Let’s start right away with the most romantic “case” – classic cars. Oh, the charm of antiquity with the aromas of leaded fuel…
In 2022, in Stuttgart, an anonymous buyer purchased at auction one of two 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhauts built for $143 million. This value became a record in the entire history of transactions at auctions on sales of vintage cars. The previous record was held by a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO, which sold for almost $48.4 million at auction in Monterey.
In 2016, international luxury real estate agency Knight Frank declared classic cars the best investment of the decade. According to the Knight Frank Luxury Investment Index, over a ten-year period, investments in collectible models brought a 467% return. But wait until your retired neighbor runs after the Volga, expecting to receive 100% of his net earnings in a few years. The number of classic cars going under the hammer has increased dramatically in recent years, which has greatly slowed price increases. According to a 2023 Knight Frank report, today the return on investment in automotive classics is estimated at 25% per year and 185% over ten years.
However, in the collectible classic car market, age is only part of the equation. A big role is played by the limited edition in which the model was released, at what events it was released, who worked on it, whether it itself participated in any events such as prestigious races or the filming of cult films, whether it was owned by show business stars or politicians and , of course, what condition it is in. Needless to say, the car must be in full working order, original down to every screw and shiny, as if it had just left the assembly line. It is approximately from this multi-layered “pie” that the high value of the lot is formed. There is no “layer” – lower potential for growth in price over the years.
In addition, we must not forget that maintaining and caring for your collector car also costs a pretty penny. What can we say about restoration and searching for original spare parts?! Many large collectors even store their cars in special sealed boxes, where a certain atmosphere is maintained in order to neutralize the natural aging process of car components. One such “box” will cost the cost of a new budget sedan.