The 19th annual Amelia Island Concours has come and gone. Our second shooting session for “What’s My Car Worth” is over. Now all that is left is to gather everything up, throw it in the van and drive south to Fort Lauderdale, where on Wednesday we set up the cameras […]
Author: Keith Martin
Keith’s Blog: See You in Florida!
It’s roadtrip time for me again. It’s a good thing I like cars, as my next two weeks are going to be full of them. Put Amelia Island weekend, Auctions America in Ft. Lauderdale and What’s My Car Worth into a mixing bowl, and you end up with a ticket […]
A Collector-Car Catechism
At times, the SCM offices resemble an automotive confessional. Emails, texts, Facebook postings, faxes and sometimes even old-school, hand-written letters flood in — each missive asking for collector-car absolution or permission. “Dear SCM, please forgive me as I have sinned and bought a car over the Internet without seeing it […]
Keith’s Blog: Does Having a Correct Engine Matter in an Affordable Classic?
First of all, this whole discussion is really the fault of Miles Collier, columnist for SCM and provocateur extraordinaire when it comes to making collectors actually think about what they are doing when they buy and sell old cars. Prior to meeting Miles, my criteria were simple: I can afford […]
Sell Keith Your Duetto
Last year I put out a call that I was looking for a 1967 Alfa Duetto and got several responses. Just as I was getting ready to pull the trigger, a tidy 1967 Giulia Super showed up on the radar. I couldn’t have both, so I took the four-door (to […]
Keith’s Blog: Is Paris the New Scottsdale?
The old car scene in Paris is heating up. Last year there were just two auctions in Paris during Rétromobile week: Bonhams and Artcurial. This year there were four, with RM joining the fray, and Artcurial adding an additional auction featuring a collection of Alfa Romeos. Furthermore, the annual SCM reception […]
Keith’s Blog: How I Almost Bought a Bastard AC Aceca
Strange things can happen to you at auctions. While shooting new episodes of “What’s My Car Worth” at Barrett-Jackson, one car, of the 1,405 there, caught my eye. Let’s not forget that what defines B-J is the acres and acres of highly polished, overly chromed, customized, raised or slammed, modified and stock […]
Grooming the Young Collectors
There’s no question that America’s love affair with the car has changed dramatically. The New York Times and Wall Street Journal regularly report on the decline of numbers of driver’s licenses among young people, of fewer miles being driven and declining sales figures of new cars. This lack of interest […]
Keith’s Blog: A Two-Alfa Day, But Where’s the Volvo?
This afternoon is a big day. I’m driving the 1958 Sprint Veloce Confortevole (SVC) to Jefferson, Oregon, picking up the Giulia Super and driving both cars back, with the help of Michael Pierce. (I’m sure the Sprint will be a completely different experience from Pierce’s 1967 427/435 Corvette roadster.) Since […]
Keith’s Blog: Scottsdale 2014 — A Myopic Perspective
The 2014 collector car market has launched. Today all the bidders are gone, and the temporary tents are starting to come down. The trashcans are full of discarded promotional items, bidders’ paddles and parking passes. The busiest guys in Arizona have to be the collector car transporters, as they load […]