Tracking Individual Classic Car Values with Classic Trader

Classic Trader has just added a very useful function to its website, www.classic-trader.com: international visitors and users of Germany’s largest marketplace for classic vehicles now have access to Classic Trader’s brand-new interactive guide, revealing the financial performance of the top 100 individual classic cars which have recorded the biggest shifts in value over the last six years.

Aston Martin DB2-4 - Tracking Individual Classic Car Values with Classic Trader

This has been achieved by tracking cars sold in that period of time, identified by their chassis number.

The interactive guide puts the exotic De Tomaso Mangusta in first place, with a growth of over 500% since 2010. Three British icons (Rolls Royce Phantom II, + 499%, Aston Martin DB2/4, + 469% and DB4 Vantage Volante, + 330%), two German classics (BMW M1, 449% and Mercedes 190SL Roadster, + 412%) and three Ferraris (512 BB, + 392%, 500 Superfast, + 354% and 212 Inter Europa by Vignale, + 330%) complete the top ten with French Talbot-Lago T26 GS (+ 327%).

Whilst the report highlights a somewhat predictable rise among the most sought-after models, more humble cars such as the Fiat 850 Spider and Lancia Integrale Evo 1 are proving to be equally desirable as they have doubled or even tripled in value since 2010.**

Classic Trader MD Timo Joost explains

Our decision to add this valuable reference tool to the website was inspired by a wish to cater for what many call ‘passion investing’; it is for anybody who enjoys classic vehicles and wishes to gain an insight of the classic car market, specific popular marques and interesting trending phenomena within market movements, with a view to investment. Like many other alternative investments, the classic car market is short of affordable, reliable, accurate information and/or analysis.

Whilst monitoring classic vehicle trends by recording auction prices achieved over a period of time is a fool-proof way to keep one’s finger on the market pulse, Classic Trader has gone a step further and has identified specific cars which have been sold within a certain timeframe, and calculated their increase (or decrease!) in value.

This method ensures that only like-for-like scenarios are compared, giving much higher confidence in the figures, instead of potentially basing assumptions on model value spikes that may be due to a particular car’s racing history or some other factor.

Crucially, the guide does not only track top marques: growth (or loss) shown is the result of public auction prices achieved by specific vehicles irrespective of the badge.

The analysis also shows average prices achieved by popular models such as the Mini, Ford Escort and Ford Capri; interestingly, although the Mini and the Capri show an increase of 32% and 24% respectively, the Escort reports a loss of 32%. Calculating averages, in fact, does not take into account other factors; for example, the rise in value of the Escort Mexico and the resulting flooding of the market with less prestigious Escort versions may have brought the average value down.

Note: Press release courtesy of Classic Trader.

Staff