People who buy brand new Land Rovers are doing people like me, who buy old ones, a massive favour.
How so? Because without people buying these cars when new.. I have no entrance into luxury car ownership.
I’m looking at you, lovely blue Defender.
Rory Sutherland – my favourite Marketing Svengali – talks about this quietly fantastic altruism. Someone pays top money for a brand new Range Rover in 2009. It depreciates steadily in value until.. Bingo. I can pick it up for £10k.
I get the exact same car as the original owner. Provided I wait a few years first. Fourteen years.
Apart from this patience and a tolerance for the odd scratch and imperfection, there is one other thing you need. A maintenance budget. My ownership period is not just about enjoying a luxury vehicle. It’s about preserving it. On occasion that can be costly. £5k kind of costly… in my 2.5 years of ownership.
Thanks to the original owner, the Defender pictured here might also be mine one day. Perhaps in 2039.
My old Range Rover might need replacing by then.
Andrew Greenhalgh 