Why is that traders who trade in vintage car parts ie tyres etc jump on the bandwagon
and try their very hardest to rip off price wise any member of the public wishing to buy
there product.do they not realise or care come to that.for a majority of us its just an hobby.
im now on my 3rd resto.done a spitfire.then a moggy.and now a pop 103e.its never been about
profit for me.its more about putting a classic back on the road.its a shame that pure greed has
took over and the fact that they know we need the goods theyve got.but dont it just piss you off.??
tyres
Re: tyres
What bandwagon?
What rip-off?
If you're talking about general reproduced classic car parts, I'd say that the majority of them are super-cheap, in fact so much so that the quality is awful. I'd have happily paid two or three times the price for some parts I've bought over recent years so long as the quality had been good - the parts I got were barely fit for purpose (and in some cases absolutely not) so they wouldn't be good value at any price.
If you're talking specifically about tyres, what's the beef? Production runs for tyres for many classic and vintage cars are tiny compared to the hundreds of thousands produced in each continuous run for modern cars, so the costs go up enormously. It's not the trader's fault - it's a fact of life.
Unless you really have been ripped off - but you need to provide some detailed evidence, methinks.
What rip-off?
If you're talking about general reproduced classic car parts, I'd say that the majority of them are super-cheap, in fact so much so that the quality is awful. I'd have happily paid two or three times the price for some parts I've bought over recent years so long as the quality had been good - the parts I got were barely fit for purpose (and in some cases absolutely not) so they wouldn't be good value at any price.
If you're talking specifically about tyres, what's the beef? Production runs for tyres for many classic and vintage cars are tiny compared to the hundreds of thousands produced in each continuous run for modern cars, so the costs go up enormously. It's not the trader's fault - it's a fact of life.
Unless you really have been ripped off - but you need to provide some detailed evidence, methinks.
Some people are like Slinkies - they serve no useful purpose, but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them downstairs.
Re: tyres
^ WHS ^
I own a car that is very difficult to source parts for but never feel I pay over the odds when I do find them.
True there are chancer's out there ( and good luck to them) who put an item for sale at ridiculously inflated prices, e-bay is a prime example, but if an individual is prepared to pay it without shopping around then so be it.
I own a car that is very difficult to source parts for but never feel I pay over the odds when I do find them.
True there are chancer's out there ( and good luck to them) who put an item for sale at ridiculously inflated prices, e-bay is a prime example, but if an individual is prepared to pay it without shopping around then so be it.
Never play chess with a pigeon. It will knock all the pieces over, S*#t on the board and then strut around pretending it won.
Re: tyres
As above for me also,
When I had a Morris Minor wheel cylinders were about £10 each. Before that I had an Austin A50, wheel cylinders were £35 each. For the Riley RME they are around £65 upwards with some occasionally appearing on Ebay for around £35.
So, I could replace all the wheel cylinders on a moggie for the price of doing 1 front drum on an A50 and 1/2 a front drum on the Riley.
Am I being ripped off, well it feels a bit that way when I have to buy them, but in truth the maths is pretty simple. The demand for wheel cylinders for a Morris Minor far outstrips the demand for the type used on an A50 and even more so on a Riley RME, which is reflected in the production cost and so in the retail cost.
In general I find the cost of parts very reasonable, if we are talking tyres, the same applies, though if you consider £65 a tyre for a Vectra, against around £120 for an obscure 16" Avon Tourist crossply I'd say the Avon is probably better value in real terms than the mass produced budget vectra tyre.
If I had one gripe, it would be when suppliers offer free UK shipping above a certain order value, but charge me the full (or more) price of postage just because I'm in the Highlands. I can understand it costs them more to send to me, but why the full cost, it isn't free for them to send to anyone, so it should only be for the amount over the cost of posting elsewhere.
When I had a Morris Minor wheel cylinders were about £10 each. Before that I had an Austin A50, wheel cylinders were £35 each. For the Riley RME they are around £65 upwards with some occasionally appearing on Ebay for around £35.
So, I could replace all the wheel cylinders on a moggie for the price of doing 1 front drum on an A50 and 1/2 a front drum on the Riley.
Am I being ripped off, well it feels a bit that way when I have to buy them, but in truth the maths is pretty simple. The demand for wheel cylinders for a Morris Minor far outstrips the demand for the type used on an A50 and even more so on a Riley RME, which is reflected in the production cost and so in the retail cost.
In general I find the cost of parts very reasonable, if we are talking tyres, the same applies, though if you consider £65 a tyre for a Vectra, against around £120 for an obscure 16" Avon Tourist crossply I'd say the Avon is probably better value in real terms than the mass produced budget vectra tyre.
If I had one gripe, it would be when suppliers offer free UK shipping above a certain order value, but charge me the full (or more) price of postage just because I'm in the Highlands. I can understand it costs them more to send to me, but why the full cost, it isn't free for them to send to anyone, so it should only be for the amount over the cost of posting elsewhere.
Re: tyres
everybody seems to be on just about tyres.when i only used tyres as an example.what i was trying to get across was general things say for instance
i was browsing ebay.a cortina dizzy cap..£5...a ford pop 103e dizzy cap £36.im not saying everybody is ripping everybody off.but there are some out there who are taking advantage of the classic car scene.obviously some of you out there will not agree with me.if that is the case.fair comment.obviously you have never paid above what you feel it was worth..
i was browsing ebay.a cortina dizzy cap..£5...a ford pop 103e dizzy cap £36.im not saying everybody is ripping everybody off.but there are some out there who are taking advantage of the classic car scene.obviously some of you out there will not agree with me.if that is the case.fair comment.obviously you have never paid above what you feel it was worth..
