Collecting cars auction

[Papalazarou]

I know we have to careful what we discuss on here. Well at least we have to make fact based comments. But I thought this was interesting because you can ask the owner questions whilst the auction progresses. I am interested to see what a super low mileage early car makes and how well the format works.

https://collectingcars.com/for-sale/1992-honda-nsx-1

Cheers,

James.

[Heineken]

It seems whenever I see and auction my eyes are caught by electronic and/or audio topics :D

The Bose stereo is not working, which is a common fault, but there are no other known electrical issues.

[Papalazarou]

It seems whenever I see and auction my eyes are caught by electronic and/or audio topics :D

Give it 10 years and nobody’s stereos will work. But for the sake of originality they will still be fitted. At least my AC controller works ��

[rkanaga]

Give it 10 years and nobody’s stereos will work. But for the sake of originality they will still be fitted. At least my AC controller works ��

Kaz fixed mine

[Papalazarou]

Sold for £76K + 6% = £80,560. Not bad considering the bidders don’t view the cars and there were a few outstanding questions with this one.

[duncan]

For those who think the motor trade is without humour -
https://www.listerclassics.com/listing/2005-Honda-NSX

[Papalazarou]

For those who think the motor trade is without humour -
https://www.listerclassics.com/listing/2005-Honda-NSX

I imagine they looked at the LBB that’s been for sale in Hong Kong for the last couple of years and decided all late facelifts are worth £140k.
What I found interesting about the one that just sold on Collecting cars was that the engine number had gained a digit, the vin plate had been off at some point and all the body stickers were wrong. And nobody cared. They just kept bidding!!!
It seems to me that if you are buying collector grade cars, stuff like engine numbers and vin plates are pretty high on your essentials list. But then someone bought the LBB I threw into the pit wall at combe from a well know specialist. So what do I know?

Cheers.

[Senninha]

It’s a funny old world in classic car sales isn’t it … 25 yrs without any Honda history, missing items as identified above suggesting something may not be as described, blind bidding and someone is happy to drop 80 large … they do say there is bottom for every seat, I hope the one about to descend upon this particular seat enjoys their new leather clad resting place …

Must make the near perfect sister to this one worth 100 all day long :)

As for the Listers car, I dont pay much attention to used NSX but I’m pretty sure they’ve had this long enough to know its not going to make the asking price …

[NZNick]

For those who think the motor trade is without humour -
https://www.listerclassics.com/listing/2005-Honda-NSX

Just scanning the ad for 2 seconds - the word "saloon" stands out, as does listing all the standard equipment as options/upgrades
As for the asking price, I doubt that anyone would pay anything near that much, but you never know...

[RedCarsGoFaster]

The premium that some people are willing to pay for low mileage cars does baffle me.

The example on Collecting Cars looks like a decent condition early JDM car, with a maintenance history that is untraceable (or at least unproveable) until you actually get your hands on the car. There are things which are evidently to be sorted on it, and potentially a great deal more depending on how much of the age-based maintenance that's not in the service schedule has actually been done. Yet because it only has 7,500km on the clock the premium you'd pay would be . . . what? Approaching 100%?

I just don't see what you get for the extra money there, unless the goal is to stick it in a vault and wait for that low mileage price escalator to go up a few more years. A car with 60,000km, even 100,000km could be in just as good condition for driving, and with the right maintenance having been done could require less initial outlay on top of the purchase price to get it to a reliable driver.

The example that Listers have for sale does look gorgeous, and of the assertions made in the listing, the one that resonates most to me is "not to be repeated in this condition". I think they're right - with the reduced quantity of facelift cars available you just won't find another like it. Even so, were I in a position to make them an offer it would have to be for a lot less than they're asking.

Perhaps the people offering these cars are counting on customers with telephone-numbers money waking up one day and thinking "I want the best NSX there is!" on a whim, and to hell with the price.

Unrelated: I wince every time I see the term "rust-free!" applied to an aluminium car . . .

[RedCarsGoFaster]

It seems whenever I see and auction my eyes are caught by electronic and/or audio topics :D

I listened to a podcast recently in which an American journalist recounted their experience of driving an NA1 NSX-R for the first time. They loved it, but apparently the km/h speedo was under-reading to the extent that they thought it was in mph.

"Aha," I thought "I know what that is . . . "


By comparison with the Ferrari and Porsche markets, the NSX market seems to be small enough/ordinary enough that the specialists and historians pass it by. Were these cars in an equivalent of those markets then there would be a tremendous hue and cry over matching engine and chassis numbers, original paint, whether the car was certified by a nebulous body validating that all of the accessories exactly match the spec sheet hewn into a stone tablet and installed into the frunk by a mythical superman, without which the car could not possibly be sold; there would be specialists aplenty to repair your VANOS, your cooling pipes, your bore-scoring, your wonky bearings, your cracked exhaust manifolds and your sticky buttons.

