Different planet

Honest John Back Room » Motoring discussion
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Fri 16 May 2003 00:17
Different planet - DavidHM
Looking for a cheap Mondeo in AutoTrader I specified the "over 100k miles" button... and then decided to do a price high/low to see what a two to three year old new shape would be going for.

However, I found one a 98R old shape Verona at a Ford franchise with 130k on it for £5399... what would that make at auction? £1300?

And then I found a LHD specialist dealer doing a 96P 1.6 estate with 192kkm (120k miles) for £4995. On their website, they also had a 97R Xantia with 110k for £5595, a Y plate Fiesta (37k) for £7595 (close to new price!), a 99 Arosa and a 98 Clio, both at £6k and a 175k mile 94 BMW 525 for £5k.

Does anyone buy these cars or is there really such a premium to be paid for having the steering wheel on the wrong side of the road? And do they make low ball offers for the cars when they're in the country on the grounds that there's no market for them?
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Fri 16 May 2003 15:16
Different planet - Miller
Going back five years now I saw a 3 year old last of the line Renault 5 up for sale at £3995 at the local Ford dealer, its new price would have been £5555 IRC, so at 3 years old they were after over 70% of its new price. Needless to say it sat there for over a year and the dealer no longer exists.

Trouble is there are so many mugs out there who know nothing about cars or their values.



I'm a loser, baby....so why don't you kill me?!
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Fri 16 May 2003 20:16
Different planet - T Lucas
I know one of the larger LHD dealers and contrary to what many people may think they do not need to price their cars at low prices.They are not competing with people that want to buy a RHD car and there are a surprisingly large No of people that are going to live/stay in a LHD country and would not feel confident buying locally.
There is also a sizeable No of people that are leaving the UK with large amounts of cash that they want to convert to something more materiel and legit for when they get back to their home country.
When they are offered a LHD car they will always offer to buy,but obviously on their terms,no Parkers guide there,thank you very much.
It is a profitable,niche market where a motor trader can earn a reasonable living.
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