LS1 VT's Apparently Have No Value

[LOV-VT]

How is it that 10 years after building and selling a VB SLE to buy an LS1 VT SS, the value of the 12 yr old SS now, which is a far superior vehicle, is similar to what the VB was then at 20 yrs old; and that wasn't a lot. Its not a money thing, though obviously more the better, I just can't beleive that at $5,000 people would rather buy some s/box 4cyl without half the comfort or options.

Its not like theres issues either, its been garaged all of its life, has always been properly serviced, always run on synthetic oils, everything that bolts onto the front of the engine is new (alt, P/S, water pump) and the front susp is new; this thing looks, goes and steers like it did when I bought it (probably better actually). Even the ROH blades don't seem to matter, the car dealers simply see an old, oversupplied commodore.

I went to trade it 6 months ago and just couldn't bring myself to do it for what they were offering. I assured the missus that someone would fall over themselves to buy it for a couple of grand more and just paid for the new car without trade. Nothing... noone, nada (exept for the scammers of course). Does no one want this car, is it really that worthless, it defies belief.

I gave up trying to sell it as there didn't seem to be any point and had dillusions of doing another rebuild or modernising an old classic; anything. I did it with the VB and consider the difference in the starting platform. It just isn't realistic these days though with work, kids, mortgage and a less than enthusiastic wife. So now I've decided to upgrade the Ranger that I bought last year and resigned to trading the VT with it, because I just can't seem to give it away.

My real issue is the dealer will make money, the wholesaler will make money and the yard will no doubt make money all of whom couldn't give a damn about the car; and some poor sap gets robbed at the end.

I'm not looking to make a buck and I'm no scam artist (which seems to be the assumption at the price I ask), I just want it go to a good home and give a like minded person a bargain. This is a rare find so PM me before next Saturday 18/2/12 if you or someone you know can save this car, it would be a crying shame for this one not to go directly to a holden/LS1 enthusiest; i.e someone who CAN see the value in this car.

[dogsballs]

people are struggling to sell vx's around $8-9k

[Toddler78]

why dont you post some pics up and advertise it in the for sales section :confused:

[LOV-VT]

why dont you post some pics up and advertise it in the for sales section :confused:

Tried but was rejected, will try again though. looks like I can only link to a URL so give us a bit to work somethin out. I've done the facebook thing, carsales, trading post etc. This thread was more of a "can't beleive it" discussion. I've all but resigned to giving it to the dealer on Saturday; it'll hurt though and not just financially.

"people are struggling to sell vx's around $8-9k "
- Doesn't surprise me at all.

[LOV-VT]

Try this, seemed to work ok

http://s1050.photobucket.com/albums/s418/twobit23l/?action=view&current=Commodore.jpg

[LOV-VT]

Found the rest of the pics, even one of the old VB. That was a fun project; I still have nightmares about redesigning the electrics in that thing.

http://s1050.photobucket.com/albums/s418/twobit23l/

[LOV-VT]

Depreciation:

33k in 2002, I did a rough calc on tyres parts services etc and it has basically cost me about 60k in that time and it was under warranty till 2005- did get holden to pay for a new diff though.

[JET-33]

at $5,000 people would rather buy some s/box 4cyl without half the comfort or options

at that price i would just hold onto it :yup:


I assured the missus that someone would fall over themselves to buy it for a couple of grand more and just paid for the new car without trade

if you can afford a new car without trade, definately hold onto it ;) at 5k for an ls1 that sounds like its in pretty good condition it would HAVE to sell sooner or later, just leave it on carsales until that time arrives

[SS317]

Im having the same problem trying to sell my 08 rodeo, it only has 23 000kms on it and is like new but no one seems to want it

[BOBGEN111]

That is why I keeped my VT and turned it into a race only deal and bought myself another vt ls1 as my everyday driver.
Very cheap.

[CLUBRED]

Was offered trade $14,000 for my Calais V with 51,000ks, so it's probably just the state of the market for big cars at the moment. So I'm probably going to keep it and drive it til it's worth nothing (can't be too far away at these prices).

[Smashfist]

V8's are just a prick to get rid of ATM - I struggled to offload my 6 speed VY SS a while back and only got $11,500 for it. There's a car yard locally with $10k I think on a clean 6 speed VX SS and he's been hanging onto it for 6 months plus.

Not to mention that VT's are a dime a dozen, they're everywhere.

