Ridiculous parts prices

[Peter C]

I’ll start with this:

Got any others?

[sheffcortinacentre]

Yer I can't get any takers for a gen passenger door skin for a 2 Dr for £150

[artdjones]

Noticed  @paulplomhad his timing chain done and 4 copper washers were £30 odd plus VAT.

[lesapandre]

23 minutes ago, Peter C said:

I’ll start with this:

Got any others?

I wonder if that is 3D printable for less than £1500?

[sheffcortinacentre]

Originally there that compressed board cover with vynil.

So plastic wouldn't be rivet counter correct.

[adw1977]

37 minutes ago, Peter C said:

I’ll start with this:

Got any others?

3 door dash? Because they had a different dash from the 5 door?!

[lisbon_road]

Free listing on eBay has a lot to answer for. List and see what happens.

That dash isn't worth the price, though it is very rare. I'd be terrified of it getting in the sun - we all know what would happen. Hardly relaxing.

Newer cars, problem seems to be stuff on back order. I dread to think what it will be like when there are more Chinese cars.

[sierraman]

Depends, an original 3 door Cosworth could be worth £70-80k or more, £1,500 to get one absolutely spot on would be pennies to people with that money to spend in the first place. You’d only be doing yourself out of money if you were putting it up at £500 or so.

[sheffcortinacentre]

4 hours ago, adw1977 said:

3 door dash? Because they had a different dash from the 5 door?!

Nope just that it fits , same as all mk1-2 escort parts are RS.

[sierraman]

Escort RS door handle catches. 😂

[comfortablynumb]

MK2 son could use a pair of wings for his cortina GT project.

Guess we'll be repairing the old ones then

[sierraman]

Like I’ve said before classic cars have become a rich man’s game in some cases like a 3 door Cosworth. Once the money  get involved then it’s all speculative prices and throwing money at the job. You might as well cash in and charge them a fortune as ultimately you end up doing yourself no favours selling things cheaply. Someone paying £70k for one has the capability to be paying thousands for a dashboard so you might as well gouge as much as physically possible out of the deal.

[Kiltox]

A single lower pinch bolt and nut for a Nissan Leaf is £20

[captain_70s]

Parts are usually priced based on the most expensive model they'll fit.

So Mk2 Escort parts are based on somebody needing a bit for a £50k car. Of course sometimes you get people trying to sell bits that were never actually fitted to the valuable models in the first place.

Dolomite body panels are priced this way, it is the exact same shell whether it's a £5k 1300 or a £15k Sprint. You certainly don't find wings for £75 anymore!

[sierraman]

9 minutes ago, Kiltox said:

A single lower pinch bolt and nut for a Nissan Leaf is £20

I think they most likely know that when you’ve chewed one up half way through a job that you’ll happily pay £20 to get yourself out of the shit. 

[Kiltox]

2 minutes ago, sierraman said:

I think they most likely know that when you’ve chewed one up half way through a job that you’ll happily pay £20 to get yourself out of the shit. 

💯 

[lisbon_road]

11 hours ago, sierraman said:

Depends, an original 3 door Cosworth could be worth £70-80k or more, £1,500 to get one absolutely spot on would be pennies to people with that money to spend in the first place. You’d only be doing yourself out of money if you were putting it up at £500 or so.

I s'pose that's a fair comment really.  I meant 'worth it' in a sanity sense.  Mind, everyone's attitude is subtely different - I keep my oldest car dry and in the garage fastidiously, but I can't imagine how anal you'd have to be to keep your £1500 dash in one piece.  

[sierraman]

38 minutes ago, lisbon_road said:

I s'pose that's a fair comment really.  I meant 'worth it' in a sanity sense.  Mind, everyone's attitude is subtely different - I keep my oldest car dry and in the garage fastidiously, but I can't imagine how anal you'd have to be to keep your £1500 dash in one piece.  

I think it’s illustrated when you pick up two copies of say Practical Classics, one from 1995 and one from the last few years. In 1995 it’d be full of practical tips about perhaps someone trying to fix something, reader’s restorations where it’s been done in a draughty lock up with no power, Rust in Peace where there would be countless old ruins in bushes etc, no talk of charts plotting increases in values etc. 

Fasr forward to the recent copies… advice still but likely about fitting retro fitting a £2,500 fuel injection kit, Harry a 42 year old investment bankers restoration where he’s got a number of firms to sort the bodywork, rebuild the engine and retrim it. The men in sheds are all dead or would have to sell their grandkids kidney for a boot lid for an Escort so cannot afford this endeavour. Rust in Peace - the ruins have been dragged out of the hedge and are now on eBay at £3,000 for an old mini that’s in two pieces as it’s fell apart in the middle. Then finally there’s a few pages of what they think an Escort Mk6 will be worth in a few years. 

