Used car market

[positivetennis]

I was just wondering whether anyone who is trying to sell a used car at the moment is having a hard time. Many cars at the moment seem to be undergoing a price adjustment as stock seems to be sitting around. While houses in Sydney are booming, used cars are not so good. Is October

[oldmates260z]

It is a great time to buy any used car the market is very depressed (not good to sell). I was looking at getting a second hand 370Z and the you can pick one up for $35k, this is almost 1/2 the new price. The new car market is extremely competitive with so many players and models and then with Rudd's pre election spook of the market prices dropped significantly

[C.A.R.]

This is still for sale - even comes with a roadworthy now. Not ONE person interested

 

http://www.viczcar.com/forum/index.php/topic,13138.0.html

[KatoKid]

Lots of Z's seemed to have popped up or have been bumped this week and mo takers? Whats going on.

[lightmaster240z]

lot of big talker with no money to back them up  some thing never change. that whats going on. 

[positivetennis]

Its used cars in general I am seeing problems. I have an immaculate KL Verada with 100k for around 6K with no movement in 2 months, with dealers even offering the same car with less K's for less. Even cars advertised under 2K are not moving whereas houses in Sydney are going crazy. Are cheap imports coming from South Korea for under 20k changing the value for money equation the issue, or are there certain vehicles selling well and others not. One thing that is concerning is how much the Holden Commodore has declined. It's now the end of October and I am lucky to have seen 10 on the road, this would have been unheard of back in the VT days. I am seeing many Hyundai I30's and Toyota 86's seem to be selling well along with Mazda 3's.  I am not sure if classic cars are being affected the same way as they competing in a different market you would think.  late 80's Australian delivered Supra's are not selling along with 90's 300zx and Mitsubishi Gto's despite being a lot of metal for the money.

[Agno]

I see VF Commodores everywhere, unless the aren't being sold in Sydney I doubt they are that scarce.

 

In the last month I have bought and sold two cars and both of those sales occurred less than two weeks after I put them online. Your problem appears to be here:

I have an immaculate KL Verada with 100k for around 6K with no movement in 2 months, with dealers even offering the same car with less K's for less

 

Ever heard of market value? You might think it's worth $6k but you are obviously mistaken, especially if there are dealers out there undercutting you on price and kms. There is no reason why that car should sit in your garage doing nothing if you price it accordingly.

 

Classics and Zeds are a bit different as they are niche vehicles appealing to a very limited group of people. As a result it is only natural that

a) The buyers will be picky about what they buy.

b) Cars will sit idle for long periods of time until the right buyer comes along.

 

Which brings me to my next question... Bought a car yet?

[dat2kman]

Been to a wreckers yard lately?

The number of minor damage/easy repairer cosmetic stuff is huge.

 

Why?

Owners have a not so old common as muck daily driver, sitting in front yard, out of rego, thought they could sell it themselves, 'cos the dealer said it's worth 2/5ths of stuff all on the new car trade!

 

Jump 6-12 months, old car, surrounded by weeds on front lawn, they ring the El-Cheapo Towie, who gives them $100, and onsells it at $250 to any number of wreckers!

Hence full yards of "Why is that here???"

[luvemfast]

I sold my EL XR6 withing 2 days of advertising, would have been sooner as buyer contacted me within 12 hours but I was busy.

It was a good car.

It was the right car.

It was priced right.

No one wants your Verada. Sorry

[PZG302]

Same with my S14.

 

Priced probably a little high for the market, but had high km's. Was standard and presented well.

 

It took around 6 weeks and a few texts asking for swaps for pieces of shit like a 626, a Hyundai Excell and motorcross bike plus cash their way (drugs were involved there I think) but was offered cash at what I wanted so it was driven away.

 

If the cars are priced at what the market is prepared to pay they will sell quickly, at this point the market is next to nothing for most cars.

 

For cars like Zeds, they take a long time to sell as the market is small and most people know each other and the cars with their true worth and condition.

 

Similar with MX5's, a lot of the guys selling on the hairdresser forum are dreaming and want way too much for them. Pay more than $5k for a NA6 or NA8 and you're paying too much. Good NB's can be had at about $7k.

 

About the only cars bucking the trend seem to be falcodore utes which hold their values stupidly compared to sedans. You can expect to pay $5-10k more for a ute over the equivalent sedan depending on year and model, yet there are generally cheaper than the sedan to buy new.

[d3c0y]

No one wants A Verada. Sorry

 

 

Fixed...

