I disagree Alan - it IS a performance derivative and here's my argument :
SeanDezart said:
Note that I said 'derivative' - as Samuri's cars were seen on the tracks, sometimes winning and press articles were published, so more customers came along with their cars for 'the treatment'. This car was so derived from motorsport !
I think the term "performance derivative" would be more correctly applied to the sports-focused models in a series offered by a manufacturer (so something like a Porsche 911S, 911R, 911RS, BMW CSL or 2002 Tii/2002 Turbo, Lancia Fulvia HF, ALFA Romeo Giulia GTV and - yes - Nissan Fairlady Z432 and Z432-R etc)
or a model improved/tuned by a factory-approved affiliate (Renault Alpine/Gordini, FIAT Abarth, BMW Alpina etc).
I think the RHS/Samuri situation is quite different. We are talking about a small operation, not factory affiliated or approved (not even concessionaire affiliated or approved in Datsun UK and Nissan UK's case) which was modifying cars pretty much on a case-by-case basis, the cloth cut to the pocket of the customer and - it has to be said - in most cases consisting of cylinder head mods, triple carburettors and an aftermarket exhaust system. Little or no specifically developed/fabricated parts (even the manifolds from outside suppliers like Mangoletsi and Janspeed, for example), little or no 'menu'/literature and a somewhat relaxed attitude to certain aspects of business.
Did they punch above their weight? Yes, I think so. But much of the RHS/Samuri Conversions reputation was built by the good period press coverage of FFA and the proper racing exploits of Big Sam and LAL. Your average Samuri customer car on the other hand was a fairly simple if effective device (showing the latent potential of the factory stock product in my opinion) and I see Samuri Conversions more along the lines of a company like Jeff Uren's 'Super Speed' and his 'Savage' Cortinas and Capris,
but not quite getting there...
SeanDezart said:
...but I feel that this car qualifies as more than standard and more than a very nice road car.
I agree, and I think it should be valued accordingly. So what makes this particular car - with stock interior (re-upholstered seats?), stock transmission, stock diff, almost stock standard brakes, stock tank, almost stock suspension etc etc (please correct me if I'm wrong, as I see little or nothing to contradict) - worthy of an auction estimate well into six figures? I can understand some people being happy with that estimate, but in my opinion it is ill-informed and to cheer it on is ill advised. All this is doing is confusing the market.
Nobody seems to know what these cars are worth in the UK at the moment and a bit of a reality check might well be in order.