other Roi Question

[Stuart]

A friend of mine is selling her 356 and has a question.  Is there a rule of thumb on investment in a car and a corresponding increase in the car's selling price/value? 

 

The analogy I would make is when you remodel a kitchen roughly 30% of what you spend can be added to the value of the home when you go to sell it.  Are there any associated numbers/percentages for cars?

 

Stuart  

Edited May 27, 2014 by Spike

[jrkoupe]

I dont think such a thing exists w/ autos.

Restores vary a great deal....do you mean it was restored?...

some cars you hope for 50% back....but some cars get waaay more ie ferrari, porsche... etc etc etc...and it depends on the model as well.

ragtop 356s get more...speedster especially......4 caMS get waay more.....

plain jane 356's dont get huge money..even if restore was costly.

and some restore shops add to your return..ie Paul Russell for MB....

Edited May 27, 2014 by jrkoupe

[M3M3]

and for many older specialty cars today....any investment DECREASES value.  "original" and "unrestored" sometimes draw higher sale prices than fully "restored".

[TobyB]

It's a car.  There is no investment.  

It's like a boat- you just toss money in.

 

t

[Preyupy]

Unless you are a expert on 356's and understand ALL of the intricate details my recommendation is to sell it "as is".  The current market in 356's is very strong but the real money is going for top notch cars.  Just doing a quick paint job will not be worth the $$ if it is not perfect.  Remember "RESTORATION" is putting the car back to exactly the way it was originally not just a nice paint job.  I am sure there is going to be some rust that will need to be addressed, just clean it up as best you can make sure it runs and stops and put the word out it is for sale and it will sell. 

[LJtii]

In the collector car market, there is no such thing as "OK, I paid X for it, and spent Y on it, hence it therefore must be worth X + Y." Just doesn't work that way. But, having said that, any 356 is likely worth more than what she paid for it assuming she has owned it for a while, as they have gone pretty nuts in the past few years.

[kaptanoglu]

Aside from "runs and legal to drive" > "doesn't run", car restoration to any reasonable standard either requires that you lie to your spouse about the cost or you lie to yourself about the value of your own time.

 

I suspect that it would be worth whatever it took to turn it into a "driver" if it isn't that already, and save the full resto for someone else.

 

J

[glemon]

Well at least you are talking about a 356, on a 2002 I think that it is more of a LOL (Labor of Love, not Laugh Out Loud) than an ROI issue.

I would agree with others that have said there is no rule of thumb. The specific model and year of car, what the car needs, who will do the work and what they charge for it just introduce too many variables to the equation.

That being said, I would go a little beyond the simple clean it up and sell it advice. If it has any obvious issues that would detract from the value it would make sense to address those (generally excluding bodywork/paint rust), rather than selling it as is.

As in, runs great, but the starter motor is bad so you will have to trust me, or a bad clutch or something that is fairly straightforward to rectify, and will take a lot of the trust me factor out of the sale, or make it seem like a lot better car on a test drive, so you can sell it to someone who will pay good money for a nice car, rather than a guy looking for a deal on a car he can easily refurbish and flip. Even some cosmetic issues might make sense to address, if it is a beautiful car that runs great, but the seats are from something else or totally trashed might make sense get proper seats in the car.

A total refurbishment or restoration probably doesn't make sense, but rectifying some known issues might.

If the car is rust free getting the bottom of the vehicle pressure washed or steam cleaned might be a good investment, so she can truly show the soundness of the structure. Knowledgeable buyers, particularly if buying site unseen over the internet, will really appreciate a good view of the undercarriage, and be more comfortable upping the price.

[oldskoolvws]

When it comes to cars, ROI should be Ruined Optional Investments. All them mods, options and fun stuff is only worth what someone is willing to pay.