Re: tyres
Is this the same distributor cap on each model, or is the Cortina one different from the 103E one. If different then you can't really make a comparison, as the above arguments still stand ( I believe I used wheel brake cylinders as my main example 
). If the same part then you simply vote with your wallet.
Thats why it pays to shop around regardless, a quick Google shows you'll probably get one for a shade under £20 including VAT off Small Ford Spares or The Green Spark plug Company. Though I don't know how much P&P will be.
Hope these links help
http://www.smallfordspares.co.uk/produc ... ibutor-cap
http://www.gsparkplug.com/shop/ford-ye112-116b.html
and lets not forget the value of a club spares department, some cars couldn't even see the road anymore without their work in organising production of obscure items. So joining the club may be worth looking into as well.
Now there really is no one much more stingier than I, but I have come to accept that demand equals how high a volume a production run is likely to be, which has a large effect on the price of a part.
Of course there are chancers out there, but in the days of the interweb its never been easier to shop about and avoid them.
). If the same part then you simply vote with your wallet.Thats why it pays to shop around regardless, a quick Google shows you'll probably get one for a shade under £20 including VAT off Small Ford Spares or The Green Spark plug Company. Though I don't know how much P&P will be.
Hope these links help
http://www.smallfordspares.co.uk/produc ... ibutor-cap
http://www.gsparkplug.com/shop/ford-ye112-116b.html
and lets not forget the value of a club spares department, some cars couldn't even see the road anymore without their work in organising production of obscure items. So joining the club may be worth looking into as well.
Now there really is no one much more stingier than I, but I have come to accept that demand equals how high a volume a production run is likely to be, which has a large effect on the price of a part.
Of course there are chancers out there, but in the days of the interweb its never been easier to shop about and avoid them.
Re: tyres
Rob, how many other cars use the same dizzy cap as a 103e? If the answer is very few (and I suspect it is) then there's your answer - very low demand, therefore the suppleirs either have to pay for a very small manufacturing production run, or they have to bear the costs of carrying a large stock for many years. In either case, the cost is going to be far more, and in that case I'd say £36 is a bargain, compared to the cost of a dizzy cap for a popular modern car, the production run for which would run into tens of thousands.
I still don't understand what your beef is about - this is basic manufacturing economics, not a rip off.
I still don't understand what your beef is about - this is basic manufacturing economics, not a rip off.
Some people are like Slinkies - they serve no useful purpose, but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them downstairs.
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tractorman
- Posts: 1399
- Joined: Mon Feb 21, 2011 11:22 am
- Location: Wigton, Cumbria
Re: tyres
I have to agree with Luxo and arceye here, the problem is how many 103s (or similar engined vehicles) are still working compared to something that uses more common parts?
The 100E used the Lucas 24D distributor, common to many 4-pot cars of the era and, with different plug leads, you could use a 70's Mini (or whatever) distributor cap on the 100E. IIRC, the 105E, early Cortinas and other earlier Fords had the same cap, so there is a lot more demand for the 24D cap than something, without being unkind, relatively obscure.
The situation is worse with some tractors - the productions runs were often quite short and not so many tractors were produced. Getting something like a correct sidelight for my larger tractor is impossible, so eBay sellers like to charge anything up to £100 each - and people will actually pay that!! I worked for a David Brown agency in the mid 70s - we were making a good profit when we sold them for £15.00 (DB retail price) and buying from a distributor instead of the official DB parts department! However, you can just about build a Massey Ferguson 35 (originally built in the late 50s - early 60s) from scratch - they still make a near-identical tractor in India - and parts are much more sensibly priced!
Of course, eBay does bring out the chancers as well as the suckers: people will pay daft prices for silly things just because the packet says "Land Rover". I kid you not when I say I saw a USED David Brown oil filter sell for around £10.00! It didn't even say "David Brown" on the filter - only on the oily box - DB just put the filters in DB boxes, they didn't even change any maker's markings on the filter. There's a MF 35 & 65 tractor brochure on eBay at the moment - opening bid is £90-odd. There are quite a few of these brochures floating around, so £20 would probably be more than enough to buy one at a show.
The 100E used the Lucas 24D distributor, common to many 4-pot cars of the era and, with different plug leads, you could use a 70's Mini (or whatever) distributor cap on the 100E. IIRC, the 105E, early Cortinas and other earlier Fords had the same cap, so there is a lot more demand for the 24D cap than something, without being unkind, relatively obscure.
The situation is worse with some tractors - the productions runs were often quite short and not so many tractors were produced. Getting something like a correct sidelight for my larger tractor is impossible, so eBay sellers like to charge anything up to £100 each - and people will actually pay that!! I worked for a David Brown agency in the mid 70s - we were making a good profit when we sold them for £15.00 (DB retail price) and buying from a distributor instead of the official DB parts department! However, you can just about build a Massey Ferguson 35 (originally built in the late 50s - early 60s) from scratch - they still make a near-identical tractor in India - and parts are much more sensibly priced!
Of course, eBay does bring out the chancers as well as the suckers: people will pay daft prices for silly things just because the packet says "Land Rover". I kid you not when I say I saw a USED David Brown oil filter sell for around £10.00! It didn't even say "David Brown" on the filter - only on the oily box - DB just put the filters in DB boxes, they didn't even change any maker's markings on the filter. There's a MF 35 & 65 tractor brochure on eBay at the moment - opening bid is £90-odd. There are quite a few of these brochures floating around, so £20 would probably be more than enough to buy one at a show.
Re: tyres
Good example today, went into local parts place to get an oil filter element for my Minx, it's still relatively generically used so was able to get one of the shelf £2.78 . On the bay for £14 inc post for the exact same item 
Never play chess with a pigeon. It will knock all the pieces over, S*#t on the board and then strut around pretending it won.