Yet for the NSX that doesn't happen. Those who know the issues in enough detail to comment on them seem to already own the cars.

I guess it's a further extension of the problem that's plagued the NSX its whole life - it just doesn't have the same kind of prestige that you get from having a horse on your badge.

[NSX 2000]

For those who think the motor trade is without humour -
https://www.listerclassics.com/listing/2005-Honda-NSX


I would like to suggest that somebody at Lister Classics has been on the old wacky backy, I'm sure Honda UK sold more than 19 RHD fixed headlamp facelift cars. But it's the 1989 Jaguar XJR-S that is the biggest laugh, £50K, no way, they have been a little bit wild in their discription, with the history of the XJR-S! They really should do more basic research.

[goldnsx]

'Matching numbers' is not so relevant in the Honda-world. Based on the silly (and proven wrong) statement of Enzo Ferrari that aerodynamics is for people who are not capable to build engines (haha), one would say a 'matching number' certificate is only needed for the junk engines build in the F- and P-cars of that aera. Moreoverthis, such cars are bought by people having very little technical clue or two left hands, to round that prejudice off. :) No wonder, they jump after x certificates to justify that THEIR object of desire is the best available toy out there. Of course, there are plenty of false certificates and false cars out there for sure. Thanks goodness, that kind of uncessary 'industry' can't evolve in the NSX-market.

[nigel]

Hoping to send my OEM radio over to Kaz and see if he will fix it up for me. I was able to find a working radio from a 2004 and going to install it. My original radio has quit doing anything but static but the c/d player is still in fine nick after it warms up.
Seems no one over here in the colonies can or will do the repair without doing some bodged up job or doing some “retro fit” rubbish for a stupid price.
If I have to pay a ton of the Queens best I want someone like the Kaz to do some work on it so I know it will have the best eyes and hands there.

Cheers
nigel

[Heineken]

Note that all radios will suffer and potentially succumb to capacitor leakage at some point in time. Since it's much easier to fix when it's not fatal yet I would get both radios fixed, if possible.

[nigel]

Thanks for the advice.
I actually have another OEM radio as well, three total, the original one that came in my car from 1992. It went bad back in 2006, it just was having static noise so it was at the beginning of failure, and before I knew this was a recurring problem I changed it and thought that was fixed for good.
Seems I should see if Kaz would have a look see and if they both and the 2004 I have not yet installed, he could fix them and I could pass the two spares on to some others there in the UK and have the newest one I bought sent back to have for myself.
I welcome any suggestions at all.

Cheers
nigel

[rkanaga]

Another Collecting Cars auction, this time a 97 targa with 95k miles went for £76,000 + 6% premium.

Pretty strong market still

[Papalazarou]

I would like to suggest that somebody at Lister Classics has been on the old wacky backy, I'm sure Honda UK sold more than 19 RHD fixed headlamp facelift cars. But it's the 1989 Jaguar XJR-S that is the biggest laugh, £50K, no way, they have been a little bit wild in their discription, with the history of the XJR-S! They really should do more basic research.

I had a count-up a while back. I believe fixed light face-lifts to be well in the 30’s. How many are left in the UK now, I don’t know.
The car that sold on collecting cars looked well maintained and you don’t see many midnight purple cars any
more. I liked the colour combo. Definitely shows where the market is going.

[goldtop]

Another Collecting Cars auction, this time a 97 targa with 95k miles went for £76,000 + 6% premium.

Pretty strong market still

An almost identical one coming up in the UK on October 2nd: https://auctions.doreandrees.com/catalogue/lot/85b5c6a976fdac4e505689bf33219307/ad74375b82a358e6eef0ce537def266d/classic-cars-lot-212/

Guide price of 30-40k is presumably standard auctioneer practice?

[sorepaws]

Its an Auto - so probably the reason it will be lower. Still not a lot of money for a lovely car. More people should try the Auto - they would be pleasantly surprised just how good they are - even side by side with the 5 speed.

[sorepaws]

I would like to suggest that somebody at Lister Classics has been on the old wacky backy, I'm sure Honda UK sold more than 19 RHD fixed headlamp facelift cars. But it's the 1989 Jaguar XJR-S that is the biggest laugh, £50K, no way, they have been a little bit wild in their discription, with the history of the XJR-S! They really should do more basic research.

A facelift NA2 recently sold in HK for £160k - the wacky baccy is catching !!

