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What's happening to sidescreen TR sales?


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This Cork-registered TR3A has been round the houses in the past year or longer. Now reduced to £25,000 but a year ago priced at £42,000. There seem to be many really good quality sidescreen TRs on the market.

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In previous ads, all the impressive receipts for parts purchased during its very recent rebuild were viewable too. Apart from the number plate and being LHD, it seems like a bargain. And what about this TR3 in Holland? Still advertised for £35,000, a CKD from South Africa, well prepared for rallying, but still unsold.

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Or the Macao TR2 racer? Down from £100,000 to £89,000, but no takers? Why am I asking, you may wonder? I am just curious. 

I myself, when push comes to shove, actually like the thought of TRs being more affordable. Now that I have a TR again, I feel better.

But is it that our cars less desireable? Or is it connected to Covid-19?

 

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I think they are simply not as desirable as they were a few years ago. The current crop of buyers are favouring a more civilised classic that keeps the wife happy such as TR4s etc. Also a nostalgia thing, there are less buyers around that always wanted a TR2/3 when they were younger.

Ralph

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I've been saying this for a while - as time goes on then the older classics will become less desirable as the effect of Ralph's last sentence kicks in. We all hankered after the cars that we saw around as youngsters, or perhaps that our Fathers and older relations drove. For me, it was the influence of my cousin who is 10 years older than me - he and his friends had a TR2 and a couple of 3A's and that was what got me interested.

Some cars will remain sought after, such as the E type, but as time moves on others will fall away I'm convinced - the process being driven by demographics, the demise of petrol, etc etc 

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We all seem to be repeating each other . I just wrote this and then discovered Rod had said much the same.

-------

Hello David,

When I was old enough to get a car, in the late 1960’s, things like TRs, Healeys and E Types were THE car to have, but very few of us could afford one. We never forgot those memories, so when we “Grew up” we went and bought the cars from our childhood.

I also think that 1930’s cars (MG T-types etc), were looked on by us kids as “Silly looking old cars.” Not really the sort of things to be seen in.

I think times have now moved on so that side screen TR’s are now seen by many younger people as “Silly looking old cars.”

Just look at the average age of side screen drivers.

Not wishing to sound morbid but when the present set of sidescreen owners die, there won’t be many people left who want their cars, so prices will plummet.

(If you have a hoard of spares in your shed , sell them off now. It won’t be long before no one needs them.)

Charlie

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It could also be that not too long back TR's were attracting the more well off investor buyer pushing prices well above their realistic market value.

I've noticed that even the auction price of certain models of E type have dropped recently and many more classics are only achieving below estimate.

So perhaps the market is finding a more realistic level. There are of course always exceptions.

Brian

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If you ask me the classic car scene has always been way over priced and has been taken from the hands of those who really want a classic car but are not able to afford them, this lead directly to the wealthy including them in their investment portfolios with expensive restorations, the other side of this during the eighty's was the mass buying of old wrecks that may never have been restored and putting them back into the system, and that was a good thing even though it still excludes the less wealthy, a knock on effect was the need for reproduction of parts for these restorations, many of us now enjoy having availability of parts that may never have been made if not for the boom in the market. 

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A few years ago we here down under were looking at the age demographic of our members and concerned about the future. At the time we couldn't see a solution to this issue, or even if a solution was required.

Over the past couple of years our full financial membership has swelled from about 300 to about 350. Many of the new members/owners are younger.

Interestingly, a few of us found Facebook very valuable. We found owners who were in various classic car groups who didn't know of the Register. 

Things are looking much brighter.

 

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17 hours ago, brian -r said:

It could also be that not too long back TR's were attracting the more well off investor buyer pushing prices well above their realistic market value.

I've noticed that even the auction price of certain models of E type have dropped recently and many more classics are only achieving below estimate.

So perhaps the market is finding a more realistic level. There are of course always exceptions.

Brian

 

 

This. 

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2 hours ago, John McCormack said:

A few years ago we here down under were looking at the age demographic of our members and concerned about the future. At the time we couldn't see a solution to this issue, or even if a solution was required.

Over the past couple of years our full financial membership has swelled from about 300 to about 350. Many of the new members/owners are younger.

Interestingly, a few of us found Facebook very valuable. We found owners who were in various classic car groups who didn't know of the Register. 

Things are looking much brighter.

 

 

 

And this.  Better Social media management and promotion is definitely required.

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23 hours ago, Rod1883 said:

I've been saying this for a while - as time goes on then the older classics will become less desirable . . .

23 hours ago, Charlie D said:

Side screen TR’s are now seen by many younger people as “Silly looking old cars.”

 

You lot are hanging out with the wrong crowd!  :D:D

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Go to the Goodwood Revival and ask the nearest 25 year old what she thinks about "silly looking old cars”! :P

As a young(ish) TR owner myself, it's not all doom and gloom boys, there’s plenty of interest from the younger generation. And the internet has only helped fuel a rise in popularity. 20th century nostalgia is big business, particularly amongst the under 50s. Retro and vintage festivals have never been more popular, and glancing through the crowds queuing to get in, you’ll see no lack of young admirers of mid century fashion, cars and music.

It’s no longer about buyers simply “hankering after the cars of their youth”, but rather about making a lifestyle choice, about looking for an alternative to the cookie-cutter offerings of the modern world. And many getting into the scene are looking specifically for cars that were built decades before they were born.

In America, where ‘50s and '60s classics are still available from scrap yards (and importantly, still affordable), there's a huge following amongst the 20 and 30 somethings, with numerous internet and Youtube car show celebrities leading the way in promoting the movement.

As for sidescreens, there are several of us on the forum that are a lot younger than the TRs we drive. My own 3A for example, was already twenty years old by the time I arrived.

