HI Guys ,

Some of you may remember that my 1987 Rover mini went under in the Floods of 2011.
Since then it was stripped down, cleaned and Oiled and has been sitting in my garage for a time when i could afford fixing it.

That time has not come as yet and the wife is getting Maddddd
Any Ideas what its worth in its current state --

All Cleaned up , Engined turned over by Hand only
Filled with new Oil , plugs filled with oil
All parts cleaned but untested
All panels rust free and straight and paint still good

Needs Intrusion bars, Compliance and Rego
I know this is not the For Sale section , but im just going to list on Ebay
and wanted to get an idea of what it may be worth as is

--See my old Post for Pics of Before & After Floods


Here are some more images --- https://picasaweb.google.com/pseeva/Min ... directlink

Depends on the demand in your area. I see imported, but non complied cars on evay trying to fetch 10k, but I don't see that happening given I struggled to move a complied rover a couple of years ago for even half of that.

Dollar figure is tricky to come up with, but I'd say it could be worth 3-5k.

It's definitely not as much as a finished running car, you'd be better off telling the missus it's not worth anything so that you can keep it and finish it.

I'd love to buy the wheels off it.

Doogie

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I won Hay once, here's the pic to prove it..


Hay, it's not about the car, it's not about the venue, it's about the people that come here. Peter Dwyer, Mayor of Hay NSW.

I agree with Harley

A disassembled car is worth a fraction of what a running car is worth.

I would also be telling her it would be at great loss to sell it now, better off packing it up and waiting till you can put it together.

If you end up getting it together, you will likely end up keeping it - Or selling it for much more than it's worth now.

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You're so square
Baby I don't care

Didnt that work for gordo?

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"Beware the lollipop of mediocrity: lick it once and you'll suck forever" Brian Wilson

worth more complete? Not sure. Given your honesty about its history buyers may be wary of its condition and the work carried out after flooding. Then again it could bring good $$$$ parted out after a clean up, that would be contreversial. Are you gunna pull it off ebay?

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Dog Food! Most kids like it more than Broccoli.

Well its on ebay now
and i have had a tonne of calls and some offers around 3K
I know if i let this go - that my mini dream gone for ever
doubt the Mrs will let me go through this again....

Ill let it run and see where we go i guess
Other rovers on Ebay are going for around 10-12K

Dude, personally I would keep it.

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Dog Food! Most kids like it more than Broccoli.

I think you will be struggling to get any where 10k with flood damage.
Sadly most cars are written off after they have been that far under water, but I admit mini's are very special and this one deserves to survive.

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1969 Cooper "S"
1967 Mini Deluxe
1973 Clubman Van (the fleet spare)
1978 ex 1275 LS ("Wizard" Eaton Supercharged)
2015 HSV GenF GTS(occasional drive & tow car)
2019 MINI F55 Cooper S

Do the old work back from what it was worth pre-flood trick.

There are stacks of Rover minis for sale on Carsales/Carpoint at any one time. Those in the teens are there for months at a time. Older 998cc, non-airconditioned cars without the airbags and leather are typically advertised at 12,500 -> 14,000 and they still sit for months. I think everyone just lists for the average of the existing listings and these have virtually no correlation to the actual value of the cars. It is a common Carpoint issue.

I therefore believe that the car in pre-flood condition but complied would SELL for no higher than $11k.

Take off door bars, unleaded fuel filler and perhaps new belts plus the compliance and rego costs of no less than $1000 (if you know someone) and you're at 10.

I have never seen a 1987 Rover that is rust free. They were rust magnets. The tops and bottoms of the doors, the A-pillars, the front guard front and rear seams, the beaver panels, the sills, around the windscreens etc all rust like mad in the cars I have seen and owned (I imported a 1993 Mayfair). If this car is genuinely rust free (and it doesn't look it around the grille in the photo) then it is a rareity and maybe worth more. But I suspect there is a little somewhere.

The car looks to have floated around in the flood and bumped a thing or two. Driver's guard and arch have taken a hit.

So prior to re-assembly there would be a bit of panel work to do. Amount TBD but lets say $1000. Now 9

The interior is going to be rooted so you need underfelt, carpet, door trims, dash coverings, hood lining, parcel shelf, C-pillar linings and seat foams and coverings. A set could be had from Josh but they'd be 2nd hand and he's a business man so they wouldn't be at charity rates. I'd be getting the full Newton set but let's split the difference and call it $1500 for an interior. Call it 7.5k

Bits can be washed but some may never be any good. These could include instruments, solenoids, light reflectors, heater fan motor, wiper motor. A new set of instruments would be very expensive. What about the packing in the exhaust cans? Would you trust the seat belt mechanisms? Call it $500 for this lot to be very optomistic. Now 7k

Then there is the work to get the abrasive and corrosive mud out of stuff you really want to work. Suspension upper arms, trailing arms and wheel bearings. Maybe they were well greased before immersion and nothing got in or maybe the bearings are full of sh1t and waiting to collapse after a few hundred km. I'd be pulling these down at the very least. Then you have the dizzy, steering column, rack, master cylinders, brake booster etc. I would be pulling all these down and you'd have to put new seals in at least.

