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Is it me or is Wheeler Dealers a waste of time

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  • 18-04-2015 7:10pm
    #1
    Egginacup
    Site Banned Posts: 2,922 ✭✭✭


    I just watched an episode of Wheeler Dealers where this annoying clown buys vintage cars in need of work. His very skilled mechanic restores them and then they sell them.

    In this episode he went to Turin, Italy and purchased a 1971 Fiat 500, those tiny little city runarounds. He paid 2300 pound sterling for it and then drove it back to England. The thing broke down half way home and his assistant had to drive out with a trailer to bring it the rest of the way.
    The interior was perfect but the thing needed a paint job so had to be stripped down to the chassis and sprayed in a specialised chamber and "baked" overnight. It also needed a new engine which cost 1400 pounds.

    So with the original price, transport costs, spare parts, new engine and 300 quid paint job the cost came to 5,700 pounds sterling. They managed to sell it for 6500.

    That's a profit of a crappy 800 quid for days of hard graft between a few blokes. Is this a total waste of time?

    I can't see the point.


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    #2
    Banjo String
    Closed Accounts Posts: 14,380 ✭✭✭✭Banjo String


    If they're doing that as a hobby, as opposed to professionally, getting £800 isn't bad!

    I like walking my dog, and like travelling.

    Be great if someone threw me the odd £800 just for partaking in my two fave pastimes.


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    #3
    groucho marx
    Registered Users Posts: 1,556 ✭✭✭groucho marx


    Blasphemy ed and mike are brilliant!!


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    #4
    Geniass
    Closed Accounts Posts: 643 ✭✭✭Geniass


    They don't count labour, so it's a bit of a nonsense really to use the word profit.

    But if you do it yourself it's a labour of love, but there's still the opportunity cost.


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    #5
    corner of hells
    Registered Users Posts: 8,363 ✭✭✭corner of hells


    I like walking my dog too.


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    #6
    artanevilla
    Moderators, Education Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 10,404 Mod ✭✭✭✭artanevilla


    It would only be a waste of time if nobody watched it or it wasn't entertaining.


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    #7
    cml387
    Registered Users Posts: 8,389 ✭✭✭cml387


    It's a television program.
    It bears little as little resemblance to reality as the Haynes manual.

    And did you notice the O'Connell St/Sraid Ui Conaill signpost at the back of the garage?


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    #8
    LDN_Irish
    Registered Users Posts: 1,188 ✭✭✭LDN_Irish


    You're just desensitised by hearing "Oh my god! 5 garbage can lids! At 20 bucks a piece that's 100 dollars right there Sean!"


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    #9
    kneemos
    Registered Users Posts: 20,414 ✭✭✭✭kneemos


    Like that show in fairness.
    At least there's no annoying back story where the car is being restored for a victim of one illness or another,with snots and tears at the end of it.


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    #10
    [Deleted User]
    Posts: 0 ✭ [Deleted User]


    Egginacup wrote: »
    I can't see the point.

    The point is to make an interesting and entertaining TV show. Mostly, it does this.


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    #11
    Junkyard Tom
    Registered Users Posts: 10,117 ✭✭✭✭Junkyard Tom


    Did you see that ludicrous display last night?


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    #12
    Guy:Incognito
    Registered Users Posts: 38,247 ✭✭✭✭Guy:Incognito


    Geniass wrote: »
    They don't count labour, so it's a bit of a nonsense really to use the word profit.

    But if you do it yourself it's a labour of love, but there's still the opportunity cost.

    The whole point of the show is its a DIY exercise. Nonsense would be including labour because that wouldnt be you restoring a car, thats you paying a garage to restore a car


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    #13
    Geniass
    Closed Accounts Posts: 643 ✭✭✭Geniass


    Guy:Incognito wrote: »
    The whole point of the show is its a DIY exercise. Nonsense would be including labour because that wouldnt be you restoring a car, thats you paying a garage to restore a car

    Then don't use the word profit.


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    #14
    Guy:Incognito
    Registered Users Posts: 38,247 ✭✭✭✭Guy:Incognito


    Junkyard Cat wrote: »
    Did you see that ludicrous display last night?

    Ludicrous display of?


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    #15
    TrustedApple
    Closed Accounts Posts: 5,678 ✭✭✭TrustedApple


    Love watching Wheeler Dealers as you can find out quite a bit about some of the old cars and what problems they might have.

    Yes they don't add in the cost of labour but anyone buying one of them cars after being restored by Ed are a extremely lucky person as the car would have been fixed to a tee with endless hours of labour put into it.

    But with Wheeler Dealers you know what your getting its a show about resorting cars notting else and thats whats good about it.


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    #16
    Guy:Incognito
    Registered Users Posts: 38,247 ✭✭✭✭Guy:Incognito


    Geniass wrote: »
    Then don't use the word profit.

    Why? It is profit.
    Your own labour is free.

    If you buy a car for €100 and sell it the next day for €200 is that €100 profit?
    If you spend 4 hours valeting and polishing it and get €300 instead, is that not €200 profit?


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    #17
    jayo26
    Closed Accounts Posts: 20,779 ✭✭✭✭jayo26


    Its a pretty good show have watched it for years as with any tv show you dont take it as fact and it is from the point of view as a diy show and not as a business model to follow.


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    #18
    Junkyard Tom
    Registered Users Posts: 10,117 ✭✭✭✭Junkyard Tom


    Guy:Incognito wrote: »
    Ludicrous display of?

    The thing about Arsenal is they always try to walk it in.


