Over-investing in your zed?

[Vanne]

Hi, my insurance policy just came up for re-neuwal, and the guy on the other end of the phone told me i had over invested in my car....
*yup me pause for deathly silence for about 10 seconds...*

ive currently got about 30K +/- about 3K (more plus id recon) invested in my car, that included original purchase price, paintwork/refurb work and mod work. (most importantly, the car must be safe on the road)

The guy on the other end of the phone, told me that the max i could insure my car for was 27K...

So i had a little chuckle...

how many of us have over invested in the car? probably a lot of us as we are enthusiasts, and we strive for perfection.

on that note, i could easily throw another 20K at the car for mods and upgrades, and whatnot.. but i guess i gotta be realistic.

question for you guys, when is enough, enough?

[Finnegan]

Well, I never look at a car as an investment. There's really no ROI with some exceptions (collector car, like early Bugattis etc.).

Safe, enjoyable, maintenance done and car cared for--that's the minimum for me.

Beyond that it's budget vs. savings and real investments. If you're hitting other goals, then enough is what you're comfortable with.

And if you keep this car, upgrade a bit, even blow 20k, and it brings you joy, who cares? You could sell it and buy a 235 or new Cayman, but that's going to set you back way more than 20k. (Your agent would probably be just fine with those "investments" however.) And if the Zed is your thing--then it's worth it. I've had a lot of cars in the past 7 years. But I'm done with that. Keeping the Z4M and gradually upgrading her. Nothing else has the same soul or emotional attachment for me.

[DEG]

I totally agree with Finnegan. I bought my Z4M a year ago this past October. I never thought of it as an investment...bought it for the pure pleasure of driving and modifying it. I'm going to keep this car until I can't drive it anymore and eventually pass it down to my youngest son who is the gear head in the family. Will I spend too much over the years I have it? I don't really care...that's the beauty of owning a car you love.

[Vanne]

Hmm I agree to a certain point, but I don't have the luxury of having a shit load of cash that I don't care about how much I spend on the car. the car for me will always be an investment, in terms of money spent to fun had. Also added in the equation for me, is the fact that I would like to keep this car forever, however, in my home country we drive on the other side of the road, and even though a left to right conversion is not impossible, it would add in 10k to the cost. But who knows, depending on parts in oz when I go home (between now and probably 10 years or so) I will enjoy the shit out of my little coupe and still every time it turn the key I get a smile from ear to ear. So currently I am okay with over investing in my coupe, but make no mistake, over investing it it's, if/when we come to sell our little car, we will of course never get back what we put into it, and I am ok with that (not sure my missus is, but that's okay as she has her hobbies too

And then there is ofcourse the possibility of not returning home to Oz, but possibly retire in Europe.. Real estate is very cheap there atm.. And hey, they drive on the same side of the road.

[z4msteve]

I've always looked at my car as "just a car." Money I spend on it is practically burned (in the best way you can burn money, but still...) If you consider it an investment in the traditional sense, it begins to look like an awful waste.

Anyway, seems to me that "over-investing" is completely subjective, and dependent on what each enthusiast is comfortable with spending.

[DEG]

WHS!

[a_riddler]

If you ask my wife, I've "over invested"...

When I first purchased my car I put together a spreadsheet of my wish list, stack ranked based on need-vs-fun factor with cosmetic mods being last on the list. I worked down that list, sometimes spending thousands of dollars, but with a clear direction and understanding what I'm getting for my money. Could I get all that money back selling the car and mods? Nope. Do I care? Nope. Beating a Porsche at the track is priceless...

Too each their own, but a car is not an investment, it is an expense and you should purchase the car and budget for what you want out of it.

From an insurance point of view, getting your mods covered is always iffy. Best bet is to insure the replacement value of your car stock and pull all your mods off if it gets totaled. Can't really expect more than that.

[drbvac]

That's about all you can do unless they can find you another car the same

[Beedub]

i have massively over done it.... but i plan to keep it so i don't care, owned out from like 700 miles old and 6. years so know it inside out, and with their current value id rather keep it and just keep evolving it then sell it for what i deem to cheap, performance cars have become so expensive now days this is the only way i could Create super car performance, its been worth EVERY penny, don't regret it at all.... would i do it again??? HELL yes if i had the money, incredible fun getting her to where she is today.... with the highs and lows of course of the journey!!

[1SerieStud]

I agree with the prior posts. Seldom ever is a car an investment or an asset. They are liabilities and depreciating items. Most of us spend money on them because we enjoy them, not because we expect to get it in return

[Jumbosock]

I definitely never think of a car as an investment. I think of it as an expense the way someone else would think of a vacation to Tahiti. I rarely buy my cars brand new (and therefore avoid major depreciation) and usually keep my cars for a long time, so even though I put a lot of money into my cars, I don't think I spend as much money on cars as someone who buys a brand new car, or someone who buys a car every few years.

[RobMCoupe]

I treat it like a hobby. It is very enjoyable doing mods and working on the car.

[StickMon]

Cans: $1300
Midpipes: $600
Installation: Sore neck and 2 skinned knuckles
Sound of a blip-shift in a tunnel: Priceless

[RADRACR]

I suppose purchasing any depreciating item is "over investing".

I find it somewhat reassuring that a well taken care of Z4MC isn't going to drop much below $30K for a long time, after paying full price for mine. I've almost got her paid off. So I play it in my mind like I only paid $22K But yeah, those mods...

[RobMCoupe]

Originally Posted by StickMon

Cans: $1300
Midpipes: $600
Installation: Sore neck and 2 skinned knuckles
Sound of a blip-shift in a tunnel: Priceless

A sore back as well.

[msh441]

I'm emotionally over-invested in my car.

[Vanne]

Lol me too. I think my missus is a little jealous. : D

[Finnegan]

Originally Posted by msh441

I'm emotionally over-invested in my car.

I think that describes quite a few of us, including my wife.

[Huz-Z]

Originally Posted by msh441

I'm emotionally over-invested in my car.

I agree 110%. I resemble that remark LOL!

[angelr]

I only have about 25k total in my car. I got it at a steal and most of my mods cost me nothing. When I look around at what else I could get into for even twice that it's slim pickings, so I don't really feel over invested.

[Swashplate]

Originally Posted by msh441

I'm emotionally over-invested in my car.

Most of us are......shusssh I think she heard me......

[mfanatic325]

Always underinve$ted until you outrun some Ferraris or somethin' @ the track...

jk...maybe.