pricing question..

[nsx_elan]

Hi,

I am looking to get my first nsx in a year and wanted to introduce myself here. I wanted to get a third opinion on this car I am looking at. It is a 1995 nsx with approx 60 K miles. In very good condition cosmetically with the usual rock chips and wear. Clutch replaced recently but the timing belt service not done. After browsing through the price guide, I put this car in the C category , 35 to 40 k mark and closer to 35 because of the miles and service history. Am I interpreting the guide right or should this be in the B category?

Thanks
Nash

 

[hlweyl]

i recently purchased a 97, but was looking at some 95's. There price was closer to 40k with similiar mileage (50k), even with deferred maintainence.

 

[mskrotzki]

NSX Analyzer Software

I also am looking to purchase an NSX. Since I'm a computer geek, I'm putting together a small application to keep track of the approximately 80 NSXs in the range I'm seeking that I have located so far.

I am automating the price chart available in the FAQ, creating data entries for modifications, timing belt maintenance, date listed for sale, date sold (if any), location, distance from my home in Denver, a large area for comments (where I can cut and paste an entire text ad), and lspotfor a picture, which I can cut and paste from in internet ad. The picture helps a lot in keeping these things straight.

To get the FAQ chart into my application I compute a mileage factor based on anticipated mileage on an NSX based on the year. the factor is simply the % of the anticipated mileage: negative is less than anticipated and positive is more than anticipated. Based on this factor I can then comptue a price factor based upon how much the asking price is above or below the computed price.

I have to make a realy human decision on a real price I would offer/pay based on actual condition, modifications (that I may or may not desire), hassle factors, etc, etc.

I entered your hypothetical 95 with 60k miles into this application and I compute, based only on miles and year, a starting price of 36K -- exactly as you did. This is no surprise, since our basis -- the pricing chart -- is the same.

I'm working on getting the FAQ chart into the program as user defined variables, complete with a utility form for you to put in what ever values you want: [It is currently hard coded.] If you believe the price breaks are different [and some of them certainly will be with the new year coming] the utility will allow you to change them to what ever you want.

This is a hobby project. It is not completely bullet proofed, or documented. It can crash, but not teribly seriously. If anyone would like to have a copy of it, I could improve it a little bit, write up directions, some help files, and make it available to the forum members.

Here is a sample of one of the reports. The 95 Test -- number 4 in the list of 95s is yours.

Let me know what you all think

Mark

 

[KGP]

Re: NSX Analyzer Software

...I am automating the price chart available in the FAQ...

Knock yourself out Mark! Can't remeber who, but there was a forum member that compiled te same kind of info, allbeit in a speadsheet.

 

[JOPRIMO]

I would love a copy!!! Thanks.

 

[nsxtasy]

After browsing through the price guide, I put this car in the C category, 35 to 40 k mark and closer to 35 because of the miles and service history. Am I interpreting the guide right or should this be in the B category?

You are interpreting the guide right. Average miles on an NSX is 5K miles per year, so 40K is average for a '95. This car has 50 percent more miles than average, and the lack of timing belt change is deferred maintenance (deferred two years beyond Acura's recommendation). Both characteristics put it into the C category, definitely. With the C category shown in the chart in the two price categories bracketing the $35K mark, figure that a "C" car such as this one would normally sell roughly in the $33-37K range.

 

[NSX2398]

Cool appl'n. Just curious .. it appears that you might be adjusting the expected mileage based on the year and today's date but how do you adjust the prices over time as the data ages? for example, the price of a '94 sold 6 mos ago versus a '94 sold today.
also, is the 'sighting' information in a database or spreadsheet or ...?

 

[mskrotzki]

NSX Analyzer Software

Ian is exactly right. I created a simple function that takes today's date minus the year of the car and multiplies it by 5000 mile/year. I is a quantum function: there is no difference between today and 6 months ago. I would not be difficult to do so (by not chopping off the decimals), but there are so many other factors involved that I doubt it would be very useful. Mileage is certainly important, but trying to buy (or sell) an NSX based upon monthly mileage ..... not the argument I want to make.

This is a simple Visual FoxPro 8 application. Here are some screen shots of the input form. In my previous post I included a shot of one of the output forms. Since it is a database, one could create different out put forms until the cows come home.

I have not yet put the As and Bs and Cs, etc into a utility form to allow the user to make them what ever he/she wants, and I have not yet expanded the utility beyond 1996, since I'm limiting my self to spending no more than about $30K. I'll find time by the weekend to do this. I do have it bundled into an executable file with an installation utility. I'll bundle that up into a zip type file for distribution. If there is a way to post the distributable on the forum, I will, otherwise I can email it to whomever wants it

Ian, do you ever put a ski rack on an NSX? How about a bike rack? I am 60 minutes from some of the best skiing/ biking in the world, and I am bored taking my wife's '93 Mazda on recreational trips!

Thanks for your interest.

Mark

 

[mskrotzki]

Page 2

Here's page 2

 

[KGP]

Coolio Mark. Going to put anything in the program to calculate the values of mods?

 

[Osiris_x11]

value'ing mod'z...

