Ok, what is going to be the next big thing?

[carltonboyce]

I now find myself in the very fortunate position of having a few quid to invest in a nice classic car (rubbish interest rates = me with a big smile and the wife's blessing!). It has to be great to drive - and if I could find the next Alfa GTA or Aston V8 (both of which I have been delaying buying for ten years, and now find that I can't afford them) and so make a nice profit over the next ten/twenty years then that would be even better!

So, what do people think is the most under-valued, under-rated sleeper in the classic car world?? If you had £25k, then what would you be buying?

Edited by carltonboyce on Monday 15th June 14:32

[nc107]

Series 1 1.6 Fulvias (homologation car for the Fulvia rally car which won the WRC - not to be confused with the s2 1600HF) are now c.€50k + in Europe, but if you can find one in a RHD country (UK or Aus) they are about half that (mainly due to exchange rates) if you can find one. Ex works cars are now into 6 figures. Prices (mainly in Europe) have been creeping up remorselessly over the last few years. Lancia Flamina GT's are also good value at the moment (C£25k for good ones), as the natural successor to the Aurelia (now c£80k for well restored ones) I suspect over the next years they will fill the void left by the increase in Aurelia prices.

But beware restoration costs - they are ferocious if you buy incorrectly.

Depends what your tastes are really.

[AndrewW-G]

I'm no doubt going to get flamed for this but........................Ferrari 400/400i/412 it's the only way to get into a classic(colombo) V12 engined Ferrari for under £50k. for £5k you can have almost the same amount of fun as somebody spending £150k on a daytona, the only downside is that the servicing costs will be about the same

[Kickstart]

Maybe an Audi Quattro, possibly a NSX

Personally I would go for something that you think is awesome and hopefully the market will eventually agree

On that basis i would go for;

Boat tail 60's Alfa spider
Bentley contintal R - now advertised for £30k so maybe £25k would buy one
Really lovely 60's MGB on wires
Porsche 993

[IanMorewood]

TVR Griffs seem to be rock solid price wise at the moment and have a rather timeless look.
Audi 2.1 Quattro, I think Gene Hunt may have some sort of impact on this of recent.
Lancia Delta Teg, good ones are going up in value.
Escort Cossie, again good ones are going up.
Aston Matrin DB7, you could loose a bit on these but depreciation will be minor.

[Gravy]

Ferrari 456 or if you could go a little further, a 355?

Porsche 930 Turbo, or Clubsport if the budget gets one

BMW M635CSi

BMW 3.0 CSi or CSL

Lancia Integrale Evo

Alfa GTV2000

TVR Griffith

Jensen Interceptor

Rolls Royce Corniche Coupe

Jaguar XJS Lister

Range Rover Classic

Lotus Cartlon

Citroen SM

BMW E28 M5

Honda NSX

Ford Escort Cosworth

Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth

Probably way off the mark but some very interesting cars in there that should be a lot of fun to own!

[Edmundo2]

Carrera 3.2. Late 80's model, low miles.

[stuttgartmetal]

Edmundo2 said:

Carrera 3.2. Late 80's model, low miles.

Any good impact bumper car.
Clubsports, rare, and overvalued for what they are.
A good C3.2 will do it.

[Gravy]

Edmundo2 said:

Carrera 3.2. Late 80's model, low miles.

http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/838746.htm



Lovely

[carltonboyce]

Thanks; some great cars there, some of which are already on a (longish) short list. The Range Rover Classic is starting to look like a very safe bet, and the GTV 2000 must be following the 1750. Porsche 911 I like the sound of too - and the Continental R would be marvellous...

What do you think of the Aston Virage? Worth a punt on the basis that the V8 has gone silly and this is sure to follow? Or a Bristol? As a marque they seem to me to be so very under-valued that they must be due to rise?

I know that this whole conversation is so dreadfully commercial but it's a lot of money to me and after persuading my wife that we should be able to do better than the banks for a reasonable return (and I'm excluding running costs as the price of having some fun with it), it would be very embarrassing if I ended up losing a packet!

[Nigel Worc's]

Gravy said:

Edmundo2 said:

Carrera 3.2. Late 80's model, low miles.

http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/838746.htm



Lovely

+1

I don't care how fast or slow it is, whether anything is considered better or not, I'd just love to own one for the smile factor it'd give me, which I think is what owning a classic car is all about.

[williamp]

carltonboyce said:

Thanks; some great cars there, some of which are already on a (longish) short list. The Range Rover Classic is starting to look like a very safe bet, and the GTV 2000 must be following the 1750. Porsche 911 I like the sound of too - and the Continental R would be marvellous...

What do you think of the Aston Virage? Worth a punt on the basis that the V8 has gone silly and this is sure to follow? Or a Bristol? As a marque they seem to me to be so very under-valued that they must be due to rise?

I know that this whole conversation is so dreadfully commercial but it's a lot of money to me and after persuading my wife that we should be able to do better than the banks for a reasonable return (and I'm excluding running costs as the price of having some fun with it), it would be very embarrassing if I ended up losing a packet!

some great cars listed- dont forget that anyone selling their car will say its an "appreciating classic"- for example an Aston DBS V8....

