Vincent Pricing

[Tony Cording]

Does anyone out there have access to the U.K. pricing figures of a Shadow, Rapide and Comet in 1950 and 1954 respectively, including purchase tax? Doing a little research. Thanks.

Tony Cording

 

[pegmac910]

Prices

In the "Vincent Vee-Twins" book by Roy Harper they give the following prices (p.181)

1950: Rapide £323.17s.0d.
Black Shadow: £375.18s.5d
Black Lightning: £501.13s.0d.
Comet: £241.6s.0d
Grey Flash: £330.4s.0d

1954: Black Prince £378.0s.0d
Black Knight: £348.0s.0d
Victor: £274.16s.0d

1955: Rapide £325.0s.0d
Black Shadow £355.0s.0d

Hope this is helpful. By the way, how's life on the West coast?? Been a while!

David West

 

[Tony Cording]

Hi Dave, long time no see....see you in Colorado maybe? Many thanks for the info on pricing, that helps a lot.

All the best

Tony.

 

[Tom Gaynor]

Vincent prices

There is a theory that real prices can be measured "across the ages" in Mars Bars. The Mars bar is made from cocoa, sugar and fat, and if "the market" works at all, those are commodities that it will work on best, so at any time its price represents the real value of money. It's been applied to such things as "an entry level car", "a gent's two-piece suit", "a graduate entry salary at ICI" and many such things, with impressive accuracy. A Mars bar in pre-decimal 1948 cost 3d (and came in three flavours). Assuming that it didn't rise in price by 1950, a Black Shadow would sell today for £375 x 80 = 30,000 Mars Bars. Guessing that a Mars Bar today costs 50p, that's £15,000. A Comet would sell for £9,600.

 

[Albervin]

Mars Bars

I would like to see the same calculation done with petrol.

 

[baldrick]

petrol

Ahhhh, yes, as I said to the petrol attendant the other day the car will soon be cheaper than the petrol...........

"Living is hard.............Dying is easy"

 

[Ian Savage]

Measuring Vincent worth

From the web site www.measuringworth.com

A 1950 Shadow at £375/17/5 equaled in 2006 (latest year it will calculate)

£8,898.60 using the retail price index
£9,236.20 using the GDP deflator
£26,499.81 using the average earnings
£30,541.98 using the per capita GDP
£36,770.04 using the share of GDP

Interesting eh!

Ian S

 

[clevtrev]

I would like to see the same calculation done with petrol.

Four Shillings in 1952.

 

[Tom Gaynor]

Prices

What Ian's posting shows is why Whitehall prefers the retail price index as a measure: it bears no relationship to reality.
Thanks, Ian. Interesting indeed.

 

[timetraveller]

I still have a 1954 book 'British Motor Cycles of the year 1954', price 2/6; publisher Stone and Cox. Ltd. 44 Fleet Street, London E.C.4 (central 1622) The Vincent models are all series 'C'. Prices:- Comet £258: 0 : 0, Rapide £326 : 8 : 0, Black Shadow £366 : 0 : 0 and Black Lightning £474 : 0 : 0

Enjoy

 

[Ian Savage]

Vincent worth

Tom
What it means is the relative cost of 'commodities' has fallen, i.e. a super bike of today at £8000 is about right, but it also shows an average earner would have had to spend the equivalent of a years salary on a Vincent in 1952. Also the VOC new Vincent selling at £30,000 is near enough the same 'value' as a new one in 1950.
Ian