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UPDATE on 195 and the FAVOR (longer post)

DR1665

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 19, 2005
Messages
4,642
Location
Iowa City, IA
We're still waiting on the official police report to show up so that my insurance can tell the other driver's insurance to kindly RTFM and cut me a check. I wanted to start the Friday evening I was supposed to be getting into Ridgecrest, CA for rally school with an update and my continued thanks to everyone here for all the help thus far. We're not out of the woods yet, but I guess you could say the ducks are lining up in a tidy row. Once they start marching, watch out!

Yesterday afternoon I buttoned up my 15 page fax to my insurance guy, who is working on my behalf with the the other carrier. This afternoon, he called, excited to tell me that my fax was among the best cases for proving value he has ever seen and said it was exactly the sort of stuff he needed to help me out when they come back with a low ball.

As promised, I will not divulge the names and prices of those cars which were reported to me by actual buyers or sellers. That is their private information and not mine to share, but I will share the text of the outline I sent my claims rep at Progressive and the general numbers which it contained. I figure this might be helpful to other owners, if not with regards to buying or selling, then in providing a format which might assist in getting maximum value for a GVR4, should it be involved in situation like mine. That said, below are the first two pages of my 15 page fax to the insurance company. I will post up when I have anything pertinent to share.

Thanks. Hope this helps someone.

Quote:

Galant VR4 (GVR4) Market Value Documentation.


Background Information:

In order to campaign the Galant VR4 in the World Rally Championship in the early 90s, Mitsubishi was required to homologate a limited number of street-legal versions of their race car, making them available to the general public. Just 3000 were ever sold in the United States (2000 in 91, 1000 in 92). My GVR4 is badged 195 of 2000.


The GVR4 is precursor to the now popular Lancer Evolution. It features the same Mitsubishi 4G63T engine, all wheel drive, anti-lock brakes, and four wheel steering. Creature comforts include dual zone climate control, full leather interior, power windows, locks and mirrors, power moon roof, and even a six-speaker, premium audio system.


It is likely that, of the original 3000 cars sold in the US, less than 2000 of them remain on the road. This document, along with the attached screen prints, is intended to assist in proving the value of my vehicle independent of the values reported by common online sources, as those sources are incapable of factoring in the limited production numbers of these specialty vehicles.


This particular car was purchased as a rolling shell for $1500 in November of 2005. It was complete, with a seized engine and blown clutch. I spent much of 2006 removing the engine and sourcing a replacement. I purchased a used engine for $1000 and it managed to last six months before it, too, died on the I-10 in July 2007. Most of this engine was scrap and so I opted to rebuild the entire engine, including replacing the head entirely, finally having the car return to the road on October 28th, 2007. While the odometer reads 153k, the engine has less than 5,000 miles on it. I do not know if the engine survived the crash, as I have to replace a battery cable sheared in the process.


I seek only fair reimbursement of my damages so that I will be able to repair or replace my vehicle. With that in mind, outliers which would skew prices to one end or the other were not included. That is, I did not consider vehicles offered for sale below $1000 (seldom complete, often in exceedingly poor condition) or those vehicles sold or listed for sale at $9000 or more. For example, one car was recently sold to a Phoenix resident for $20,000, another is listed by a Phoenix resident for $10,000. Both of these cars represent the pinnacle of value and I realize that my car is far from capable of commanding such numbers.


Your taking the time to consider this information is greatly appreciated.


Popular Online Value Sources:
-KBB - $2105 – “fair condition, private sale”
-NADA - $1500 – “low retail”
-Edmunds – N/A (insufficient data)


Popular Online Sales Sources:
-AutoTrader – lists (1) for $6500 (within any distance of zip code 85225)
-eBay Motors – lists (1) for $6500 (the only GVR4 listed on eBay)


GalantVR4.org – Enthusiast/Collector Community:

-Screen print series “A” (2 pages) – actual production numbers
---There was no radio in my GVR4 at the time of my purchase. Mitsubishi offered three option packages with the sunroof – A70 (115 cars), A71 (114 cars), and A74 (98 cars). Between these three options, only 327 cars were built identical to mine (in the Nile Black color), with choice of radio being the only difference.


-Screen print series “B” (6 pages) – actual selling prices
---I posted to the discussion forum asking those individuals who had recently bought or sold a GVR4 to contact me privately to share the amounts they paid or received in the sale of a GVR4. This is a print of the entire discussion thread, wherein owners discuss values.


-Screen print series “C” (5 pages) – actual selling prices/current listings
---(11) cars reported directly to me at my request in the above mentioned discussion thread – average selling/purchase price was $3690
------Average price not including outliers was $4193
------Outliers consisted of (2) rolling shells sold for < $1000 and (1) in excellent condition for $9000
---Beginning page “C4” are screen shots of the first (3) pages of “Cars For Sale” section of galantvr4.org:
------Average listing price on “C4 Page 1” = $4978
------Average listing price on “C4 Page 2” = $4042
------Average listing price on “C5 Page 3” = $5077
------Overall average of cars listed for sale on first (3) pages in this section of the website is $4699
------I have noted the general condition of the cars listed where it seemed relevant. The trend is for cars in the $3000 range to be serviceable, but to remain fairly rough around the edges. Those cars which are mechanically sound are typically listed for $4000 or more.




What I did on that last part, where I mentioned how I noted general condition of cars in the "Cars For Sale" section, was take a screen print of each page, mark the listings I used to calculate my average price, and then jot a comment to the side of listings in the sub-$5000 range. Comments included, non-original paint color, electrical issues, theft damage, extensive hail damage, partially dismantled, transmission issues, and salvage title.

I know this was a long read for the OT section, but I really hope that showing how I did my homework, with the help of this community, and presenting some sort of format for putting all the infor together will help someone else prove to an insurance company that these cars are worth well beyond what their online sources tell them. EDIT: (Complete the sentence, Driggins!)

Tomorrow, I install a new ground strap find out if I need a new radiator or just a couple new hoses, and I fire that bitch up. Sure, we all like to bitch a little about how much time we have to spend wrenching on these things, but they sure don't make 'em like they used to, eh?

Have a great weekend, fellas.
 
Last edited:

4orced4door

Moderator
Joined
Jul 19, 2002
Messages
9,846
Location
Raleigh, NC
I'm glad you could put the info to good use, and I hope it gets you somewhere!
 

boostedinaz

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 20, 2006
Messages
4,085
Location
Scottsdale, AZ
Very good info Brian. Hopefully all that work doesn't go to waste.

I am free almost all day Sunday. If you need anything let me know.
 
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