Would you sign up for the SCM Expedition? I watched with admiration and envy as the Copperstate 1000 added an off-road component. The Copperstate Overland is a six-day, five-night romp through the wilds of Arizona. A fully-supported luxury “glamping” moment, it is open to pre-1979 rigs, and limited to just […]
Author: Keith Martin
Keith’s Blog: Don’t Forget to Ask About the Keys
I’ve gotten spoiled by Bring a Trailer. One of the benefits of their bespoke listing format is that sellers have learned to be complete in their descriptions. If they are not, the BaT peanut gallery is sure to chime in. A case in point. A friend of mine recently purchased […]
Keith’s Blog: Which Car for a Road Trip?
In just a few days, Bradley and I will be heading out for a 1,600-mile road trip. This journey is long overdue. It’s been almost two years since we threw our bags in the back of a car, put the top down and headed out from Portland. Our travel […]
Bring a Trailer’s Big Step
There’s someone I’d like you to meet.” That’s how Martin Swig introduced me to Randy Nonnenberg, co-founder of Bring a Trailer. We were in front of the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco, where the cars for the California Mille were staged. “Randy has created this great website called Bring a […]
Keith’s Blog: This Week a Ferrari Got Away!
Last week it was a 1975 Citroën DS23 that I backed off on. It sold for $37,800. This week’s temptation was a 2003 Ferrari 456M GTA. Matt Crandall at the Avant-Garde Collection is constantly getting in the way of my attempts be a thoughtful, patient collector. I asked him to handle […]
Keith’s Blog: No Citroën for Me
When SCMer Greg Long listed a 1975 DS23 Pallas on Bring a Trailer, it caught my attention. In addition to being a very-late model with a 2.3-liter engine, it had a Citromatic 4-speed automatic that you shifted manually. I’ve always had a soft spot for Citroëns. Whenever I see one, […]
Keith’s Blog: The Uber Rollback Program
Three strikes and you’re out. That’s been my philosophy with old cars for some time. Recognizing that a car that comes into the SCM Collection may not have been used regularly, I anticipate a period of unreliability as they are put into service. However, our 1965 Volvo is testing my […]
Keith’s Blog: A Father’s Day Trifecta
I celebrated Father’s Day in car-guy style. In one day, my 13-year-old son Bradley and I drove special cars from three different eras. We started by taking the 1965 Alfa Romeo Giulia Spider Veloce out of storage. My good friend Neil D’Autremont has been managing the SCM cars. The car […]
Keith’s Blog: Finding New Experiences in Paris — and with Cars
When my daughter Alexandra and I go to Paris, our dinner the first night is always at Le Relais de l’Entrecôte. It’s a European chain that is known for its steak and fries (frites) — and its savory green-tinged steak sauce. Your only choices are how you want your […]
Every Car Is a Book
Think of the world of collectible cars as a giant lending library. While every book is different, most have just five chapters. Aware. Acquire. Activate. Exult. Farewell. These are the five chapters that mark the relationship with every collector car that comes into your life. When the last chapter is […]