[paul-hill_1]

The used car market in general is seeing unprecedented price increases this year with overall wholesale prices increasing by circa 25% during the year so far. Generally “mainstream” cars have shown some of the biggest gains with cars such as the Vauxhall Mokka rising by 40% this year! When you consider the average car depreciates by 15% a year on average the real gains are even greater. The reason for this is simply supply and demand driven by the general lack of new cars and therefore associated used cars coming into the market. In 2016 nearly 2.7M new cars we registered in the UK, in 2020 that number was less than 1.7M…

The main reason for the lack of registrations can be associated to COVID lockdowns / shutdowns etc, this year is different however as the shortage of semiconductors is affecting the ability of Manufacturers to build new cars in quantity, again this is affecting the supply of used cars into the market and an associated rise in prices.

It appears that, in general, our Maseratis have enjoyed better residual values than in previous years or indeed as previously stated by Stewart “gentle depreciation” rather than stone like falls may well be the case on certain models.

I also agree with Tony’s comments, this won’t last forever and when the new car supply returns to more “normal” levels prices with adjust in line with market conditions, I think his advice re cashing in only if you are selling rather than swapping is sound.

[paul-hill_1]

Hi David,

I was in a similar position to you…

I had a 2018 Jaguar XF but I’d hankered after a Coupe for a couple of years. I bought a 2004 50,000 mile Coupe CambioCorsa with a full history file just over a year ago and waved goodbye to the jag.

Apart from the obvious differences in practicality, fuel economy and the fact the technology is outdated there has been no downside for me. I have covered 4000 miles using the car as a “daily driver” and I’m really happy i made the change.
The things to be aware of are the clutch as they wear more heavily than “regular cars” general advice seems to be they will last between 20 and 40k depending on driving style. The heater matrix is a common problem and whilst the parts are cheap to replace the labour cost isn’t. Suspension can wear and is expensive to sort. Rocker cover gaskets are prone to failure but a fairly cheap job to have done and once they are sorted should last a very long time. The only other issue I’ve experienced is the battery in the tracker is goosed which means the main battery drains in less than 4 days (using the isolation switch sorts this).Parts in general can be hard to come by but a good service partner will often have the right contacts; i needed a handbrake cable, luckily my service agent located one in the middle east and had it fitted within the week…

I cannot recommend a good independent in your area as i live in York (I entrust my car to Autoshield in Manchester, they are superb).

Happy to help with other specific questions should you have any.

Only last piece of advice is do it!

[paul-hill_1]

Hi, John,

I know, i had the same reaction! Maybe it would be cheaper to buy a new button set, from the research I’ve done Scuderia still supply them

https://www.scuderiacarparts.com

I’m unsure of what the cost may be but i may check out of interest!

please let us know how you get on.

Paul

[paul-hill_1]

Hi, I understand these guys are very experienced but i have not used them myself;

https://www.carplastix.com

And these guys maybe worth a try

https://www.restauramosbotones.com

I’m not aware of any one in the UK offering a similar service. I’m sure we’d all be interested to see how you get on.

 

 

[paul-hill_1]

Hi John, I’ve had a similar issue with the air vents but my switches are in good shape.

I understand the chrome flaking off the vent rings is a common problem, replacement is possible but a cheap DIY alternative is to buy a chrome pen from Amazon (2mm nib is best), remove the vent, the surrounds and then remove the existing chrome with fine emery cloth before re-chroming using the pen, not quite OEM finish but good to most eyes. Whilst the vents are our remove the coating using “Goo gone” or similar (takes about an hour per vent) and then spray with Plasti Dip, the finish is as good as OEM and will last. Again i was lucky as my side vents were affected, these remove easily, the centre dashboard vents are much harder to remove, i would not attempt personally for fear of damage.

re the buttons i know there are a couple of companies in Europe who will refinish the buttons if they are removed from the car, packaged and sent via a courier such as UPS, I believe the service to be IRO £700 for a Coupe set to be refinished.

[paul-hill_1]

Thank you Tony.

Regards

Paul

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