Nevillec 11 Posted June 12, 2020 35 minutes ago, BHM said: You’ll definitely need a welding machine & plenty of sheet steel. I’d suggest for this market, invest in a college course in how to deal with the general public, specifically on dealing with time wasting, dreaming, middle-aged dickheads. However if you like answering gormless emails every night this is probably a good market to be in. Good luck in whatever you do, you must have the patience of a saint. Totally agree with that one. I'm not sure it would be worth the time and effort needed, starting from scratch , to try and make a living in that select market. I have a passion for classic/retro cars. but would not be able/have the patience to deal with the type of customer they attract . That said, you seem determined and I hope it works well for you Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stashio 1 Posted June 12, 2020 Yep my extremely average welding skills will improve pretty quickly no doubt! I'm not married to the idea of sticking with 90's cars - I just see them a cheap way in and agree there's likely not too much money to be made them long term, but it'll get me going. After that I like the idea of doing projects (the MGB V8 conversions I mentioned, campers, modifying modern classics, who knows) and fixing up non-runners inbetween as suggested by @Bmx Bandits. Point being to keep costs low at the start and build up as funds allow. Some great advice and words of caution in there from you lot - cheers! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BHM 994 Posted June 12, 2020 2 hours ago, Nevillec said: to try and make a living in that select market. Effort-wise I see the market akin to selling 17 year old, bottle green Puntos with 170K on the clock. I had the 'good' fortune of taking an MX5 trade in at Christmas - dear me, the sort of punter that attracted was pitiful, tbh I wouldn't describe many of them as men. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Paul C 75 Posted June 12, 2020 On 6/11/2020 at 10:19 AM, Stashio said: Out of interest is there anywhere specific you'd recommend? Japan Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MattR 177 Posted June 12, 2020 You will only do what you want to do, however most on here want to be as efficient as we can - I want to sell a car to the first person I see, not spend hours talking to them about 'the good old days' watching them crawl underneath it and then declare they will 'be in touch'. You will attract enthusiasts who like nothing more than spending their Sunday looking at old cars when an owners club has a show. But when there isnt a show and they see your advert they're coming to you. You cant expect to earn doing something like this. If you make yourself out to be a specialist they're going to expect it to be mint - and that is likely to cost you more than it'll sell for. Sorry to sound negative. Good Luck. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
trade vet 704 Posted June 12, 2020 I knew a retired franchise sales manager who got into finding,renovating and selling MGB’s.A year or so later I bumped into him and enquired how he was doing.He was still finding MGB’s but instead of renovating them for resale he was stripping them and flogging off parts online all over the world which he said was far better. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Halfpenny 114 Posted June 12, 2020 I first got into the trade in the late 1970's. My father and grandfather were both in the motor trade - service and repair (mostly trucks in the case of my grandfather). I obviously had access to a fully equipped workshop and by the time I was 18 I had a driving license and could do pretty much any mechanical or electrical repair, welding, basic panel beating, loading, painting etc. I started out buying rough/damaged Spitfires, MGs and other Triumphs such as GT6 Vitesse etc. for repair. I made a profit but not much given the work involved. In the late 80's and early 90's I tried with repairable salvage. Had a Chief body jig at the time. Again made some profit but not a lot given the time investment requirement. As the rules and regs tightened up I packed it in. I really made my money with careful buying of proper 3-10 year old cars that required minimal prep. Plus service/MoT and repairs of this demographic. Turnover is king. Buy right. Get it prepped and get it out of the door as quickly as possible. The last thing I want is money tied up in vehicles awaiting repair. My view is... 1. Don't mix business with pleasure. Restoring old cars for sale is a massive time-suck. If its a hobby/sideline then fair enough, but not the way to pay the mortgage. Restoring rusty low-value stuff will mean you're working for less than minimum wage. 2. The cars will be at least 20 years old - but the customers will expect the things to be in mint condition and run like a Swiss watch. Makes me laugh on programmes like Wheeler Dealers, Flipping Bangers etc. Buy at £5k, spend £2k on parts. Sold at £8k. 'Oh, we made £1k profit'.... Well what about the 40 hours labour in a fully equipped workshop etc etc.? 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Paul C 75 Posted June 12, 2020 2 hours ago, Halfpenny said: Makes me laugh on programmes like Wheeler Dealers, Flipping Bangers etc. Buy at £5k, spend £2k on parts. Sold at £8k. 'Oh, we made £1k profit'.... Well what about the 40 hours labour in a fully equipped workshop etc etc.? I came across an article the other day about Wheeler Dealers. They analysed the cars they did, and included work which hadn't been mentioned in the programme etc (and also where some other savings were made). They concluded that while the figures put on the screen towards the end of the show were broadly true, once you look at the time spent, Mike and Edd would make about £5500/year salary (ie £11k/year between them). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
awc1000 93 Posted June 14, 2020 On 6/12/2020 at 4:12 PM, Paul C said: I came across an article the other day about Wheeler Dealers. They analysed the cars they did, and included work which hadn't been mentioned in the programme etc (and also where some other savings were made). They concluded that while the figures put on the screen towards the end of the show were broadly true, once you look at the time spent, Mike and Edd would make about £5500/year salary (ie £11k/year between them). the logistics alone would put them in minus, trailored that lambo urracco from poland?!, then of course no mention of a vat margin scheme lol. it's good telly though.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
S & J Trading 3 Posted June 16, 2020 On 6/11/2020 at 8:34 PM, trade vet said: Pardon me but I am doubtful you have had good advice,he does not sound to me like a chartered accountant. Time will tell! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BHM 994 Posted June 16, 2020 On 6/14/2020 at 9:16 AM, awc1000 said: then of course no mention of a vat margin scheme lol. Perhaps they’re on the hey diddle diddle Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
awc1000 93 Posted June 16, 2020 59 minutes ago, BHM said: Perhaps they’re on the hey diddle diddle old owt yer aind Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
