"DavidR" wrote in message

"JNugent" wrote
DavidR wrote...

This stuff is not inevitable. The thread may be bemoaning how
complex cars are and how they are scrapped when beyond economic
repair but it is what the punters want.

...but only because that is all the "punters" can afford.

If, after accidental damage, a car can be restored to its market
value of (say) £1500 only by the expenditure of (say) £2000 on
repairs, the owner will *waste* the £500 over-spend, with no hope of
recovering it (unless he somehow feels that a sentimental attachment
to the car is worth £500 to him) if he chooses to have the repairs
done.

Agreed. But consider how often are we told by the likes of Quentin
Wilson to avoid poverty spec models because thay are harder to sell.
Is there some point in the ownership chain where owning the poverty
spec becomes an actual bargaining advantage?

What I can never be sure of is whether people buy the toys for
themselves or for an eye to (or fear of) resale value. I think the
fashion for sunroofs some years ago were an obvious contender for the
most useless accessory ever.

Some accessories lose value very quickly and can have a negative value in
the after market, body kits being an obvious example. Special paints jobs
can also reduce value. High-powered petrol-engined cars cost more when new
than diesels, but their extra fuel consumption and higher insurance costs
probably reduce their long term residual value to below that of a diesel --
low running costs are more important than performance to the typical private
buyer of a ten year old vehicle, whereas performance is important to many
new car buyers (specially if someone else is paying for the maintenance,
fuel and insurance).

Sunroofs were more popular than air-conditioning because they were more
visible to the neighbours, but I suspect most people have now learned that
air-conditioning is more useful, even in England. But I suspect a/c has less
value in the later years of the vehicle when it needs more maintenance. I
also wonder if airbags help in the aftermarket? Safety now does help sell
new cars, but does a buyer of a ten-year old car care if air bags are fitted
(specially as they may not work by then anyway)?

I don't know if aluminium bodies help or hinder the long-term life of the
vehicle -- they eliminate rust and reduce fuel consumption, but are also
expensive to repair after an accident.