Question prior to selling

[captainjman]

I hurt my spine November 2010, many of you have been talking to me about it for a while now. But the fact is that the spine surgery did not help and it hurts so much to get in/out of the car that I just don't drive my X that much anymore. I could really use my equity in the car to buy something more handicap accessible for the times I do drive... which isn't very often anyway. I try to walk a little bit so my muscles don't atrophe but I am in bed almost all the time in 8/10 or higher pain.

Now that I am done with my pity party, on to my question. Pricing. I want to know what a fair price is for my car. She's in great working condition, one of the best X's I have ever seen. Very clean, inside and out. absolutely like new. Never had forced induction, only a couple really simple modifications. All the service is up to date and the car (other than a little dirty from my drive today) the car is in showroom condition. I put on High intensity bulbs and ballast into the flip ups...She's got about 45,000 miles on her, 1997, Yellow on Black Targa (3.2L) with a clean history. The only mods on her are better brake pads (hawk HP+), and Advan Model 5's with YOKOHAMA ADVAN NEOVA AD08's, practically new - maybe 200 miles of regular driving on them.

I also have the very best Iphone mount, hard wired into the stereo with that USA spec pa11 honda whatchamacallit. The mount is really neat because its angled in such a way that you have a really good view of the phone, plus accessibility, and looks really nice with the pro-clip mount (suede finish)

I've seen pricing as high as 49,500 and as low as 41,000 - thats a pretty big difference. So based on all of your experiences, and all your research - if I decide to sell it and not keep it in case I feel better some day - what would you sell it for if you were in my shoes?

And my second question is how likely do you think it would be for me to find another really clean, mint NSX again in a few years if I get better?

Not looking for people to convince me to keep her, I know I will miss seeing her in the garage.. but with my pain - I just can't enjoy it right now. I just want to hear from a few of you what you would sell it at if you were in my shoes.

 

[Nefarious]

I was just officially listed (concerning the state and getting my placard) as physically disabled this week by my pain management doctor for spine issues and I'm considering purchasing an NSX. I drive a Jeep Wrangler now and getting up into it is very hard, so getting down into an NSX I think would be a bit easier for me. I'm sorry to hear about you problems and can respect you wanting to let someone else that can enjoy your baby do so. Based on your description, I would price at $49k and take no less than $45k unless you are hard pressed to sell it. Best of luck!

 

[rbilder]

Sorry to hear about your back injury. Those have to be about the worse. My dad has had back pain most of his life that I can remember. It has been almost unbearable for him.

He had surgery a couple years back which didn't help much, but had another one at the end of March & is doing much better now.

Our son-in-law injured his back while doing some military exercises while he was in the Marines. He had back surgery in January. His pain is much better. So I've seen how back issues affect people.

Anyway your question was to sell or not? And if so, what to ask?

If there is something you can use the money for now, it may be best to sell it. I'm sure there will be nice low mile NSX's out there... of course 97's on up are pretty rare.

I would say the previous post is in the ball park from what I've seen recently. I would probably start in the $49k range and leave room for a buyer to hagle down from there.

I would think $41k would be too low for one as nice as yours. It depends how fast you would want to sell it. But it sounds like you aren't pressed to sell.

May your back continue to be healed.

- Rod

PS. I fell stepping off a ladder onto a roof Nov. 09. I refer to it as the fall of 09. I made a very quick trip to the concrete below. I found out I don't bounce. No back or head injury. But I did dislocate and break my right shoulder and 4 ribs on my right side. As well as a bruised lung, contusions on my kidney. Thank God I wasn't hurt worse. I've healed up well.




.

 

[captainjman]

I was just officially listed (concerning the state and getting my placard) as physically disabled this week by my pain management doctor for spine issues and I'm considering purchasing an NSX. I drive a Jeep Wrangler now and getting up into it is very hard, so getting down into an NSX I think would be a bit easier for me. I'm sorry to hear about you problems and can respect you wanting to let someone else that can enjoy your baby do so. Based on your description, I would price at $49k and take no less than $45k unless you are hard pressed to sell it. Best of luck!

I would never disuade someone from buying an NSX, thats for sure. I love my car, and in some ways it defines me as a person because it stands for something. It tells the world that you care about quality, and less about vulgar power but refined beauty. To be honest, I have thought about adding a super or turbo charger but didn't want to change the feel of the car. The car looks a lot faster and in some ways feels a lot faster than it is. Which is fine. If I can drive 10mph and feel like I am doing 80 it would be fine with me.

For me, getting in the car with the roof off is pretty easy. With the roof on its really really hard. But getting out, roof on or off is absolute murder. Everyone has a different injury so for you it may be different. I have a chevy avalanche and have moderate-severe pain getting up into it. But if I have severe-extreme pain getting out of the NSX.

Which is why I don't drive it. I try not to take pain meds, but that just makes me absolutely miserable. At some point you give in and take them. I refused even norco 7.5's when I had my kidney stone - but this is so far beyond... its not even controllable with 140mg of oxycodone. Which means I don't drive very much. I don't feel intoxicated, I don't feel high, or get a buzz, but I assume despite the fact my self administered intoxication tests do not reflect the effects of the medication I would have in the real world. So I try to only drive when I am in severe pain, just to enjoy the car. And thats just no fun.

