Pagoda SL Group
W113 Pagoda SL Group => General Discussion => Topic started by: bkik on November 30, 2014, 04:08:49
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Hello fellow member!
I was casually browsing EBAY, and came across a 280SL in terrible condition. But the bidding was still high, whats a car in this condition really worth?
I'v seen much better conditions for maybe around a few thousand dollars more, just wondering.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mercedes-Benz-SL-Class-CV/271681029216?_trksid=p2045573.c100033.m2042&_trkparms=aid%3D111001%26algo%3DREC.SEED%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20131017132637%26meid%3D4ffceca5ffb6491cafe01e5afd73a7f3%26pid%3D100033%26prg%3D20131017132637%26rk%3D3%26rkt%3D4%26mehot%3Dpp%26sd%3D161502399731
Thanks!
BKIK
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I wish I could explain or give a good answer to your query. This makes not much sense to me.
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All I can say is that if the seller gets anything more than he paid for this scrapheap (should not be more than maybe $1,000) he is very lucky. And the buyer will lose his or her shirt.
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I have no idea why but completely unrestored basket cases like this do seem to fetch ridiculously high prices. One like this was sold at auction in the UK last year for £72000!
I have in my inventory an unrestored 280 that I know I would make more money on if I sold it as it is than if I restore it and sell it but I just can't bring myself to do it!
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This car seems restorable, but will requise new everything. A few years ago, it could be done for 100k$, plus the price of the car. It only makes sense if someone has an ability to do bodywork repair himself. Case in point my car was initially bought as a solid driver #4 for that money in 2002. The restoration was completed in 2008 and the file contains a bit more than 80k$ in bills, and this is not counting all the bodywork and engine rebuild done on a cash/handshake type of deal, plus all the work (hundred of hours) the owner did himself.
I would pass on that one. Stick, maybe the car you saw auctioned for 72000 pounds was some special car, super rare options, celebrity ownership, or do you reckon is was a battle of two egos in a bidding war?
It is still pretty near impossible to restore a car like this and make profit I think.
Jerome
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Having been a gearhead for 50+ years, I have observed that the hobby makes no economic sense. It's always less money to buy a restored car than to restore one especially given current parts prices. Some guys spend hundreds of thousands restoring cars that are worth tens of thousands. I think it's because it's a hobby, not a business. The urge to do it yourself is hard to resist. Others enjoy commissioning a restoration that will produce the car they always wanted in their youth, or a well-loved family car.
There are also guys who see restored cars for $125K and think that they can turn a profit on a $14K basket case. This is simply poor judgment - they don't understand the cost of the parts and the amount of time it will take to produce a high-quality restoration.
My .02
Cheers,
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Others enjoy commissioning a restoration that will produce the car they always wanted in their youth, or a well-loved family car.
Exactly the kind of customer I look for. I always tell prospective Pagoda owners not to expect to make a profit if they want me to restore their car.
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I gotta admit it makes me tempted to sell mine rather than restore it to driver condition. The $100,000 price tag on a full resto is a bit scary. I don't do body work but can do mechanical.
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Seattle Jerry,
You have to understand that the restorations that Stick is talking about are not just restoring to daily driver but to a concourse competitor.
That last 10% perfection, costs 50% extra and many do not go there but rather aim for a top end driver which can be half the cost of concourse condition.
Its a jump from driver top end and concourse that often scares away potential owners and why you see a project car halfway there for sale as they have not understood what they were aiming for and thus probably already over spent when all they needed was a good driver.
You have to know what your end goal is or you can get burnt.
Thats my thoughts on it.