[goldtop]

Its an Auto - so probably the reason it will be lower. Still not a lot of money for a lovely car. More people should try the Auto - they would be pleasantly surprised just how good they are - even side by side with the 5 speed.

Quite a bit cheaper: £35,000 was the hammer price.

As for trying an auto, I probably should.

[Senninha]

Quite a bit cheaper: £35,000 was the hammer price.

As for trying an auto, I probably should.

My first drive in an NSX was an auto, in 1990, a pre-launch car Honda had at Swindon had alongside the new 4WS Preludes …

When looking to buy my NSX, although looking for a manual, the first car I drove was a early Black auto which was a joy to drive … had I been able to I would have that and my NA2 and would probably be competing with Britlude for daily drive mileage numbers :)

As per Sorepaws comment, if you’ve not driven one and are looking for an NSX, you really should try before you exclude from your search/

[goldtop]

My own bias is based entirely on the daft behaviour of autoboxes when you are driving enthusiastically and approaching a roundabout or even a bend. In an auto, the change will always be at the wrong time - too late. Typically it's just as you get back on the throttle, throwing the car off balance as much as being jerky and annoying. I'm definitely NOT a heel-n-toe Driving God, but any driver with a manual transmission learns how to get the 'flow' of driving on the twisties.

[rkanaga]

Well what looked like a clean JDM 95 manual in green with 74k miles sold for 41k on Collecting Cars.

Seems the market is a good bit softer/ someone got a bargain.

https://collectingcars.com/for-sale/1995-honda-nsx-1

[goldtop]

Interesting - at first, that seems quite low compared to all of the autos on the market (lowest being the modded one at £39995).

But with the buyer's premium, I suppose the actual price is closer to £46k? Whereas the poor seller must have received a figure closer to £37k?

Wonder if we will see it back on sale at a dealer before very long?

[Papalazarou]

I like it. It looks straight and mostly original. And the non original parts are nothing to change.
I think the wheels are terrible and I would have gone with the other ones.
It’s funny when you look hard at any car, you start noticing things; at some point the centre console has been out and they have taken the paint off the volume knob. The gear-shifter’s pretty scuffed and back to front. That’s an £80 part. There’s the usual bracket corrosion under the bonnet, but that’s all easily sorted. Correct stickers. The paint looks good from the photos and it has the nicer rear bumper. It even has the correct amount of digits on the vin and engine number, unlike that black car that sold earlier this year. So on the face of it, it looks like a steal.

Cheers.

[PeterW]

Somebody got a bargain.

[Wazzz]

That was my car that sold for 41k. It definitely was a steal for the buyer.

I got the full 41k and the new owner is a collector so it wont be coming back up for sale.

[goldtop]

That was my car that sold for 41k. It definitely was a steal for the buyer.

I got the full 41k and the new owner is a collector so it wont be coming back up for sale.

An auction where the seller gets the full hammer price - useful to know. I would have expected Plans to hoover it up at that price and immediately turn it around - they have no manual cars at all listed.

Hope it wasn't a distress sale, and that you've got something interesting lined up. :)

[Wazzz]

it wasnt a distress sale at all, moving to a house with a smaller garage and my other cars are all projects.

It went for a lot cheaper than expected but I still made money from it lol.

Collectingcars give you the full hammer price and buyer pays 5% above that.

[Papalazarou]

An auction where the seller gets the full hammer price - useful to know. I would have expected Plans to hoover it up at that price and immediately turn it around - they have no manual cars at all listed.

Hope it wasn't a distress sale, and that you've got something interesting lined up. :)


It’s strange there are no manual cars around. It’s been like that for quite a while. Every once in a while one comes up.
Certainly I haven’t seen a green coupe for a while. I do think that presentation is incredibly important. More and more these days. Originality with these cars for good resale cannot be overstated.
I’n also interested to see how these new auction companies are doing. Seems crazy to bid online without a viewing.

Cheers.

[Shawnsx5]

I bought a car in the summer using Car and Classic and sold another on the same site (neither were NSX). On the sale side I had 10 bidders not one viewed the car, the winning bidder a private buyer had the car collected by a courier after paying in full, he had no complaints with the car. The car I bought had 14 bidders, it turned out I was the only person to view. My experience with CandC is they do their best to represent the car honestly with lots of good photographs and specific reference to any problems. But I would still never buy without viewing.


It’s strange there are no manual cars around. It’s been like that for quite a while. Every once in a while one comes up.
Certainly I haven’t seen a green coupe for a while. I do think that presentation is incredibly important. More and more these days. Originality with these cars for good resale cannot be overstated.
I’n also interested to see how these new auction companies are doing. Seems crazy to bid online without a viewing.

Cheers.