From: Fred H. Schlesinger (fred@schlesingers.net)
Date: Tue Jan 21 2003 - 19:59:08 PST
GlacierI really think that this entire thread is
both on and off track at the same time. There is
no perfect system that will satisfy everybody's
tastes and competing interests.
Everyone can see what trucks are selling for at GL
auctions. And anyone can bid on a truck on GL's
auction site. Much like Ebay, the prices are
somewhat subjective because the location,
desirability and condition of the items for sale
are variable. This is not like the stock market,
where every share of IBM is worth relatively the
same on the same day. So there will always be
price fluctuations, and unless you want GL to
start establishing FMV reserve prices on these
trucks, there always will be.
It is GL's job to make the playing field as fair
as they can. And it is their charge to move a lot
of trucks. In that regard, they should publish
whatever information they know about a vehicle,
and make the process as easy for a one off bidder
to compete against a volume buyer. They have every
incentive to do this as this will move the most
trucks and get the best price, and since GL is a
joint venture, they will share in the proceeds.
As long as no one has inside information, or is
making secret profits or kickbacks, or is
restricting the supply of trucks to drive up
prices, and no one on this list has alleged this,
then that is how capitalism legally works, and it
is the best you can reasonably expect. This
should be fair to everybody.
Publishing who bought what truck, so that you can
use that information to negotiate with a dealer
when trying to buy that truck from him will not
get the government another dollar. If anything,
it will reduce the number of bidders as GL
auctions become less attractive to dealers.
As a taxpayer, I am not in favor of that, and as a
potential MV purchaser, all I want is a fair shot
at the truck I want. If somebody pays more, that
means they wanted it more.
I doubt if If $10,000 trucks are selling for
$1000. Sounds like the old story of the Harley in
a crate that I keep looking for. But sometimes
somebody gets a great deal in a competitive
bidding situation. And some of the trucks sold by
GL look cheap, but you never know until you bring
that puppy home and try to fire it up. My guess
is that more people get stuck and overpay. In
each case, economics teaches us that the market
will solve the aberation.
If the market perceives that a dealer adds value,
whether it by getting you a clear title, or towing
the truck off site, or changing the oil or
rebuilding the engine, then they will be
compensated for that perceived value. Joe Young
constantly emphasizes the value that he (and other
dealers) ads to his sales and his pitch is very
persuasive. And there is a great advantage in
being able to test drive the vehicle before you
buy it. There will always be those who want to
buy from a dealer and hopefully get the benefit of
the dealer's expertise and direction if their
truck later craps out. And there will always be
those who want to go it alone, whether because
they enjoy hitting their head against the wall, or
think they can get a bargain, or just like the
challenge.
Many say that they can not afford to continue the
hobby of collecting Military Vehicles in light of
rising prices that they perceive that dealers are
getting. This lack of demand, it it actually
exists and isn't just griping, will effect resale
prices.
Please don't bother to cut this up and reply
sentence by sentence. I didn't do it to you, I'm
sure that you are smarter than me so you don't
have to prove it.
Fred
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