Bluechip Classics

Thanks Peter!

Thanks all, very helpful as always

Thank you

Hi all, Generally in our little world of classic cars, buyers pay with cash but more recently I've had a couple of requests for finance (make of that what you will!!). I get the impression that the usual finance providers would not want to partner with a small, niche outfit like ours and we'd probably only do a handful of finance sales a year. Does anyone have any experience or leads with providers that may be more matched to our needs? Thanks in advance, Anthony.

Sorry to say it was NIG... not directly, through a broker but the underwriter is NIG.... Maybe it's for the best, like you I wasn't really keen either but want to find a way to get going again safely.

Slightly old thread resurrection but I contacted my insurance company to enquire about unaccompanied test drives last week and received the response yesterday... it left me somewhat speechless. £250 increase to premium - yep, ok.... expected that only drivers aged 30+ and >12 months license - not a problem, my market is more mature enthusiasts need to keep a log of drivers license details plus one other form of ID with address, date/time/car driven etc - mmm, ok. This is starting to get ballachy, but carry on.... not covered for theft - starting to feel uncomfortable now excess in event of a claim is 25% of the cars value, which was kindly explained to me if the car was worth £2000, the excess would be £500 - great, thanks... I can do quarters, by the way my cars are 5-20k. Really not happy now. Then, this little gem... amd finally, the car will need to be taxed - wait, uh... what?!?! Yes sir, you can’t use trade plates, the car will need to be taxed - are you on crack? You realise that as trade we are not supposed to tax cars (in fact it’s fraudulent to do so) and that is why we have trade plates... this went on for a good couple of minutes, I just couldn’t get through to them. Naturally I’ve politely told them to poke it and will have to try to reopen using PPE (masks) whilst on test drives. Absolutely incredible.

Funnily enough, I'm just on the train to go and look at a SOR car... I work in the 'modern classics' market so it's not unusual for collectors etc. to want to move a car through a dealer rather than having to deal with Joe-P. I charge £1000 or 10% (+VAT), whichever is higher. For that they get the car detailed, advertised and deal closed etc. I have my own T&C's which the client has to sign before I take the car - key point on there is that any expenditure required to make the car 'retail worthy' is carried by the client, not me. There are other conditions which are there to protect both me and the client, but fundamentally I would not retail the car unless it was as per one of my own.

Ah righto, makes sense now... thanks for clarification. Cheers Pad

Morning all, I'm getting through all the list of things I need to do prior to starting trading full time in the New Year and I'm on to stationary. Looking at sales invoice books on ebay etc. and they all seem to have a statement similar to this: “input tax deduction will not be claimed against the vehicle sold on this invoice” This has slightly confused me as I certainly do want something back from my purchase!! Is this just a statement that I am operating under the margin scheme? Would I still put the VAT payable (my output tax) on the invoice? Apologies if it's a dumb one! Cheers, Pad

You're the lucky one... the fact it's still running with that chocolate 'box is a bonus!

I've got an 08 xc90 se lux, approaching 170k miles. Great car, all the toys you need and if I take it easy I can get indicated 40mpg on a run. Hasn't really needed much other than routine maintenance... would recommend based on my own experience.

How dare you!! they are quite different when you see them in the flesh, and with the Alpina you also get undertones of elderberries and smoked oak, finished with a nice citrusy aftertaste... what was this thread about again?

No, not wrong at all!! It's an amazing colour!!! Never seen it on an e39... My old Dunkelsapphire B3S...

Just to qualify my statement, I wouldn't have this particular car as it's a diesel, but if it were one of the 2 530i Sports in Sepia Violet (I know a guy who had one of them, helped him market it 5 years ago) with that mileage, then I reckon it would be around 7k-8k. It is an amazing colour.. The nicest 540i sports are about 10k so there needs to be a bit of daylight between them. However, finding one at the right price to get a decent margin is another matter! Not 100% it's Sepia Violet actually, difficult to tell... might be Scarab Green. Either way, a very rare colour which seems to do it for the BMW crowd (myself included, our special car is an Imola Red Z3M Coupe )

This is precisely the market I will be operating in in the new year... the e39 is now seen as a modern classic now and in that exceptionally rare colour (maybe 3 or 4?!) and low mileage someone is likely to pay strong money for it... be better if it was a petrol though!