Keith Martin
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Keith’s Blog: How Many Cars Do You Need?
It’s the eternal recurring question for gearheads. How many cars to you really need? Usually, the answer is determined by how many parking spaces you have. But for the moment let’s assume you have unlimited space. I have found that when you get beyond five or six cars, you are not driving any of them…
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Keith’s Blog: The Daily Vroom Interview with SCM Publisher Keith Martin
TDV: Hi Keith, thanks for speaking with us at The Daily Vroom. What inspired you to create Sports Car Market, and how has it influenced the classic car market over the years? KM: My role model was the Ferrari Market Letter, founded by Gerald Roush. It was well-written, and he required chassis numbers for all…
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Keith’s Blog: How Alfa Romeo Lost to Porsche
In 1964, Alfa Romeo and Porsche were roughly on par with their mass-production cars. The 356C and the Giulia Spider Veloce had similar performance. But by 1970 the two companies were worlds apart and have continued to diverge. Two things happened. First, in 1965 Porsche introduced the 6-cylinder 911. It immediately outclassed Alfa’s new offering…
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Dakar or Bust?
I’ve been writing about off-road Porsches since 2003. That’s when my review of the new Cayenne models appeared in The New York Times. My first reaction to an SUV from Stuttgart was that it was like watching someone hiking the Yosemite Falls Trail in an Armani suit and Gucci loafers. However, Porsche management was more…
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Keith’s Blog: Reserve or No Reserve at Online Auction?
I’ve been watching a variety of online chats about selling strategies for online auctions. They revolve around whether it is better to list a car with a reserve (a minimum price that must be met or the car doesn’t sell) or no reserve (the highest bid takes the car, no matter how low). Your approach…
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Keith’s Blog: Creating a Legacy, One Pound of Air at a Time
In a short period, my son Bradley’s access to the SCM fleet have made him a favorite of his cohorts at Lincoln High School, where he is a sophomore. He is the founder and president of the first car club in the history of the school, “The Cardinals Car Club.” (A cardinal is the Lincoln…
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Keith’s Blog: My New Year’s Resolution
I bought my first car the day I turned 16, hours after I passed my driving test. (I was first in line when the DMV opened at 8 a.m.) I still think the $30 I spent for the Bug Eye Sprite with no first or reverse gear was “above market.” That was 57 years ago.…
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Keith’s Blog: 3,000 Miles in the Mercedes
Last Sunday was brisk and sun-lit. We decided to exercise our 1972 Mercedes 250C. I keep a log for all my cars. I discovered it had been six weeks since we last drove it. It took six to eight pumps on the throttle before it would fire up. The Webers still need the cold-idle speed…
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Fantasy Meets Reality
As I wrote about in the October 2023 issue, my son Bradley got his driver’s license last summer. As a “safe and sane” first car, we decided on a 1982 Chevrolet Corvette Collector’s Edition. It was probably more my fantasy than his, but the right car at the right price suddenly appeared. I am genetically…
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Keith’s Blog: More Christmas Wishes
Last week we talked about the care and feeding of SCM’s 2006 Lotus Elise, 1971 Mercedes 250C and 2000 Land Rover Discovery II and what they each needed to be considered “in service.” Our 1971 Jaguar E-type V12 coupe has turned out to be our “go-to” car for long distance tours. It’s covered over 6,000…