THE CLASSIC CAR MARKET
The classic car market is a thoroughly international affair and that’s not just about the automotive jewellery at the top of the tree – from the UK, Tim surveys the current state of the market.
New Zealand obviously has its own tweaks to the international market, mainly concerning locally-built product, and a wider interest in Americana. My view from afar comes from the British market, which is definitely one of the hubs of the international scene, and since the whole of New Zealand has a market the size of a substantial British city, and similar tastes in cars, there’s a large degree of cross-over, it would be interesting to see some responses from those trading in old cars.
There are some interesting things going on in classic car trading at the moment. It seems to have completely bucked the trend as a whole when it comes to the effect of Covid.
Instead of depressing the market it seems that people had time on their hands and money to spend, and during the most serious times of the pandemic they were turning increasingly to internet sales, without actually sighting the cars. Sight unseen seems to be a risk worth taking these days, which mirrors the new car and recent second-hand markets where you can just choose a car on the internet and have it delivered without so much as talking to a bona fide car dealer.
One thing that is also clearly happening is that early post-war and pre-war cars are not selling well, unless they have a particular provenance, or evergreen status such as that enjoyed by Bugattis and the like.
A Model A, Y or T Ford is suffering, as are everyday offerings from marques such as Morris, Austin, and the Rootes Group. Even Jaguar, Rolls-Royce and Bentley cars from this era are now slow sellers. MGs are just about holding their own, as are Alvis.
The people who were holding values up for these cars are shedding their collections, and there’s no one out there of an age that takes an interest. These are sweeping generalities I know, but the picture is there. What you find in the showroom is that many people of an age to take an interest in classic cars are also suffering from stiff joints, bad backs, or unbendable legs.
This means that cars with short doors (MGA, Midget, TR2-3, XK120-140) or big
steering wheels that hinder exit and entry are being shied away from, as well as older vehicles that are harder to drive and can’t easily keep up with modern traffic. E-Types had a similar problem as their wide sills and big steering wheels make entry a difficult process for many would-be buyers. The answer with an E-Type is to go for a V12 with their longer doors and smaller steering wheel, and prices of these are now shooting up after too long in the doldrums. A 2+2 is an answer, but that seems a step too far.
Big Healeys are OK because the shape of their door is better located with regard to their seats. American cars like-wise, and they are big enough and high enough to slide into. Buyers are also increasingly specifying electronic power steering, which has matured as a feature such that it doesn’t spoil the character of the car and can be ‘unfitted’ if required.
The MGB and C have also remained strong, as one of the evergreens, with people at last seeing the cloud rise from the MGC. This is actually a very good car with the right tyre pressures, and since most people use their classics for touring, the ‘C’ makes more sense. Much underrated and still undervalued. There are very few parts you cannot get for the MGB and C, which makes them very tolerable as an entry
classic. A car that has similarly shed its poor image is the Triumph Stag, which fits well into the category of easy to get in and out of, makes a lovely noise, and these days you would have to be very unlucky to pick up a Stag that hasn’t had the benefit of a decent engine rebuild using all the knowledge to put its previous ills asunder. A Stag is a nice car to own these days, as long as you look after it properly.
Whilst early Fords are having a hard time, anything from the sixties onwards has gone ballistic, especially if it is a ‘Fast Ford.’ Most of these are now beyond the reach of the impecunious enthusiast.
One thing that really ramps the price of a sporty car is its eligibility and suitability for racing series. Any car that fits into a Goodwood race category has now risen into the silly price region, no matter what the condition, because if it is being prepared for racing it will be stripped to a bare shell anyway.
EARLY OR LATE MODELS?
One of the things that I find quite ridiculous about classic car prices is the need to get a very early example, the earlier the better from a price perspective with the highest prices paid for the earliest cars. Anyone who has worked in the motor industry knows that even before a new model is released, development departments are working hard on any early SNAFU to make the car a more saleable proposition. The E-Type, Range Rover, and Porsche 911s are all good examples of this.
