Anyone got a glasses guide??

[maddog]

Trying to find out how much my cars is worth

2001 Y plate E320 cdi estate avantgade spec.44,000 miles full MBsh

Full leather interior (black)
Birds eye maple interior
Built in child booster seats
Cd changer
Bose stereo upgrade
7 seats
Voicetronic?? Voice activated phone kit PAYG 6210 included.
Bosal towbar
heated, memory seats
Low profile tyres with 7 spoke alloys (MB option)
Van Aaken box


Very good condition.

Finsihed in silver

Downsides small dent in wing and few marks in the alloys

 

[DC_insider]

Trying to find out how much my cars is worth

2001 Y plate E320 cdi estate avantgade spec.44,000 miles full MBsh

Full leather interior (black)
Birds eye maple interior
Built in child booster seats
Cd changer
Bose stereo upgrade
7 seats
Voicetronic?? Voice activated phone kit PAYG 6210 included.
Bosal towbar
heated, memory seats
Low profile tyres with 7 spoke alloys (MB option)
Van Aaken box


Very good condition.

Finsihed in silver

Downsides small dent in wing and few marks in the alloys

In excellent condition it would be £14,350.

However, depending on how bad the dent and the scuffed alloys are you could be looking at between £12,850 (value for average condition) and £11,250 (below average condition).

 

[maddog]

In excellent condition it would be £14,350.

However, depending on how bad the dent and the scuffed alloys are you could be looking at between £12,850 (value for average condition) and £11,250 (below average condition).

thats less than parkers for a bog stock avantgarde!!

i was hoping for £16K!!

 

[DC_insider]

thats less than parkers for a bog stock avantgarde!!

i was hoping for £16K!!

Parkers says £16,575 asking price at a franchised dealer or £12,430 part exchange.

http://www.parkers.co.uk/pricing/us...0&model=514&plate=66&pay=false&buyorsell=sell

 

[maddog]

Parkers says £16,575 asking price at a franchised dealer or £12,430 part exchange.

http://www.parkers.co.uk/pricing/us...0&model=514&plate=66&pay=false&buyorsell=sell

yeah but thats bog stock ie cloth interior not 7 seats, i have £10k's worth of options, are you telling me they dont have a effect on residual values?

 

[DC_insider]

Short answer:

Yes and no.



Long answer:

Glass's guide values are not like list prices where you start at a theoretical basic price and add the cost of extras to it. Glass's values are a survey of the prices paid in auctions and by dealers for actual cars. Very few cars are in basic trim so the prices will be based on the typical car including typical options.

For a Mercedes-Benz a typical car would be expected to have metallic paint, auto gearbox, leather interior, alloys etc.

An E-Class estate would be expected to have all of the above and probably the extra rear facing seats as well.

Cars without these options will be worth less than the guide value.

Other options may add value but it depends on what the option is. For example if you were looking to buy a car and the dealer had 2 identical cars (same colour, trim, mileage etc) but one had heated seats and one did not how much extra would you pay for the one with heated seats? Some people would pay nothing and some might pay £50.

Parkers values cars slightly differently as you get a basic price and then adjust it for mileage and options. The only problem with this is:

1. You have to pay for the valuation.
2. The value it adds may not be very much.
3. A dealer won't be interested in a Parkers valuation. Dealers use Glass's and CAP because of the accuracy due to the size of the survey they are based on. This is reflected in the price. Parkers is cheaper because it is based on a smaller survey but a smaller survey is less accurate.

 

[maddog]

So my £43k car after 4 years and 40,000miles is worth £12k

Well thats me done with MB then!!

As a percentage that depreciation has got to be up there with Vectras and mondeos!!!!

 

[cjcor]

Trying to find out how much my cars is worth

2001 Y plate E320 cdi estate avantgade spec.44,000 miles full MBsh

Full leather interior (black)
Birds eye maple interior
Built in child booster seats
Cd changer
Bose stereo upgrade
7 seats
Voicetronic?? Voice activated phone kit PAYG 6210 included.
Bosal towbar
heated, memory seats
Low profile tyres with 7 spoke alloys (MB option)
Van Aaken box


Very good condition.

