car value versus what we put in it.

[Benz300]

Hello everyone,
in the continued effort to keep the 260E on the road, I now have to get the differential bushings and rear end taken care of.
i have also looked up the trade in value, and for what the car is worth on KBB, i am not sure if spending another 1500 would be worth it. however, on that note i also thought of everyone owning the similiar mode w124's on this forum. by now i am sure that almost everyone has far exceeded the money they have spend than the car's worth if it were to be traded in.
question is, is it worth it at the end as the w124's arent really collectible models etc....

[MTI]

It's called "getting upside down" when expeditures exceed value. Mercedes people do it all the time, as do Porsche and British sports car owners. Why would a smart guy like Stephan Wilkinson, former Car & Driver editor, spend two years and $70K to refurbish a Porsche 911 that will never be worth more than $20K . . . read "The Gold-Plated Porsche" to find out.

[Benz300]

dare i say that it was a porche and i'm referring to a 260e

[Nabeel]

Heh, the Porsche he restored was nothing spectacular (at least in the realm of Porsches). It was a 911SC I believe (produced from '77-'83), which would be worth maybe $20-25K tops. But he, like so many others here, got bitten by the old European car bug. I don't think you can place a monetary value on things such as character, style, and individuality that come with a good condition, older MB, BMW, Audi, Porsche, etc. Rationally speaking, it makes no sense to continue putting money into these cars, but when measured in terms of overall satisfaction, I think the situation becomes more complicated. If you are not particularly intruiged by anything else on the market, or feel that no other car can give you the satisfaction of a W124, then the maintenance/repair money can be seen as an alternative to spending more money on a newer (but perhaps less 'satisfying') car, or a cheaper car with no personality.

[pmckechnie]

The way to look at it is, add the cost of repairs to the value of the car. Take this amount and see what you could buy to replace it. Deside which car you would rather have. People buy new (or newer) car because they want them, but try to justify them with needed repairs to their old car. I am completly "upside down" on my 84 500 SEL and have no regrets. It is a wonderful car that I enjoy every mile I drive it. My 91 300D is not "upside down" yet, but I am sure it will be some day.
Just think of the repairs I could do on either of these cars with the $50K or $60K it would cost me to buy a new (or newer) car in the same class.
The only down side to the above is if the car is totaled in an accident, the insurance companies wouldn't give me squat for either one, but that is a chance I will take.

[G-Benz]

With few exceptions, cars are a depreciating investment, so you never can come out on top!

Even if you bought a brand new one, paid cash, and just trailered it into a garage and did nothing, initial depreciation once driven off the lot puts you behind!

Bottom line is, you can't justify whether or not to spend money on a particular maintenance item simply by the car's worth.

It's what drives the economy, and it's why the majority of folks wind up replacing one or more vehicles every three to four years.

The threshold is generally, how problematic can a vehicle become before you just get fed up and decide to opt for something with fewer to no problems.

A sensible approach is weighing the cost of the repair versus the cost of replacement (i.e. a new or used vehicle).

But for some of us afficiandos, the love of a marque or particular model throws all sensibility out the window. So we pour all we have into keeping that love alive.

My VW in my sig has about six times it's worth invested over the years, and it doesn't even run! It would take another $5-8K to get it back to its former glory!

[estod]

I agree that people buy new cars because they want them ... or "want something with a warranty". The warranty on everything but Hundai (sp) is relatively short, and I'm sure that there's plenty that the Hundai warr doesn't cover. The deal with the Volvo is that 2.5 yrs after you get it, you're on your own --- that's when the real quality or lack of it starts to show.

Another way to look at whether or not you're doing OK is to amortize your car on paper ---- I use $.15/mile ---- little enough at today's prices --- and see how that squares up with with money spent on purchase and maintenance. I would buy fuel and insurance for any car (though an old car with no collision is a lot cheaper than a financed new ride), so they are not in the equation. In the end, the amount I beat $.375 by, counting fuel & insurance, is how well I've beat the system. Actually, $37.5 is not nearly enough ---- maybe 15 yrs ago Hertz stated (I'm sure they do these figures every year) that buying a new car and driving it perhaps 50,000 miles cost $.50/mile --THEN. Savvy businessmen therefore buy a nice car just for business, and deduct every cent spent, incl washes & waxes. If you're in a higher bracket (than I am), you can do better that way than buying an old Mercedes , doing all you own work, and using WVO (and deducting $.375).

Applying the $.15 amortization to my 240D:
purchase -- ---------$2000
tires & 1 ball joint ---- 760
parts to date (incl most 600
of the parts to rebuild
the front end, which I
haven't done yet)
Total $3360
My miles to date - 15,000
15,000x$.15= $2250
Real cost of the car = $1110
Miles to break-even ---7400 --- about 6 months' worth.
Amount I can spend on maint after that with a clear conscience ---- about $2250/year. I can replace a lot of engine mounts for that -- even put in a new clutch -- and still be 'way ahead of the new car rat race of financing, trading. All they have is better seats (I'm getting on that soon) & better acceleration (so does a Peterbuilt). Let's see the brother amortize the Volvo this way - $30,000 @$.15/ mile = 200,000 miles .....with no other maintenance? Even with oil changes & fan belts his break even -- best case -- will be probably 250,000. Ours will be much sooner -- mine is a tenth of that ...

[al76slc]

I'm reviving this thread to say that I just had a chance to read "The Gold-Plated Porsche" by Stephan Wilkinson, former Car & Driver editor, which is mentioned in this thread, and which is a real fun read.

The preface starts with the point that either you get it or don't - why someone would spend two years and $70K to refurbish a Porsche 911 that will never be worth more than $20K.

For me personally, I just don't value stuff I just spent money on, in the same way as I value stuff that I spend money, time, effort and spilled blood on.

That's just me.... Or maybe I'm just cheap. Anyhow, I too recommend this book.

[rchase]

Originally Posted by Benz300

Hello everyone,
in the continued effort to keep the 260E on the road, I now have to get the differential bushings and rear end taken care of.
i have also looked up the trade in value, and for what the car is worth on KBB, i am not sure if spending another 1500 would be worth it. however, on that note i also thought of everyone owning the similiar mode w124's on this forum. by now i am sure that almost everyone has far exceeded the money they have spend than the car's worth if it were to be traded in.
question is, is it worth it at the end as the w124's arent really collectible models etc....

I guess the question is do you love the car or did you just buy it because it gets you from point A to point B.

Im rather attached to my cars emotionally as if they were my children. If they need repair they get repair regardless of the overall cost involved. Im sure Im in the hole already on my 300SD and will soon be in the hole with my S320 but they both are the exact cars I wanted with the exact options I wanted and I have grown fond of all their quirks.

I bought my Volvo 240 and got a good deal from a previous owner that had over 10K worth of upgrades and service into it. While he did not recover his 10K I was more motivated to purchase the car and paid a higher than market value for it.