Is It Time To Bail?...

[Ol_Mate]

Anyone who checks out the for sale thread will have noticed that R33 prices have dropped heaps in the last 6 months. I mean there are some R33 S2 selling for almost R32 money (in saying that, they are autos).

So with the R34's becoming more affordable I guess the glory days of the R33 are over. So i'm just wondering what the general consensus is on the R33 market. It'll obviously keep falling, but how fast?

I know that people are gonna say "car's are a depreciating asset, it's inevitble that they'll drop in price". But my POV is that if I pay $1500 for insurance in a year, plus maintenance/mods, fuel and the cars value drops 5 grand in the year, the amount of money i'm losing could be over $10000 just for the privelege of owning an R33. That a deposit on a house! As much as I love my car, I just can't justify losing that much in a year.

So what is everyone elses opinion on the subject? Surely most people who are on a shithouse wage will understand this dilemma.

[zaffa]

I guess it depends on how much you enjoy driving the vehicle. I mean nearly anyone who modifys there car is losing money but if your still enjoying then who cares. I mean your never going to make money on a car unless your importing so may aswell keep I'll be keeping it for a while at least. That is until prices go above 2.50 !! Until then i guess its a hobby like any other where if you still enjoying it your going to keep paying to enjoy it and until the time comes when you stop enjoying it.

[philta]

4years ago =dream is to own a r33

after 1.5years of proud ownership, despite petrol prices she still makes me happy! even if u sell it now, ull stil lose a shit load of money.

point here is. Is there really a price for passion?

if u upgrade to r34, its basicly the same engine etc etc.

dude i perfectly understands ur dilemma. im a uni student, no job (only occasional weekend work for uncle), gf +skyline. took a year off study to buy a r33, now barely able to eat

[thrtytwo]

ive yet to buy my 32 i have just started looking, and i will barely be able to scrape through enough money to pay for my loan, fuel and $2.5k insurance evry year + money aside for maintenance and mods :S but i have a passion and its something i just have to do, i wont be happy driving round in an EB falcon or some other car to get me from A to B. As im sure everyone on this forum understands a car is more than a mode of transport

....wish my dad could understand :S

[scathing]

Most performance cars suffer major depreciation. They don't hold their value like European sedans, or even reasonably economical and reliable hatchbacks.

I look at the extra depreciation on my sports coupe (over a regular sedan, had I bought one) as a part of my entertainment budget. I don't go out and get pissed. I don't do drugs. I hardly go to the movies, theatre, clubs, or whatever it is people who don't drive do in their spare time.

I know guys who will spend $50+ every weekend on the piss down at the pub, not including cab fares home (lets say another $40, and round it off to $100). What if you go pilling and paying entry into a club every weekend? It probably costs as much (if not more)? At $100 a week, that's $5200 a year.

And if you've got some kind of runabout, like a Corolla or Civic, while your depreciation won't be as bad as a 10 year old grey import its still there. So you're not that much worse off than being a "normal" person. You make your choices about the lifestyle you want to lead, and where your priorities lie.

Edited August 24, 2006 by scathing

[Nav2k]

my cars depreciated a lot too. and i left it there for one year without touching it while i went overseas. i was thinking bout selling it..for a deposit on a house. if i did that i'd drive a peice of shit car for the next 3 years or so and work only towards the house...

i really wanted an s2000 at the end of this year, my first year of working, but couldnt justify the money cos of how quickly it depreciates..so i compromised. keep the s14, spend 2k or 3 on it since i was a cheap ass uni student before and couldn't afford to mod it in those years.

u gotta come to a balance in ur life...u struggle now but ur salary goes up in most cases. im not into the whole going out and spending big on weekends etc. to me driving the car is fun (something i've missed for a year) and browsing the forums is fun. if i just worked all day towards the house then it'll suck...try to compromise.

33's have gone down heaps...i was looking for a series 2 33 or a series 2 s14..the series 2 33's were 22ish at the time and s14a 19.. and now s14a's go for a bit more than the 33 series 2's. its wierd how that happened.

[Darkboy]

Majority of people understand the implications of buying cars in this day and age. People don't buy cars in anticipation of how much return they'll receive back when it comes time to sell up.

Cars are a way of life and depreciation comes hand in hand with that I'm afraid.

We're moving into a more technologically driven society and this will evidently become the demise of older vehicles in years to come, along with the price of fuel.

Money might rule our life in many ways but if you're concerned about losing 10 grand a year on your car you may as well sell up immediately otherwise accept the facts and just enjoy driving your car like the rest of us.

I have thought many times about this yet concluded I'll probably just drive it into the ground or stick it in the garage and keep it forever.

I won't let my passion for cars be defeated by a little money.

[Links]

The way I see it.. my car was 20k+ when I bought it.. even if I sell it after 2 years for 10k+.. i'm happy.. i've enjoyed having it.. i've got alot out of it and won't regret having owned it..

Until R32's start hitting sub 10k i'm not worried, R33's will always be worth more - purely because the age - this is Gts-t's.. not gt-r's.. I reckon R33's will end up sitting around $13-14k for SI and high k '96 SII - up to 16-17k for SII with low k's or good mods..

