What shape will the car industry be in after all this?

[philw696]

I had a red E30 in the 90's albeit a 318i, but here's the daddy 6-pot of the range. 325i enough said.

1991 BMW (E30) 325i SALOON

A practical and eminently usable modern classic, with very low mileage and only a few private owners from new.

collectingcars.com

When I worked for the Rally School 15 years ago we used E30 325i for the RWD Rally Cars and they were brilliant fun and far cheaper than MK 2 Escorts back then.

 

[Swedish Paul]

I had a 323. Loved it. Coming from a Ford Orion, it was like chalk and cheese.

 

[Andyk]

I had a red E30 in the 90's albeit a 318i, but here's the daddy 6-pot of the range. 325i enough said.

1991 BMW (E30) 325i SALOON

A practical and eminently usable modern classic, with very low mileage and only a few private owners from new.

collectingcars.com

My first BMW was an E30 325i Sport. A cracking car. This car I think defined BMW back then...No one came close to making a better car in this class for me.. .......Bet they are still fun to drive....

 

[GTVGEOFF]

I have been following this thread with interest, my son started a new job selling cars at a VW franchise about eighteen months ago. He informed me in early March that he was leaving there has he had been offered a job at another franchise and that he had handed is notice in already. I have to say I had strong reservations about this with the covid situation developing and the uncertain economic situation. He was due to start the new job 24h March, well we all know what was announced on the 23rd, He turned up to find the garage shutting down and told they would contact him sometime.
This came at a pictuarly bad time he had just taken on his 1st mortgage literally 1st payment and and had become a dad three weeks earlier.
The VW garage refused to furlough him.
To say I was worried is an understatement.
But to my surprise and delight the new garage contacted him yesterday, they reopened two weeks ago and have been overwhelmed with inquiries, he starts Monday

 

[Manc5]

Interesting thread... As someone who has been looking to replace a car over the covid period I have noticed a few interesting fluctuations .. Independent car dealers raising "in stock" 2nd hand mid range car prices, 25-35k bracket, by circa 5% as sales declined and whilst I wont be availing myself of it some dealers stated interest rates from their recommended finance houses increasing 1 - 2%.
I have also in the last 1 - 2 weeks seen cars that were stuck for 2 months now moving on so sales are picking up for sure. I am pretty sure the price increases are driven by data gathering of search hits on their adverts their own sites or by attempted "operation claw back" to make up shortfall.
I had been looking to buy in the next month but have now decided to hold off for 3 months and have managed to up my initial budget from 28k to 36k as I sold an unfinished project over the weekend for 8k. I expect to raise that budget to about 40 k in 3 months time and am in the fortunate position of being a cash buyer.. which may help.. but while my heart would really like a GT I need a daily driver so likely will go for a petrol Ghibli.. thoughts on holding off or what you think 2nd hand prices might do over the next 3 on mid range cars ?

 

[Devonboy]

I have been following this thread with interest, my son started a new job selling cars at a VW franchise about eighteen months ago. He informed me in early March that he was leaving there has he had been offered a job at another franchise and that he had handed is notice in already. I have to say I had strong reservations about this with the covid situation developing and the uncertain economic situation. He was due to start the new job 24h March, well we all know what was announced on the 23rd, He turned up to find the garage shutting down and told they would contact him sometime.
This came at a pictuarly bad time he had just taken on his 1st mortgage literally 1st payment and and had become a dad three weeks earlier.
The VW garage refused to furlough him.
To say I was worried is an understatement.
But to my surprise and delight the new garage contacted him yesterday, they reopened two weeks ago and have been overwhelmed with inquiries, he starts Monday

mate of mine has started back selling - they are selling an average of 4 cars a day and as you say - flat out in response to demand....and the motability clients haven’t emerged yet....

 

[christianm]

Bounce Back Loans are 'being splashed on supercars', insiders claim

Supercar dealers across the UK say their business has boomed since the government began handing out loans to company owners, according to a report.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[jasst]

Just heard an interesting snippet , apparently 56% of people who currently don't own a car, are now considering getting one because of covid, so the car industry could face a very bright future, but all these anti car councils might have to have a rethink.

