Auction

[Norm57]

Hi all check out mathewsons auction site for this months sale nice 480 up for grabs

[dcwalker]

Saw that - it does look nice. Hope it finds a good home.

I was only idly browsing as I do to see how 480s are doing and what's out there, but the wife spotted me looking at that one (not too far away) - the look on her face told me I wasn't about to add to my existing cars!

David

[aidanmorris]

For a car with 88k on the clock, that estimate of £2500-£3500 is certainly 'punchy'!

But apparently it comes with spare parts that the vendor values at £400............so that'll be two digital clocks then!

Will be interesting to see how it does.

[dcwalker]

Thanks - when I looked there were only 3 pics and no details.

Yes, it looks a good example but even in those photos there are things to be picky about - front lights look past their best, auxiliary gauges are sticking out where they shouldn't be, it could use a new front number plate, the mats aren't as clean as they could be, and I'd like a good close look at those rear arches which look as if they have been done (so how well?)...

Bearing in mind what I paid for my pretty good condition GT with less than 30,000 miles on her I'd expect absolute perfection for £2500 to £3500!! Perhaps I should be re-thinking my insured agreed value...

And being told that the price includes £400 worth of parts doesn't really wash either.

Be very interesting to see what happens - I'll be at the other end of the country unfortunately or I'd be tempted to go take a look.

David

[glasgowjim]

£400 of spares ROFL....

[Jimbo_uk]

Spotted this thread and signed up to the forum to say hello. I'll hopefully be in the market for a 480 before the end of the year - need to clear my drive of other cars first!

Not sold and on for £2725 to buy before the next auction - wonder what they'd take for it? I guess if it doesn't sell again in September it might come down a bit. Thanks for the comments on here - hadn't spotted the couple of points picked up on. I'm definitely in the market for something in good condition as I've done the "buy an old car for £500" thing.

[Martin Mc]

Welcome Jimbo & good luck with your quest to find a 'sorted' 480...

The reality of life as a 480 owner seems to be that whatever the surface condition of the car you buy, the reality is that there is always likely to be something lurking not far below that will cost you money, time and hair. Fact is, even the youngest of this marque are now 20 years old and even though they are real Volvos, they are a product of a mass-manufacture / built in obsolescence model. This means that key components are actually designed to fail at some point, and even relatively low mileage cars cannot magically escape the passage of time.

Having said that, late / low mileage / properly serviced examples do pop up (pardon my headlight pun) from time to time. I keep a regular watch out on the usual sites (eBay, Autotrader, Classic Car UK etc) and once you start looking you do find them in more and more places. Despite their rarity (<400 cars on UK roads now), they don't seem to command the values you might expect for a classic sports car. Then again that gives you more negotiating power when it comes to parting with pictures of the Queen's head...

So, good luck! Do keep us up to date with your project and post pics (you'll need 10 posts on here before you can)..

Cheers!

Martin

[Jimbo_uk]

Thanks for the welcome Martin. Coming from a Porsche 924 I know all about undervalued classic sports cars! Pop-up lights is definitely a plus point on any car

All cars cost some money sadly, my current modern is a Smart Roadster which has has a clutch, wiper motor, central locking motor, starter motor, couple of crank sensors, discs and pads, tyres, as well as the normal servicing costs in the last 4 years. I should probably do a proper hello post in the general forum!

[brinkie]

Pop-up lights is definitely a plus point on any car

They are such a plus that I always carry a Phillips screwdriver, a 10mm ratchet wrench and a spare popup motor with me

they are a product of a mass-manufacture / built in obsolescence model.

Oh so true... I am really happy that I have two 480's now, one to keep out of the sunlight and rain, with rebuilt engine, all new light clusters and new wheel arches, and one as a daily runabout that deteriorates before my eyes and will eventually end up as a parts donor for the first one...

[dcwalker]

Hi Jimbo and welcome!

As you and Brinkie have said, pop-up headlights are always a plus for character (but a pain for needless complexity!!)

