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 and bi-monthly American Car Collector magazines, has written for the New York Times, Automobile, AutoWeek, Road & Track and other publications, is an emcee for numerous concours, and has his own show, “What’s My Car Worth,” shown on Velocity.
The worst new car often performs better than the best old car.
To remind myself of that, I try to rent the most basic car possible when I’m on the road.
My ride for the past two weeks in Mexico has been a Hyundai Grand i10. This model doesn’t exist in the United States. The comparison tests I have found for it on the web list the Maruti Suzuki Swift as its main competitor. It is popular in Mexico, Read More
Just 10 days ago, I watched as a spectacular 1929 Duesenberg J/SJ convertible and a 1963 Ferrari 250/275P were crowned as the winners of the 2018 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance.
One week later, I was climbing up the side of a 1,000-year-old Mayan pyramid in Yucatan, Mexico.
Earlier that day I had explored a cave in nearby Loltun, with a human and animal history that goes back 10,000 years. There were paint handprints on the walls that were 2,500 years Read More
The 23rd Annual Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance is in the history books.
Best of Show Concours de Sport was a 1963 Ferrari 250/275 P owned by the JSL Motorsports Collection of Redwood City, CA. Best of Show Concours d’Elegance was won by a 1929 Duesenberg J/SJ convertible entered by Harry Yeaggy of Cincinnati, OH. (Video available here).
For the second year in a row, dire weather forecasts forced the organizers to move the concours from Sunday to Saturday — Read More
On Saturday, August 18, I’m driving south from Portland, OR to Monterey.
This will be my third year doing this — it took me 27 years to figure out that the perfect way to get to Monterey Car Week is in a classic car.
Every year, SCM sponsors a class of Alfas at Concorso Italiano. Two years ago it was Duettos, and we had a glorious time driving the 1967 SCM Roundtail down. Last year, it was GTVs. SCM Read More
We picked the cars we planned to profile in this issue during a routine editorial meeting last January.
Each month, Managing Editor Jim Pickering goes through recent sales, and he then presents those of interest to me, Executive Editor Chester Allen and Art Directors Dave Tomaro and Jeff Stites.
We try to have an entertaining and informative mix each month. We look for sales of significance that represent a wide spectrum of the market. Having good art to accompany the Read More
It’s been five years since I last attended the Boca Raton Concours d’Elegance. It’s a different event now than it was then. On Sunday there were 220 cars on display, ranging from appetizing to stunning. Lincoln was the featured marque.
I’ll have a complete report next week.
As a part of the weekend, Wayne Carini and I led a discussion about collecting with Jay Leno and Tim Allen.
I posed this question to both Leno and Allen: “If you could Read More
The Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 Monza was one of the great sports cars of all time. Only 189 8C 2300s of all types were built, and Gooding sold one for $11,990,000 at their 2016 Pebble Beach auction.
I wasn’t expecting to see one at the Salem Roadster Show, a gathering of hot rods and customs.
This was the 12th Annual Salem Roadster show, and I had never attended. Salem, the capital of Oregon, is about 45 miles by direct Read More
The Alfa 1967 Giulia Super is our family sports car. It has four doors and rear seats that can accommodate full-sized adults.
Two summers ago, we took it on a 1,000-mile trip across Oregon. Bradley, then 8, and his friend Grayson occupied the rear seat. They lived in the back for five days. With all the snacks, lunches, sodas and souvenirs, the debris on the back seat looked like it could have filled a dumpster.
Is there a better time to get kids involved with old cars than when they are 6 to 12 years old?
There are already a few “junior judge” programs, often supported by Hagerty, at concours. These programs generally mix kids from pre-teenagers to 18 years old.
However, I think there should be a class specifically for kids from age 6 to 12.
I’d like to see them all with t-shirts that say, “Concours Judge – The Next Generation.”
The goal Read More
I took our 1967 Alfa Romeo GTV out for a drive through downtown traffic last week.
It was like bringing a knife to a gunfight.
The weather was overcast — but not raining — when I left SCM World Headquarters in Portland, OR.
The last time I had put miles on the GTV was when I drove it to Monterey last August. With Robert Cumberford as my co-pilot, it was a delightful trip.
The car never skipped a beat — Read More
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