Adding on costs of modifications/personal-affects, and such gets into a subjective realm. Sorta like dealer-installed options- that down the road dont particularly add a pre-determinant amount to the car's base. I do agree that add-ons to a particular car can sweeten the deal vs. a similar basic model. But, in true fairness- how can such be given a monetary value???

 

[KGP]

Re: value'ing mod'z...

Adding on costs of modifications/personal-affects, and such gets into a subjective realm.

Sure, but if the user can feed in depreciation type values themsleves it doesn't matter. IOW, there could be "list" or "replacement" cost values already present, and the user, based on discussion with the owner or for whatever their reasoning, chooses to apply a percentage of the mods vaule toward that car's price. The value fed in could be simply entering a percentage, which calculates by drawing away value from the already listed new or replacement cost.

Needed, no. Cool, maybe. Would I want it in the SW if I were in the market, sure. Nothing like tossing more work on a guy I don't even know, ey Mark! heheh .

 

[KGP]

Behind

Oh, BTW Mark, you are already a version behind. The logo at the top right is outdated!

I don't see a field for the VIN. Is there one?

 

[NSX2398]

Re: NSX Analyzer Software

Mileage is certainly important, but trying to buy (or sell) an NSX based upon monthly mileage ..... not the argument I want to make.

Mark, I must not have explained myself very well .. I was just using the mileage thing as an example of what you were already doing ...the real question was about how to handle the price data ... over time your database is going to have price points over a wide time span and seeing someone spent $30K on a '95 in Sept of 2002 is a lot different than spending $30K on a '95 in Sept of 2003.
This is a simple Visual FoxPro 8 application
The reason I was asking is that Lud and I have been dialoging about constructing an NSX registry app'n for Prime and many of the database elements are the same.

Although you're primarily focused on what I call 'sightings' and the 'registry' is more focused on owners (arguably, 'sightings' are just signals of a change in ownership), there is probably value in further collaboration since the data entry could be common and always ends up being a pain.

The other issue is how best to provide the end user interface and integrate it with Prime. With your app'n, the data comes self contained with the app and there's really no need to do or understand an 'sql query'. Most of the data you're working with is really just a subset of what I had started to pilot with the registry so it should be somewhat easy to create an extract to use as a data feed.

Ian, do you ever put a ski rack on an NSX?
No .. too flat around here for downhill and I'm not into x-country. As the avatar suggests though, I regularly drive it in snow up to the sills, but don't try it without winter tires.

Keep up the good work on the app

 

[mskrotzki]

NSX Analyzer Software

It goes, it goes. I have much of the application ready for distribution for someone to try. But remember: this is a hobby project -- it has some rough spots and is not something anyone would PAY for. I hope it won't crash, and should be pretty evident on how you run it. It is pretty standard windows stuff. When I get time I'll write some help files and a short manual, but try it out and see what you think. Suggestions WELCOME

There is a field for VIN. It is called VIN - Trans number. Before I got very far along, I though the only really important thing was the transmission number - since that is what determines snap ring range. In fact I have but one transmission number, all the rest of the entries are VIN numbers -- car fax and all that.

If we wanted to get really snappy, I can make this into a web application and I can connect to NSXPrime and display the very latest logo, but my wife just came in and told me I have too much time on my hands.

Ian -- I started this because I want to keep straight the 80 or so NSXs currently for sale around the country. My concern is buying one in the near future. An excellent point (I repeatedly make to my wife) is if you get a 91 - 94 at a good price, you can probably sell it in two to three years for esentially what you bought it for -- depreciation has bottomed out (if trends continue.) Your point about a newer model certainly includes depreciation -- the 95 will suffer depreciation so there will be a difference between 2002 and 2003

Integrating with the prime chart: I have taken most of the mileage and pricing numerical factors that were originally hard coded and exposed them to the user. Who am I to play god? Let each user decide what he/she thinks are the 'right' figures.

Tell me more about the registry. Are there enough people interested in registering? I have done several web applications, usually in SQLServer underneigth .Net -- but you need some pretty stable computer power to run that. Would this only be available via a username/password combination for security reasons? This could be interesting.

I gotta go for dinner now. Here are the two 'factor' screens

 

[mskrotzki]

Screens didn't stick

And now I have to split it into two graphics

 

[mskrotzki]

And here is the second one. By the way, pay no attention to the numbers actually in the above screen (or the man behind the curtain.) I was simply fooling around, changing the numbers to see the resulting changes in the output. They would be changed to real numbers prior to any actual analysis

 

[mskrotzki]

I finished a distributable version this morning, and sent it over the network to one of the seven computers in the house that has no foxpro or any other relevent programs on it. It ran fine first try.

Biggest problem is -- it is 10 Megs -- one of the things you have to live with in Fox. That is way to large to attach to an email and expect it to go. Does anyone know if Prime has an FTP site available to distribute this? I'm less than excited [as is MSN/Qwest] about setting up my own FTP site and all the security issues involved. One of my clients has an FTP site, but I doubt if they would be very excited to host my playtime activities, even if I did fully secure it. Could always ask, however.

I have a CD burner, but have not had a lot of sucess with it as it is an older model and XP dosen't get along with it very well.

I'm open to suggestions.

Mark