That just leaves the engine and gearbox which you could just run as-is but would you be constantly stressed it was about to go pop? Or, would you pull it down too and therefore replace a bunch of seals on the way?

I think if you had to pay someone to do any of the above your 7k would be VERY quickly gone to zero but say you do most yourself and just buy the parts. Maybe then you are at 5k.

Now why would anyone go to the trouble of all of the above and risk it costing more time and money than just buying a runner if there isn't any profit/saving in it? What's the risk/reward like for this?? I reckon you'll get optomistic people forgetting a lot of the above and willing to pay $3,000. Maybe they've got an engine, some suspension bits and some other stuff. Maybe they've got a rover that can't be complied and want to swap the bits? Those are the guys that may pay 4 or even 5 for it.

Of course everyone will have a different view on the numbers I have used. Higher final value, cheaper repair costs = higher bid, lower value on account of history and more expensive repair = lower bid.

To me the car is worth less than 3 but if it really is rust free and doesn't have any panel damage, maybe a little bit more. We will all see on March 19.

EDIT: I just read the thread you wrote in early 2011. It was 2.5 months between the flood and you draining the water from the engine and taking out the interior. No mention of the fuel tank. I reckon that means the fuel tank, engine and gearbox are all in for a full overhaul. Tanks can be fixed with one of those epoxy kits for $120 or so. Engine and box, not so cheap.


M

thanks guys - very comprehensive indeed

Also noticed that Mokesta is the current highest bidder - didnt know you were looking for another project

Re: Fule Tank - its been cleaned and it was full of petrol at the time
so it was in good nick after the flood
relatively water free

I just read Mark's lengthy comment, wow that's honourable....



Then I read this and I chuckled

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But he's thriving and striving and hugging the turns.

Being the highest bidder 6 days from the end and at about half the expected price is hardly something to write home about. It's more about bumping it along than having a red hot go! Hard core bidders won't jump in until the last 20 seconds and I'm not going to bid further until I've seen the car in the flesh.

Using eBay on the iPhone, it is easier to track items by bidding early than simply watching.

Yes, I don't need another project, have no room and the wife would kill me! But hey I can't help myself.

I stand by what I wrote. I predict that the highest bidder will already own a rover they can't register.

M

I've been through the "what's it worth" mental gymnastics many times.

Here's some things I've learned over the years, may or may not help you:

1. It has to be a particularly rare car to be worth more than the sum of it's assemble parts. In almost all cases if you had the time and space to part it out, selling piece by piece, you will make more than selling it as a going concern. This applies to old bangers, right through to new cars.

2. The reason #1 is irrelevant, is because it's not about the money. You don't own a mini because it's the cheapest/most cost effective transport available. You can buy a very low mileage, very fuel efficient, near new car for the price of a good condition mini.

3. So, you own a mini for reasons other than financial. Why then do we try to assess the viability of keeping it (or selling it) in financial terms? Either the reasons for having it are still valid (nostalgia, fun, hobby etc) or they are not. Investigate THOSE things.

This isn't intended to be "do this, not this" advice. It's just some stuff to think about. I'm going through this very thing myself. We have a stock 998 that makes a great 2nd car for town use, and has belts for the boy in the back. I also have a highly modified ex track car I use maybe once a month. It get crap mileage, it's too load, too hot, too noisy, will need body work sometime soon. Yet it's taken me YEARS to come to the realisation that the decision to sell it (if/when I do) should not be made for financial reasons (alone).

I sold a complied but unregistered Rover with 998 and air con, automatic, with fire damage to the interior (long story). The car ran and had all brakes and wheels and suspension and everything in OK order. Fire started in back seat and hit the roof and then was put out. Shell was good. Just the interior needed cleaning and/or replacing. Engine was OK as too were all the electricals other than the rear speaker wires.

Ended up selling it as is for $2,000 which I thought was an absolutely great deal for me.

The guy that bought it got it resprayed cheaply ($1,500) and took it to an interior guy who retrimmed the interior with system etc etc ($2,000). He then sold it as a project for $6,500 with no rego but complete, running, compliance papers etc etc. Sadly i have never seen it since.