CCA September Sale: urning Dreams into Reality; is this Aston Martin your next project?

THE SEPTEMBER SALE

See the lot list Turning Dreams into Reality; is this Aston Martin your next project? Almost all of us have a dream of walking into some dusty, rubbish strewn barn and scrabbling around under the bales of straw and junk to reveal an unloved but restorable old classic that, with a bit of hard work, could make a fortune some sale day. It’s a dream that has come true for many – we read about such finds all the time. But so often it turns into a nightmare. Is your barn find buried treasure or a money pit? Does the lovely old boy taking your cash even own the car in the first place? Paperwork gets lost over time and it’s often hard to prove ownership. Despite the risk, the rewards can be truly immense. And with a bit of forethought and research, there are ways to mitigate the risk. 1973 Aston Martin AMV8 Estimate (£): 30,000 - 35,000  (all prices +buyer’s premium of 12% including VAT @ 20%) Buying a Barn find at auction might be less romantic, but it’s one way of avoiding the initial risks. The consignor will be an expert and will have authenticated the car and traced its true owner, so at least you know what you’re buying is genuine. You also get a fair appraisal of the car, and it’s then a relatively straight-forward task to budget for repairs and restoration.

An example is this 1973 Aston Martin AM V8 in our next sale. Not a true barn find, but what you might call a ‘garage find’, which is no bad thing. In this case, some of the recommissioning work has already been done before the project was abandoned by the current owner. And it has a partial history file including MoT and SORN records for the last 12 years, and a great registration plate. So many barn finds can’t be traced through DVLA, but at least with this car you can verify ownership which is perhaps the biggest risk with barn find projects. A car like this could provide a great return on investment depending on your skill level. In any event, if you love restoring cars, a barn or garage find project can be extremely rewarding in itself, regardless of financial considerations. 1973 Aston Martin V8 'barn find' Estimate (£): 30,000 - 35,000 SOLD (£): 64,350 (CCA March Sale 2016) To stand a good chance of success, there are just a few simple rules to follow:  1. First, do your homework. With a car like this Aston Martin, that’s less challenging than with some marques. Read everything you can about the car. 2. Second, check previous sale and auction prices for restored versions in past sales and do your best to get some indication of the likely sale price if that’s your goal. 3. Finally, after an honest appraisal of your restoration skills, or those available to you, and the cost of parts and materials, you can work out what the car is worth to you. Good luck and happy bidding! SUBMIT YOUR CAR EARLY If you'd like the chance to sell your car at the September Sale, contact our team of specialist consignors early to avoid disappointment! At CCA we accept quality cars ranging from pre-war classics to today's modern classics, including barn-finds and restoration projects, as well as low mileage, celebrity owned and rare examples.   Submit an entry Contact CCA UPCOMING AUCTIONS CCA September 2017 Classic Car Sale 23rd September 2017 Warwickshire Exhibition Centre  CCA December 2017 Classic Car Sale 2nd December 2017 Warwickshire Exhibition Centre