When the media write articles and do interviews in regards the investment aspect of classic cars, I find myself shouting at the TV. When I’m with a client and they ask me what I think the next great classic car investment is, I normally tell them a story about the last classic car recession or the one about the Honda S600.
I was at a house in Brampton and I was doing an MOT appraisal report for tax purposes. The car in question was a Honda S600 convertible sports car that was very much down in the dumps, body-wise, so bad it had to be carried around on a trailer. To say it needed restoration was only the beginning. After doing my report, I asked him what he wanted for the car, he said he wanted $2,700.00, an amount I thought was at least one thousand too much. I didn’t think again about the car until I read an article about the S600 involving Jay Leno. Now that Jay Leno had anointed this little car among the pantheon of collector vehicles, it was suddenly hot with a capital H. There are some universal truths about collector vehicles:
1) Never buy a 4 door car unless it is one of the Major Marques;
2) Think about demographics, is this car I’m about to buy an old man’s car?;
3) Taking into consideration 1 & 2, buying a convertible is always better;
4) Have a pre-purchase inspection done by someone who recognizes corrosion and the signs of the repair of previous corrosion;
5) If the service and restoration history isn’t available, think long and hard.
Back to the myth of investment, when there are so many aspects of classic car ownership that are hard to control, it’s hard to believe that investment and classic car ownership deserve to be in the same sentence.
LIPSTICK ON A PIG
Avoiding Life’s Lemons
Lipstick on a Pig features excerpts from the vast library of Maurice Bramhall’s experiences.