[gav240z]

Its used cars in general I am seeing problems. I have an immaculate KL Verada with 100k for around 6K with no movement in 2 months, with dealers even offering the same car with less K's for less. Even cars advertised under 2K are not moving whereas houses in Sydney are going crazy. Are cheap imports coming from South Korea for under 20k changing the value for money equation the issue, or are there certain vehicles selling well and others not. One thing that is concerning is how much the Holden Commodore has declined. It's now the end of October and I am lucky to have seen 10 on the road, this would have been unheard of back in the VT days. I am seeing many Hyundai I30's and Toyota 86's seem to be selling well along with Mazda 3's.  I am not sure if classic cars are being affected the same way as they competing in a different market you would think.  late 80's Australian delivered Supra's are not selling along with 90's 300zx and Mitsubishi Gto's despite being a lot of metal for the money.

 

I think you're on to something Sydney house prices are going bananas and I'd say people are selling assets to fund a house purchase at the current interest rates. It does make me wonder when this infinite growth stops, what is going to happen?

[gav240z]

Classic Car prices are high for the most part, take a look at an XB Coupe and you'll see what I mean. Zeds are actually on the cheap end if you ask me. There are far more early rotor coupe's floating about and yet they are often priced much higher than an early Z.

 

I guess as has been mentioned it's a smaller market and generally people looking for a Z have had 1 before or know what they are looking for.

[Zedman240®]

You cannot compare buying houses to cars; one never loses value and the other loses half instantly once you sign on the dotted line.

We just bought a new car (famous last words from the wife.."let's just go and have a look!") and for our 8 year old 05 model Xtrail, they were only going to give us $4k for trade in (160+ks and some light panel issues). Changed my mind on that and handed them my 03 model 260K Mazda oil guzzling, suspension knocking 323 "Shades" for the sum of $1750.

Problem is that its a Mitsubishi... people think because they don't manufacture here anymore, you'll be stuck with no parts/support. They have always suffered with resale values. Honda, Mazda seem to keep a little more value with the said Ford / Holden Commondores suffering the worst.

As with selling any car, it all comes down to the lowest dollar, with a "drive away with no more to pay" thing. Include RWC and 12 months Reg and they will still haggle.

[PB260Z]

My 2 cents worth 

 

Another thing to consider is what is happening in the new car market at the moment.

 

New car sales took a major hit in the lead up to the election, for some brands a 30% downturn, this has resulted in a glut of new car stock sitting both dealer and manufacturer's holding yards. The front page of Go-Auto this week ran a story about Nissan having 40,000 cars in stock.

 

Manufacturers are facing a couple of issues as a result, to much stock and pressure from parent companies to achieve annual sales and profitability plans. So what to do ? Discount new product and incentivise dealers whilst this will stimulate sales of new cars albeit at reduced prices it also results in an oversupply of used cars.

 

Add to low prices, cheap finance (0 percent is common), and people who would normally buy used cars start to move into new cars and thus a reduction in used car demand.

 

Increased supply + reduced demand  = falling prices.

 

Classics will remain stable as they are less subject to fluctuations in the mainstream automotive market.

 

 

Cheers

 

PB

 

 

[positivetennis]

I definitely think the market for everyday cars have shifted. In the past I have never had any problems pricing and selling cars, especially low kilometre immaculate cars which are usually hard to find under 7k, most cars in this price range have well over 120k. Only a few months ago vz commodores with under 100k in excellent condition would easily sell for 7k and a top of the range 2004 Verada could fetch 8k so there has been a very recent market correction. Only 6 months ago I sold a 1990 300zx with 160k for 8k, now many 89/90 models are struggling to get that. Selling for less is not a problem if all things are equal (meaning the car you want to move up to has also suffered the same depreciation.

Many interesting responses to the earlier post. I do think that buying tastes are evolving, and I do accept that some cars are in more demand than others. People are much for fuel conscious and attracted to cheaper, newer imports.

In Sydney I do think that house prices and interest rates do have a bearing on disposable incomes and that can dictate how people spend there money on cars. The game is over for many people when the median house price is around 750k. Cultural and demographic shifts also contribute to changing buying habits.

I also feel that the market for classic cars has changed as well. A rich guy who wants to buy an E type for 80k when he already has everything does not worry about the purchase, however I do think that a car like a 240z/260z is a little more price sensitive in terms of value for money, build quality and the lure of alternatives available to the buyer. That I guess is one view, and everyone is free to disagree. I am relatively comfortable purchasing an s30 under 20k, but above that I may find it hard to justify spending hard earned cash like that.