[danthecapriman]

47 minutes ago, sierraman said:

I think it’s illustrated when you pick up two copies of say Practical Classics, one from 1995 and one from the last few years. In 1995 it’d be full of practical tips about perhaps someone trying to fix something, reader’s restorations where it’s been done in a draughty lock up with no power, Rust in Peace where there would be countless old ruins in bushes etc, no talk of charts plotting increases in values etc. 

Fasr forward to the recent copies… advice still but likely about fitting retro fitting a £2,500 fuel injection kit, Harry a 42 year old investment bankers restoration where he’s got a number of firms to sort the bodywork, rebuild the engine and retrim it. The men in sheds are all dead or would have to sell their grandkids kidney for a boot lid for an Escort so cannot afford this endeavour. Rust in Peace - the ruins have been dragged out of the hedge and are now on eBay at £3,000 for an old mini that’s in two pieces as it’s fell apart in the middle. Then finally there’s a few pages of what they think an Escort Mk6 will be worth in a few years. 

That’s actually one of the reasons I stopped my subscription to PC and no longer buy it.

Anyone remember that episode of whatever it was called with Mathewsons classic auctions where they dragged that Mini out of the garage with the collapsing roof? It was so rotten it had to be strapped to a pallet to move it so it didn’t completely collapse or tear in half! The bloke payed a ridiculous price for it but looked like restoring it for him was a case of opening his cheque book. I’m sure he mentioned values and all that other crap when the camera crew asked him wtf he was doing!

[comfortablynumb]

I think restoration at home is a dying art, unfortunately.

Theres still enough money about for those chequebook restorations. A mate who had a restoration shop in Gillan, Cornwall ( not sure if it's still there?) had a bloke bring an utterly shagged mg roadster in. He was a dentist, and had owned it since new.

Madlte suggested a heritage shell, but the bloke was very keen to keep as much of the original car as possible, so wanted it welded up.

As my mate said, anything is possible if you've got deep enough pockets!

It took ages, and cost a fortune, but he did it, and the bloke was very happy, paid without batting an eyelid 

 

[sierraman]

40 minutes ago, danthecapriman said:

That’s actually one of the reasons I stopped my subscription to PC and no longer buy it.

Anyone remember that episode of whatever it was called with Mathewsons classic auctions where they dragged that Mini out of the garage with the collapsing roof? It was so rotten it had to be strapped to a pallet to move it so it didn’t completely collapse or tear in half! The bloke payed a ridiculous price for it but looked like restoring it for him was a case of opening his cheque book. I’m sure he mentioned values and all that other crap when the camera crew asked him wtf he was doing!

Some of the cars they sell through there are nails. I went a few years ago, a lot of them were no good at all but people get suckered in. Highlights were an RS Turbo with panel gaps on the OSF wing you could probably climb through, thick paint covering wob etc. 

[chadders]

39 minutes ago, comfortablynumb said:

I think restoration at home is a dying art, unfortunately.

Theres still enough money about for those chequebook restorations. A mate who had a restoration shop in Gilan, Cornwall ( not sure if it's still there?) had a bloke bring an utterly shagged mg roadster in. He was a dentist, and had owned it since new.

Madlte suggested a heritage shell, but the bloke was very keen to keep as much of the original car as possible, so wanted it welded up.

As my mate said, anything is possible if you've got deep enough pockets!

It took ages, and cost a fortune, but he did it, and the bloke was very happy, paid without batting an eyelid 

 

I can understand that if you've got the money.

My MGB has an ill fitting bootlid from when I went camping in the Lakes in the late 70s and forced it shut on a large tent. It's got a crease in one rear wing where I got a lift back from the pub after a Sunday lunchtime session and decided to move my Orion Ghia Injection. I was too pissed and drove into it ,both were on the private parking area where my garage was. There's 2 dents in the front grill where I hit an Alsatian on the way to my then girlfriends, it ran off seemingly unharmed, and so on and so forth.

I could have fixed them but why? It's not a show car and they bring back memories.

 

 

 

[danthecapriman]

34 minutes ago, sierraman said:

Some of the cars they sell through there are nails. I went a few years ago, a lot of them were no good at all but people get suckered in. Highlights were an RS Turbo with panel gaps on the OSF wing you could probably climb through, thick paint covering wob etc. 

I’ve never been, only ever seen them on TV. Even then though, some of them do look awful. I can’t remember what it was now, but I remember seeing one car go through and you could see where the sills and lower arches had rotted, then been ‘fixed’ but Theyd masked off the bodywork above to protect the paint and resprayed the lower bits theyd ‘fixed’. You could see where the filler hadn’t been rubbed down fully and big solidified drips and runs in the paint. 
You have to wonder what some of these people are actually paying good money for. Mind you, buyer beware. Do your checks before buying I suppose.

