DDK - Die Deutschen Klassiker

Spydermon wrote:It was mentioned to me recently, on another forum, that this summer may well see some of the most famous Lightweight's and Tourings come on the market again. This was suggested by someone who knows a lot of the owners of said cars (someone in the PCGB), and he said that more than a few of them had mentioned 'cashing in their pension funds' this year as retirement loomed and a life of ease suited them better.

What interests me about this is the effect it will have on prices. Admitted, it has yet to happen, but would a 'glut' of top L/W RS's cause a feeding frenzy, or would buyers back off? I know how far I'm prepared to go, and I know that it won't be the other side of 250k, could this happen? Come on, there's a lot of you know a lot more than I do about this? You can always PM if it's too sensitive, you all know by now that I won't tell.

Cheers,

Steve.

There's way too much talk of pensions, investments etc. in relation to cars at the moment, and in my opinion thats not a good thing.

For real enthusiasts, the fact that these vehicles are (currently) an appreciating asset is a welcome bonus, but the more the market is talked up, the more it becomes riddled with speculators, and we're back to the late 80's all over again.....

I'm not sure that we'll see a 'glut' of RSs suddenly hit the market. Some long term owners may be getting towards retirement age and may feel like selling if they aren't using the cars much, but lets be honest if they are relying on the car for their pension the circa 200k some of the nicer M471s might achieve isn't going to pay for a retirement in the lap of luxury for too long
From a personal point of view as someone a fair way from retirement (mid-thirties) I'd be more likely to sell the car due to not having the time to use it than anything else. Come retirement the first thing I'd be thinking about is the chance to have more time to play with the toys in the garage
From chatting to a few people who should know, there seem to be a number of people with cash waiting for the right car, so anything really interesting / attractive coming to market is likely to get mopped up fairly quickly. It seems to me that the better cars seem to get snapped up fast. It only seems to be the rougher / less original cars or those priced way 'optomistically' that we seem to see advertised for months.
I don't see the market weakening anytime soon, though equally I think it will be a while before we see much fetching 250k
My feeling is that the market is somewhat different at the moment, with cars being picked up more by long term enthusiasts and collectors rather than speculators, but would agree if prices keep rising and the market talked up, over time there might be money coming in from the speculators and that could alter things quickly - up or down

........anyway: Enough of this speculator talk - my above post has made me realise I need to use the thing more. Its a lovely sunny morning. Got a couple of calls to make then I'm going to head off down the A3 and find some twisties!!!

In my view, RS prices are just silly. It's not a scarce car, it's not a fast car and neither is it eligible for much competition. To be more provocative, I think a lot of people are in the market because it has risen so strongly. Anyone buying one now - at twice the price of a GT3 RS or four times the price of a 2.4S - wants their head examined.

one-two wrote:In my view, RS prices are just silly. It's not a scarce car, it's not a fast car and neither is it eligible for much competition. To be more provocative, I think a lot of people are in the market because it has risen so strongly. Anyone buying one now - at twice the price of a GT3 RS or four times the price of a 2.4S - wants their head examined.

I'm not sure where you're getting your RS values from - the record price for a RHD 2.4S was recently achieved at £65,000. A more common valuation for a good 2.4S would be £55,000. No RS has sold anywhere near four times those numbers, ie £210,000, let alone £260,000.

As for the RS being neither fast nor eligible for much competition, I don't even know where to begin......

Think you need to watch the market a bit more closely.

one-two wrote:Think you need to watch the market a bit more closely.

I think you'll find I have a great deal to do with the market !

www.fluidimages.co.uk

IT GIVES ME NO PERSONAL PLEASURE IN SAYING /REPEATING at least 2 lhd lightweights have gone thru at £200 +IN LAST 3 MONTHS ...........NO DOUBT WATSOEVER!

It's not just the price - it's the hype. They were always special, but did people really talk about them in such reverential tones when they were worth a lot less. Are they fast? About the same as a Golf GTI. Great. Eligible for competition? Some nice high-end events for sure, but not as many as an earlier car. To be honest, I don't have a problem with the car, just with the idea that it represents any sort of value at these levels.

Having just got back from my 3 hour jolly to Goodwood I have to say I couldn't agree less
The car is an absolute joy to drive. Fantastic feedback on what is happening on the road, beautiful fluid steering and believe me it is still a fair bit quicker than a Golf both in a straight line and on the corners. Only real issue with them is the brakes. Great compared to its contemporaries but poor compared to any decent modern car.
Contemporaries such as the Daytona are trucks in comparision, the Dino truely a work of art and lovely handling car but dead slow.

Have you actually driven many? I'd agree a poorly looked after car isn't a great drive, but a well set up car really is a joy.

looks like most of the group tests comparing it to other cars agree to




Edited for typo!

Great but naughty answer for ur brakes if want to make instant improvement for very little outlay ............pm direct .

Sounds intriguing! YHM.
TBH the brakes aren't that bad, but are probably the one part of the car which doesn't quite inspire as much confidence, and compares less favourably with modern sports cars

I've driven a few. I'm tempted to say that I can't think of a worse car for a three hour drive, but that wouldn't be true! I think the test is against contemporary cars. That's the calculation the original owner of your RS made when they bought the it rather than whatever the classic of the day was back then. As then, there are too many really good modern cars - eg GT3/RS - for the exchange rate to work for me now it's so stretched. The more you guys try to persuade yourselves the more convinced I am!

Each to their own I guess. Rather depends what you want from a car.
There are very few modern cars that I get overly enthusiastic about really, and have to say, money no object I'd go for something like a 250SWB or an old 8C Alfa, both of which again fit into the 'no faster than a modern Golf' box, but there's more to life than just the speed. Surely fun, character, sense of occassion and driver input / satisfaction count for more.
Anyway - rather enjoyed my run this morning. Great weather, lovely roads and very little traffic. Though I'd admit it does seem a long way to go for a coffee

I agree with all of that actually. Hope it was a good coffee.