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Has the military vehicle price bubble burst ?


w896andy

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I’d value people’s views but it seems that the bubble regarding vehicle prices is about to or has burst having just seen yet another auction result (on here) for a Jeep set at £11-13k guide price (usually on the low side) but sold for £10k. As a long term collector I like many others have seen prices soar to a point of being only now open to a rich few, jeeps at this value are manageable and not likely to drop much due to the size/fun/practically of them but prices have clearly settled from last year, its mainly slightly rarer vehicles, bigger and more impractical vehicles which have traditionally been advertised a few thousand more than the last one every time one goes on the market until they are £20-30-40 or 50k plus that appear to be stagnating.

 

I’ve been tracking a number of vehicles in the last year or so now here, in a number of other places including eBay (once you take out the scam ads !!!) and auctions and currently I have seen an increasing number of higher priced vehicles doing the rounds but not selling with some bids which to me seem reasonable and even higher than previous others have sold for but still £10k or more short of reserve.

 

My view is I’m a buyer of vehicles as a collector who has space to house them and a little cash but not at some of the price levels people are asking. Of course last year saw the mega rich with bottomless pockets buy Jeeps at £70-80k on occasions but these were exceptions to the norm and in the same auction a Sherman failed to get reserve.

 

Currently there are 3 vehicles on the market I would buy for my own use at this moment in time which it wouldn’t be fair to name on here but I would buy and pay cash for today but I’m not so desperate I would pay the asking price so I don’t even make the phone call and there must be many people like me out there who like me would push the boat out a bit but not go crazy.

 

I think the number of buyers who have large amounts of cash and want a particular vehicle is diminishing, low interest rates have been around for a long time now so the people who bought a vehicle because their money isn’t earning interest and it’s an investment have spent up, vehicle owners are generally getting older so the numbers of vehicles coming onto the market is increasing and will increase greatly in the next 10 years when the family sell them off as they go to a better place (if I’ve just put you into that category, sorry !!) and we are in uncertain times so there is less money for luxuries.

 

The market in classic cars, tractors and lorries has already reduced and suffered the same as the ‘investors’ leave the market due to diminishing returns.

 

What’s your view ? Or am I wrong and do people see the first BSA M20 hitting £10k and a Bren Gun Carrier hitting £50k and actually selling for that in the not too distant future ?

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I’d value people’s views but it seems that the bubble regarding vehicle prices is about to or has burst having just seen yet another auction result (on here) for a Jeep set at £11-13k guide price (usually on the low side) but sold for £10k. As a long term collector I like many others have seen prices soar to a point of being only now open to a rich few, jeeps at this value are manageable and not likely to drop much due to the size/fun/practically of them but prices have clearly settled from last year, its mainly slightly rarer vehicles, bigger and more impractical vehicles which have traditionally been advertised a few thousand more than the last one every time one goes on the market until they are £20-30-40 or 50k plus that appear to be stagnating.

 

I’ve been tracking a number of vehicles in the last year or so now here, in a number of other places including eBay (once you take out the scam ads !!!) and auctions and currently I have seen an increasing number of higher priced vehicles doing the rounds but not selling with some bids which to me seem reasonable and even higher than previous others have sold for but still £10k or more short of reserve.

 

My view is I’m a buyer of vehicles as a collector who has space to house them and a little cash but not at some of the price levels people are asking. Of course last year saw the mega rich with bottomless pockets buy Jeeps at £70-80k on occasions but these were exceptions to the norm and in the same auction a Sherman failed to get reserve.

 

Currently there are 3 vehicles on the market I would buy for my own use at this moment in time which it wouldn’t be fair to name on here but I would buy and pay cash for today but I’m not so desperate I would pay the asking price so I don’t even make the phone call and there must be many people like me out there who like me would push the boat out a bit but not go crazy.

 

I think the number of buyers who have large amounts of cash and want a particular vehicle is diminishing, low interest rates have been around for a long time now so the people who bought a vehicle because their money isn’t earning interest and it’s an investment have spent up, vehicle owners are generally getting older so the numbers of vehicles coming onto the market is increasing and will increase greatly in the next 10 years when the family sell them off as they go to a better place (if I’ve just put you into that category, sorry !!) and we are in uncertain times so there is less money for luxuries.

 

The market in classic cars, tractors and lorries has already reduced and suffered the same as the ‘investors’ leave the market due to diminishing returns.

