VW campers

I know it's called an Ice Axe.... which has a head on which there is a Pick and Adze (or hammer). So no axe on there then?

An Ice Pick is something a lot simpler... which isn't needed if you have ice cubes. We're back to gin and tonics or whiskey over ice then. 

You can buy or build replica Karmann Ghias. Ok they're not original but apparently they are pretty good. Called Chesil Speedsters I think. As a winter garage project it would have some appeal. Be a nice thing to keep in a warm climate for example, if one had a property in such a place...
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Two doors from me lived an old lady, who was moved off to an old folks' home around the time we moved in - so 7 years ago. The house lies empty, but is occasionally visited by relatives to clear mail etc. Outside the house is a double garage. On one mail clearing visit, the garage door was opened, maybe to read a meter or something, who knows. Anyway, I was strolling past walking the dog and noticed that the garage had a permanent resident. A blue, mid-70s reg bay window VW camper van in what seems to be immaculate condition, on the surface at least. It sits there to this day, unused. And, for some reason, that annoys the crap out of me. I expect when the inevitable catches up with the old lady, it will be flogged quicker than you can say surf's up, dude, by the beneficiary of the will.

Curious to leave it (and the house) that long. Think of the tax they could have saved by transferring assets seven years ago. Perhaps she's surprised them by lasting so long.

I have a similar situation with my remaining aged r. and getting the house ready to sell or let is our top priority, because it's costing her money and will be of no further use to her. Her care fees outstrip her relatively lavish medical pension by more than £1,000 a month, so nothing as valuable as a camper van will be left to fester. (Incidentally, anyone want a Steinway?)

Must admit even I am not immune to the idea of a VW Camper. In a less regulated age, one of my teachers used to take small groups of us (chess teams and similar) out in his orange 1973 'bay' and I've smiled on seeing one ever since. There's a minimalist fitness for purpose about it that's very appealing - it's just a mobile place to sleep, a machine for getting away from it all, without trying to take it all, including the Wedgwood and the porcelain dogs, with you.

Whether that would work in practice in the crowded surroundings of southeast England is another matter, and probably why I've never gone and bought one. The wilder parts of France or Spain, or indeed South America, might be different again.

Humph, I've been browsing.

VW Kombis in the UK are highly valued, it seems. Typically then they are well cared for. Thus the market seems to have two segments - the "rusty & worthless" and the "pristine and ridiculously expensive".

The same vehicle in Chile is not particularly valued. Or in Brazil for that matter. Because they are not highly valued then the "pristine and expensive" either does not exist, or is very rare. The majority are "run of the mill". And I'm not sure I see a market for "run of the mill" in the UK. Seems to me people want a perfect example they merely have to drive or a piece of rusty junk they can do up in their garage.

Thus one would either have to develop a middle market, or get into the business of reconditioning oneself. Also that "pristine" market appears small. If you look at the amount currently for sale then it is in single figures. Even then, a particularly nice one is currently failing to sell. Mind you, it is £23k. But bring in 3 or 4 vehicles and that'd be the market done for the next 6 months I reckon. Perhaps I exaggerate, but not by much.

By all means disagree.

However, what does seem like it would be a market is spares. Because entire vehicles can be bought here for 7/10 of bugger all, broken and shipped. And of course broken the tax arrangements are different - and better.

To do that one would have to intrude on the owners club, or similar.

The work this end would be trivial. Buying a vehicle and breaking it would be cheap. I own many properties, many commercial, where storage is available, and shipping just isn't that much.

The effort at the European end - Sales & marketing, Bus. dev., warehousing, distribution etc. etc. would be considerably more.

The value of purchasing entire vehicles would seem to be limited at a free holiday. Buy it in Chile, drive it to Brazil, ship it to the UK, flog it in the UK and after all expenses you'd probably break about even.

Ach well, fair enough, it just ever so slightly had the scent of a bit of fun that might have had a quid in it. I sourced a couple of old Land Rover Defenders here for an Italian friend who sold them on there a few years ago. Made us both a couple of bob at the time. Not enough to do it as a job but more than a few beers in it nonetheless.