Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

I think so, with brown interior. Or like @Aroogah said, cream coloured over burgundy.

How boring are today's cars!

would rep

This is exactly what our CVCC looked like - gold with brown interior. I learned how to drive stick in it. Good times.

I like the sheepskin seat covers.
How is that "car-from-uk.com" when it's clearly in the US/canada.
Wasn't that a dodgy russian website?

Hell yeah. I know they are nostalgia tainted shitboxes, but it was all you needed. Makes me sad these days when I see learner drivers in Audi Q3 and priuses. They're missing out!

This is exactly what our CVCC looked like

This is me finding the closest image online. The actual car had a pockmarked roof and hood from squash ball sized projectiles from a north Texas hail storm. The interior was sheepskin free because Texas.

Camper van place, who have ignored me since I placed my order unless I called them five days in a row, have just emailed me asking for £40k by "the end of November at the latest".

Oh, and confirming that since I ordered VW have put the price up so that's being passed on to me.

The temptation to tell them to ram it is strong.

Is there no room for negotiation? Say you want the original quoted price for the van or you'll walk?

I think the situation is that demand is so high that rubbish customer service is no detriment to orders, and the waiting list is such that if I said "actually I'm really unhappy about this" the response would be "boo hoo, fuck off".

Should it be a neg rep as that le Baron was a convertible?

We're they shit from new or just many owners that didn't care. Or everything was just as shit.

I'll let you off.

@Dammit I know they're expensive, and nice, but can't get my head around £40k minus presumably the deposit. Despite the current state of the market I hope it all works out and there's a slither of appreciation from the dealer.

yeah a mate of mine who bought a new one less than a year ago says it is now worth (secondhand) £10k more than he paid for it.

which way you gonna go dude? I would be very tempted to walk.

obviously the idea of 'worth' is up for debate

£40k by "the end of November

I bet they have banging Xmas parties.

Buy my van?

Well, my recollection of what their MD said when I went to see them was £1,000 deposit at point of order (which they never asked for) and half the money when they received the van, other half when I collected it.

But, that's kind of irrelevant really - it boils down to do I want the van or not.

I do feel that they're using the scarcity of this type of vehicle and the general inflation in values that we've seen across the board for this type of thing (my E63 has increased in value since I bought it, as an example) to justify piss-poor customer service.

My concern is that they're treating me objectively badly before I've paid them - how are they going to treat me once they've had my money?

But - do I want the van? Yes I do.

I just don't want to buy it from them.

Out of curiosity do they know who you are?

But, that's kind of irrelevant really - it boils down to do I want the van or not.

I don't think it is irrelevant. You are paying them a LOT of money to deliver a fairly specialised product. If they can't stick to their own procedures, or provide even a basic level of service, how can you be satisfied that their internal quality control procedures are any better?

If it were me I would buy the bare van directly from VW, drive it for a while and really think what I want done, then look for perhaps smaller firms who can do specific jobs.

Out of curiosity do they know who you are?

?

Part of my job is buying commercial vehicles, this year has been problematic to say the least.
I have had a caddy on order since March for July delivery, I was updated last week that it is now scheduled for the end of December (this is via a major leasing company).
I have had others delivered from my main supplier from the factory with parts knowingly missing, to be fitted when they become available.
I have placed orders for commercial vehicles with my main supplier for 2022 in October on the understanding that the earliest factory build slots will be June and my orders are not confirmed, they have also given me the heads up that they expect RHD production to be down by a third.
Another coach builder who I use has had his order this year reduced by 20-35% and next years orders reduced by nearly 40%, he uses various manufacturers.
It really isn’t very good at the moment nor does next year look better.

Second biggest influencer on lfgss and meaningful on pistonheads.

Joking aside. I feel for you. It's shit when people take you for a cunt over something that's meant to be enjoyable.

Is there no room for negotiation

We tried to negotiate with a Merc dealer on an A class earlier in the year. Their position (which took 30 minutes of conversation with the manager) was to take off the cost of the valet (but also, not to do it) and £100 off list price (c18k).

We felt kind of insulted (a 'terribly sorry, but we don't negotiate on price' would have been fine) and didn't bother conversing with them anymore apart from to tell them we didn't like the colour when they tried to follow up a few days later.

Similar thing I imagine - lots of demand for used cars so they didn't give a fuck about customer service.