New VY Berlina International. May be unique..

[Shay]

Hey guys, I'm new to this forum, so go easy on me.

I just bought a 2002 VY Berlina International wagon from the first owner. He bought it new before it was made, and had it delivered to him new.

Now for the interesting part: he tells me that the guy that took it off the truck got a grease smudge on the door velour. He said to the rep to fix it, and he offered to trim it all in leather for free.

So basically I have Calais leather inside in pistachio (the only colour the International comes in). I think it is Calais level trim, maybe someone can tell me..

Everything else on the car is original, well maintained and in excellent condition for the age of the car.

So, seeing as there was one exterior colour (turbine) and one trim option (pistachio leather bolsters with velour inserts) am I right in thinking that this car may be even more rare than the 2/3 of 350 made in V6?

Has anyone seen a full leather interior in an International before? I would be very interested to see pics of other people's interior to compare. I have never seen a "normal" one.

I will attach pics here when I am on the computer instead of my phone. There is a link here to some pics. Not sure if it will work..

https://goo.gl/photos/g4ySJhEJm85QgHEGA

Cheers

Shay

 

[Risky]

The pistachio leather was only for the International models as a limited release so you better look after it. It's a very flattering colour.

Very hard to find spare leather but late last night on eBay, I found this & at an excellent price VY LHF LHR Pistachio Leather Door Insert HSV VT VX VY VZ WH WK WL Genuine | eBay

If I were you I'd snap them up as a spare pair.

 

[Shay]

Snapped up ;-)

Drivers seat is what I'm after. A few tears in mine..

 

[Noeleter]

Even though it looks good, the change would tend to decrease the value of the car rather than increase it.

 

[Risky]

Even I did a quick search on the seats Shay & there isn't any. You may need to hit up an upholsterer.

 

[Shay]

Yeah I'm not too worried about the seats, I can get them re-upholstered. I'm pretty happy that the 8 way electrics on both front seats all still work though.

I have since found out that the trims I picked up (thanks Risky!) are the original first made reference trims which all other trims were colour matched against.. Interesting..

I think the value would not decrease, as the leather was a dealer fitment, same as if it had a towbar or roof racks.. Which it does ;-)

 

[sleepa]

Complete originality on something a little different is the only way to hold value. Excluding that, I figure if you replace like for like, exact same components then its the same car so should be worth the same amount. Granted as your car is more unusual then it could hold value to someone who realises that.

I myself have a Vx Berlina V8 Wagon, and have heard from plenty of people to leave it original. But I just think whatever, in my opinion it's not special of a car really so won't be worth huge dollars. But it is an awesome car though which is why I am modifying it, to make it more like it should have been in the first place, full leather, Manual, etc.

By the way. You definitely have a tidy looking wagon, that looks a bit different to most. Any chance of some more pics of it?

 

[Risky]

I do know there was a fair few Internationals made, but sales were on the decline as people moved to SUV's. At $90 those inserts are a steal.

Valuewise it would be up to who wants to pay. If you look after your vehicle, yes you'd get a good dollar out of it. I checked on Redbook & they say they aren't worth much. It's pretty much the same over the Holden range as they depreciate quickly. On the upside is that parts compared to Euro/Jap are very cheap.

I remember when the old Kingswood Panel Vans weren't worth anything. 85% had been bashed about by tradies. Now they are worth a tidy fortune regardless of condition.

 

[Shay]

There were 350 of the VY International made, and reportedly 2/3 were V6, 1/3 were V8. So mine is one of 240.

I'm pretty sure my interior is not common, as Google images does not show any of the same model with my interior. And google know everything ;-)

I also checked on rebook before I bought it and iirc it's value is over 25% higher than a standard commodore.

However, it is insured for significantly more than I paid for it, which is a good start.

Pics coming when I get my computer up and running again

 

[Risky]

The pistachio green leather was unique for the International but some came in pistachio leather/cloth (how many of each I don't know). My sources tell me only 325 were made. Basically they were custom wagons. So you're lucky to have full leather. If you need to check properly, go to the Holden site in the contacts section, give them your VIN & they can tell you the history of your wagon.

You'll probably find that in time they will go up in value. I remember when we all lusted for Monaros & those that were bought in the early 80's were cheap & it didn't matter if it was a 6cyl or V8 as most were converted & updated. You'll find now that the rarest Monaros are actually the 161 & 186 versions that have been unmolested. They fetch bigger prices than the V8's.