Sandman Values ?

[davegmh]

I would like to get some thoughts across a get your opinions. I havnt been on this site for too long but have noticed that when a sandman is talked about for sale here, some of the more senior members seem to talk them down price wise. Now please don't take this as criticism. It's just my observation. Do we want values to rise or fall? I would think the former. I purchased a van from this site for close to 50k and recently sold it in under a day for my asking price no questions asked. And before it had been paid for I had a bloke from Brisbane want to drive to Toowoomba immediately and pay more on the spot. Now, I have read many times here that no van is worth more than 30-35k. Are we our own worst enemys.?? If a sandman is obviously crap or dodgy fair enough. But when you see a sandman that has a lot of time and money spent on it and looks awesome then should it be talked up a little, not talked down price wise. The current thread on the HJ Sandman Ute has some saying it's not worth the asking price. Why not.? I looks like brand new. There is more buyers out there willing to pay good money for a GOOD Sandman than most on here think. Just my opinion. Cheers.

Ps. Last I heard the bloke from Brisbane was going to Parks to look at a red van.

[mook]

Depends if you are buying or selling or if you have or have not... Very subjective the second hand car market.

[seavan]

I agree with you here. Its an Australian icon that so many people want now that just is not being made anymore. I had this same conversation with people once about Mokes and they laughed at me saying the are not worth the money and will not go up much more in price. Well who is laughing now! It all comes down to supply and demand, if there is no supply and lots of demand, things can only go up and thats with everything. As our good real estate agent friends always say " God stopped making land but he keeps making people". The same applies for the good old Sandman Im afraid!!

[Valencia]

If you want a sandman to look factory full resto $45 to $50k is what you would spend done right
so is it worth buying one already done if you can get one cheaper

[HZSM50]

I have always said"my Sandman is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it". If that is what I want for it, then I will be happy if that time ever comes. People have told me I paid to much for it but I was happy to pay what he wanted. I love my girl and have been happy to spend what it has cost to restore, to the fact the second one will be started next year. If you want to pay 50+k then go for it. No one can tell you how much you will need to spend. I could have bought a Sandman fully restored for about the same price as my has cost, but the one I have I enjoy so much knowing I did it. Just my opinion!

[Vombil]

they are worth what someone is going to pay. willing buyer, willing seller. they draw criticism in terms of value as they are not a model ie like HQ monaro coupe and they are very hard to identify unless built in Brisbane.

I sold one recently needing resto for $25k. Hopefully the bloke joins the forums and shares his experiences. I didn't think it was worth what I got but knew if i waited and found the right buyer i'd get my money.

to me they are not worth much unless the body is great (to start with), they are windowless (factory) and the numbers line up. but that me. it's just my opinion. they are like assholes - everyone has one

[Frosty]

I agree completely with davegmh. Why talk them down over and over? I see Toranas go for very big money that were just options( think I'm in trouble now). And why does the 253 get such a massive rubbishing when it's still fun to drive and makes all the right noises? Many people come to this site because they think they are cool cars and might want one. Shame on you rubbishers. Why can't a Sandman be worth as much as other classic Holdens?

[wbute]

They have another 10 to 15 years and then they will drop in value rapidly. Look at EH Holdens dropping in value these days.
I can't see how restoration cost has any bearing on the value. Demand and supply are the only determining factors on value. It costs the same to restore a HX Kingswood sedan as a HX Sandman. The value of the car is not the same though.
If you are selling them for 50k plus that's great. It's great they are returning the restoration costs.

[Vombil]

check this, been on the market now for approx 3 months.bloke can't sell it. you'd spend $15,000 min on just the paint job but no one wants it at $18,500. i had a chat to the previous owner ( this was ex vicco about 18 months ago) who claims the body had very little rust to begin with. one small window fill-in on the passenger side rear. my mate checked it out but at the time it had mech gremlins

http://www.carsales.com.au/private/d.../?Cr=1&sdmvc=1

The HJ/HQ green windowless ex show 'sandman' with one piece tailgate advertised for sale in WA recently for $40,000 > FYI it sold for $24,000! the new owner plans to have it painted and has been quoted $10,000- $15,000 just to scuff and paint! no prep or body work required.

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They have another 10 to 15 years and then they will drop in value rapidly. Look at EH Holdens dropping in value these days.
I can't see how restoration cost has any bearing on the value. Demand and supply are the only determining factors on value. It costs the same to restore a HX Kingswood sedan as a HX Sandman. The value of the car is not the same though.
If you are selling them for 50k plus that's great. It's great they are returning the restoration costs.

here here. nicely said

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I agree completely with davegmh. Why talk them down over and over? I see Toranas go for very big money that were just options( think I'm in trouble now). And why does the 253 get such a massive rubbishing when it's still fun to drive and makes all the right noises? Many people come to this site because they think they are cool cars and might want one. Shame on you rubbishers. Why can't a Sandman be worth as much as other classic Holdens?

i dont like the rubbishing of 253's but it seems to be nation wide. so much so that i reckon some people would only pay 6cyl version equivalent money for a 253(obviously not in the case of a sandman). you try sell a 253 (thong clapper!). in the end i had to use it because no one wanted it... hear running for $500 complete. I had more interest in a 202!!!!!!!

[HK1837]

I think it is great some Sandmans are bringing well over $40k, but like all other cars I bet there is always a small sample of really good cars that sell for good money, the rest not so. My main criticism isn't the price of really good cars, it is the sh!tters needing full resto that people ask too much for. I will always remind people that $10-15k for a car needing full resto is silly when you can buy a tidy car with reasonable paint ready to drive for $25k. Time may prove me wrong and Sandmans keep going up, but I look back to $220000 HK GTS327's and $500000+ GTHO's. The same/similar cars can be had today for often less than half those figures. I remember a beautiful Monterey Green 308 HQ Kingswood XX7 ute at the auctions at the same time those big prices were being pulled, it sold for $14k. It would pull twice that today. So I reckon Sandmans have already had their big jump, they might stay there but in the end I really do believe only the premium cars will sustain the peak values or close to them. The good news is even at $50k it isn't a huge deal if your car drops in value by 50%, compared to a $600000 GTHO!

The bias against the smaller engines is across all cars, just look at the real selling prices of base engine HK-HZ GTS's (186S and 253) against the same condition 307/308/350ci cars. You can at least double the value between bottom to top (say 253 to 350 in HQ) or maybe 25-30% premium for 253-308. The biggest engined cars will always be those most sought after. On the positive side, 6cyl and 253 Sandmans shouldn't suffer as much as a 308 example for not having their original engine. My view is say a HJ Kingswood XX7 original 202 fully restored as a 308 would probably be worth possibly the same or more than if it was restored with its original 202 driveline. You see this in Monaros, modified original 6cyl HK's with V8 drivelines can pull $70k+ but as a 6cyl car as per original not many will see over $60k, if they do they are pretty special cars.