Fuel prices aren't a huge impact at the moment, just means less k's.. I wouldn't own an R33 if I was worried about them..

[eMsta]

if it does come to under 15k - justuse it for the track and get yourself something nice to cruise around in...having said that, its not easy to own 2 cars....

[stink]

I dont understand these types of questions?

Cars are not an investment, they are a waste of money! thats the end of it!

The real problem is people who cannot afford to buy or live with a performance car and are trying to convince thenselves that they can.

Some people are happy to be struggling each week just to drive around in a cool car, i for one am not so i waited until i was in a position to buy one and look after it properly.

And fuel, i dont give a shit if it doubles, sure i wont be happy but it wont stop me from having the car i want.

Not having a go at anyone here, just a general thing that annoys me. People cry and sook over their financial situation but continue to make stupid financial decisions.

As the saying goes, "do as you have always done and you'll get what you have always got".

Theres a price to pay for driving a performance car, can you afford it?

Cheers Stink

Edited August 25, 2006 by stink

[mad082]

Until R32's start hitting sub 10k i'm not worried, R33's will always be worth more - purely because the age - this is Gts-t's.. not gt-r's.. I reckon R33's will end up sitting around $13-14k for SI and high k '96 SII - up to 16-17k for SII with low k's or good mods..

that has already happened. the average price i see a r33 series 1 go for is about $12,000 to $13,000. i know a guy that just bought an auto for $11,000. it was stock, and pretty tidy. skylines are the fastest price dropping import, becuase the market is getting flooded with them.

[ctjet]

also, a lot of people are dishing them off because the popo are making it difficult to own one

[Tangles]

1 year ago my Stagea was 18k private sale in Qld, 9 months prior to that it cost 25k to land and comply.... now you can get the same car landed and complied for 11k.

2years = a 14k drop in price.

Not something I personally am concerned about, as this is my 10year (of ownership) car.

[JaFF]

yeah, I've lost like 6-8 grand on my series 1 in 2 years. I don't really care anymore. I did go through the phase of "I gotta get out before I lose to much" but now I just enjoy owning the car for what it is. It's fast, reliable, comfortable and still looks nice.

I wont be selling this car for a while now. There is no point. I don't think i could find another car I'd like as much in a similar price bracket. Skyline's are great cars and if you treat them right will last a long time.

You may be thinking now " but i'm gonna lose so much" but if you keep the car for 10 years you'll probably think back and say it was the best purchase you made.

[Freddy Kruger]

autos are always cheap. cmon an auto skyline? get a commodore if you wwant an auto...

manual skyline will always stay a few $k above the auto variant as most buyers of skylines dont want an auto. same with other cars.

[mad082]

the price of them is going to drop in qld even more over the next 18 months with the new vehicle restrictions they are wanting to bring in. it would make it similar to victoria.

[Darkboy]

autos are always cheap. cmon an auto skyline? get a commodore if you wwant an auto...

You see...its people making precipitative comments like this which forces many people to form opinions about certain types of individuals. People drive what they choose to drive, because...well, its their choice.

Does it really divide you from the rest of the population by having a manual? Does it make you feel more superior?

I bought an auto because its a street only car for one, and 2, I get tired of changing gears in the big smoke as I've become a rather lazy driver who doesn't parade through the streets arousing police with propulsive sounds of whoooshing through every gear change.

I bet there's a few autos out there that could spank you off the line.

[sl33ek]

If you're worried about the car depreciating 5grand in a year then just dont buy a brand new car, you'll lose 5K just by driving it away from the dealership on day one.

Skylines arent that expensive to own and maintain unless you start personalising it

[Nismo Racer]

nothing wrong with autos! well said Darkboy

[Big Rizza]

Personally I don't understand that you can get tired of changing gears in a manual in heavy traffic. After a a few years of manual driving, I find that it is so second nature to me now that it occupies no more thinking power than an automatic in normal driving. I do, however, have a factory clutch. Maybe if I swapped to a tricky and heavy aftermarket clutch the burning leg muscles might change my mind, but as it stands I don't see the apparently huge mental burden manuals place on the driver as a concern.

Back on topic, I've thought about selling my R32 so many times. I have a second car (making a huge 80kw at the flywheel) - the R32 only travels a few hundred kays per month. The problem is that you then need to buy another car, and you will end up in the same situation all over again. Jump ship to an R34 and you will get hit for depreciation again, probably harder than for the R33. The only way to avoid depreciation is to buy a car more than 15 years old and keep it in original condition - prices don't waver too much once they hit the big one-five.

I'm currently using depreciation to my advantage - Series 8 RX7s, VVTi Toyota Supras, R34 GTRs and V35 Skylines are all depreciating much faster than my R32, which is starting to plateu a little in price (but not enough ). It seems only yesterday the price gap was about $60k to a Series 8, and about $100k to an R34. These days it's more like $20k and $50k. The price gap is closing, and when the time is right I will make my upgrade...

And get hit with depreciation all over again.