Why the price differential??

[pebisit]

Being looking at Mk 1 and 2 Escorts, as I've always liked them, and they formed part of my youth.
But, I fail to understand why a Mk 2 escort that is nothing more than a bare shell in many situations is worth a stupid amount more than an E30
Surely, the E30 is built better, handles as well?? Not sure of that, but would welcome comment
Is faster, better appointed, etc, etc
Is it because theres more E30's around, and if so, should we expect a meteorotic rise in values in the next few years as the chavved out vehicles disappear to the scrap yards. I've already noticed E30 M3 values have gone up, 2 years ago you could find one for £6k, now your looking at £8.5 upwards
Anyhow, what do oyu think???

[mick_318is]

These days the people buying these escorts up are prepared to throw a fair amount at it to make it look like the car they wished they could buy when they were growing up.
As you said above " they formed part of my youth ". I'm sure you when you either wanted one / owned one you wished you could spend more on it fixing it up.
That's what is happening now, people can now afford to realise thier boyhood dreams and spend the money.

If you want a BMW you can just buy a M3, however if you want an escort the top end ( anything with an RS moniker ) you virtually have to build one and a bare shell is a starting point.

[gareth]

a mk2 escort has a cult following. a E30 is only starting to.
supply and demand really, not many about and a lot of folks want them. they are also in my opinion more fun and easier to work on / modify etc.

i just sold a mk2 escort parcel shelf (nothing more than a piece of hardboard) on ebay for £95
the values are the only reason i'm now in a E30, it's the sucessor to the escort in my eyes

gone are the days when you could get a good one cheap (like my 180bhp x-pack RS2000 for £1350)

[Messenjah]

a large part of the price increase of 2 door mk1 and 2 escorts is because of their rallying ties alot of wealthy people want 2 door shells for classic rallying and this drives the prices up the classic ford scene has exploded completely over recent years and prices of a road going capri aswell as other models have risen dramatically so its not just the escorts ... and as with everything the more popular they get this more expensive they become.

there have been some phenomenal better then factory fresh escorts appearing recently and "worthers" a brown mk2 rs2k sold for £24,000 iirc

the values of rare cars will only go up as time goes on and the availibilty dries up so buying a good one now is a sound invenstment for the foture aslong as you can keep it good

if you think about it the last e30s are less then 20 years old wheras the last mk2 escorts nearly 30 and mk1s ... 35 and as a car to have once you get over the initial buying cost pars are cheap aftermarket wheels are cheaper and more readily availible they are alot easier to work on and more "barn door" engineering cant beat an old ford really ive only got e30s atm because the purchase price for road going examples is alot lower

id love another capri and ill have one once ive got some readies

[Messenjah]

oh and tuning capabilites ...

you can build a 190bhp pinto for a mk2 escort that once strippe dout will weigh a darn site less then a tonne for £2000 EASILY......

150bhp is acheiveable for a couple hundred pounds ... and in a light rwd car with al ive axle that makes a VERY entertaining road car

[SPADGE]

Back in the early 80's i scrapped many a Mk1 and Mk2 escort

Even then not many had a floor so god only knows what they must be like now!

[daimlerman]

Look at the crazy prices Mk11 Jaguars went for in the '80's....£35-50,000...why?
They were the car to have in the '60's,if your dad had a Jag. you got cred in the school playground(my dad drove a company supplied Austin Cambridge,lonnnnng way down the pecking order!)
So 20 years later in the '80's these gu ys could afford the car of their dreams.
Same thing has happened to Escorts,could well be E30 next...
I played with mostly BMC offerings in my youth,mini's, 1100/1300 and the like,left the 'Daganham dustbins' alone!

[gareth]

eeeeexactly. £5k + for a rotten and welded car due to the cult value? no thanks. cool, yes. fun, yes. worth the money, no.

mini's are going the same way. a good one (is there such a thing?) is worth big bucks now and they're fundamentally crap. but damn good fun.

[Mayze]

Yep I don't see the appeal my mate has got a shitter of a MK II Escort its worth 5K easy if it was an e30 it would be condemned to death by fragging.

But he still tells me that by escort standards its a good car.

[ShakeyC]

Ford do not have what BMW have regarding to out of production cars 'Mobile Tradition' whereby you can buy new shells and parts therefore more parts available to meet demand hence lower prices.

[fuzzy]

its not £5G for a rotten mk2. my mates just bought a previously restored mk2 in very good condition with a cosworth conversion for £8750.

[daimlerman]

its not £5G for a rotten mk2. my mates just bought a previously restored mk2 in very good condition with a cosworth conversion for £8750.

Now for that kind of money you can buy a very good sport,a middling M3,decent Alpina C2.7....or a bottom of the range 'E' type,decent Mk11 Jag.or a whole host of euro boxes!
And fuzzy's mate has bought a 'converted' car,worth only the sum of it's parts...crazy!

[Mayze]

its not £5G for a rotten mk2. my mates just bought a previously restored mk2 in very good condition with a cosworth conversion for £8750.

May be hes deluded then he bought it from Mark "Mad Horse" O'leary for 5 k about two years ago.

