What’s it worth?

[jlpower]

Hi all, I don’t post much but I’m always reading your threads and would appreciate your expertise and insight.

Park the ‘it’s worth what someone’s willing to pay for it’ argument for a second if you will, I’m looking to get a rough valuation for my beloved Trophy #300. New job, city and commute means it might... might be time to go. Upset doesn’t even come close - this is the best thing I’ve ever owned. But it’s given me sheer joy over the last two years and nothing is forever. I’m not sure I can afford to keep it and I have one or two interested and this seems the best place to ask for your fair valuation.

The story:
- 2 previous owners but effectively only one as the first was the garage (pre-reg). Purchased from a lifelong friend in Oct 15. He now drives a supercar so you can imagine how well kept it was.
- Wherever possible original Renault parts have been used with zero modifications, the only exception is the exhaust (see below) and Fabia splitter (I’m not spending £300 on a piece of plastic)
- Currently at 47k miles, 12k covered during my time. Never ever been on a track.
- No expense spared during my ownership including belts/water pump (Oct 15), Miltek exhaust with Prima Racing mounts (christ they’re expensive!! Oct 15), BG Sachs refurb (March 16), alloys refurbed Jan 17 (DMC in Newbury - simply the best - they are immaculate) and a couple of other bits too such as spark plugs
- Not-so-sexy work includes new windscreen wiper motor and recently a steering rack replacement
- All work above undertaken by best in the biz and mince pie monster Mick @ Diamond Motors
- Kept in Classic Additions red car cover and indoors for most of its life
- Spare set of newish Cup dampers (only covered about 3k)
- Shell V-Power and the best lubricants only, drives exceptionally, pulls wonderfully, gearbox still good.
- Mechanically the car is extremely sound
- Clio Trophy #300 binder with a bunch of receipts and invoices going back to ‘12 (thanks to the fella on here who had them made)
- Good bodywork. It’s been driven so an anorak would probably point towards a minor chip here or there but overall the paintwork is solid and any pinking effect isn’t obvious. Alloys are *immaculate*
- Interior is great, Trendlines in excellent condition, steering wheel showing its age a bit but it’s a peripheral issue really
- Could probably do with a set of new tyres (there’s even a PE2 on there that’s done about 13k!) to return it to optimal grip but believe me it’s absolutely fine.

Is it showroom condition? No. Is it very good? Absolutely. It’s been driven and it’s been cared for. Tell you something though - if you got a top detail on it (for example at DMC) and four new rubbers it would probably be one of the finest examples around.

Happy to answer any questions to achieve a better valuation. Happy New Year!

 

[dablk]

Well I can offer £6k for her.

 

[Bay]

Hi - got a good friend who would be interested in this. Where are you based and how much are you looking for?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Simundo]

At the right time of year I'd say maybe £10k. I wouldn't let it go cheap.

 

[dablk]

So a genuine £6k offer isn’t a goer then?

 

[Ashtons99]

In the current market £8995 I reckon, if/when folks get giddy again maybe another £1k

I will however offer £6500 just to top Chris

 

[dablk]

I can't beat that as it at a minimum needs tyres...All yours Tony :blush:.

It was a genuine offer though.

 

[jlpower]

Thanks for your inputs so far, and Simundo... it wouldn't be going for cheap. Someone would be getting a very good car. Bartering over an appreciating asset (if priced fairly) seems a bit of a strange concept to me anyway.

 

[Simundo]

One now on eBay with the same mileage. Wants £13k. That to me sounds a bit over the top but you never know!

 

[g7jhp]

You can your put Trophy up for whatever you want. If the price is unrealistic it will just sit there.

I pulled together a spreadsheet on all the cars that have sold from here to get a realistic idea of what cars have sold for.

Good luck but at £13k you may have to be patient.

 

[Ashtons99]

You can your put Trophy up for whatever you want. If the price is unrealistic it will just sit there.

I pulled together a spreadsheet on all the cars that have sold from here to get a realistic idea of what cars have sold for.

Good luck but at £13k you may have to be patient.

So don’t be shy....share your efforts.......although you might get flamed having sorted the market within a couple of weeks of membership on here !