Martin's comments are spot on - however good a 20+ year old car looks it will always need something, and at present most 480s for sale seem either under-valued or over valued. I guess the market will settle down for them in due course as (hopefully) proper classic status evolves, but for now it is just a case of looking very carefully, remembering to be realistic in what you demand of even the best example, and at the same time not being ripped off.

My comments on that white Celebration came solely from what I could spot in the photos. Obviously only a close examination would tell how good it really is, but I still think £2725 is cloud cuckoo land!

Good luck with your search though - if you can find a good one and out in the effort to rectify the niggles it will undoubtedly have and then look after it, they're great cars to own and drive!

David

[Jimbo_uk]

Sold for £1700. Doesn't seem bad considering the Turbo on ebay that recently went for £3100 and the red GT up to £1850 with a day to go. Still waiting to sell at least one car before I buy anything, hopefully they'll still be some nice ones around in a month or two

[aidanmorris]

Just been browsing the auction sites and I see that Matthewsons Auctions in Yorkshire had another white 480 in their sale on 22nd October.

It was a 1992 ES Auto with 34k on the clock. Estimate was £2-3k (but we know they were a grand wide of the mark last time with the Celebration!) and it says it sold but doesn't say what it went for. Anyone know?

http://www.mathewsons.co.uk/vehicle-auc ... lvo-480-es

[Jimbo_uk]

Prices seem to be strong at the moment, or better cars are coming up? A few of the nicer looking cars around the £2k mark. People had summer fun and moving them on? Seems the wrong time of year to sell older cars and hope to get the best money for them, thought that was spring / early summer...

[aidanmorris]

Are you still looking Jimbo?

Gauging "value for money" with second hand cars is always an interesting exercise and I reckon luck plays a huge part in determining whether what you get lives up to your 'value' expectations - especially if you intend to drive the thing!

I paid £1750 for my Celebration back in 2012 and, whilst I'm sure that amount would raise quite a few eyebrows, I still reckon I got a bargain - I tried to beat the seller down more (he wanted £2k) but he stuck to his guns and in the end the combination of low mileage, impeccable service history and pop up headlights won me over!

So, did I get value for money?

Well, I've done 67k miles and aside from the usual 'consumables' (brakes, belts, exhaust etc) the only thing that's really failed has been the alternator. Yes I've had to deal with some of the familiar 480 niggles (heater matrix, headlight hinge, electric window regulator - thankfully all jobs I was able to tackle myself thanks to help from this forum) but isn't that all part of the fun?!

On the whole I think my lucks been in!

[Jimbo_uk]

Still got my eye on the market but not yet looking to purchase. One camp would put these cars in the 'tired old cars' camp with everything else churned out in the late 80's / early 90s - and if a car has been treated like that, been run as a banger and flipped owners multiple times then £1000 would be strong money for one. I don't see an issue paying £2000 for one as a unique and cherished car - low owners rather than low mileage is the priority, together with a good service history to show the car hasn't been run into the ground at any point. Hopefully that's what I'll get my my Smart Roadster when I come to sell it. (would make sense to do it in the spring as it's a sporty convertible!)

[ohdearme]

Spotted this today tucked away under Volvo..Volvo Brochures. Thought you might be interested in seeing the ad

Aaagh - can't add the link as I am a newbie. Description is Volvo 480 turbo under above ebay category. Can someone more established share the link please.

ebay /itm/Volvo-480-turbo-/222302094741?hash=item33c23cc595:g:4~wAAOSw44BYGa-i

[jamescarruthers]

Good spot
http://r.ebay.com/tPLqYR

[Jimbo_uk]

Potentially a good one; some issues still to sort which could make the price a bit high, but looks like it's had some love to get it into the condition it's in. Clean MOT after a couple of years off the road is generally a good sign. Automatic which rules it out for me as the other half will be learning to drive in it

[aidanmorris]

The '92 white ES auto that was sold at the last Matthewsons auction has turned up on Car & Classic for £2950:

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C809533
http://www.mathewsons.co.uk/vehicle-auc ... lvo-480-es

Also newly listed on C&C is an '89 ES - also in white and also an auto - for £1750:

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C809533