 

What’s your view ? Or am I wrong and do people see the first BSA M20 hitting £10k and a Bren Gun Carrier hitting £50k and actually selling for that in the not too distant future ?

 

HI; The same is happening Stateside, younger and new fans of the Hobbies are squeezed by the general economies, especially housing. Regular driver cars $20-30 K usd ect. Newc in Oregon

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I think it has got more specific. I've seen some vehicles selling easily and others that look like good prices struggling to sell. In particular projects seem to be struggling to sell. I think people have less time on their hands and would prefer something finished so the gap in price between the two is getting bigger.

 

But I think most importantly people are after specific vehicles. If they are going to invest a reasonable chunk of money in a vehicle, plus the cost of storage and maintenance, then they want a particular vehicle. Before someone who wanted a Morris might have bought a Bedford if it had come up for sale and then waited for a Morris. Now they are more likely to wait for the Morris to come up before spending their hard earned money. For instance recently a local guy approached me about Scammell's at one of the shows. Had a long chat and showed him over mine and he said he wanted a Pioneer. He particularly wanted a recovery. I did point out a very good tank transporter that was available but he was adamant he only wanted a recovery. We found him one that he snapped up immediately.

 

So I think it is a case of waiting for the right buyer but the price may well be lower than a year ago.

 

Ed

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Andy ,

about the price for that Auctioned Jeep , If you look at this Jeep in regards of originality , it is not a good Example ,it is changed a bit too MB configuration , but maybe only the chassis is MB . It looks as if it needs a full rebuilt , and that will cost another 6000,- , so finally you end up for a decent Jeep again in the region of 16000,-plus hours TLC .

I think a vehicle which is quality wise done up right , will also fetch top range money , as mentioned before , there are not many people anymore who want to put the time in to restoring a vehicle .

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I think that we all want our toys to be worth mega bucks but first you have to find a buyer and most of the younger generation either aren't interested or haven't got the cash. Take a look around at the next show you won't find many younger owners. I always buy projects because I like doing things up but more importantly I could never afford a finished vehicle. Prices for projects, in my opinion, have gone silly and once you add the transport cost and rebuild costs it no longer makes economical sense. I don't like selling my finished projects, so I will probably never see any financial gain, I just like the challenge. I would love a FAT but at £5000 for a project vehicle I will have to find something else to keep me busy.

 

Jon

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Yes people don't seem to be very interested in projects, except for german wartime vehicles, where it seems even the most derelict wreck can be sold at an high price.

 

But there as also been a good influx of restored rare vehicle the last couple year or so, (possible people getting old and downsizing their collections) with might have shifted people from buying projects.

 

The classic car market has also slowed down a bit, an specially after the brexit.

I have tried to sell my FAT for some time now, and sadly Brexit havent improved the situation for me, as the devaluation of the pound just bump the price from 4000£ to 5000£ish, even though I lowered the asking price.

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whever the bubble has burst or not - the recent rise in vehicle prices whilst good for those of us fortunate to already own vehicles has had a very noticeable and negative knock-on effect to the hobby - with the infamous jeep prices soaring - the price of other vehicles also went up as people looked to alternatives - the result - where are the youngsters coming into the hobby ?

even the Landrover - once easily affordable and readily available has priced itself beyond the reaches of most youngsters wishing to embark into the world of green machines.

Sadly I cant see this ever changing as I don't foresee prices dropping to the degree required to allow new/young membership to our hobby - as an Area Secretary for the MVT (West Sussex Area) - I cant remember the last time anyone under the age of 45/50 joined our club.

 

I have tried to encourage drivers mates and the no need to own a vehicle to join - but long term we could end up with a large void of up and coming younger members to take over when we are all to old to clamber into and under our vehicles.

I will be bequeathing mine to my sons - but that's presuming that they want to follow my tyre tracks and follow the hobby....its a wonderful hobby - but I don't see any younger members being able to afford and justify vehicle ownership - I started doing this when I was 21 - I cant see many 21yr olds doing the same now sadly......

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Do you think it would help if as the suggestion in another thread we do our own show? Vehicles must be more accessible even to look at, for the younger generation to get involved. How do they know that they even exist? Jessie the Jeep with his school visits is a good taster, and one way.

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Andy ,

about the price for that Auctioned Jeep , If you look at this Jeep in regards of originality , it is not a good Example ,it is changed a bit too MB configuration , but maybe only the chassis is MB . It looks as if it needs a full rebuilt , and that will cost another 6000,- , so finally you end up for a decent Jeep again in the region of 16000,-plus hours TLC .