It's true a lot of classics are currently overpriced, especially here in the UK, and a correction would go a long way to encourage younger drivers. But as for interest in the cars themselves, and the lifestyle that surrounds them, there’s certainly no lack of enthusiasm. You just have to know where to look.

 

Deggers

Edited by Deggers
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I have 3 TRs (two TR2s and a 6) and use all of them regularly. My BRG TR2 is a daily driver around inner west Sydney and much further afield. The young people love them all, especially the BRG 2 when it has aero screens fitted, and show great interest. 

Many of the younger people I meet in my current role are definitely looking for something different from the accountant produced modern cars. Try and tell the difference between a Hyundai and BMW from 30 metres away.

The attraction of these cars will drift from those who were 'around in the day', to those who yearn for something different and fun.

I am not pessimistic at all.

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Edited by John McCormack
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Perhaps it has something to do with originality and to command top dollar the car has to be right! The yellow car seems over priced with wrong wheels, seats and poor fitting panels from what is visible in the pic.

Many cars have been fitted with upgrades to facilitate modern driving and they just don't make the grade for those who want the original experience! If you want a more civilised drive with rack and pinion, servo'd brakes , comfy seats then buy a TR4, TR5, TR6.

A sidescreen car done right is a joy to drive the seats are comfortable, the driving position not bad even for over 6 foot driver, brakes , properly adjusted and driven accordingly not that bad.

I am pleased with my car and it turns heads at every show I've been to. The young kids love it and if you let their offspring sit in the car and let them honk the horn they are made up and the perception of the owner is not" what a standoffish old fart" and a lovely old car looking good as their owner is with a big smile.

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4 hours ago, Rodbr said:

Perhaps it has something to do with originality and to command top dollar the car has to be right! The yellow car seems over priced with wrong wheels, seats and poor fitting panels from what is visible in the pic.

Many cars have been fitted with upgrades to facilitate modern driving and they just don't make the grade for those who want the original experience! If you want a more civilised drive with rack and pinion, servo'd brakes , comfy seats then buy a TR4, TR5, TR6.

A sidescreen car done right is a joy to drive the seats are comfortable, the driving position not bad even for over 6 foot driver, brakes , properly adjusted and driven accordingly not that bad.

I am pleased with my car and it turns heads at every show I've been to. The young kids love it and if you let their offspring sit in the car and let them honk the horn they are made up and the perception of the owner is not" what a standoffish old fart" and a lovely old car looking good as their owner is with a big smile.

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Yep!

Nice 3A!

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2 hours ago, David Owen said:

What is needed is a little marketing effort via placement..such as asking a director friend to put one or two in a movie....preferably an action movie with someone like Scarlett Johansson and Michael Downey Jr. each driving one.

Russ Meyer did it in 1965

 

 

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Surely this shows the attraction more 

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A teenagers attraction, worked for me in 1965.

Mick Richards

Edited by Motorsport Mickey
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I think anything sporty will sell OK. 

Mundane pre war stuff has indeed seen a drop in values, but try and buy something sporty or racey and you'll see firm prices. I wasn't around in the thirties but there's a few cars I've always hankered after.... and it looks like they'll always be out of my reach. 

 

 

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I think all 3 examples that David quoted at the start of this thread were overpriced to start with. Take the TR3 for example, just because it has cost you £42,000 to restore does not make it worth £42,000, as the owner found out. But then when the price is reduced dramatically to £25,000, I for one start to wonder what is wrong with it, and there becomes a stigma attached. Had it been advertised at the "proper" price to start with it would probably have sold. 

Ralph

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 Hey i have the trilogy of Russ Meyers films, odd films, of their time but watchable, in response to the comments about "standoffish old farts at car shows" most are seated by their classic cars scowling at the passers by, i have given up engaging most in small talk or even complimenting them on their cars as i have had so many dismissive grunts in return, possibly many are hard of hearing " being so old" after driving noisy rattling classics, why anybody with such grumpy dispositions would bother showing cars is beyond me, anyway now just smile and pass on down the line, the best response i have ever had is from the TR club who where great to talk to and enthusiastic owners, a nice bunch of fellas, but that was a local club mind you.

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I went to the nearby Chearsley cricket ground on Sunday, where the field was full of cars, motorbikes, a double-decker and some trucks. The public poured in to see the vehicles and to enjoy the day.  I got chatting to a chap with a very nice Daimler SP250 (called Dart before the Americans threatened Daimler).  He had a pair of sticks behind his seat and admitted that he could no longer get under the car to grease it - but he was 92 !   He was kept busy all the time, as the car was super, he knows all about it and he is a real enthusiast.  As far as I could see, he was never seated in the car or plonked behind it - he was upright, talking animatedly and smiling.  That's the sort of fellow who encourages interest in our sort of cars.

He added an amusing tale: he has difficulty walking, so goes swimming at the hospital, but only gets 15 minutes and would like longer.  He discovered that a Naturist club hires a pool for a closed session, joined the group and a very helpful lady got him safely to poolside (sticks no help as they would slip on the tiles) and back to the changing room after he had swum for about half an hour or more.  Naturally, he, the lady and everyone else was unclothed.  He found it an invigorating experience, even though it had come rather late in life.

Ian Cornish 

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Sat in a Daimler Dart once just to try it out for size you see, the only problem was the windscreen frame was right in my eyeline so i had to either squish down in the seat to squint out at the road or pop my head over the top of the frame and use a bolster cushion so i could see over the top.

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1 hour ago, R.M. said:

Sat in a Daimler Dart once just to try it out for size you see, the only problem was the windscreen frame was right in my eyeline so i had to either squish down in the seat to squint out at the road or pop my head over the top of the frame and use a bolster cushion so i could see over the top.

Classic sign of over stuffed seats.

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