Morris Minor Owners Club

davidpidge wrote:
Are you saying that Nigerians can't be trusted?

Not at all ! - Aside from some slightly eccentric spelling, I've always found The Prince's emails most advantageous !

Ha, you will all be laughing on the other side of your faces when my latest clearance fee gets paid and Elizabeth (daughter of the late finance minister and chairman of World Bank, Nigeria) finally sends me my 2.7 million dollar commission!

Interestingly, she also has some eccentricity when it comes to spelling and the Caps Lock key on her keyboard seems to be stuck.....

Sorry, got a bit off topic there....

Hopefully the condition of the car will offset the fact that it is a less desirable spec (803cc, 2 door, saloon). Having the full history of the car is also a big advantage.

It also depends on the resto work that was done in the '80s. I notice that the carpet was changed for a later type and although not particularly important by itself, would beg the question of other potential non original parts.

£3000 seems a bit steep to me but thats just my opinion

Speaking of originality. The glovebox doors are missing and so are the front over-riders.

davidpidge wrote:Speaking of originality. The glovebox doors are missing and so are the front over-riders.

Incorrect - a 55 car would not have had glovebox lids & may not have had overiders originally.

Rog

davidpidge wrote:Speaking of originality. The glovebox doors are missing and so are the front over-riders.

I've checked, & it's definitely never had glovebox doors, and none of the pics show that it ever had over-riders either ?

That's right, only the deluxe models were fitted with overiders, heater, leather seat facings and passenger sunvisor as standard. These items were optional on the standard model, so may or may not have been fitted. The glove box doors were introduced later, but were a popular modification and I believe fitted by many dealers to earlier cars. So your car would be correct and original in these respects.

There will be lots of different opinions regarding value and of course it will be worth what someone is prepared to pay. It is very rare to find original, low mileage cars in excellent useable condition and that makes this car special. It is not right for those people who want a cheap everyday Minor and so excludes, or is less valuable to, a large majority of potential buyers. But that should not be the target market for this car. As BMC says, a classic car auction may be a good place to find the right kind of buyer. Also classic car shows.

Those 3K valuations are somewhat pie-in the sky! The car does look nice, but the owner unfortunately now has an unrealistic figure for their car and could struggle to even get anyone to look at it!

To me, from those pictures, the paintwork has visible blemishes- look at the boot lid-

Possibly the paint job done last year was not all that good (£700, 2K blow over.perhaps?), or maybe the car just needs a good clay and wax. The interior looks worn, the red battery looks incongruous, a black "period" looking classic style battery would be much more fitting, the wheels are dull black and if the underside "corrosion work" done was just local garage MOT style overlapped patches then this car is not worth anywhere near the £3k suggested. The car looks to me to be a good condition 2 car, i.e. fairly solid but needing tidying, and if the car is as I think it is, then £1500 -£1750 is more like the mark. With a years MOT, of course.

To get to £3K+ his car would need the paintwork done again, this time from bare metal, the underside to be properly repaired (assuming the corrosion work was just patches) and the interior tidied to get closer to the £3K.
Sorry if my assessment seems a little harsh, but the OP did invite all to "hazard a guess"!

No , those 'blemishes' are just dirt from the garage - It was literally just driven out for some pics without any prep' at all.

. . . and as for the bodywork - It was carried out by a very well known Minor specialist (and cost her a lot more than £3K too, by the way !).

While I appreciate this sort of thing is impossible for anyone to be definitive on just from some photo's I do think you're being a bit harsh there

I've told Mum the best option would probably be to put it on an auction site (with a nice long duration to allow anyone to inspect 'Granny' in person) , & maybe start the bidding at £3K.

Like Neil MG said "There will be lots of different opinions regarding value and of course it will be worth what someone is prepared to pay" .

Pasty

If the blemishes are just dirt and not a bad paint job, then you really need to thoroughly clean, polish and wax the car before taking photos from which to sell the car, when selling- presentation is everything! As you are currently not showing the car in it's best light other viewers will see the blemishes and think they are evidence of a poor paint job. Clean the car thoroughly and take some photos that do it justice.

It is amazing how many people forget to clean their car before selling it.

As for "well known Minor specialist", which specialist was it?? Some of them work to a very high standard, some not so. Just because a "well known Minor specialist" did the job does not guarantee a top notch job.

I don't believe I'm being harsh,- just going on the photo's provided and being totally honest. There are a lot of people selling classic cars that ask silly money when the car is in scruffy condition, and I still have doubts about the interior as do other posters above.

The best way to sell your car and get a good price, if it is genuinely really nice is to attend some local classic car rallies with a decent "for sale" sign on the car. If it is that good then the car will sell itself (provided it is clean of course!)

I appreciate what you're saying John - The pic's weren't taken for the purpose of selling the vehicle, (just some quick pic's taken in order to give you an idea of her in an 'honest' condition) .

As for the bodywork, it was carried out (to a very impressive standard IMHO), by Brian Paul @ Classic Car Restoration who will be well known to members of the Cornish MMOC, I believe .

I'm not having a go John, I just think comments like "this car would need the paintwork done again, this time from bare metal" are a bit harsh for what is, I think, a very tidy & honest car (although, I am biased, of course - I've known 'Granny' my whole life !)


Cheers,

Pasty .

Pasty, and I'm not having a go at you, and not being harsh at all, merely being realistic, looking at those photos as if I were a buyer and highlighting the kind of thoughts going through a potential buyers mind. Trying to help you out in fact. A real buyer may be properly harsh!

A serious buyer is likely to look over any flaw in the car and try and drive the price down, much like I have done. So don't give them any! And that includes pictures of a clean car. We are talking about a 55 year old car, so condition is everything.

Good luck in the sale, I would sell it through the club if I were you, at a car show, or an actual physical auction. Not Ebay as that tends to be full of people looking for a bargain and you may only get a decent price if a bidding war develops.

cheers
John

Thanks for the pointers John,

Be assured , if & when Mum tells me she wants to part with Granny, I'll make sure Granny has a good bath & spruce-up before the pics are taken ! , (& I'll get pics of the 'unique' stuff like the original 'old-style' logbook that we've managed to keep, & the 'petrol book' etc.).





Cheers,

Pasty.