Prices, has the bubble burst

[thejinx]

I was on EBay and decided to check on the prices busses are currently fetching. I see busses priced low are selling, whereas higher price ones have no bids. Now I know you get what you pay for and buying cheap can be a false economy as you plough more and more money in to bring the vehicle up to standard. It just seems that busses are up for anywhere between 10 to 30 grand and have no bids. I wonder if finally the madness is stopping.

Ps I know EBay is not an indicator of the health of the scene

 

[subheatadey]

It has always been like this, people see Buses at a low price and think they are getting a bus similar to one higher price ones. Then the fun begins when they discover the amount of work required plus I think a lot of people undervalue the cost of labour involved until they try and have a go themselves

 

[Clem]

I’ve heard of buses changing hands quickly and for very good money. Most of the good buses have sold by responding to ‘wanted’ requests rather than advertising for sale.

 

[Low n slow]

I’ve heard of buses changing hands quickly and for very good money. Most of the good buses have sold by responding to ‘wanted’ requests rather than advertising for sale.

In a similar vein, I see prices of panel vans (not only VW) are up in price and there's actually a shortage due to less being manufactured in British plants because of Covid and people buying them up to convert them to campers because they won't risk going abroad at the moment and think they can holiday in a van anywhere at home. This is bad as the police are now on the case of anyone that wants to wild camp.

 

[thejinx]

I can see a glut of vans next year when travel restrictions are removed and people can go abroad.

 

[ozziedog]

I can see a glut of vans next year when travel restrictions are removed and people can go abroad.

Ozziedog,,,,,,,,,maybe the next few years :mrgreen:

 

[Xfilesrool]

There are a lot of con artists on ebay which is reflected in the missguided prices you see. There are also a lot of poorly Bay's out there that need a full restoration and the cost outweighs buying one already done properly, so safe to say save up and buy the best one you can afford. You do get what you pay for sometimes but watch out for those nice n shiny buses that are just tarted up to fool you. They are now around 50 years of age so it could be a combination of things.

1. A lot of youngsters today are just not interested in old bay's
2. Lot's of con artists and misdescribed adverts putting people off buying
3. Last few years there has been a massive increase in campers being churned out (especially VW)
4. The knowledge and skill to look after these classics is slowly vanishing
5. People expect mod cons and posh interiors
6. A lot of people can't drive so getting into a bay scare's them off
7. Financially it is now out of most people's reach even if the love is there
8. Possibly the new fuel is having an impact and people are worried about the petrol engine's future
9. Part prices to keep them going is getting silly
10. A lot of people who have nice bay's don't want to sell them

Took me about 10 years of searching and I did fall for a poorly Devon at first which I enjoyed for a little while but the cost to restore it was way more than I could ever afford. I sold it as a running ongoing project, sold my beetle and my golf mk1 gti to afford a nice bus. I only got mine by dropping dead lucky on it and I won't be selling it.