I think a vehicle which is quality wise done up right , will also fetch top range money , as mentioned before , there are not many people anymore who want to put the time in to restoring a vehicle .

 

Maurice, Good to hear from you, firstly I must thank you properly for taking the time and energy to bring that Diamond T tailgate over from Holland to W&P for me a few years back. When I collected it we were in a hurry as my friends were late to get away and I feel I didn’t thank you properly at the time for which I’m sorry. Needless to say if I can ever repay the favour please ask, I haven’t forgotten your efforts, it helped me greatly with one of my projects (which I still have of course).

 

I agree £16k for a good Jeep is not expensive, even a bit more as say up to £18-20k is a figure many people in the real world can live with if the vehicle is perfect as once you own one its cheap, easy to store, repair and keep on the road and very practical so they are not ever likely to tumble in price but they have eased. Last year good Jeeps ready to go were being advertised for fast approaching £30k or more, and that’s a figure that takes it into another territory buyer wise.

 

You are right regarding the £6k to spend on that Jeep, it needs lots to turn it back into a nice MB. Projects as others have said need to be a much lower price I would say usually less than half the cost of a nice one plus your time to complete it. I actually think project value is a part problem of the unrealistic expectations by some sellers, the price difference between projects and finished vehicles needs to be very wide but it isn’t always.

 

Here’s a scenario I’ve seen played out on the internet many times in the last year or two: Lets say it’s a Bren Gun Carrier just to pick on a slightly unusual, not main stream and niche vehicle (but great and we would all want one) Seller 1 has a fully restored one recently finished that he has put life and sole into getting it perfect ‘new out of the box’, he quite fairly puts it up for a top price for buyers who want no work. A few months later seller 2 looks at seller 1’s ad and adds £5-10K more as ‘prices must have gone up’ he states his is ‘restored’ but a closer look finds it’s ‘an older restoration’ meaning it was done 30 years ago, has been to Normandy every year since, raced up and down the beach and generally used so it needs work and most likely another full restoration. Move forward a couple of months and seller 3 has another nice, recently finished one, he looks at seller 2’s ad and says mine is so much better and adds another £10-15k. So now we have an expectation that they are worth approaching £45k and double the price of seller 1’s nice one, you can then add seller 4 with the basket case as a shell with no wheels who thinks it has to be worth £25k as a nice one is ‘selling’ for £50k and puts in his ad, “a bargain at £25k, very rare, restored ones are selling for over £50k”. All these increases seemed to have worked in the past to a point as there were I believe a number of buyers with cash in their pockets but they don’t seem to be selling now. If you don’t think that’s true look at the final bid price on eBay for the last two nice one’s I’ve spotted as that’s the reality of what people will pay.

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In the states I've noticed what feels like a precipitous drop in interest in tracked armor.

Medium-sized vehicles seem pretty price-stable, jeeps continue to increase (only for very nice specimens) and mules (M274) have increased dramatically in the past few years with no sign of that reversing.

I do think a lot of the attention of late in the USA is on the now-available HMMWVs finally being released in large quantity and everybody wanting one (or so it seems to a disinterested spectator).

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whever the bubble has burst or not - the recent rise in vehicle prices whilst good for those of us fortunate to already own vehicles has had a very noticeable and negative knock-on effect to the hobby - with the infamous jeep prices soaring - the price of other vehicles also went up as people looked to alternatives - the result - where are the youngsters coming into the hobby ?

even the Landrover - once easily affordable and readily available has priced itself beyond the reaches of most youngsters wishing to embark into the world of green machines.

Sadly I cant see this ever changing as I don't foresee prices dropping to the degree required to allow new/young membership to our hobby - as an Area Secretary for the MVT (West Sussex Area) - I cant remember the last time anyone under the age of 45/50 joined our club.

 

I have tried to encourage drivers mates and the no need to own a vehicle to join - but long term we could end up with a large void of up and coming younger members to take over when we are all to old to clamber into and under our vehicles.

I will be bequeathing mine to my sons - but that's presuming that they want to follow my tyre tracks and follow the hobby....its a wonderful hobby - but I don't see any younger members being able to afford and justify vehicle ownership - I started doing this when I was 21 - I cant see many 21yr olds doing the same now sadly......

 

To pick up on the point of age and youngsters, yes this is a ticking time bomb and fast approaching. I’m also involved with my local Steam Railway, the West Somerset Railway is 23 miles long, has lots of trains and is run in the main by volunteers. You need around 30 volunteers a day, every day of the week in the summer months even with around 50 paid staff. Just like Military Vehicle collectors the pioneers who started the hobby are now in their late sixties, seventies and eighties and frankly a large percentage of the overall volunteer numbers won’t be there in 5-10 year’s time as they just won’t be fit enough.

 

It’s not an underestimation to say it’s a crisis which the railway preservation movement are very aware of and acting on now very proactively. The big difference is again the price. I can go down to the railway and play anytime I wish firing a large steam engine worth around £1 million pulling a 8 coach train over some big hills and it only cost me the fuel to drive there and some overalls/boots. I don’t have to buy a vehicle to get to a show at my expense and keep anything maintained. Needless to say the railway is attracting young people, our youngest footplate crew are a fireman at 19yrs old and a 25yrs old driver who have already spent years getting to be qualified and the cleaning gang which is the entry to the footplate has around 30 members currently over half under 30. The railway focuses very much on ‘cost of entry’ and it even provides free accommodation for people travelling a distance who want to stay over for a few days/week.

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Here’s a scenario I’ve seen played out on the internet many times in the last year or two: Lets say it’s a Bren Gun Carrier just to pick on a slightly unusual, not main stream and niche vehicle (but great and we would all want one) Seller 1 has a fully restored one recently finished that he has put life and sole into getting it perfect ‘new out of the box’, he quite fairly puts it up for a top price for buyers who want no work. A few months later seller 2 looks at seller 1’s ad and adds £5-10K more as ‘prices must have gone up’ he states his is ‘restored’ but a closer look finds it’s ‘an older restoration’ meaning it was done 30 years ago, has been to Normandy every year since, raced up and down the beach and generally used so it needs work and most likely another full restoration. Move forward a couple of months and seller 3 has another nice, recently finished one, he looks at seller 2’s ad and says mine is so much better and adds another £10-15k. So now we have an expectation that they are worth approaching £45k and double the price of seller 1’s nice one, you can then add seller 4 with the basket case as a shell with no wheels who thinks it has to be worth £25k as a nice one is ‘selling’ for £50k and puts in his ad, “a bargain at £25k, very rare, restored ones are selling for over £50k”. All these increases seemed to have worked in the past to a point as there were I believe a number of buyers with cash in their pockets but they don’t seem to be selling now. If you don’t think that’s true look at the final bid price on eBay for the last two nice one’s I’ve spotted as that’s the reality of what people will pay.

 

Andy, I think you've hit the nail on the head with your observation. When I think of some of the kit my friends and I have owned and still do own, no way could we afford them at todays quoted purchase prices. With more modern vehicles it is possible to get bargains as prices do fluctuate a bit; my recent observation was that Land Rover Wolf prices seem to fluctuate depending on how many Withams are releasing at the time. Unfortunately not the case for WW2 era and 1950s armour era vehicles as the supply is finite. The American market for Ferrets definitely seems to have played a part in the rise in value of those vehicles.

 

I think one of the few vehicles till available at "entry level" prices are Land Rover Series 3s, but most sane people wouldn't want one as they're more worse not as nice as a newer Land Rover (Defender), nor as iconic as a Jeep.

 

Vince

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As someone who has been trying to buy a good Jeep for what I think is a fair price for the last two years, my observation is that there is for the most part a big difference between the asking price and the selling price. As others have observed, high prices mean, usually, that the vehicle does not sell, but these asking prices get into the woodwork and establish this inflationary benchmark. I am now hesitating to buy because I do see a market correction coming into play (about time). It is possibly a double whammy.......my silver haired peers with disposable income deciding that the ubiquitous Jeep is fundamentally just not worth £26k and secondly, the longterm market (again, as others have observed) is looking decidedly weak with younger generations just not interested. Us baby boomers grew up with WW2 only just ended; our Dads still had their battle blouse hanging up on the back door to do the gardening in. Ex-WD vehicles were cheap and plentiful; the love affair with cars and the internal combustion engine was in full swing, still. Boy, have times changed. I think we have now reached the high point.

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I think that there are still a number of reasonably priced WW2 and 50's vehicles out there but you need to stay away from the most popular vehicles. Jeeps have always been popular and at the moment Scammell Explorer's are also very popular. Both have seen prices rise a lot. But I've seen things like Morris C8's and some of the Bedford's going for reasonable money. Rarer than a jeep and will still fit in a garage. I wonder if some of it is down to what people see on the rally field and in films. If you haven't seen a particular type of vehicle it probably isn't going to be on the shopping list.

 

We do try and encourage people in to the vehicles. Taking time to chat to people at the shows and if they show interest going through the different options. Also letting people have a go if it is feasible. One of the biggest problems I have heard from people is not knowing where to look to buy a vehicle. Most people go to ebay and no further. Pointing people in the direction of this site and milweb helps a lot in encouraging them. Seeing the support that is available and the depth of knowledge.

 

And I completely agree with Andy's comments about prices rising based on the last one to be advertised. Especially when something is put up for a lot of money then doesn't sell but the next seller bases their price on it.

 

Ed

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Vince, the price of Series Land Rovers is now astronomical.

 

Just a year and a half ago I couldn't sell a very reasonable one at £3.5k. Prices may be up, but I don't think the demand was there. Given how everything else is going up, they now seem more attractive (although not to me!).

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So apart from encouraging "drivers mates" - I don't know what else we can do as a hobby - most youngsters are now heading towards the re-enactment world as that is more easily affordable.

I always do my best to blood into the hobby - but with prices what they are - what young person, starting out in life with a young family / mortgage/rent can justify spending in excess of 5k on an entry line vehicle such as a landy or small motorbike - not to mention running costs and maintenance/storage etc...

My first vehicle was an Auto-Union Munga - I paid a couple of hundred quid for it, restored it as best as I could aged around 20 (Africa corp...don't ask - I was young and had no idea!) however despite having little knowledge or experience i had a great time - before embarking into 25+ years of jeeps/dodges/GMC's and Bedfords.....

my only advice would be to consider alternatives - Bedford RLs ,Auto-unions,Post was American chevy blazers etc even a para bike is worth considering for those who want to gain an entry into the MV world , - most of these can be purchased for sub 5k - but for how much longer???

 

as I said previously - its great if your already on the Military vehicle ownership ladder - but its a hell of a climb up if your not!

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I think it has got more specific. I've seen some vehicles selling easily and others that look like good prices struggling to sell. In particular projects seem to be struggling to sell. I think people have less time on their hands and would prefer something finished so the gap in price between the two is getting bigger.

 

But I think most importantly people are after specific vehicles. If they are going to invest a reasonable chunk of money in a vehicle, plus the cost of storage and maintenance, then they want a particular vehicle. Before someone who wanted a Morris might have bought a Bedford if it had come up for sale and then waited for a Morris. Now they are more likely to wait for the Morris to come up before spending their hard earned money. For instance recently a local guy approached me about Scammell's at one of the shows. Had a long chat and showed him over mine and he said he wanted a Pioneer. He particularly wanted a recovery. I did point out a very good tank transporter that was available but he was adamant he only wanted a recovery. We found him one that he snapped up immediately.

 

So I think it is a case of waiting for the right buyer but the price may well be lower than a year ago.

 

Ed

 

Another thing, I am a Trainer on Forklifts, and most of the techs are 40 and above. All kids are taught today is computers. For the most part they do not know how to even do a simple brake job. I over hauled my 1st car eninge when I was 10 with my Father watching, and instructing me.

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I agree with everything said, but have always thought there will come a time when the bubble will burst as us oldies get on in life and, like my son who has no interest in anything green and oily, will have to one day sell our beloved vehicles on to someone. But If the younger generation cannot afford them it will come to a stalemate. It's obvious everyone wants the best price they can get, it's greed, human nature. There are a few who are selling even now not to rip people off but to get back a reasonable bit of profit such as my Dodge for £8500. Restored. Great vehicle with a lot done to it, but this Dodge WC could have easily fetched £10K or £12K. I was just lucky that I was in the right place at the right time. I would dearly love to have a jeep but not at the prices they are going for at the moment. I mean what is going to happen when it gets to the point when people cant sell their vehicles because the price is to high for the youngster to afford, will they just sit in a barn and left to degrade as the owners can no longer get in them or are able to drive them. Will they still say that, no my jeep is worth that much and I am not lowering the price just to sell it. What then, it's got to come when the price will peak and the good times will have gone and the whole experience of collecting will start again with the young up and coming collector. Most might say I am talking tosh but it is just my way of thinking how it will end up. Rant over lol. :-X

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There's an interesting picture in the CMV this month, its of the tank museum in the 1070's, showing children climbing on the tanks and I think that that is part of the problem. As a child my father would take us on to Salisbury plain or over to Bordon or down to the tank museum or Aldershot training ground and we would play on and in the abandoned vehicles, smell that military smell, the grease and oil and we would want a vehicle of our own. At Aldershot army show we would see the military at its best, watch the Wessex helicopters landing in the arena to disembark a Land Rover and pack gun or at artillery day in Larkhill watching the artillery fire live shells on the ranges. It was exciting, thrilling and fun and I wanted to be part of it. That's all gone now, the health and safety brigade has stepped in, touch nothing and keep back. Now kids see it all on a screen, even the museums are getting rid of their collections in favour of virtual exhibitions. The same conversations are occurring over on the militaria web sites and the conclusion seems to be the same, we are a dying breed but as long as I die with my toys, what do I care.

 

 

Jon

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I have to agree with the points some people have made on here about young people not being able to affiord it. Im 23 myself and id love to get myself a MV but i just dont have the fiances to do soo and probably wont for quite some years due many different reasons. Id be happy with something like a Landy or something abit rarer but it would ave to be on the smaller side but i just wouldnt be able to get the money together to buy anything which to me i just rubbish as it is something id love to do

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Yes it's hard as a young person, to get in to the hobby, but it is possible my scammell, bedford and champ

where all less than 2000£ when I bought them, though in project condition. And we can still find cheap running vehicles like gmc's can be found in Norway.

The only reason why I could start, as early as I did, was that my father bought a farm so I had free storage.

Now 10 years later I got my own house, and can fit a vehicle up to 15cwt size, and a couple of cars at home.

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Yes it's hard as a young person, to get in to the hobby, but it is possible my scammell, bedford and champ

where all less than 2000£ when I bought them, though in project condition. And we can still find cheap running vehicles like gmc's can be found in Norway.

The only reason why I could start, as early as I did, was that my father bought a farm so I had free storage.

Now 10 years later I got my own house, and can fit a vehicle up to 15cwt size, and a couple of cars at home.

 

Agreed there are some cheap MV's outside of the UK but by the time you get them transported back to the UK and registered the price is going to be quite high again so although they may sound cheap to start with they end up being expensive.

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I agree with Jon;

 

Not so long ago at a Military Open Day I let kids sit in the back and the front of my Lwt, with me close at hand but other members said I shouldn't as with most MVs there are sharp corners or places to trap small fingers, meaning I might be sued if they got injured. Gone are the days when dad said "It's your own bloody fault you hurt yourself"!

 

As one member pointed out, what would happen if a youngster let off the hand brake and put the gears in neutral in your heavy weight MV and it rolled back on someone! Sadly H&S has meant we batten down every entry point, put up signs to say don't climb on the vehicle, in which case we don't attract new members.

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I think that we all want our toys to be worth mega bucks but first you have to find a buyer and most of the younger generation either aren't interested or haven't got the cash. Take a look around at the next show you won't find many younger owners. I always buy projects because I like doing things up but more importantly I could never afford a finished vehicle. Prices for projects, in my opinion, have gone silly and once you add the transport cost and rebuild costs it no longer makes economical sense. I don't like selling my finished projects, so I will probably never see any financial gain, I just like the challenge. I would love a FAT but at £5000 for a project vehicle I will have to find something else to keep me busy.

 

Jon

 

Jon, I totally agree with you here regarding the price of projects and I do exactly the same as you in buying things to do up for exactly the same reasons, although I do buy nice vehicles if they are priced right. For example I've been trying to buy a project WW2 Motorcycle for about a year now, BSA, Triumph, Matchless, etc. as long at its British, refurbished ones are already overpriced in my opinion as each one is £1,000 more than the last even though many more are coming back onto the market as they are being rebuilt (I guess because people think they are worth doing up for the current asking prices), but the projects I've seen are impossible to buy now with people asking only a little less than finished ones.

 

When you then speak to the seller its always the same, its got no paperwork, no NOVA, its missing all the expensive bits, been sat rotting for 30 years because when granddad bought it he used it for 20 years then put it in a shed and forgot about it as it only cost him £5 to begin with, but its great because it turns over and will only need a bit of tinkering with and a lick of paint. That's all fine and all do'able but not at £1k less than a nice one. Anybody who has done anything up will know the true costs.

 

However the most worrying one I saw recently was a Matchless on a certain auction site, which had no paperwork, the seller said he was bringing it from his home in France but would not provide a NOVA and didn't want to know about paperwork and would deliver it to you in the UK but you had to have the cash ready !!!!!! Needless to say I'm still looking.

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