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James Rupert Used car bargains
Mercedes' supercar is now well under £100k, and it's a future collectable
Thinking of buying a supercar? Just thinking about it suggests that you might not have thought it through. If you have to put any thought into owning something that is so impractical yet visceral, it's best to stop right there and stick with your five-door shopper.
But if not, one super-duper-car that has the requisite amount of visual wow, a modicum of practicality and some serious performance is the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG. I know this because a reader is currently considering one. However, buying one right now is, I'd say, a tad early if you care about things such as value.
The SLS is all scoops and fancy doors and bellowing supercar engine. It's also a relatively rare car, so values will stay firm in the long term. The stats say that there are, at the moment, just shy of 280 standard coupés in circulation, about 74 roadsters and just a handful of go-evenfaster Blacks and GTs. So it's possible to see at a glance which ones will hold their value.
Essentially, you need £100,000 to join Club SLS. Prices start at about £94,000, although there was a relatively highmileage (as in 31,000) 2010 model knocking around at a well known car supermarket for £83k. If you want a roadster, the starter is £119k for a 2011 example with under 10,000 miles.
However, the simple fact is that, with...