There goes the price ceiling!

[CrusherCurtis]

At this point I've come to the realization that a mint 325is 5 speed regardless of mileage is a $7k car.

[cferb]

While trying to find my m3 I saw several cars that people were asking 7k+ for, and an mtech2 vert asking for 12.5k just because it was stanced...all of these cars were for sale for the duration of my search. I could ask $50k for my m3, doesn't mean someone will pay it, problem is e30s are getting popular with kids and they're all trying to be too greedy. Not to say some of them aren't worth it, but a stock e30 in decent shape isn't worth more than $4-5k. It does seem prices have gone up a bit, but not that much...these aren't rare cars.

Something stock and in perfect shape would be worth a little more, but its always been that way, I've seen plenty of pristine stock examples go for $7-8k 3-4 years ago

[agent]

It only stands to reason that the more of these that get R3V'd and/or parted out, the more their value is going to increase. That's a good thing for those of us who are doing what we can to keep our cars desirable.

[Huff]

just because someone asks a lot of money for something does not mean they are receiving a lot of money for it.

Bingo.. Insurance companies are still only going to give $3k for even sorted out ones if totaled (or at least try to). Nando is right, it's just the new generation of kids thinking they have something amazing and they don't..

However, there is a great looking '89 325is around Atlanta (on the Craigslist) for around $5k. It looks real sorted out and the price seems right. So, there are some fair priced ones on the market.

[leegf]

Bingo.. Insurance companies are still only going to give $3k for even sorted out ones if totaled (or at least try to). Nando is right, it's just the new generation of kids thinking they have something amazing and they don't..

However, there is a great looking '89 325is around Atlanta (on the Craigslist) for around $5k. It looks real sorted out and the price seems right. So, there are some fair priced ones on the market.

as long as there is a buyer willing to pay top dollar for a nice car, shouldn't the seller be able to ask for that premium?

obviously, if no one is willing to pay, then it's wishful thinking to ask above market value.

personally, i don't see anything wrong with the cost of nice examples going up. i think agent actually nailed it on the head:

It only stands to reason that the more of these that get R3V'd and/or parted out, the more their value is going to increase. That's a good thing for those of us who are doing what we can to keep our cars desirable.

[Cabriolet]

there will always be over priced cars and there will always be steals.
i paid $4300 for my mtech(full stock) and my dad paid $1000 for his blown head mtech.
i have since put 12k into my car and he has only put 2k into his. from the outside my neighbors have no clue that i wasn't driving my own car this week. But the difference is when you get behind the wheel. sure my dad could throw some ebay seats in his car and sell it for $5k. but there is no way i could get anything close to the 4300+13k=17k ive put into mine. even though nearly every hose, nearly every drive train part, nearly every every thing has been replaced.
on the other hand. jinoguy's s52, in literally perfect condition sold for ~11k and there is another guy with a lesser engine, rough body asking more. there may or many not be a buyer for it. who cares, it's not affecting you at all.
to me what it comes down to is standards. mine are extremely high. others are more than content to let sh*t slide (Vlad).

[bimmerteck]

Bingo.. Insurance companies are still only going to give $3k for even sorted out ones if totaled (or at least try to). Nando is right, it's just the new generation of kids thinking they have something amazing and they don't..

What insurance pays in the event of damage varies greatly by how your covered and the condition of your vehicle, I had no problem getting a $16k agreed value collector policy on my 'vert this week, handing the appraiser a pile of comps that were all within 3k of what I asked for on the policy and a pile of receipts detailing what exactly was spent getting the vehicle to this point. My last build I got t-boned by a lady on a cell phone coming out of the local post office parking lot at speed and I had to fight tooth and nail to get $3,500 from the insurance co. , god forbid it ever happen again but if it does it will be much different.

FTR- I generally don't sell vehicles so what the market will bear is of little importance in the value to me, only getting back what I invested getting the vehicle to where I'm happy with it is.

[blkbma]

Well thank ya'. It went to an excellent home AND stayed local so I am happy.

It most certainly did go to a good home and is most certainly worth every cent of the cost :) Still looking pretty much the same, just a few little mods here and there whilst I get parts together for the next step...(stay tuned!)

Whilst I will admit that spending $10k+ on a 20+ year old car is what some people will call crazy, there is no way I could have built a car to the same spec as the one I bought for anything under $16-17k minimum, not to mention the countless hours of un-billed labour that I would have to put in whilst taking time away from family and friends etc. I have a well sorted quality swapped car that will see weekend and track use that I will hold onto for at least 10 years, so to me that is worth the price.

P.S. Matt I changed the filler hose and put new fuel lines in too as they were looking a bit old/cracked and no more leaks.

Cheers
David

[delatlanta1281]

What insurance pays in the event of damage varies greatly by how your covered and the condition of your vehicle, I had no problem getting a $16k agreed value collector policy on my 'vert this week, handing the appraiser a pile of comps that were all within 3k of what I asked for on the policy and a pile of receipts detailing what exactly was spent getting the vehicle to this point. My last build I got t-boned by a lady on a cell phone coming out of the local post office parking lot at speed and I had to fight tooth and nail to get $3,500 from the insurance co. , god forbid it ever happen again but if it does it will be much different.

FTR- I generally don't sell vehicles so what the market will bear is of little importance in the value to me, only getting back what I invested getting the vehicle to where I'm happy with it is.

