General Croma in the Auto Express Top Five...

[Doofer]

... of the biggest UK car sales flops

From the 15th September issue. The list is (in no particular order):

Peugeot 1007 (2005-08) 8000 sold
Fiat Croma (2005-07) 1386 sold
Mercedes Vaneo (2002-05) 2780 sold
Smart ForFour (2005-06) 9332 sold
SEAT Altea Freetrack 4 (2007-09) 584 sold

So only the Seat has lower sales, but that isn't really a model - just an off-road style version of the Altea. So I'd say the Croma is the champion flop from this list.

 

[s130]

That many. I'm surprised ...... where are they all now?

 

[Caravadossi]

Presumably we're sitting-in a potential future classic (?) - & at some future date prices will start to rise back towards the £20K+ starting level.

I note another went on eBay earlier this week - 2006 1.9/16v Eleganza (LK55 LFD B'ham) ... £2,650 !

Does AutoExpress give a ref source for the 1,386?

.

 

[Doofer]

Presumably we're sitting-in a potential future classic (?) - & at some future date prices will start to rise back towards the £20K+ starting level.

I note another went on eBay earlier this week - 2006 1.9/16v Eleganza (LK55 LFD B'ham) ... £2,650 !

Does AutoExpress give a ref source for the 1,386?

.

No references given, but it sounds very precise. The rounded figure for the Peugeot sounds a bit estimated.

It may well be a future classic, but that ebay price sounds shocking. Does that have >100k miles though? I did see a lot of high-mileage ones about when I bought mine.

 

[Gordon28]

We all now the Croma is not a flop, it was Fiat marketing at that time was a flop. They never gave it press coverage, only the Grande Punto and the Panda seem to be on the box. No wonder the public have blank faces when you mention Croma and Bravo.

 

[bobbyblue]

To be honest, I'm glad, I think these cars are a steal for the money, o.k. they have their issues, but when they are running alright I don't think there is a better car for the money unless you want to pay the same for a Lexus or Merc that has been round the clock twice. I will keep mine for a couple of years yet so it will owe me nothing when it comes to replacing it.

Bob

 

[Caravadossi]

... It may well be a future classic, but that ebay price sounds shocking. Does that have >100k miles though? I did see a lot of high-mileage ones about when I bought mine.

91K miles
eBay: 330473893026
LK55 LFD 1.9/16v 150hp Eleganza

I confess - low residual values have been a major factor in my FIAT era. I've been very happy in the past to pick-up one year old FIAT Punto's at almost half their new value - with insignificant problems outside of routine maint.

The Croma has been a departure from that policy - & maybe I should rename `Monica' to `Revenge'

Monica: 55 Prestigio 1.9/16v 150hp (55K mls)

 

[Doofer]

The Croma has been a departure from that policy - & maybe I should rename `Monica' to `Revenge'

Monica: 55 Prestigio 1.9/16v 150hp (55K mls)

Do you mean you bought your Croma new? Mine was previously privately owned from new. The new price was a smidge under £20k, I bought it at 2.5 years old, from a dealer, for £6k. Ouch for them.

 

[Caravadossi]

I’d never consider a new motor. In recent years I’ve had a (Dec)56 GP (12.8k mls) for £4.4K in 2008, & a 54 Punto 2B (11.3k mls) for £4.4K in 2005 – although plus some minor TFCs (e.g. road tax).

Many snows back, for pocket money, I’d deliver new Vauxhalls. Now you’d imagine a new keeper to be pleased to receive a new motor every year. Not so, as they’d point-out – “It takes a year to sort-out all the problems, & then we start all-over with a new car with a new set of problems.”

The “departure” for me was not sticking to buying nearly new – but buying older. My (Dec)55 Prestigio 1.9/16v 150hp (39k mls) was £5.8K last year (2009). Not sure on price new, as I think the £20K doesn’t include leather & skydome etc.

http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/road-tests/fiat/fiat-croma-150-multijet?section=prices

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring...rford/4985238/The-cars-that-nobody-wants.html

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[Radlet6]

:idea: Hey, if they get any cheaper I will be able to buy another one just to keep for spares.

