Mk1 diesel automatic..strange

What I remember most about Mk1 Golf diesels was the fact that the dash rattled so much when you started one, it actually looked like it was going to disintegrate. They sounded truly awful, and didn't drive much better. I've never seen an automatic one, but I can't imagine it would be much fun.

Kerryman79

Gravelly wrote: »

What I remember most about Mk1 Golf diesels was the fact that the dash rattled so much when you started one, it actually looked like it was going to disintegrate. They sounded truly awful, and didn't drive much better. I've never seen an automatic one, but I can't imagine it would be much fun.

Thought the dash rattling was an ingenious inbuilt design feature to let you know you were going over 70mph

kev1.3s

And I taught they were built like a brick.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JF-KJ5-KNQk

Tzar Chasm

kev1.3s wrote: »

And I taught they were built like a brick.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JF-KJ5-KNQk

Apparently there was a mixup during the design process,

The Engineerin brief was 'Built like a brick'
And
The Design brief was to 'be imperceptibly light and airy'

Obviously there were crossed lines somewhere

RobAMerc

Gravelly wrote: »

What I remember most about Mk1 Golf diesels was the fact that the dash rattled so much when you started one, it actually looked like it was going to disintegrate. They sounded truly awful, and didn't drive much better. I've never seen an automatic one, but I can't imagine it would be much fun.

I remember the first time we met my cousins new boyfriend he told us he had a golf. My brother and I were so excited hoping it would be a GTI.

Man were we disappointed when he turned up in one of these yokes!
Slower than cold tar, it was a nice colour beige ( something we'd come to realise was the perfect colour for the man ).

I'd nearly go for a look at this to see if it was possible to be even slower.

w124man

Gravelly wrote: »

What I remember most about Mk1 Golf diesels was the fact that the dash rattled so much when you started one, it actually looked like it was going to disintegrate. They sounded truly awful, and didn't drive much better. I've never seen an automatic one, but I can't imagine it would be much fun.

I had a Mk1 Jetta diesel as a company car back in the day. Never rattled, never squeaked, never broke down, sounded like any other diesel did back then and was great to drive. I lived with it for three years and 247,000 miles and still talk about it to this day!


28 WZL where are you now?

noelf

w124man wrote: »

I had a Mk1 Jetta diesel as a company car back in the day. Never rattled, never squeaked, never broke down, sounded like any other diesel did back then and was great to drive. I lived with it for three years and 247,000 miles and still talk about it to this day!


28 WZL where are you now?

1981 Red .. !! Motorcheck

Duke O Smiley

w124man wrote: »

28 WZL where are you now?

Scrap yard in the sky most likey..no nct records

80sDiesel

Another Diesel
Confused by this one. Alot of work gone into it . Thought it would be a GTI.

Silvera

Duke O Smiley wrote: »

Scrap yard in the sky most likey..no nct records

Shur them oul classic cars don't need nctays 🤠