I woiuld agree with you, but with collectors ins, you can't strip what you want off the car before they take it. With regular ins, they will give you "fair market value" and you can strip certain things off.
That being said, what Huff said is true. His e30 is beautiful, but ins companies don't want to spend the money on a 20 year old car to fix it. Very little was replace the last time his car was hit. They repaired most of the fenders and the hood, and resprayed as little as they could. They even went so far as to try to say his hood latch was bad before the wreck, which it wasn't.
fourteenkay while an asking price is a bit out of control for a car with problems. Remember guys, you can buy a brand new car for 14k out the door. E30s, while "vintage" shouldn't bring over 10k unless completly sorted out. There are a couple on here that are, and they could bring in the asking price. But if you are asking over 10k for your e30 and it has fixable problems, you should fix them, then ask the price. What kind of DB asks a premium for a car that is in dis-repair, and by dis-repair, I mean in need of repair?????
Those of you who happen to be selling a car for over 10k in dis-repair, don't get butt hurt, you're asking too much. If you invested all this time and cash into your e30 and didn't realize you weren't going to re-coup 100% of your invesment, you were smoking crack.
GO BRAVES!

[bimmerteck]

I woiuld agree with you, but with collectors ins, you can't strip what you want off the car before they take it. With regular ins, they will give you "fair market value" and you can strip certain things off.
That being said, what Huff said is true. His e30 is beautiful, but ins companies don't want to spend the money on a 20 year old car to fix it. Very little was replace the last time his car was hit. They repaired most of the fenders and the hood, and resprayed as little as they could. They even went so far as to try to say his hood latch was bad before the wreck, which it wasn't.
fourteenkay while an asking price is a bit out of control for a car with problems. Remember guys, you can buy a brand new car for 14k out the door. E30s, while "vintage" shouldn't bring over 10k unless completly sorted out. There are a couple on here that are, and they could bring in the asking price. But if you are asking over 10k for your e30 and it has fixable problems, you should fix them, then ask the price. What kind of DB asks a premium for a car that is in dis-repair, and by dis-repair, I mean in need of repair?????
Those of you who happen to be selling a car for over 10k in dis-repair, don't get butt hurt, you're asking too much. If you invested all this time and cash into your e30 and didn't realize you weren't going to re-coup 100% of your invesment, you were smoking crack.
GO BRAVES!

What collector insurance did huff have? What type of policy was it? My experience with Haggerty on a customer's M3 was bar none the best insurance transaction I've ever been involved with.

[rav320uk]

Those are still cheap compared to what's happening over here.

Prices for good examples are now asking over £15k, some have been snapped up for £18.
M3's are fetching on avaerage £20k+
M3 EvoIII is on sale here so far for £85K,

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C291949

[Shangsta]

Ive noticed this trend too. If you had sold your old car now you could probably have gotten another grand or two from what you sold it for

[MR 325]

It most certainly did go to a good home and is most certainly worth every cent of the cost :) Still looking pretty much the same, just a few little mods here and there whilst I get parts together for the next step...(stay tuned!)

Whilst I will admit that spending $10k+ on a 20+ year old car is what some people will call crazy, there is no way I could have built a car to the same spec as the one I bought for anything under $16-17k minimum, not to mention the countless hours of un-billed labour that I would have to put in whilst taking time away from family and friends etc. I have a well sorted quality swapped car that will see weekend and track use that I will hold onto for at least 10 years, so to me that is worth the price.

P.S. Matt I changed the filler hose and put new fuel lines in too as they were looking a bit old/cracked and no more leaks.

Cheers
David

Thanks David, so glad that you're loving it!

You're going to have to keep me/us up to date with pictures every once in a while.

[jeffnhiscars]

...I had no problem getting a $16k agreed value collector policy on my 'vert this week, handing the appraiser a pile of comps that were all within 3k of what I asked for on the policy and a pile of receipts detailing what exactly was spent getting the vehicle to this point. My last build I got t-boned by a lady on a cell phone coming out of the local post office parking lot at speed and I had to fight tooth and nail to get $3,500 from the insurance co.

That same lady on a cell phone t boned my 318i in January & didnt even hang up til the cops arrived. I got $3k from her insurance company within 72 hours which may be the highest ever payout on an M10 car...PLUS I kept the car & will have it fixed for under $1k.

You can get declared value on a collector policy (I paid $75/yr when I had mine) but in my experience they want it garaged and they restrict your use of it. I'd be interested to know if any insco lets you DD on a collector policy.

[bimmerteck]

That same lady on a cell phone t boned my 318i in January & didnt even hang up til the cops arrived. I got $3k from her insurance company within 72 hours which may be the highest ever payout on an M10 car...PLUS I kept the car & will have it fixed for under $1k.

You can get declared value on a collector policy (I paid $75/yr when I had mine) but in my experience they want it garaged and they restrict your use of it. I'd be interested to know if any insco lets you DD on a collector policy.

It does have to be garaged and you also have to have a car you consider a daily(mine's a beat up new beetle), but if your willing to pay more there are collector insurance companies that will give you very close to a normal policy for the right amount of cash. My collector policy covers my 'vert where I have no worries about driving it anywhere I want, pretty much whenever I want, but I learned this week that commuting in it is nowhere near as fun as the Sat. morning drive I just got back from.

My insurance on the beetle and the 'vert is $58 a month combined, mostly because I have an atrocious driving record. (lots of tickets and a death on my record) But it's still far cheaper than a car payment for most or even just full coverage insurance for me on a newer sportier car. (read "no back seat")