Early E-Types had horrid brakes and insufficient room in the footwells. But if you have a flat floor, an exterior bonnet lock and louvres tattily welded into the bonnet you’ll pay nearly twice as much.
It can be argued that the earlier 3.8-litre is a silkier unit, but there is no real argument in favour of a Moss gearbox, the Jaguar designed unit fitted to the later 4.2 model is a fine proposition.
It is when it comes to E-Type aesthetics that the water is muddied somewhat. Most prefer the faired-in headlamp covers to the higher chrome trimmed ones on the later 4.2s, and whilst the Series 2s are much better cooled by their bigger radiator inlet, the classic S1 shape inlet is much preferred. The same can be said for the tail lamp set-up. Make no bones, the S2 E-Type is a better car, it just isn’t as classically pretty. The 2+2 is a much nicer proposition to own and use, and if the S1 hadn’t been so pretty and come before it, no one would be complaining. However, the 2+2 does look a bit tall and humpy compared to the fixed head coupé. Once the car was made wider for the V12 that problem was not as obvious. A drophead
V12 E-Type makes a lot of sense as a classic buy at the moment, with longer doors and a smaller steering wheel making it far more accessible to the stiffer-jointed generation.
The E-Type to have is a 1965-1966 Series 1-1.5, which gives you the great aesthetics, a more comfortable cabin and faired in headlamps, a sorted gearbox and an engine with bags of torque. I would also argue in favour of a V12 which is a fabulous beast to drive, easier to get in and out of and well sorted, but I don’t think the world is quite ready for that argument yet.
Range Rovers are a similar story, people go mad to have this early prefix or that, indicating that it was a near prototype, but later ones are much better sorted, an auto ‘box and four doors make it much more suitable for purpose and a 3.9-litre engine is a positive compared to the original, slightly breathless low compression 3.5-litre V8. Range Rovers start to get into trouble in terms of desirability once they introduced self-levelling and air suspension.
The Porsche 911 story is well told, an early car is a bit of a liability in the handling stakes, the longer wheelbase improved them, and the engines generally got better and better, the appeal though started to lean off once water cooling was introduced, despite the obvious benefits.
Just about every car got better as time went on, except when American legislation forced strangulated emission-friendly engines and rubber 5mph bumpers upon us in the midseventies. The market is now a little friendlier to these cars, with the bumpers somehow becoming acceptable and ‘characterful’ – the younger generation just doesn’t seem to care.
When you see how ugly modern cars are, what is acceptable and what is not, is a line that has become faded over time. The engines of cars of this age are now easily robbed of the strangulating emission devices. Early XJ-S models are good examples as they are turning a better price than later, more attractive ones. The late rubber bumper did have the most powerful engine in European guise though, which helps its sale price along.
GOLD STANDARD
So, with the gold standard being the Porsche 911, its price reliably high, evergreens such as the E-Type and MGB are still thundering through most sales and auction rooms while VW Microbuses are getting ever more popular – so, what are the obvious outliers?
The MGA; Sunbeam Alpine; early Audis; Series 2 Jaguar XJs (the coupé bird has flown though); the XJ40 has yet to pick up its skirts, but it will; Toyota AE86s, Celicas and MR2s; Pre-1990 BMWs (be quick on the E30); Triumph Dolomite and 2.5; Rover P6; Vauxhall Chevette and Firenza; LandCrabs and later Alfa Romeos.
British specialists are not performing
– the Reliant Scimitar along with Gilbern and Marcos cars have not yet attracted the attention of those that set the prices, despite being fast, comfortable and, with the exception of the Marcos, easy to get in and out of. For me the early bird catches the Mazda MX-5 before it’s too late and people realise what an exceptional car it is.
These views are largely Brit-centric, and of course Aussie Muscle tends to dominate the New Zealand scene, the same with the US market and the intricacies of their marques are particular to them. It would be interesting to hear how Kiwi classic car dealers and auctioneers see the current local market.