 

[Andyk]

I had three friends who run used car dealerships and each one of them has been run off their feet over the last two weeks. They cannot get enough used car stock...….Surprised me to be honest.

 

[DaveT]

Yes, I deal with a few of the large volume brands and they are all saying the same. Rushed off their feet since the restart.

Doesn't help my business mind, as we do large launch events for manufacturers and they are not interested in doing anything like that until early next year at the very earliest.

Just hanging in there

 

[dickygrace]

I’ve sold all but one of my cars. Stock required, but I’m in no rush, finding mint examples isn’t easy and I’m not going to change my buying criteria.

 

[bigbob]

Interesting thread... As someone who has been looking to replace a car over the covid period I have noticed a few interesting fluctuations .. Independent car dealers raising "in stock" 2nd hand mid range car prices, 25-35k bracket, by circa 5% as sales declined and whilst I wont be availing myself of it some dealers stated interest rates from their recommended finance houses increasing 1 - 2%.
I have also in the last 1 - 2 weeks seen cars that were stuck for 2 months now moving on so sales are picking up for sure. I am pretty sure the price increases are driven by data gathering of search hits on their adverts their own sites or by attempted "operation claw back" to make up shortfall.
I had been looking to buy in the next month but have now decided to hold off for 3 months and have managed to up my initial budget from 28k to 36k as I sold an unfinished project over the weekend for 8k. I expect to raise that budget to about 40 k in 3 months time and am in the fortunate position of being a cash buyer.. which may help.. but while my heart would really like a GT I need a daily driver so likely will go for a petrol Ghibli.. thoughts on holding off or what you think 2nd hand prices might do over the next 3 on mid range cars ?

The hit will come as unemployment rises and also as people come to the end of their mortgage/credit card holidays, however, cheaper cars will be strong IMHO due to the issue of people wanting to commute in isolation. No idea how big the decline will be but people are bored now and replacing a car is a great way to cheer yourself up - I personally would not wait as I quite like the 'sugar' hit I am referring to. The new car business has been characterised by over supply for years and I see no reason why that will change but if we end up with import tariffs then prices rise so we will all have to buy Jags! Dealers are no longer impressed by cash buyers as they would prefer to take 2-4%+ pa on the finance they sell you and APRs are always more on used cars.

GT and Ghibli are very different cars but the petrol Ghibli is a nice place to be. This dealer has couple in stock in your price bracket which are a year old but essentially brand new:

https://www.parks.uk.com/maserati/used-cars/10440493-maserati-ghibli-v6-4-dr-auto-saloon/

 

[safrane]

I guess after 4 months of close to zero sales there is bound to be a lot of backlog.

Interesting that the Range Rover main agent I visited on Sat stated he would be really happy with our cash purchase as huge numbers of sales are falling through as people cannot pass the credit checks.

 

[hashluck]

I’ve sold all but one of my cars. Stock required, but I’m in no rush, finding mint examples isn’t easy and I’m not going to change my buying criteria.

Same issue here - stock very thin on the ground.

 

[Manc5]

The hit will come as unemployment rises and also as people come to the end of their mortgage/credit card holidays, however, cheaper cars will be strong IMHO due to the issue of people wanting to commute in isolation. No idea how big the decline will be but people are bored now and replacing a car is a great way to cheer yourself up - I personally would not wait as I quite like the 'sugar' hit I am referring to. The new car business has been characterised by over supply for years and I see no reason why that will change but if we end up with import tariffs then prices rise so we will all have to buy Jags! Dealers are no longer impressed by cash buyers as they would prefer to take 2-4%+ pa on the finance they sell you and APRs are always more on used cars.

GT and Ghibli are very different cars but the petrol Ghibli is a nice place to be. This dealer has couple in stock in your price bracket which are a year old but essentially brand new:

https://www.parks.uk.com/maserati/used-cars/10440493-maserati-ghibli-v6-4-dr-auto-saloon/

Yeah, i would buy a GT in a instant with my heart, .. but my head is telling me Ghibli . That dealer has some pretty interesting stuff and will be on the list. Pre Covid i had to drive past HR Owen Maserati Stockport 2 times a day so while not seeing them all the time i am stalling the sugar rush .. back in work in October so need one by then !