Impending rocket in rare microcar prices

[richard]

Did anyone else get the latest news from China about the prospect of them importing vintage vehicles - previously dis-allowed . Could be potentially the death knell to our hobby

[Jim Janecek]

where did you read this?  They have been trying to change the restrictions for years.
also- the vintage car collectors there are more interested in American and well-known British marques at this time.
I think they have a way to go before getting into really odd things.

[richard]

I am sorry on re-reading this I may be jumping the gun a little Jim , but not much news from China comes out without being authorised , does it ?

[richard]

just googled and came up with :

http://www.classiccarsforsale.co.uk/news/classic-car-news/1504/china-to-discuss-importing-historic-cars/

[richard]

it wont be one ! Bruce Lee - I ask you 

[Big Al]

Well since they have stopped buying gold (if you believe those figures, then you will believe anything) they need to buy something else. I am not sure I greatly care if unused cars here become unused cars somewhere else. My hobby is gluing then together and attempting to drive them. Up to a point it does not matter what the car is. Most Classic Car prices are beyond an amount I wish to afford already, so I am out of that market. There are better things to do than tie your money into too many cars now.

Is the real reason for this that the Chinese have seen the general rise in Classic Car prices and want a slice of the action. However Classic Cars is a bubble investment based on economies offering very few other good freemarket investments. So if they come in and buy up all the already overpriced cars, then, later, the bubble pops, I see that as a positive for our nation. One of few. As an owner of too many cars, bring it on, I say. For those who really use the cars will continue to do so.

Asia was already a prime buyer of Classic Cars anyway. I have sold more cars to them in 20 years, than anywhere else. It tends to be done quietly, and not least as the wealthy over there are very wealthy. It does not always suit them to advertise that they are buying. So you just do not get to hear about it. My suspicion is the first two biggest microcar collections are Asian. China is just catching up, as it is not a free market economy.

[richard]

hmmmm Mike and I have known a German guy Artura for many years , he lived in Thailand and married a Thai girl , and was by way of a curator of a Micro museum out there .At Beaulieu he bought anything micro , half cars, engines etc. This year Artura said that the collection had been sold back to a German and relocated there , the climate being uncondusive to old cars , high humidity etc . 

[Big Al]

That's interesting. That collection had grown big. Part of the dynamic was the restoration work was done at Thai prices, controlled by a guy who knew what the cars should be. It was on this and his ability to source parts and cars that Artura was a key part of that guys collection management covering a huge range of things, not just cars. The collection featured some duplication and multiplication as it suited the way they were used and exhibited. It will be interesting to see if some of those filter onto the market.
But Artura was a portal for cars to go to other collections out there. There are at least 4 others I can think of who are British based, several of whom used to buy from me when I was active. So they will probably be tbe ones to feed China initially if it all goes off. 

[AndyL]

I really hope prices don't go any more mental than they are at present, they are already too high and could do with dropping down- the prices these days must exclude many genuine enthusiasts. There is no way I would get into classic micro cars these days if I had to pay current prices.

High prices only benefit speculators, plus it makes the cars more attractive to thieves.

[Big Al]

My old Trojan is just up for sale. A little under £20k. It a very good car but who will buy it? Having bought it, will they use it? For me at that sort of money I can see a return of at least 71/2% via investment , or several toys like BXGTI or BMW Z3, a budget to get them going, and enough money to live on for a few years. I am not remotely in the market as a buyer.

But the car lives on and the effort to get it right, the miles it covered, and times I had, are all part of something that continues. If the values had not risen it is less likely the car would have survived in good shape. So the heritage passes elsewhere. To the restorer, the folk with the imagination to return the unwanted to the road, and to have faith their taste is better than the crowd, goes the satisfaction of creating. Just buying stuff done is not nearly so satisfying to the soul. Worth and value.