I've just had a look. There's a 2006 at £2,500 which has been to the moon and back (and it looks just like the shuttle after re-entry too); and that is also the starting bid for an auction, not the classified price. Looking at all the others, prices now seem to be stabilising between the £4k to £5k mark. The only real 'bargain' is a 2006 2.2 petrol auto with 38K on the clock for £3,500.

Like I said a while back, they can't fall much further.

 

[Caravadossi]

Quotable quotes:

... they can't fall much further.

LK55 LFD
Interestingly LK55 LFD auctioned by wesellanymotors (eBay: 330473893026) for £2,650 looks remarkably similar to LK55 LFD offered for sale by the Birmingham Car Co (eBay: 260643843447) at £3,694 – particularly given that `both’ sellers were selling the car(s) simultaneously over Fri-Sat 17-18Sep.

.

 

[Doofer]

Quotable quotes:



LK55 LFD
Interestingly LK55 LFD auctioned by wesellanymotors (eBay: 330473893026) for £2,650 looks remarkably similar to LK55 LFD offered for sale by the Birmingham Car Co (eBay: 260643843447) at £3,694 – particularly given that `both’ sellers were selling the car(s) simultaneously over Fri-Sat 17-18Sep.

.

They probably bought it off themselves under another ebay account after seeing how low it was about to sell for. If the seller reports to ebay that the buyer didn't complete then ebay won't charge selling fees.

That's a very smart car though. Regarding other asking prices, they are asking prices not selling prices. Almost nobody wants to buy them.

We may need a second car in future. I can't think of any other car offering the same value as a used car, so we may end up with a mini-fleet of Cromas.

 

[Caravadossi]

They probably bought it off themselves ...

LK55 LFD is the only sale from some half-dozen listed on eBay over the last 13 days (15 – 27 Sep 2010).

Listed as 260643843447 @ £3,694 it did not sell – just timed-out, at 13:40 Sat 18 Sep. At 17:01 Fri 17 Sep it was already `relisted’ as 330473893026 – & by 10:44 Sat 18 Sep, bids were running at £2K+ (& eventually selling at £2,650).

Presumably the half-dozen players chasing this car were expecting to win it within the envelope of £2,000 to £2,650.

There are currently (Tue 28 Sep 2010) some 18 Croma’s on eBay - & some 36 on Auto Trader (inc. LK55 LFD @ £3,150). The price levels make interesting reading.

Edited... & another sobering thought - the prices given for LK55 LFD are dealer prices.

.

 

[Radlet6]

:idea: Hey, if they get any cheaper I will be able to buy another one just to keep for spares.

I've just had a look. There's a 2006 at £2,500 which has been to the moon and back (and it looks just like the shuttle after re-entry too); and that is also the starting bid for an auction, not the classified price. Looking at all the others, prices now seem to be stabilising between the £4k to £5k mark. The only real 'bargain' is a 2006 2.2 petrol auto with 38K on the clock for £3,500.

Like I said a while back, they can't fall much further.

This one finished today. £2.500 and no bids

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260668274209&ssPageName=ADME:B:WNA:GB:1123

 

[Doofer]

This one finished today. £2.500 and no bids

I don't understand some sellers. OK, it's 120k miles but that doesn't mean it's worthless. The driver's floor area makes it look like it's been used on a farm, and the driver's seat looks like it's been driven by someone with bladder control issues. The broken fuel flap probably just needs adjustment, and the scratches at the front would easily fill in with paint then polish out.

I'm not surprised they've had no takers with the state it's in. My Vax would sort the interior out in an hour. In fact I reckon I could sell that car for £3k after half a day's work.

 

[Radlet6]

Offer them £2k and make yourself a grand profit for a couple of hours work. :yum:

 

[Caravadossi]

AJ06 ETZ

... I'm not surprised they've had no takers with the state it's in. My Vax would sort the interior out in an hour. In fact I reckon I could sell that car for £3k after half a day's work.

£500 SPQR on AJ06 ETZ (£2.5K to £3K)? Maybe, given LK55 LFD sold for £2,650 on eBay (Wed22Sep) to re-appear on AutoTrader for £3,150 … & now (Fri01Oct) not listed & presumably sold (?)