[LOV-VT]

Was offered trade $14,000 for my Calais V with 51,000ks, so it's probably just the state of the market for big cars at the moment. So I'm probably going to keep it and drive it til it's worth nothing (can't be too far away at these prices).

Thats been the approach so far unfortunately it takes up room in the garage so now it has to go and I have to give up my race car ambitions:(. What gets me is that the bloody VB depreciated relatively less in 20yrs; WTF?

[ssv402]

Reading this thread makes me worry, as I bought a 2011 95 aero just yesterday, good ol saab resale values. :| ... Still :) ...

[Smashfist]

Thats been the approach so far unfortunately it takes up room in the garage so now it has to go and I have to give up my race car ambitions:(. What gets me is that the bloody VB depreciated relatively less in 20yrs; WTF?

Every man and his dog owns a VT, as far as I'm aware they were the best selling Commodore in history, so there's plenty of them out there to choose from.

[macca_779]

Every man and his dog owns a VT, as far as I'm aware they were the best selling Commodore in history, so there's plenty of them out there to choose from.

That's the funny thing as where ever I go I see stuff all of them. Heaps of vx and vy though

[Peter B - CV8]

Reading this thread makes me worry, as I bought a 2011 95 aero just yesterday, good ol saab resale values. :| ... Still :) ...

Geez mate, you're a glutton for punishment aren't you ! You're going to be stuck with that one for quite a while... what's the go for parts & servicing now that SAAB are down the gurgler ??

[whitels1ss]

That's the funny thing as where ever I go I see stuff all of them. Heaps of vx and vy though
Yeah I reckon I see more VX's and VY's also.
Come to think of it I reckon I see more VE SS's and SSV's than VT SS's these days. ;)

[redvxr8clubby]

people are struggling to sell vx's around $8-9k

I traded a '02 VXII Calais with 98,000Km LS1, Delft, leather and sunroof and 18" chrome wheels about 9 months ago, got $9,500 trade in. The dealer initially advertised it for $15,990 (which was $1000 more than I paid for it over 2 years earlier with only 55,000 Km on it). Eventually they lowered the price down to $11,990 then after a while it seemed to have been sold. They didn't make much on that sale given it was advertised Drive away, so they would be paying transfer fee and GST on the sale.

[keith reed]

We own a vt clubsport. Understand that when we sell it we will get very little for it. When we sell it the coulson seats
and the four pot calipers will not be sold with the car.

[288vxgts300]

Its good for buyers,

I recently bought a vt 5ltr 5 speed,with simmons,adjustable shocks,reco,d LSD, and had reciepts for $1400 of new parts just fitted, he was asking $1,500,i didn,t complain at all, things are crazy,we just wanted a shitter for round town ,so not to ruin our good car in shopping centres etc.

Got on ebay same wheels and tyres sold for $2,700

[LOV-VT]

We own a vt clubsport. Understand that when we sell it we will get very little for it. When we sell it the coulson seats
and the four pot calipers will not be sold with the car.

They havn't even seen the car with the trade offer so, yeah they aint gettin my sound system and the Blades with perrelli rubber will be goin to a mate, if I could get away with pullin out the engine and replacing it with a crap one I'd do that to......mmm, that gives me an idea, I've got till Sat.

[seedyrom]

at that price i would just hold onto it :yup:
The problem is if you have rego+insurance+greenslip+maintenance ..... my goodness, you're investing a quarter of the cars value every year

[Toddler78]

speaking of not seeing them any more. remember when the VT ss Tiger Micra was the hero car back in the day whens the last time you saw one of them?

[Martin_D]

speaking of not seeing them any more. remember when the VT ss Tiger Micra was the hero car back in the day whens the last time you saw one of them?

Dunno Toddler, but I have never seen a Micra as a hero car.....even if you put Tiger Stripes on it :)

[Toddler78]

yes you got me there ...........mica

or did you..... what about the juke r based on the nissan Micra with R35 running gear :bow:

http://www.cars-release.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/nissan-juke-r-500x394.jpg

[whitels1ss]

yes you got me there ...........mica

or did you..... what about the juke r based on the nissan Micra with R35 running gear :bow:

http://www.cars-release.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/nissan-juke-r-500x394.jpg
I think you just brought "fugly" up to a record new high level :spew: :spew: :spew:

[heavychevy]

50k new, planned to remove the rear spolier after I bought it, glad I didn't... looked goofy then and even more now but it was part of the design. Only mods air, headers and exhaust. Mucho money's spent on maintenance at Chevs to keep it fresh. 120k's on the clock ...probably worth 12k. if that :(

Despite the rego and insurance it's a keeper for me.