 

[dablk]

Well 11k car now eBay for £19,000.

 

[dablk]

You can your put Trophy up for whatever you want. If the price is unrealistic it will just sit there.

I pulled together a spreadsheet on all the cars that have sold from here to get a realistic idea of what cars have sold for.

Good luck but at £13k you may have to be patient.

How can you possibly have any idea on what a car sells for. All your spreadsheet tells you is what a car was advertised for.

 

[g7jhp]

How can you possibly have any idea on what a car sells for. All your spreadsheet tells you is what a car was advertised for.

Correct.

But you get a picture of what the asking price was v mileage. You can see on threads if the price dropped and an idea of the interest by the time it took to sell. One thing you do know is the price won't have done up from the asking price, but it may be below.

Examples
Trophy #491 - James F put it on for £6,500 (with 78k miles) on 13 Oct and subsequently dropped that to £6,000 on 16 Oct and Sold by 27 Oct.

Trophy #419 - On for £6,400 (with 71k miles) sold instantly.

 

[dablk]

yes but you don’t know it sold instantly for £6400

 

[g7jhp]

The point is the car sold for £6,400 or lower it's a benchmark.

This helps you to build a picture of where the market is at.

 

[dablk]

ok so using your example.

491 sold 6k or under.
491 now advertised 8k... so what's the correct value?

 

[g7jhp]

The one thing with the Trophy is each car is numbered, so we can follow individual cars relatively easily from the 'asking price' from the first sale to the new vendors asking price. I'm not saying it was bought to be flipped in this instance but that is what the trade does when it buys low and adds a mark-up and then the market decides what it will pay for a car.

The market seems to be circa £6-6.5k for a 70-80k mile car. Spending money on bringing a car up to scratch doesn't make it a £8k car.

If you were able to find a 70k mile Trophy at £4k, then it woulld be under priced and could be sold for a higher price (if that was your goal).

Ultimately the market to decides (but the pricing on these cars are transparent due to the numbering).

 

[dablk]

Really not trying to bust you balls. New members are every much welcome especially if they are here to contribute.

What you will realise once you have been around a few years is that the prices on these are wild. from the incomplete, cheap dogs, honest cars, brand new sachs cars thru to 19k dealer attempts. So trying to say £6k for a 70k car is the value is impossible there are just too many service and condition factors you need to think thru.

The bottom lie is they are 13 year old mk2 clios so are starting to fall to bits and cost a lot to keep healthy. Hence why the rest of the 172/182 are now pretty much in the £1-2k range cos the kids can't afford to run them anymore. even a set of Michelin ps3's is heading to £450.

Look at the OP cars. I bet he never expected bills for a steering rack when he bought a 35k example. So a history of spending money on these is actually everything as far as value imho.

 

[g7jhp]

Thanks dabik. Having run a wide range of cars from 205 GTI (1.6 and 1.9), Elise, MX5, S3, Caterham and various other cars I can assure you I'm well versed in the running costs of cars.

Unexpected bills are part and parcel of the second hand ownership. Any buyer should be factoring in work required. If you buy a car and are hit with a bill for a steering rack you have to suck it up, you don't expect you cars value to go up by the price of the steering rack or other work done.

A history of spending is important as you can see what's been done (and so shouldn't need doing) and if the owner cherished the car or has scrimped on running it. If a car needs work doing e.g. clutch, new tyres you factor in those jobs when making an offer.

These don't set the average market price which the Trophy.

You get 'wild asking prices' as there will always be someone with a dog who wants to get rid cheap or a mint low mileage car which is priced in the stratosphere on the chance someone with more money than sense buys it.

As you say the downside of the Clio (and Trophy) is it falls into the hands of people who can't afford to run them and being relatively fragile they fall to bits if not cared for which requires a bigger spend to rectify them.

I look at the cars than have a higher asking price and aren't selling and that says it all.

2018 will be interesting as the shine has come off the used car market and there are less 'speculators about' so prices are starting to become more realistic.

Just looking for an honest Trophy I can drive.....and have a bit of banter about! :blush: