$65,000 Mk1 GTI

[bigbumper]

Reading Quentin Wilson's column in the July 2008 issue of Thoroughbred & Classic Car:

"The other day a man rang me up wanting a valuation for his 1983 Y-plate Golf GTI Mk1 that had only done 4000 miles.  A peach of a car in Alpine White, it was completely original, had all the books, manuals, tools and spare keys and been in careful long-term storage.  I told him it was worth an easy £20k.  A week later he rang me back to tell me he sold it for £25,000."

Now I'm sure all you Mk1 owners will be gleefully rubbing your hands together at this news... but am I the only one who finds the thought of a $65k Mk1 GTI ridiculous? 

[GTI's]

Yehaa!  I must mint my GTI out soon.

[robh]

Coming from the UK, you can't always apply the exchange rate against stuff, it's all relative.

If you earn 50k sterling and buy a mark 1 GTI for 25k sterling it's 50% of your yearly income.

If you come to NZ you won't earn 2.65 times your salary from the UK, so if you earn 50k NZD there is no way on earth anyone here would pay 65k NZD it would be more than 100% of your yearly income wouldn't it?

My mates come over and say wow look at that mansion it's only xxx in pounds, but that only works if you have pounds to start with, if your here earning NZD that's what you have to spend aye?

[AngleBox]

4000 miles and un-blemished. One of a kind I would say.

[BB]

Not ridiculous at all.
 As well as what Robh is saying its a 4000km original! No matter how tidy brendo makes his one it can never be what that car is, unless you find a mk1 with less miles and immaculate and with all the paper work etc that car is the best mk1 you could possibly find so its worth that and in fact if a multi millionaire buyer was bidding in an auction for it and really really wanted it and was bidding against another multi millionaire the price could be in the millions, everything is worth what somebody will pay for it.

[bigbumper]

Coming from the UK, you can't always apply the exchange rate against stuff, it's all relative.

If you earn 50k sterling and buy a mark 1 GTI for 25k sterling it's 50% of your yearly income.

If you come to NZ you won't earn 2.65 times your salary from the UK, so if you earn 50k NZD there is no way on earth anyone here would pay 65k NZD it would be more than 100% of your yearly income wouldn't it?

My mates come over and say wow look at that mansion it's only xxx in pounds, but that only works if you have pounds to start with, if your here earning NZD that's what you have to spend aye?

I agree with what you're saying, to a point.  A couple of things though: if you're on £50k and you come to NZ, you should be on a hell of a lot more than NZ$50k (NZ$100k at least I would say).  And as Anglebox says, that Golf is one of a kind - so if you want it you're competing with buyers from all over, who are earning pounds, euros, US$, whatever.  You couldn't say "oh but thats more than a years salary for me", the owner will just sell it to the highest bidder... and you miss out.

[bigbumper]

Not ridiculous at all.
 As well as what Robh is saying its a 4000km original! No matter how tidy brendo makes his one it can never be what that car is, unless you find a mk1 with less miles and immaculate and with all the paper work etc that car is the best mk1 you could possibly find so its worth that and in fact if a multi millionaire buyer was bidding in an auction for it and really really wanted it and was bidding against another multi millionaire the price could be in the millions, everything is worth what somebody will pay for it.

Worth and value are two subtlely different things.

So you buy this mint Golf with f-all mileage on it... then what?  You park it up and never drive it (to preserve its value), or you drive it and enjoy it and it becomes another $5k car?

[RS ZWEI]

Worth and value are two subtlely different things.

So you buy this mint Golf with f-all mileage on it... then what?  You park it up and never drive it (to preserve its value), or you drive it and enjoy it and it becomes another $5k car?

Yes, but lots of people do that sadly. It ends up being art than a car.
I couldnt do it, Id want to get out there and enjoy them.

[robh]

I agree with what you're saying, to a point.  A couple of things though: if you're on £50k and you come to NZ, you should be on a hell of a lot more than NZ$50k (NZ$100k at least I would say).  And as Anglebox says, that Golf is one of a kind - so if you want it you're competing with buyers from all over, who are earning pounds, euros, US$, whatever.  You couldn't say "oh but thats more than a years salary for me", the owner will just sell it to the highest bidder... and you miss out.

I work in IT and 50k in UK does not translate to 100k here, it's much closer than that.  Maybe other industrys have a bigger gap?

Also the years salary thing was just to give an example of % of income rather than exchange rate.

[robh]

Worth and value are two subtlely different things.

So you buy this mint Golf with f-all mileage on it... then what?  You park it up and never drive it (to preserve its value), or you drive it and enjoy it and it becomes another $5k car?

You are spot on here

I can't stand the idea of something stunning that you could never drive 

[GTI's]

So in reality if i put another KR motor in my NZ new MK1 GTI it will be worth less than it would be with 1600 k jet and fd 5 spd box?
I know what i'd buy.

[BB]

So in reality if i put another KR motor in my NZ new MK1 GTI it will be worth less than it would be with 1600 k jet and fd 5 spd box?
I know what i'd buy.

That car is a totally different thing. if you did your one up as an origional to exact original specs it might be worth more than if you do a do up with a 16v motor, but it would make bugger all difference really.

[ritmo]

At the end of the day it is just a golf, so 25k pounds is indeed crazy. It is not like it is/was an exclusive car with some sort of pedigree.

[RS ZWEI]

So in reality if i put another KR motor in my NZ new MK1 GTI it will be worth less than it would be with 1600 k jet and fd 5 spd box?
I know what i'd buy.

Original cars are normally worth more than modified ones.

[RS ZWEI]

At the end of the day it is just a golf, so 25k pounds is indeed crazy. It is not like it is/was an exclusive car with some sort of pedigree.

Haha, whatever Terry, it didnt start a revolution or anything did it?
But its not like we are talking a rusty 80's hatch with leaf springs and a 1960's engine