When an old car becomes a classic

[ChipChop]

This little beauty is over 100 years old. It looked and sounded lovely so I took a punt and it's just been delivered down here. It's in a friend's garage, as it's a surprise for Mrs Swotty (she says I have to sell the Corvette before I buy anything else, so it's being advertised this coming week).

The vendor says he has spent in excess of €20,000 on the restauration. The market for old cars is not hot at the moment.

There's a video at the end but I'm too IT illiterate to copy it on here, sorry.

1922 Citroën B2 For Sale by Auction

The vehicle on offer today is a 1922 Citroën type ...

themarket.bonhams.com

No synchromesh, no indicators, no heater and a max of 40 mph if I'm lucky. 6v, magneto and starting handle to start. Might be fun!

Lovely vintage Citroen. Well bought!

40mph is not bad. You can burn off the virtue signallers in their new Citroen Ami EV's no problem.

 

[PaulMason]

Woo hoo my 2004 SLK 350 is now a classic! Given I have spent (on car and trying to get it totally sorted) roughly double what its probably worth, I suspect I'll never become rich from owning a classic! But, I enjoy it and I guess thats what classics are about! Only 4 years for the ML and 5 for the S and then I own 3 classics (though the latter will have bankrupted me before that point )

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Woo hoo my 2004 SLK 350 is now a classic! Given I have spent (on car and trying to get it totally sorted) roughly double what its probably worth, I suspect I'll never become rich from owning a classic! But, I enjoy it and I guess thats what classics are about! Only 4 years for the ML and 5 for the S and then I own 3 classics (though the latter will have bankrupted me before that point )

Spending twice on it than it’s worth certainly sounds like a classic.

 

[PaulMason]

Spending twice on it than it’s worth certainly sounds like a classic.

In fairness, some of the items (like a replacement CD multi changer, a full set of proper contis and the proper Hella spotlights) probably weren't necessary and/or could have been cheaper, but there's something I like about trying to get it as it was when it came out of the factory. But its makes me smile and that's surely the point of a classic

 

[ALFAitalia]

No 2004 car is technically or legally a classic until at least 2044 I'm afraid!

 

[MikeInWimbledon]

This little beauty is over 100 years old. It looked and sounded lovely so I took a punt and it's just been delivered down here. It's in a friend's garage, as it's a surprise for Mrs Swotty (she says I have to sell the Corvette before I buy anything else, so it's being advertised this coming week).
The vendor says he has spent in excess of €20,000 on the restauration. The market for old cars is not hot at the moment.There's a video at the end but I'm too IT illiterate to

Mon dieu, that is fantastic ! Beautiful ! That should be in the Musee Nationale at Mulhouse. (And that price took my breath away...)

That era is a challenge: difficult to trade because the skills and the parts requre sourcing even if they are easier than it used to be - in my callow youth a neighbour restored a Bugatti in his own working class family garage using his own skills as an engineering "fitter." An unbelievable concept these days.

Gentle reminder: understand the brakes, especially when more than one person is on board and when going down hills. I know someone who didn't and came a cropper when he was four up and going downhill in a similar car. Even when "we" know the limits, modern car owners around us don't appreciate how different these vehicles are.








Here's the Vimeo video of the car for anyone wanting to click through: Citroen B2

 

[BTB 500]

(And that price took my breath away...)

That was an absolute bargain for the condition it appears to be in.

Watching 'Bangers & Cash' on TV (about a Yorkshire classic car auction house, for anyone who hasn't seen it), they have regularly commented that the market in the UK for 20s/30s/40s/50s cars has dived in the last few years. As an aside they have a 1929 Citroen AC4 for sale next month which they reckon will go for £7-8k:

Lot 36 - 1929 CITROEN AC4

Lot 36 - 1929 CITROEN AC4

www.mathewsons.co.uk

 

[Swotty]

Thanks guys,

Thanks for the braking tip MIW. Yes, the brakes work on the propshaft! Handbrake on rear wheels. Seems like I'll have a problem going down the hills as well as trying to go up them.

Everything on the car is basic ..... 2-piece windscreen and no wipers etc, but she is in lovely condition both outside and in. Guess journeys will take a little longer. I think the missus will like her, once she's chastised me for buying another car on the sly. I'm in for 8,000 euros with commission and collection, so not a fortune.

BTB - the AC4 at least has a speedo and wheel brakes, but I just fancied the B2. She is in better condition than I expected .... but I didn't notice until she arrived that there are only 3 doors - 1 on the left and 2 on the right. One of the door handles is broken and sourcing a replacement is proving elusive ... may have to get one made.

Now have to sell the Corvette ... 2 very different cars!

 

[MikeInWimbledon]

Thanks for the braking tip MIW. Yes, the brakes work on the propshaft! Handbrake on rear wheels.

Apologies for teaching Grandma how to suck eggs. It's more than the usual advice that you and I would give to a teenager to be careful when driving a Corsa five up back from a Friday night out.

The B2 comes from a different world. Which is fine, but it needs respect. The guy I knew was familiar with his car, but four in the vehicle and a hill caught him out and he paid the price.

But we've got to love these things for what they are, whether they come from 1923, 1973, or 2023. They're part of our history.

One day I'll drive a Slough Traction Avant again, and an SM. I chuckle to think that a college friend's Dad had one in 1975, and we just thought it ... "odd"

 

[Swotty]

Apologies for teaching Grandma how to suck eggs. It's more than the usual advice that you and I would give to a teenager to be careful when driving a Corsa five up back from a Friday night out.