Finsihed in silver

Downsides small dent in wing and few marks in the alloys

Glass p/x price for the basic car: DO REMEMBER this is a GUIDE, most dealers will try to offer bottom book however good the car is - one has to be smart to negotiate upwards.

Mercedes-Benz E-Class E320 CDI Elegance
3.2TD Diesel 5-door Estate
5 Speed Automatic Rear Wheel Drive
Year: 2001 Y
Mileage: 44,000






Part-exchange Price:
Excellent condition:
£14200

Average condition:
£12700

Below average condition:
£11150

 

[DC_insider]

So my £43k car after 4 years and 40,000miles is worth £12k

Well thats me done with MB then!!

As a percentage that depreciation has got to be up there with Vectras and mondeos!!!!

The problem with depreciation is not an MB specific one. The last few years have seen record new car sales as lower interest rates, car prices deflation (prices have risen slower than total inflation) and equity withdrawal from property made buying a new car more affordable.

This has a double whammy effect on used prices as it:

1. means less people are interested in used cars as they can afford to buy new (reduced demand)

2. every year there are more and more used cars coming on to the used car market (increased supply)

both of which force down the price of used cars.


Edit:

Having looked up what a van aaken box is I would advise selling it privately as the particular spec may be very appealling to someone wanting to use it to tow (an E320CDi estate is usually popular amongst this market). If you can find a buyer in this market then you could, obviously, get a much better price (£18k perhaps).

 

[maddog]

The problem with depreciation is not an MB specific one. The last few years have seen record new car sales as lower interest rates, car prices deflation (prices have risen slower than total inflation) and equity withdrawal from property made buying a new car more affordable.

This has a double whammy effect on used prices as it:

1. means less people are interested in used cars as they can afford to buy new (reduced demand)

2. every year there are more and more used cars coming on to the used car market (increased supply)

both of which force down the price of used cars.


Edit:

Having looked up what a van aaken box is I would advise selling it privately as the particular spec may be very appealling to someone wanting to use it to tow (an E320CDi estate is usually popular amongst this market). If you can find a buyer in this market then you could, obviously, get a much better price (£18k perhaps).

You dont need the van aaken box to tow as the e320 has more than enough torque to tow comfortably way past its capacity. The tuning box just irons out the wrinkles in the performance and livens it up a little

 

[Toyboy]

Parkers prices are always high, try here

http://www.wisebuyers.co.uk/motoring/

 

[television]

Very well said by DC-insider, that is the state of the game and just as it was when I traded cars in the 70,s, I only bought the ones with all the bells and whistles for they were the ones that sold. Not much help either to find a guide that shows a higher price. When I was looking for a SL some private cars for sale were far higher than MB dealers and I have never found out why as there are thousands of cars out there for sale.
As for how much you lose, is how much you spend in the first place.and its been like that since 1915
Companies buy mainly new to get the Tax break, You need a healthy income to justify a 40k new car for private use or small business as the money has to come from somewhere, but you pays your money and the choice is yours.
The old saying if you have to ask how much, then you cant afford it is very relavent with MB
Malcolm

 

[WDB201]

here is an ad from auto trader


*multi-photos 2001 Y Reg MERCEDES-BENZ E CLASS E320 CDi Elegance Estate Tiptronic C & V Cars Estate, Diesel, 49,000 miles, Brilliant Silver. Two electric memory seats, electric steering column, full Mercedes Benz History. ABS Air Bags x 6 Air Conditioning Alarm Alloy Wheels CD Player x 1 . . . . (trade)
£16,995

 

[tom7035]

Full leather interior (black)
Birds eye maple interior
Built in child booster seats
Cd changer
Bose stereo upgrade
7 seats
Voicetronic?? Voice activated phone kit PAYG 6210 included.
Bosal towbar
heated, memory seats
Low profile tyres with 7 spoke alloys (MB option)
Van Aaken box

For instance, if I was looking for a vehicle of this type, items 3,4,5,7,9,10 and 11 would do nothing for me personally. The leather, maple, extra seats and towbar I would find appealing though, but most Mercs of this class on the second hand market would have these anyway IMO.
I really hope you can get a decent price but as has been said, it's a buyers' market these days. One of the reasons (apart from being penniless) why I stick with the 'oldies' - can't lose!

