Date:         Sat, 23 Aug 1997 15:57:15 -0500
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         "Rick Sherrod (hopeless VW nut)" <kdf_cars@MYLINK.NET>
Subject:      Re: 87 Syncro Sell or... LONG

Sudhir Desai wrote: (in reference to selling an '87 Syncro needing engine work)


snip>
>
> if you didn't keep the van, how much would you get for an old beat up
>         metal box on wheels?  i recently thought about scrapping my
>         1984 Vanagon and found that the blue book value for it was just
>         over $1200, not much if you're set on replacing it with another car.

> whatever you decide, good luck.


Sudhir paints a rather dismal picture.  It's a cold reality out there in "new car world".  And yet, a car's true worth is
what someone is willing to pay for it.  If you look at the Blue book (NADA or Kelly) it will always tell that a volkswagen
with more than a hundred thousand miles is virtually worthless.  "Not worth the metal that it is stamped out of", I
believe says the sales industry.
Salesmen are trained to adjust your opinion of what your trade is worth in a very short time using (passive)
intimidation .  The first trade offer they give you is a little lower than what they would expect to pay for your car at
wholesale dealer-only auction.  They negotiate in fifty-dollar increments from there.  I hated being a car salesman for
that very reason.  I always felt like I was ripping off customers on trade for some fat cat dealership owner.

To get back to my point,  I'd like to say that you shouldn't always believe what Blue books say.  If you deal with a bank
on a loan, you may have to .  Unless the bank (or insurance company) recognizes a bona-fide appraisal serivces'
assessment of the vehicles' replacement value based on condition, replacement availability, special model, etc..
For example, the blue books rate an 82 volkswagen Rabbit Pickup LX at $250.00 retail in SHOWROOM shape with
80,000 miles, air conditioning, and stereo, etc. .  I see them regularly selling in the Atlanta Auto Trader for
$1000.00 to $3000.00.  And they're not staying put long at those prices.  And Atlanta's car retail prices are even
depressed at the moment.  So where do the bluebooks get off rating the Pickup so low?  Is it someone's sick little
prank?  Someone not in the know about VWs? Obviously.

This mainstream acceptance that VWs, and cars in general, are worn out after 100K is ludicrous.  I have found that
lots of small sales lots turn back the miles in most of their high-mileage cars or replace the speedo with one from the
scrapyard showing lower miles.  Many of the cars driving around today showing 38K may have as much as 230K on
them.  It's possible with fast accumulating highway miles and I know that it happens, people in the industry have
actually admitted to me that they have done it.  I do not approve, yet I can see where these felons are coming from.
Here they are with a car in excellent shape and noone can finance a reasonable amount.  Not based on the work the
car will be capable of in the future, but based solely on where the car has been in the past.  A bank's strict adherance
to the bluebooks' values doesn't allow the purchaser to take into account the condition of the car, service record,
relative replacement parts costs, model reliability, parts interchangeability and other reasons I choose VW.

As a result of this" injustice" of auto values I have seen a very clever ploy appear lately.  You may have seen this or
even done this before:
Clean the car and make absolutely ready for sale.  Go to the newspaper and place two ads.  One for your real car, and
one for a Phantom car same make and model as yours.  Price the Phantom car way higher than the real one.  Give the
Phantom ad your brother's number.  When people call the Phantom ad to ask if the price in the paper was a typo or
something, your brother replies "Sorry, that car sold the very first day that it was in the paper.  Apparently they are
well sought after." (or something to that effect)  This sets the buyer's mind that your Real car is a bargain and that
he/she had better jump right on it or risk losing the chance.

I found recently that I was being manipulated in this way recently and it would have worked on me if the seller had had
a little more on the ball than to let me know that it was his brother's Phantom. (must have been his brother's idea
'cause I think this guy was the head sniffer at the local model airplane glue factory)

Well, I've said my peace (for now).  Any comments?  I would like to know if this is too long or not VW enough for the
list.

Rick Sherrod
Macon, Ga

I don't live in "New car World" because I'm no longer a professional car salesman.  I've gone back to restoring VWs.  I
will occasionally offer something special for the listmembers to consider purchasing if noone has objections.

81 Audi 5000 Diesel  289K?
83 Volvo 240 Diesel  175K?  VW LT 6cyl Diesel motor   (Hers)
87 Jetta 2dr gas 219K    (Mine)
88 Fox 4dr 129K              (for sale Yours?)
81 Vanagon V-6 -bad head gaskets- formerly Diesel      (Mine)
86 Vanagon Syncro 87K