Author: Keith Martin

Keith Martin has been involved with the collector car hobby for more than 30 years. As a writer, publisher, television commentator and enthusiast, he is constantly on the go, meeting collectors and getting involved in their activities throughout the world. He is the founder and publisher of the monthly Sports Car Market, now in its 33rd year. Keith has written for the New York Times, Automobile, AutoWeek, Road & Track and other publications, is an emcee for numerous concours, and had his own show, “What’s My Car Worth,” shown on Velocity. He has received many honors, including the Lee Iacocca Award, the Edward Herrman Award, was inducted into the Concorso Italiano Hall of Fame and more. He is on the boards of directors of The LeMay Museum and Oregon Ballet Theater, and was formerly the chair of the board of the Meguiar's Award.

Keith’s Blog: Shall We Drive to Monterey?

It’s never too early to start planning for Monterey Car Week. For several years, we organized a casual drive from Portland down the Pacific Coast. On our last trip, our motley crew included an Autozam AZ-1, an Alfa Giulia Super and Berlina, and a Citroën DS21 Decapotable. It won’t surprise […]

Keith’s Blog: Mercedes, Jaguar or Alfa?

The SCM 1000 is less than six months away. It will be an all-inclusive 1,000-mile romp on select, challenging two-lane roads of eastern Washington. With a hub in Spokane, in the heart of the restaurant district, the route will take us to the Grand Coulee Dam, rustic Lewiston, ID, and […]

Keith’s Blog: Upgrade or Stock?

I’ve been having a back-and-forth discussion with SCM Contributor Jim Schrager (my long-time mentor) about upgrading engines in vintage cars. This started when I mentioned to him that I was confused about 911 restorations. I see so many ads for early 911s that blather on and on about $250k restorations […]

Keith’s Blog: Happy New Year

Every first of January marks a new beginning. Go out to your garage, and take a look at your sleeping beauties. Think about how much effort has gone into finding, selecting, buying and refurbishing each one. Note that I didn’t say restoring, as now that we are grownups, we’ve all […]

Keith’s Blog: A Never-ending Sears Catalog

I was reminiscing with a friend last night about how our homes and childhoods would light up when the Sears, Montgomery Ward and Spiegel catalog would arrive around this time of year. We would always take turns picking out our favorites. I liked farm sets with plastic horses and cows. […]

It’s Not a Restoration, It’s a Build

Let’s make one thing clear right from the start: A car is only “as-born” once. It can never be returned to that state. Any attempts to do so result in a fictional re-creation, done to please the owner and whatever standards he is aspiring toward. And that’s okay. We can’t […]