946

[zorro]

Trawl through carsales and have a laugh at what cars are advertised for and how long they are up for. AU falcons are asking 8k plus, vt-vx SS 10k plus.....

Buyers market and sellers ignorance doesn't work though I've found

[***VX*R8***]

When I insured my 2000 VX Clubsport R8 in 2010 the maximum insurable value with my insurer was $25,500. In 2011 when I reinsured it with the same insurer the maximum agreed value was $19500.
$6000 difference in 1 year??? lol.

[hsv_wagon]

i have bought 2 ls1 vt's in the last year.a vt berlina,one owner full service history,240k for $4000.the guy couldnt give it away.and i bought a gold vt ss wrapped around a pole with 116k on it for $800 (bargin of the century)

a mate has just bought a vt calais,one owner pension rego,leather/sunroof for $5500.its a beautiful car.

its a shame but it happens.give it10 years and ve's will be the same

[csv rulz]

A mate of mine just picked up a 2003 VY ss ute, 160,000km auto, RWC & reg. advertised price $14k, ended up getting it for $10k
Happy for him, little depressed about what that makes mine worth. Looks like I'll be keeping mine a while

[Mick1]

a mate has just bought a vt calais,one owner pension rego,leather/sunroof for $5500.its a beautiful car.


Good buy, if its LS1.;)

[Madmik]

Not that i have a love for fords but a mate got back from o/seas and bought a new XR8 ute (which he has had heaps of dramas)
He sold me his 2000 Ford LTD with 116k (full leather, cd stacker in boot, auto, tickford motor 6cyl, sunroof)
For $500.....even though it's a ford i reckon i got a pretty good deal.
Not keeping it. Got it for my sister who drives a clapped out death trap- doesn't want it so it goes to my brother i guess.

[HSVREDSLED]

This kind of thing is why I keep cars if they are still running. Two years ago I was going to update. I didnt. That car would have depreciated 'at least' $20,000 by now. I sure havent had to spend one tenth of that in repairs to to keep the girl running.

[Drewie]

Had my VX SS from new, only done 75,000km, at the prices they are bringing looks like I will have mine around for a few more years. No way would I sell it for the prices that they are going for, sooner keep it and just buy another car outright. As a comparison when I bought the VX SS back in 2001 I was driving a 1990 VN SS which coincidently had 75,000 km on it at the time and was a similar age to VT/VX of today, I was offered $12K trade in on it but sold it privately in 2002 for $14K, I later found out the guy who bought the VN SS was a dealer and he sold it for $17K. So the value of V8's today has certainly taken a dive.

[hsv_wagon]

i sold a 80k vn ss a year ago for 12k ;) a mate bought a vy ss for the same price at the same time.

[mattie304]

I got my ex-chaser executive for $4,500.00, second owner car stock as rock right down to single exhaust, lol sounds like a six

[exwrx]

The reality is that in today's market anything over 10 years old is pretty much worthless.

My VT is worth more in parts than it is running :)

[GR346]

My old VT Calais (LS1) ended up going for 11k with 165000 just under a year ago, was a nice looking car and I never ever saw another one in black. Was to most expencive one for the kms on carsales too

[Devil CV8]

A mate of mine just picked up a 2003 VY ss ute, 160,000km auto, RWC & reg. advertised price $14k, ended up getting it for $10k
Happy for him, little depressed about what that makes mine worth. Looks like I'll be keeping mine a while
Not to depress you but My VY SS auto with leather sold for $8900 last year.

[Angeldust]

Ouch ouch anbd ouch..


thats why im also hanging onto my VY SS. Its manual with 108K's and in very good condition. I paid 30K for it 4 years ago (with 30K's) and its astounding how much its depreciated in that time.

Its too good of a car to trade in or sell for peanuts.

It will be interesting in 20-25 years time what the value of these things will be. (last pushrod v8 etc). Try buying anything with a factory v8 over 25 years old and your paying a premium.

[The_Plague]

speaking of not seeing them any more. remember when the VT ss Tiger Mica was the hero car back in the day whens the last time you saw one of them?