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    #19
    Geniass
    Closed Accounts Posts: 643 ✭✭✭Geniass


    Guy:Incognito wrote: »
    Why? It is profit.
    Your own labour is free.

    It's a saving, not a profit. He could be fixing other cars and make money, hence opportunity cost.


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    #20
    Firefox11
    Registered Users Posts: 1,515 ✭✭✭Firefox11


    groucho marx wrote: »
    Blasphemy ed and mike are brilliant!!

    Agree. Love watching the programme even though i'm not much into cars. They were on the saturday night show last week. They have 150 million viewers worldwide! Even the the....er....Taliban!


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    #21
    Guy:Incognito
    Registered Users Posts: 38,247 ✭✭✭✭Guy:Incognito


    Geniass wrote: »
    It's a saving, not a profit. He could be fixing other cars and make money, hence opportunity cost.

    Why did you leave out the 2nd part?

    The point is not to give up your job and do what they are doing full time, its to do it in your spare time. Weekends and evenings.


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    #22
    Geniass
    Closed Accounts Posts: 643 ✭✭✭Geniass


    Guy:Incognito wrote: »
    Why did you leave out the 2nd part?

    The point is not to give up your job and do what they are doing full time, its to do it in your spare time. Weekends and evenings.

    Isn't Sean Ed a full time mechanic?

    Mike buys the car and always goes lovely jubbly at the end with his €500 profit. Do you know many Sean's Ed's that work for free?

    In fact he's not working for free the TV company pay him. Sorry, had to be said. But, the Easter bunny is real, okay?


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    #23
    Firefox11
    Registered Users Posts: 1,515 ✭✭✭Firefox11


    kneemos wrote: »
    Like that show in fairness.
    At least there's no annoying back story where the car is being restored for a victim of one illness or another,with snots and tears at the end of it.

    Yeah I don't like the American shows. everything is exaggerated and hyped up as usual and overpimped.


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    #24
    Dubwat
    Registered Users Posts: 421 ✭✭Dubwat


    I liked the programme in the beginning when they kept to cars sourced in Britain. Then, you could at least dream that someday you'd buy an old porsche or Merc and do it up. You could pretend it was educational and not wasting time watching TV, lol.

    When they started going to America and continental Europe for their cars, I lost interest.


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    #25
    Egginacup
    Site Banned Posts: 2,922 ✭✭✭Egginacup


    Firefox11 wrote: »
    Agree. Love watching the programme even though i'm not much into cars. They were on the saturday night show last week. They have 150 million viewers worldwide! Even the the....er....Taliban!

    The Taliban actually know a thing or two about automotive excellence. That's why they cruise around, 8 of them, with their Kalashnikovs in those Toyota pickups.....the ones that clarkson and his gang couldn't destroy.


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    #26
    Guy:Incognito
    Registered Users Posts: 38,247 ✭✭✭✭Guy:Incognito


    Geniass wrote: »
    Isn't Sean Ed a full time mechanic?

    Mike buys the car and always goes lovely jubbly at the end with his €500 profit. Do you know many Sean's Ed's that work for free?

    In fact he's not working for free the TV company pay him. Sorry, had to be said. But, the Easter bunny is real, okay?

    I cant believe you're finding this so hard.

    The show in itself is a show. Forget that as a full time entity. Its showing you that you can buy a car for €5000 that needs to be fixed up with €2000 worth of parts that can then be sold on for €10000. You put those parts on yourself in your spare time and thats €3000 profit.

    If Mike and Edd ran a corner shop 5 days a week , would it suddenly be more valid?

    Ill go back and use the same analogy you deliberately left out above:

    If you buy a car for €100 and sell it the next day for €200 is that €100 profit?
    If you spend 4 hours valeting and polishing it and get €300 instead, is that not €200 profit?

    Now, if your day job happens to be as a valetor, does that mean you haven't made €200 profit?


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    #27
    Geniass
    Closed Accounts Posts: 643 ✭✭✭Geniass


    Guy:Incognito wrote: »
    If you buy a car for €100 and sell it the next day for €200 is that €100 profit?
    If you spend 4 hours valeting and polishing it and get €300 instead, is that not €200 profit?

    Now, if your day job happens to be as a valetor, does that mean you haven't made €200 profit?

    Yes, if you do it all yourself... do you actually watch the show?


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    #28
    Guy:Incognito
    Registered Users Posts: 38,247 ✭✭✭✭Guy:Incognito


    Geniass wrote: »
    Yes, if you do it all yourself... do you actually watch the show?

    Yes, hes does the labour himself. Stuff he cant do is farmed out and is accounted for as cost.

    If a car gets resprayed in a garage he doesnt just count the cost of the paint, he counts the cost of the job.


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    #29
    Geniass
    Closed Accounts Posts: 643 ✭✭✭Geniass


    Guy:Incognito wrote: »
    Yes, hes does the labour himself. Stuff he cant do is farmed out and is accounted for as cost.

    If a car gets resprayed in a garage he doesnt just count the cost of the paint, he counts the cost of the job.

    I'm talking about this show...

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheeler_Dealers

    Where Ed does hundreds of pounds of work for "free" for the purposes of the show.

    This is highly unlikely to happen in real life.

    It's a show, I get that, but the term profit at the end is disingenuous.


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    #30
    kneemos
    Registered Users Posts: 20,414 ✭✭✭✭kneemos


    We should have an argument forum where people can argue about nothing in particular.


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    #31
    Geniass
    Closed Accounts Posts: 643 ✭✭✭Geniass


    kneemos wrote: »
    We should have an argument forum where people can argue about nothing in particular.

    I think it's called boards.ie, must check up Wiki to be sure though.


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