If you look at what appreciated in value recently, it tended to be from a certain age- ie the new owners/investors were young when the cars were new. So where will the money be in a few years when you decide to sell??? What cars will appeal to the owners who now think "I always wanted one of those, and now I can afford one as a second car to play with..."

As for the Virage, they are suffering at the moment and look tempting. Its a lot of car for relatively little money. However, nobody is buying them, they dont have a brilliant reputation, and are expensive to keep in good condition- which you'll need to do if you wnat to make money from them.

The Aston V8 range is still relatively affordable, an the DBS V8 has the classic styling, the James bond/Persuaders connections, the V8 engine and there are some few very nice examples out there. But then, I would say that as I'm selling mine for a DB7!

[jamieboy]

I would say this, but an Alfa Romeo SZ or RZ.

They've got rarity on their side (1036-ish and 284-ish respectively) and they tend to be on the wish-list of most Alfa fans, being the last rwd Alfa until the 8C and still having the classic Arese V6. And although they were built after the Fiat takeover, they're still kind of the last car Alfa built as an independent company*. They get mentioned in magazine lists of 'coolest cars', and even people who say they would never buy an Alfa tend to make an exception for them.

They've been more or less stable in price for about 10 years now, and as time goes on they're becoming rarer. I think there's also a bit of a split developing between good ones and cheap ones, so if you get a good one and look after it then I think** you might be onto something.



* Independent of other car companies, that is.
** Think, and hope.

[300bhp/ton]

carltonboyce said:

Thanks; some great cars there, some of which are already on a (longish) short list. The Range Rover Classic is starting to look like a very safe bet, and the GTV 2000 must be following the 1750. Porsche 911 I like the sound of too - and the Continental R would be marvellous...

What do you think of the Aston Virage? Worth a punt on the basis that the V8 has gone silly and this is sure to follow? Or a Bristol? As a marque they seem to me to be so very under-valued that they must be due to rise?

I know that this whole conversation is so dreadfully commercial but it's a lot of money to me and after persuading my wife that we should be able to do better than the banks for a reasonable return (and I'm excluding running costs as the price of having some fun with it), it would be very embarrassing if I ended up losing a packet!

I would think its worth noting that some of the more interesting cars are likely to cost a fortune to keep running for 10-15 years, even more so if they need a restoration.

In the case of the RR, it'll probably hold its money well, but I can't see it ever being worth much, partly because so many were built and still on the road and that they made them up until 1995/6.

If you want to go for one of these, go for an early one or maybe a 3 door CSK: http://www.rangerovercsk.com/technical.html

These are ones that will hold their value better.

Other cars I'd say have a look at would be some of the Yanks. C4 Corvette's are great purchase at present (prices even look like they have started to rise), so its a dead cert they will be worth more in 10 years time. They are also cheap and easy to maintain and generally very reliable an durable.

60's Mustangs and 70's Trans Am's/Camaro's would be a good bet too. Or something a little more odd ball like Charger or Roadrunner.

Plenty of classic Brits to consider as well, Series II and III Jags are picking up in value as are XJS's.

[AJAX50]

Aim for a car with good a competition history, ideally some provenance and made in small numbers/ not many left.
How about a Mk 1 Jag. just about get a pristine one for £25K and good to maintain if rust free.

[aeropilot]

Well, I'll probably get flamed here, but if you are so concerned about the 'investment' I take it you won't be driving it much and you are looking for a garage queen...?

If however, you want to drive it, then I believe you should not be looking at anything post 1980-ish, and ideally not really post the free-VED cut-off date, as I have a feeling that future legislation is going to make a post '73 'classic' more of a lottery as an investment, than a post '73 car.

If I had £25k for a classic now, I'd be looking at Mk2 Jag, Lotus-Cortina, Sunbeam Tiger, early RS1600, a 60's Alfa or early maybe early 70's Alfa 2000 GTV or maybe a Montreal...???

[velocemitch]

2000 GTV keeps cropping up, (note not GTV2000 that's a later car) but nobody has mentioned the Sprint Veloce GT ot GTV. The earlier cars are more in demand for racing and rallying this is pushing the values higher than the post 67 cars. It's true values of 1750's and 2000GTV are rising (hope so I have one of each!), but I doubt they will go as high as the earlier cars will.

[968CS]

Alfa Montreal........ only way to go

[shirt]

velocemitch said:

2000 GTV keeps cropping up, (note not GTV2000 that's a later car) but nobody has mentioned the Sprint Veloce GT ot GTV. The earlier cars are more in demand for racing and rallying this is pushing the values higher than the post 67 cars. It's true values of 1750's and 2000GTV are rising (hope so I have one of each!), but I doubt they will go as high as the earlier cars will.

i think all variants still have a way to go, chiefly because you can't open a classic mag these days without seeing a giulia feature having largely been overlooked in the past. just so long as they don't go too high until i have one in my garage!

i can't help thinking the original aston lagonda rapide is undervalued. only 55 made, prices around £30-35k, essentially a 4dr db4 and renewed interest/appeal ahead with the new model. gunmetal w red leather on wires for me please!

[Sam_68]

968CS said:

Alfa Montreal........ only way to go broke fast

EFA