I had one of those, VT SS.
The problem is they should never have allowed the colour to be placed on every bloody V6 model etc in existence, perhaps not even the SS.
If it had been maybe a Clubsport and up only colour then it would have been a bit better and rarer.
Nice colour, shame every arsehole had to have it.

[SIK-TOZ]

Bought my vx berlina, ls1, black, sunroof, lsd, with 88k on the odo for $12k in 08. i was thinking of selling it to upgrade but would struggle to get 7-8k in this market.

[the big fist]

It will be interesting in 20-25 years time what the value of these things will be. (last pushrod v8 etc). Try buying anything with a factory v8 over 25 years old and your paying a premium.

There's some great v8's that can still be had for a good price. Totally biased but look at the vf/vg hardtop Valiants. 318, responds to little mods, 2 door. Sub $10K
Last of the good deals. Hope I didn't let the secret out :P

*EDIT* Just checked prices, fark they have sky rocketed since I got mine a couple of years ago.

[hsv_wagon]

you should see torana prices ;) lucky i have 2!

[RRR888]

I had one of those, VT SS.
The problem is they should never have allowed the colour to be placed on every bloody V6 model etc in existence, perhaps not even the SS.
If it had been maybe a Clubsport and up only colour then it would have been a bit better and rarer.
Nice colour, shame every arsehole had to have it.

Yeah that would have been nice. I have a Tiga Mica Clubby R8, owned since new. It's been garaged it's whole life and has only just now ticked over 75,000km's. Still looks great on the road, i love it.

Back in 01' I was tempted to upgrade to the VX as I thought they looked awesome (still do!) but I am glad I kept mine as I don't see too many VTII R8 clubbies, let alone Tiga Mica ones getting around. I basically decided to hang onto the VT and have some fun with it.

[VTSSDUDE]

Reading this thread is depressing. :bawl:

[motorin on]

I was in at Flemington Auto's today looking for a commercial vehicle.They used to sell HSV's and body kitted Commodores.The guy at the yard said they got out of them as it got too hard to make money,at least they have a steady turnover of commercial's.
He said hang onto my VY SS as it is worth nothing and is one of the best model's around that time,and anything later are starting to have electrical troubles and it going to get worse as they get older and electronic parts are expensive and hard to fault find/diagnose
I think I will go and buy a trailer instead for my fishing and camping stuff

[Angeldust]

you should see torana prices lucky i have 2!




lol, i used to have 1... and like everyone else. now wish i never got rid of it. (it was a UC +308+m21)



edit: stupid reply with quote doesnt work proper

[OzJavelin]

Bought my VY1 SV8 new (actually leased then bought), and still own it. It's done 198,000km and is still a great car. It's worth nothing, but it's still a good car so I'm keeping it. I'm probably in a better place then many people in that I'm not overly interested in the latest-and-greatest, meaning I don't have to update every few years (and I have two other cars and three motorbikes). Unless a VT SS is costing you money in repairs, or you're worried about safety, why bother updating .. just keep driving. Fuel is comparitively cheap to depreciation and changeover costs.

[andrewslr]

Subject to space, etc, I reckon keep it. You'll feel less bitter than if you begrudgingly sold it a price less than the value you place on it.

[Richie217]

Had a look on redbook for VX R8 prices, they have fallen quickly. Doubt I will ever sell the thing anyway.

[LOV-VT]

Intersesting if not depressing read, sounds like everyones got a tale. Mines gone now, typically ran into a buyer on the evening before the trade in, but just couldn't be arsed. Would've had to completely rearrange people and transport for the next day for no real extra cash. Now driving new diesel 4x4 that I intend to keep forever.

Moral of the story is I guess VALUE, LIKE BEAUTY, IS ONLY IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER.
Best of luck with your LS1's, they're a great car and I was sad to drive away from mine, it was like leaving my 1st born. If I ever get the time, space and permission in the future it will be my first choice for any project running gear:) At least I know it'll be cheap!!!

[dansedgli]

Ive had my manual VX Exec LS1 on carsales for 5 months. I think Ive gotten 2 calls and a few text messages. lol

Its at $8k, 183,000kms. Not even any serious low balls. :S

[Waughy]

I picked up my '04 VZ Calais with 210 on the clock for $9,800 last week. More than happy and will be keeping it as long as its driveable.


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