[High Jetter]

1 hour ago, danthecapriman said:

Anyone remember that episode of whatever it was called with Mathewsons classic auctions where they dragged that Mini out of the garage with the collapsing roof?

Yes, have an idea it was in the first series, maybe even first episode. Re-runs frequently on Yesterday.

[2flags]

I remember that mini. The most valuable thing on that was the vin plate! I think they took it off and kept it safe to prevent some walking away with a 'ring kit'.

[DavieW]

38 minutes ago, danthecapriman said:

I’ve never been, only ever seen them on TV. Even then though, some of them do look awful. I can’t remember what it was now, but I remember seeing one car go through and you could see where the sills and lower arches had rotted, then been ‘fixed’ but Theyd masked off the bodywork above to protect the paint and resprayed the lower bits theyd ‘fixed’. You could see where the filler hadn’t been rubbed down fully and big solidified drips and runs in the paint. 
You have to wonder what some of these people are actually paying good money for. Mind you, buyer beware. Do your checks before buying I suppose.

To be fair to Matthewsons, they auction customers vehicles so shouldn't take the flack for the condition of the vehicles. Different if it was their own vehicles that they'd restored though but as you say "buyer beware".

[2flags]

Yes, we've all been caught at the auctions. Well, I have anyway, to the point where I will not go there anymore. Ebay or facebook marketplace, that's another thing. At least there you can meet the seller and look at the car. Then decided it's a complete heap of shite but still buy it! 🤣

[IronStar]

2 hours ago, sierraman said:

I think it’s illustrated when you pick up two copies of say Practical Classics, one from 1995 and one from the last few years. In 1995 it’d be full of practical tips about perhaps someone trying to fix something, reader’s restorations where it’s been done in a draughty lock up with no power, Rust in Peace where there would be countless old ruins in bushes etc, no talk of charts plotting increases in values etc. 

Fasr forward to the recent copies… advice still but likely about fitting retro fitting a £2,500 fuel injection kit, Harry a 42 year old investment bankers restoration where he’s got a number of firms to sort the bodywork, rebuild the engine and retrim it. The men in sheds are all dead or would have to sell their grandkids kidney for a boot lid for an Escort so cannot afford this endeavour. Rust in Peace - the ruins have been dragged out of the hedge and are now on eBay at £3,000 for an old mini that’s in two pieces as it’s fell apart in the middle. Then finally there’s a few pages of what they think an Escort Mk6 will be worth in a few years. 

In 1995, you could still walk into a dealership and buy a brand new classic Mini, Mk1 Escort was 20-ish years old car, and so was Alfa Giulia, and so was 02 series BMW.

In 2025, the average age of a classic Mini is 35+ years, and age equivalents of the cars listed are Mk1 Focus, Alfa 156, and E46 BMW 3 series.

Cars just got better at rustproofing and not blowing up, so you hardly need a weldaton and a full engine rebuild at 100k miles like you'd need for a 20 years old car in 1995. Cars that were 20 then are pushing 50 now, and have been around for a while. They can't be found often in a dusty lockup anymore, as they have probably turned to dust by now if it wasn't well ventilated.

I hate the price chartings and looking at them as investments, but on the flip side, that also keeps the industry of aftermarket parts running. Good luck trying to find parts for cars that are not considered collectible, as attested by many contributors to these brown pages.

[chaseracer]

I don't do 'shiny'.  

All my cars look like shit heaps, but are mechanically and structurally bob-on.  Seems to me this is the better option, if a choice has to be made.

[sierraman]

1 hour ago, IronStar said:

In 1995, you could still walk into a dealership and buy a brand new classic Mini, Mk1 Escort was 20-ish years old car, and so was Alfa Giulia, and so was 02 series BMW.

In 2025, the average age of a classic Mini is 35+ years, and age equivalents of the cars listed are Mk1 Focus, Alfa 156, and E46 BMW 3 series.

Cars just got better at rustproofing and not blowing up, so you hardly need a weldaton and a full engine rebuild at 100k miles like you'd need for a 20 years old car in 1995. Cars that were 20 then are pushing 50 now, and have been around for a while. They can't be found often in a dusty lockup anymore, as they have probably turned to dust by now if it wasn't well ventilated.

I hate the price chartings and looking at them as investments, but on the flip side, that also keeps the industry of aftermarket parts running. Good luck trying to find parts for cars that are not considered collectible, as attested by many contributors to these brown pages.

Having spent last hour chiselling rust scale off a Focus subframe I’d disagree on that front. They’d resist rust for a significant time but 20-25 year old examples will mostly have succumbed to corrosion on the backs of the sills and from the boot floor right round to the rear seatbelt mounts which isn’t a straightforward job to repair tidily.