[fuzzy]

Back in the early 80's i scrapped many a Mk1 and Mk2 escort

Even then not many had a floor so god only knows what they must be like now!

i scrapped a mk2 1.6 ghia in 1991 with a month on the mot just because i couldnt be bothered with the hassle of selling it

[fuzzy]

its not £5G for a rotten mk2. my mates just bought a previously restored mk2 in very good condition with a cosworth conversion for £8750.

Now for that kind of money you can buy a very good sport,a middling M3,decent Alpina C2.7....or a bottom of the range 'E' type,decent Mk11 Jag.or a whole host of euro boxes!
And fuzzy's mate has bought a 'converted' car,worth only the sum of it's parts...crazy!

it was up for £9500...
i wouldnt buy something like that for that money but he's minted and its a track/toy car for him.

[caneswell]

Supply and demand!

[fuzzy]

yep, an old scabby fords worth more than a nice clean sport. what an embarrasment to the marque.

[poolnoodle]

Can still pick up a Mk2 here for a few hundred dollars but low spec 1300, etc. Most are relatively rust free. Would probably pay up to $10K for a decent RS2000 though . Haven't seen a Mk1 in some time but my cousin had one years ago in full rally trim with steel arch flares, massive horses, etc. Nice car but one ride around a forest track with him scared me off rallying for life

[djk]

E30 values are only going to go one way, but how far and how fast is open to debate. As a generally tight git, I have to say there are probably cars I'd rather own than an e30, but are they as many times as good as the multiple in the purchase price? I'd love a lotus elan, but would a £15k example really give me 10 times the satisfaction of my £1500 MX-5? It's different for every individual person, so for some it would be a no-brainer, they'd have the elan, just as I can't justify the outlay. Of course, cars also have a certain investment value - most 'safe-bet' classics, such as an elan, will never be so unfashionable as to significantly lose value against inflation provided they are kept sound, so you get an enjoyable hobby that only has costs in running, not depreciation. You can get lucky, by owning the right car at the right time and yielding a profit despite all associated costs, but to plan to do so is folly - you'd be better off playing the stock market.

I look at Mk1 & 2 escort and think 'mmm, nice', but I don't think I'd want to own one - I'd see it as a financial liability, much as I probably would do a nice e30 if values went similarly bananas. There's not much risk of that happening to the brownie though, so in a sense it fits me just right for long term ownership - it will cost money, but never so much that I couldn't justify keeping it, and after all, I really like it, roly-poly ride and all.

[Falkster]

a mk2 escort has a cult following. a E30 is only starting to.
supply and demand really, not many about and a lot of folks want them. they are also in my opinion more fun and easier to work on / modify etc.

i just sold a mk2 escort parcel shelf (nothing more than a piece of hardboard) on ebay for £95
the values are the only reason i'm now in a E30, it's the sucessor to the escort in my eyes

gone are the days when you could get a good one cheap (like my 180bhp x-pack RS2000 for £1350)

It really does p**s you off doesn't it? I sold my one previous owner RS2000 with 34k on the clock for £1500, thought I'd done well cos I bought it for £500.....did a check and its still on sorn.

Sold my 175bhp java green minter.....well swapped it for a G reg Cav sri!!!! Shocking really!

[glenn]

Back in the early 80's i scrapped many a Mk1 and Mk2 escort

Even then not many had a floor so god only knows what they must be like now!

your not the only one jules !

i've lost count of the number of mk1's and mk2's that have been through my hands, and most of them went to various scrappys.

and like you said, most of them were riddled with tin worm 20 years ago.

[Dezzy]

When I was 17 I bought a 1.3l silver 2 door mk2 because of 80's rally car's. It had 34k on the clock old lady 1 owner car. Drove it for a week and thought WTF is this. Sold it for double what I paid for it. £500. 12 years ago. It was a cheap car then but I didn't really know whati had till a couple of year latter. Now I don't think I could justify the money. Plus ford dealers are shit for older cars. The reason for the price is FORD TAX. Plus they drive like sh1t boxes. Not like the good old E30

[Falkster]

Found a pic

[Nay]

Lots of E30s, means more parts, cars and choice. Therefor less price.

Old fast fords where more of the "boy racer" car of their time and therefor people want them. E30s are great cars, but during their era, where like the new BMWs of today. Different market.

Now they are at the bottom of the depriciation curve, with loads still about, means its a while yet till they are all gone or whatever.

Now is a good time to buy a mint, original sport or even 325i in a good colour, with nice optional extras. Keep it that way and eventually it will rise. Dont expect massive gains (if any really) within the next 5 years.

M3's on the other hand, are really sort after. Now will be the best time to buy a good'un as they keep going up and up. If you bought one a few years ago, you'd be laughing. If you buy on now, in a few years to a decade you'd have a serious car comanding a lot of money!

I really want an M3

[poolnoodle]

M3's on the other hand, are really sort after. Now will be the best time to buy a good'un as they keep going up and up. If you bought one a few years ago, you'd be laughing. If you buy on now, in a few years to a decade you'd have a serious car comanding a lot of money!

True enough but once I had one would probably get attached to it and never want to sell. It might as well be worth nothing then!!
I have never even given thought to the value of my chromie as after owning it for 15 years wouldn't part with it

[fuzzy]

i dont think any model will go up significantly within the near or distant future. with much better newer cars dropping in value i reckon prices will have evened off now.
but then im not a financial expert either.