The B2 comes from a different world. Which is fine, but it needs respect. The guy I knew was familiar with his car, but four in the vehicle and a hill caught him out and he paid the price.

But we've got to love these things for what they are, whether they come from 1923, 1973, or 2023. They're part of our history.

One day I'll drive a Slough Traction Avant again, and an SM. I chuckle to think that a college friend's Dad had one in 1975, and we just thought it ... "odd"

View attachment 137259

Lovely car ... went to one of the (upmarket) camping sites nearby a couple of years ago and there was an outing of Traction Avants ..... just over 250, all models and all kinds of wear and tear.

Thanks for the repeat warning about the B2 ..... I fully intend to treat her with both pride and caution, but there are several meets around here in hilltop villages and I shall now take even greater care going down as well as up.

Friend bought an SM about 10 years ago. It needed restoration, he did nothing and sold it on the another for twice what he paid. It's being redone slowly and the B2 is in his storage, so I'll ask next time I see him.

 

[DITTRICH]

My w124 estate made it from 1994 to 2018 26 years 256k miles and my w202 made it from 1999 to 2020 21 years 230k miles. The w124 estate was killed by my wife and the w202 was killed by Mr Khan (and the rust monster). I miss them really badly.

 

[philnewmerc]

Not sure I believe the CarVertical graph but it's an interesting discussion. Imho the age a car becomes a classic car has shifted and there is also a new category of 'modern classic '. E.g., in 1990, to me, a classic car was from 1975 or earlier, so only 15 years plus, because they'd changed so much in that time and they were rare because cars didn't do 100k miles easily and rusted to bits (in the UK). But now a 15 yo car at 100k miles is barely different (ignoring EVs) to a new one (except it'll probably be better) so I'd suggest classic now means more like 25+ years old. In addition, there are cars that have bottomed in value but that value is still significant because enough people like them, like most Porsches, these are modern classics. And there are cheaper modern classics, e.g. I believe my own CLS55 is in the modern classic territory and will be a full classic in another 5 to 10 years. L322 Range Rovers are another modern classic, as are Volvo V70/850, etc, etc, etc.

 

[Trickythemerc]

A mate of mine is after buying my CLK, I have given him first refusal on it. At my time of life I can't see me putting any big money into another car but I do wonder if a low mileage 220 CDI CLK W209 will ever become a classic?

 

[Darrell]

A mate of mine is after buying my CLK, I have given him first refusal on it. At my time of life I can't see me putting any big money into another car but I do wonder if a low mileage 220 CDI CLK W209 will ever become a classic?

I don’t see why not.

I had a few fast Fords in the early 90’s and they were ‘just cars’ back then. If anyone had told me that my RS500 Cosworth might be worth the thick end of £600,000 I’d have bought a load more of them.

 

[philnewmerc]

A mate of mine is after buying my CLK, I have given him first refusal on it. At my time of life I can't see me putting any big money into another car but I do wonder if a low mileage 220 CDI CLK W209 will ever become a classic?

CLK500 or AMG yes. But unfortunately a small engined diesel coupe is never going to become a classic.

 

[BTB 500]

But unfortunately a small engined diesel coupe is never going to become a classic.

Anything can become a classic if it survives for long enough - look at ordinary family cars from the '70s now.

The issue with all modern Mercs is that the electronics will kill them off long before they get to that sort of age. Good luck with finding replacement SAMs / sensors / screens / control modules / etc. for them in 40 years time.

 

[philnewmerc]

Anything can become a classic if it survives for long enough - look at ordinary family cars from the '70s now.

The issue with all modern Mercs is that the electronics will kill them off long before they get to that sort of age. Good luck with finding replacement SAMs / sensors / screens / control modules / etc. for them in 40 years time.

If you search auto trader for w209 CLKs and order the results from high to low value, it will list the AMGs, then the 500s, then the rest of the petrols, then the diesels.

 

[BTB 500]

If you search auto trader for w209 CLKs and order the results from high to low value, it will list the AMGs, then the 500s, then the rest of the petrols, then the diesels.

Current value has little to do with future classic status though. It's not just Escort RS and Mexico models from the '70s that are sought after now - a 1.3 Popular in great condition will get a *lot* of attention. It would have been considered a worthless banger in the '90s.

 

[philnewmerc]

Current value has little to do with future classic status though. It's not just Escort RS and Mexico models from the '70s that are sought after now - a 1.3 Popular in great condition will get a *lot* of attention. It would have been considered a worthless banger in the '90s.

That's a good point, but I don't think diesels become classics, apart from a small number of medium sized Mercedes saloons from the 80s because they are incredibly tough. And for coupes I think the rules are different, the higher spec models are what people will want to preserve : I don't think a 1.6 Capri is worth anything like a 2.8 but for a cortina the engine size is probably not that important to value

 

[BTB 500]

And for coupes I think the rules are different, the higher spec models are what people will want to preserve : I don't think a 1.6 Capri is worth anything like a 2.8 but for a cortina the engine size is probably not that important to value

Even 1.3 Capris are worth good money in nice condition. For sure a 3.0 of similar age & condition would be worth more, but that doesn't stop the smaller-engined ones from becoming classics.

Capri Mk1 Owners Club

www.caprimk1ownersclub.com

https://www.evoke-classics.com/Your%20Stories/1969-ford-capri-mk1-1300-xl/