What got buyers revved up
Trade Me Motors has revealed its 10 most popular listings of 2020.
Leading the pack, with 226,000 page views, was Jonah Lomu’s SPL Nissan Patrol, with 20 speakers, a customised interior and a special paint job. It is on Trade Me now for $49,990 but it had an independent valuation at $67,500 last year.
According to the listing, it is capable of 160 decibels, enough to burst your eardrums.
In second spot is an Auckland icon – a customised Toyota Coaster bus used for Kelly Tarlton’s transport duties. Yeah, the one with the shark rearing out of the roof. It had 195,804 views before selling for $31,500 at Turners.
In third place was a 1993 Toyota Supra RZ, which sold for $75,000, while in fourth place was a DIY Tesla Cybertruck – a repurposed Toyota Vitz from 2000. The seller created a pretty good likeness to
Tesla’s forthcoming Cybertruck out of aluminium. Behind the ‘‘Cybertruck’’ was a UFO spaceship house – one of 12 built in New Zealand, of which eight or nine survive today. It has probably had the most views out of all Futuros in New Zealand, making it something of a celebrity.
The now ex-owner confirmed the Futuro would be staying in New Zealand with the new buyer.
The next actual car is a 1973 Toyota Land Cruiser, the first on the list to drop below 100,000 page views (99,862). It started at a $1 reserve and sold for $42,000.
Close behind was a 1969 Holden Monaro GTS in dire need of some TLC. It was complete, with a two-speed automatic and 5.0-litre V8 still lurking beneath the skin.
Someone ended up paying $58,000 for the old girl.
Also on this list was a Mitsubishi Diamante from 1997 but it can travel through time. Made for a charity car rally early in 2020, the car features the iconic time travel kit from Back To The Future, flux capacitor included. It even has a current warrant of fitness.
The final two positions in the top 10 list go to a genuine lifeboat from the Rena Monrovia, the ship that ran aground on the Astrolabe Reef in October 2011, and a 2020 Nissan GT-R Premium. The lifeboat sold for $9800, while the GT-R went for $182,995.
’’We are always amazed at the wonders Kiwis have hiding in their garages and last year did not disappoint,’’ said Trade Me’s Ruby Topzand. ‘‘In 2020, it was vehicles with an interesting backstory and some good old Kiwi creativity that appealed to Trade Me members.
‘‘Jonah Lomu’s star power was a bit of a theme last year with Jonah’s former mansion in Maupuia taking out the top spot in our most viewed properties of 2020.’’