I started letting my friends drive me around. But all I wanted to do was swap seats and downshift around turns. So its a little bit like a nemesis. Just sitting there - staring back at me saying "you wanted me your whole life, and now here I am".

I hope the nerves heal - but I don't even own a normal car. My wife drives the Chevy and I drive the X. So when she leaves my only option is a supercar. I really could use a normal everyday car but cant afford that plus what we have.

So thats my story, not hurting for money, but don't want to drag on forever. Just need to find a guy who values perfection and I gotta sell it. When I guy my next one I will probably miss her a lot - but I think its the right thing to do. Thanks for your reply.

 

[captainjman]

Sorry to hear about your back injury. Those have to be about the worse. My dad has had back pain most of his life that I can remember. It has been almost unbearable for him.

He had surgery a couple years back which didn't help much, but had another one at the end of March & is doing much better now.

Our son-in-law injured his back while doing some military exercises while he was in the Marines. He had back surgery in January. His pain is much better. So I've seen how back issues affect people.

Anyway your question was to sell or not? And if so, what to ask?

If there is something you can use the money for now, it may be best to sell it. I'm sure there will be nice low mile NSX's out there... of course 97's on up are pretty rare.

I would say the previous post is in the ball park from what I've seen recently. I would probably start in the $49k range and leave room for a buyer to hagle down from there.

I would think $41k would be too low for one as nice as yours. It depends how fast you would want to sell it. But it sounds like you aren't pressed to sell.

May your back continue to be healed.

- Rod

PS. I fell stepping off a ladder onto a roof Nov. 09. I refer to it as the fall of 09. I made a very quick trip to the concrete below. I found out I don't bounce. No back or head injury. But I did dislocate and break my right shoulder and 4 ribs on my right side. As well as a bruised lung, contusions on my kidney. Thank God I wasn't hurt worse. I've healed up well.




.

Sorry you had the fall of 09, sounds like it hurt pretty bad!

My fall was less epic, but messed me up real real bad. Sometimes you just fall wrong and poof - you go from top of the world to nonstop pain. You don't realize how good "normal" feels until you cant feel normal anymore.

I hate selling her - but I guess I have to. I can always buy another. If I keep the majority of the money I can buy one again later with a bigger down payment - so not a complete waste I guess.

Thanks for your response

 

[PHOEN$X]

I am sorry to hear of your back issues as well.

Given the description of your NSX, I would peg its fair market value at around $45k, possibly $46k if you can find a buyer who like the Advan wheels. If not, you may be better off selling the wheels separately and putting the stocks (if you have them) back on the car. If the OEMs are in worn condition, get them powder coated and then put them on the car. You should be able fetch $45k if you're willing to be a little patient. If I was near Chicago, I'd come look at your car and try to find a way to get a third NSX so that you can buy it back once your back heals.

 

[captainjman]

I am sorry to hear of your back issues as well.

Given the description of your NSX, I would peg its fair market value at around $45k, possibly $46k if you can find a buyer who like the Advan wheels. If not, you may be better off selling the wheels separately and putting the stocks (if you have them) back on the car. If the OEMs are in worn condition, get them powder coated and then put them on the car. You should be able fetch $45k if you're willing to be a little patient. If I was near Chicago, I'd come look at your car and try to find a way to get a third NSX so that you can buy it back once your back heals.

I am in no hurry to sell - thank god - fire sales have been horrible to the sellers in the past (that I have seen at least)

If I could sell it to someone like you who would be willing to sell it back later - I would be in heaven. That way - we can get me a car I can use, which although not URGENT definitely a plus - and if I got better I wouldn't spend the rest of my life trying to hunt down the same quality car. If you find yourself in the area definitely look me up. 847-344-9010 Jason

 

[PHOEN$X]

I am in no hurry to sell - thank god - fire sales have been horrible to the sellers in the past (that I have seen at least)

If I could sell it to someone like you who would be willing to sell it back later - I would be in heaven. That way - we can get me a car I can use, which although not URGENT definitely a plus - and if I got better I wouldn't spend the rest of my life trying to hunt down the same quality car. If you find yourself in the area definitely look me up.

I'm glad to hear that you're not in a rush to sell. Based on my recent shopping experience, I do believe that clean, mint NSXs are getting more difficult to find for a reasonable price. The ones I've seen for sale by dealerships are ridiculously overpriced, and privately owned ones seem to get snatched up very quickly (and often for more than what I would have expected). I do not anticipate this trend to improve as the number of NSXs in existence continue to decrease, and demand appears to remain strong for various reasons (new NSX hype, buyers discovering the value of NSXs, etc.).

Have you considered refinancing your NSX to purchase a more practical daily driver? I did that with my 99NSX to buy my 97, and Pentagon Federal Credit Union offers a great rate (currently 1.99%) and term (up to 60 months). I would recommend going that route if you can.

Thanks for your contact info. I will definitely look you up the next time I am in Chicago.