Maintenance or Investment??

[ArcticOne]

Don't know if it is a new thing or perhaps I missed it in years gone by, but I notice a number of sellers referring to the investment that they have in their vehicle. Upon digging in to the "investment", much of the investment is what I would call maintenance / repair work that I always that was the cost of ownership, not an investment.

Brake work and a tune up are not investments - that's maintenance.

Anybody else seeing similar trends of late and what are your thoughts.

jb

Curmudgeon in Canada

[carrera turbo]

i agree brakes and tires shocks etc. are what it cost to own any vehicle.

investment items would be restored factory wheels, replacement or restored dash pad, a nice repaint to original color done right no 500.00 dolar special. a factory period correct carpet kit. yada yada.


but its nice to see this stuff has been done and the car was cared for.

ed

[73.5TinPA]

People using the term 'investment' in their 'car for sale' ads is decades old, not a new trend.
'Spent' would be a more accurate term to use.

Rare and collector cars that sell at famous auctions are exceptions, like that $4.5 million dollar Bugatti that sold recently.
Most production Porsches would be negative investments, with a certain amount of entertainment value as a reward.

[linklaw]

I think the only investment in that old Bugatti, before it went to auction, was maybe a wash and dry. I think a large part of the value of that car was its original, unmolested condition.

[ossiblue]

I agree with the misuse of the term "investment" and I also agree that I don't think it's a new thing.
Most cars depreciate and keeping them "factory fresh" is a lost expense and part of ownership and reliability, though some money will be recovered on resale as a higher price can be commanded.
When a car becomes "collectable," the equation changes but only slightly. Buying a car (say a longhood) three years ago and doing nothing to it, could net you a profit by just holding on to it--up to 6 month ago. If you spent some money, that profit could increase by an amount greater than the cost--that would be an investment. If you aren't careful, however, or are not interested in maximizing profit, you could easily spend money to improve the car and never make it back on the resale--that is what most enthrsiasts recognize.
These cars are not good investments in the economic sense, unless you have a very special and unique car.

[racer]

"investment" used to be a nice term.. Had a positive feel about it.. but with most folks "investments" tanking faster than they care to think about now, I'm sure "salesmen" will come up with a replacement term

[FenderGuy]

"Investment" is a term used by a Non-Porsche owner, cause they dont even know what they are talking about lol

[RacerX1166]

I ran into that quite a bit when I purchased my car. I had people tell me 'I've got $k in work on the car so it should be worth more than what you're offering'. My response was 'the car is worth what it is because you spent that kind of money on maintenance. I would be offering you considerably less money otherwise'.

For me, regarding air cooled Porsches, the only time that the parts/labor/service 'investment' has an impact on the car's value is when a recent major service/high dollar repair (i.e. clutch) was completed, verifying that, all else being equal, I know I won't have to 'invest' a ton of money in the car shortly after purchasing it.

[Cal44]

Investment...........ya like investing money with that bum Madoff. Its like stating "original miles". I was unaware that there is an non-original mile?