 

[maddog]

One of the reasons (apart from being penniless) why I stick with the 'oldies' - can't lose!

this is an oldie

 

[jberks]

Bought my 2000 E240 in 2001 for 23k and traded it 4 1/2 years later for 7k. If I'd sold it privately I may, with patience, got closer to 9 1/2k, but I doubt it and I couldn't face rushing home, washing it every other night, for the punter to fail to show up or offer me less than the dealer. Anyway, the depreciation, after buying an selling the worst possible way (via the dealer) was 3.5k per year, but if I'd bought it new and kept it for the same time, that depreciation bill would have jumped by another £1800 per year, just for the privilege of it being new when I'd bought it. After 6 months, what's the difference? Had I kept it for another year the overall cost would have dropped further, but so would my ability to bridge the difference between what I had and what I wanted. Its a balance and judging when to jump is an art I've never mastered.

All cars drop like a brick when you roll out of the showroom. The VAT alone disappears at the first turn of the key and extras drop to almost nothing the moment you sign the cheque. They make your car more saleable but not more valuable. Your 43k car's value is now being judged against 33k cars with a buyer perhaps prepared to poppy up few hundred or so extra for the toys but that's all.

My new one was less than a grand more than the standard spec one parked next to it on the forecourt, despite having several thousand pounds worth of extras. The non spec one was probably 6k+ cheaper less than a year before, now the difference is down to a few hundred. Parkers etc quote depreciation over 3 years. What they don't say is that the bulk of that depreciation is in the first 12 months and they compare forecourt prices in these figures which is not realistic given that you or I can't get near these prices when we come to sell.

This is why I never buy new. I can have a new classic or a 12 month old, well specced avantgarde for the same budget. So, I get the 12 month old one, put on an extra 12 month warranty, stick my plate on and only I know it isn't new which is more than compensated for by the warm feeling from the £10,000 I've just saved.

So the lesson is, either buy used, buy a standard spec or keep it a very long time if you want to minimise depreciation.

 

[television]

Reading a Swedish car test last night from Aug 2004 where it tested the
MB E320,,OPEL VECTRA,plus 4 more. The end comment was " there is no way that the MB could justify its price" being almost double that of the OPEL, for the little extra refinement offered. Once again the choice is yours

Malcolm

 

[jberks]

Absolutely. A mate has a new company Vectra and it's very impressive. It is just as quick, would do everything I need and cost me a hell of a lot less into the bargain. Still don't want one though. Its the old head and heart argument. That said, after 3 years the Vectra will have dropped from 17k to 6k and based on the same Parker's prices, the Merc from 34k 19k so, in percentage terms, the vectra drops 64% and the Merc 44% True the Merc did cost an extra 4k in real terms but you could still happily run the Merc whereas the Vectra will be starting to show its age, especially when you consider that Vauxhall will have changed the styling at least twice in that time!

 

[Rory]

That said, after 3 years the Vectra will have dropped from 17k to 6k and based on the same Parker's prices, the Merc from 34k 19k so, in percentage terms, the vectra drops 64% and the Merc 44%

Don't know which model Vectra you're quoting but bear in mind that so called 'mass-market' cars are available from various sources for several K less than list, so a Vectra that lists at £17K is probably availabe for £13-14K.
Obviously you can do the same with a Merc, but the saving are not so great and there seems to be a reluctance to do it.

 

[jberks]

was true, but my dealer had 'save 3,000' etc on a number of new car windscreens on my last visit, so discounts on new abound - even on Mercs.