Why are the prices so different between the US and UK?

cityconstable

cityconstable

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Maybe it's me, but i have yet to see a picture of a z that doesn't look gorgeous. Also I dont understand the price disparities between the US and the UK. 2900 gbp approx 3500 usd seems pretty cheap here. Even needing work. A 3k usd car here is a rust bucket. A decent z of any year starts at 8-10 k usd. I paid 8k usd for my 97 and it needs work. Slowly getting there but with 31k miles on the clock, I thought it was a worthwhile investment.

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Delk

Delk

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Being an American now living in the Uk I can say its one of the things that suprised me. Used cars are substantially less expensive here. Insurace costs seam silly cheap compaired to what I used to pay in the States.
 
John_B

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Now factor in your fuel bill over a few years and I reckon you'll be ahead!

$3.22 per US gal in the US (source)
£1.37 per litre in the UK (source)

<<wizzy calculations>>

Equivalent to $6.42 per US gal in the UK

Obviously it will depend on how long you kept it, how frequently you drove it, how fuel prices & exchange rates move, but right now every $1,000 difference in purchase price would be offset in about 4,600 miles of driving
 
Duncodin

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John_B said:
Now factor in your fuel bill over a few years and I reckon you'll be ahead!

$3.22 per US gal in the US (source)
£1.37 per litre in the UK (source)

<<wizzy calculations>>

Equivalent to $6.42 per US gal in the UK

Obviously it will depend on how long you kept it, how frequently you drove it, how fuel prices & exchange rates move, but right now every $1,000 difference in purchase price would be offset in about 4,600 miles of driving
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US gallons are smaller than uk gallons. A uk gallon is around 4.5 liters. A US gallon is 3.78 liters.
 
bronty

bronty

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Our big city are run by car hating communists who charge up to £17 a day to drive through the city
That has had an effect on the used car prices
 
P

Pond

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cityconstable said:
Maybe it's me, but i have yet to see a picture of a z that doesn't look gorgeous. Also I dont understand the price disparities between the US and the UK. 2900 gbp approx 3500 usd seems pretty cheap here. Even needing work. A 3k usd car here is a rust bucket. A decent z of any year starts at 8-10 k usd. I paid 8k usd for my 97 and it needs work. Slowly getting there but with 31k miles on the clock, I thought it was a worthwhile investment.
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I don't know what average wages are in the US, but they may be higher than here.
Exchange rates can make UK cars seem cheaper aswell.

And, as said above, the cost of petrol (gas) in the US makes up for a lot. Our fuel costs have always been SIGNIFICANTLY higher than in the 'good ole US of A'.
 
cityconstable

cityconstable

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Dxbolton said:
Uk steering wheels are on the wrong side, so prices are cheaper. Can’t even sell into Europe as they are lhd too
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I would love a right hand drive z!. I actually thought about shipping one over but am too old now. It might take longer than I have.... grin
 
S

SV8Predator

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Here in the UK:
Ford Mustang 5.0 GT: from £57,725

In the USA:
Ford Mustang 5.0 GT: from $45,460.

At today's exchange rate, $45,460 is £36,596.
 
cityconstable

cityconstable

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I wonder how many z's i could buy before affecting the market. They have to be 25 years old, costs an extra 1500usd to ship and i still think I could double my money just on the novelty of right hand drive. Partners anyone? Grin
 
cityconstable

cityconstable

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bronty said:
Our big city are run by car hating communists who charge up to £17 a day to drive through the city
That has had an effect on the used car prices
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So you guys are to blame! New York city just implemented a congestion charge of $9 per day, every day if caught driving through the city. I don't get it, they're the ones that print the damn money. Why do they have to take more of it from us? Dyslexics of the world UNTIE!
 
G

Guinn

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cityconstable said:
Maybe it's me, but i have yet to see a picture of a z that doesn't look gorgeous. Also I dont understand the price disparities between the US and the UK. 2900 gbp approx 3500 usd seems pretty cheap here. Even needing work. A 3k usd car here is a rust bucket. A decent z of any year starts at 8-10 k usd. I paid 8k usd for my 97 and it needs work. Slowly getting there but with 31k miles on the clock, I thought it was a worthwhile investment.

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I don't know...I bought a '97 3 yrs ago and paid $3000. I had looked at a lot of them and $3-4k was pretty common. I chose mine because it was a 5 speed and wasn't silver.
 
cityconstable

cityconstable

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Looks good, what's the mileage and how good was the interior? Everything work? Top? Just curious. Google is always following me around advertising z3's, most are 10k+ 5-7k tend to have 100, 110+ k miles, lower prices always need a top, paint missing panels etc. Don't get me wrong, 3k for a decent runner is a bargain even if seats are cracked, oil leaks or whatnot. Zs are fairly easy to work on, parts are more than reasonable, insurance is cheap and they look mahhhhvolus. But I would love to take a couple of weeks holiday, drive Britain's back roads and find a right hand drive to ship back. I think (but could be wrong) Brits take better care of em.
ocean~2.jpg
 
G

Guinn

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cityconstable said:
Looks good, what's the mileage and how good was the interior? Everything work? Top? Just curious. Google is always following me around advertising z3's, most are 10k+ 5-7k tend to have 100, 110+ k miles, lower prices always need a top, paint missing panels etc. Don't get me wrong, 3k for a decent runner is a bargain even if seats are cracked, oil leaks or whatnot. Zs are fairly easy to work on, parts are more than reasonable, insurance is cheap and they look mahhhhvolus. But I would love to take a couple of weeks holiday, drive Britain's back roads and find a right hand drive to ship back. I think (but could be wrong) Brits take better care of em.
View attachment 327555
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cityconstable said:
Looks good, what's the mileage and how good was the interior? Everything work? Top? Just curious. Google is always following me around advertising z3's, most are 10k+ 5-7k tend to have 100, 110+ k miles, lower prices always need a top, paint missing panels etc. Don't get me wrong, 3k for a decent runner is a bargain even if seats are cracked, oil leaks or whatnot. Zs are fairly easy to work on, parts are more than reasonable, insurance is cheap and they look mahhhhvolus. But I would love to take a couple of weeks holiday, drive Britain's back roads and find a right hand drive to ship back. I think (but could be wrong) Brits take better care of em.
View attachment 327555
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150k mileage. There were some cosmetic repairs needed, nothing serious. Upholstery was good, and it had a new top. The big issue was the driver side window mechanism. I had it repaired and it's fine. Passenger seat was all the way forward, and the wires were cut to the motor, but I spliced the power and ground wires to a battery charger and got it to move all the way back and decided to leave it there. The engine is strong, compression is great, and it doesn't burn oil, and no leaks. Last year the slave cylinder went out, and my grandson and I replaced it. AC and heat are excellent. My insurance isn't too bad for 2 cars, one with full coverage. I feel like the car was a steal at $3k, hahaha!
 
Duncodin

Duncodin

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cityconstable said:
I wonder how many z's i could buy before affecting the market. They have to be 25 years old, costs an extra 1500usd to ship and i still think I could double my money just on the novelty of right hand drive. Partners anyone? Grin
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Why would an RHD zed be a novelty in the USA? I can understand a british car, say a triumph TR or a Morgan.

But a german car? In Germany they drive on the same side as the USA - well, they're supposed to. I remember very often over the radio they'd interrupt the music to issue a warning of a "Geisterfahrer" coming the wrong way up the Autobahn - either drunk or old and got confused by the off/on ramps and ended up going the wrong way - happened very often for some reason.
 
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