Keith Martin’s Adventures
Follow his weekly thoughts on the collector car market, and his time behind the wheel.
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Keith’s Blog: Going Where Dents are Encouraged
Dust. Thick, clinging dust everywhere. That’s a consequence of being 7th in line on a vintage Rover tour to far eastern Oregon. Every year or so, Doug Shipman of the Oregon Chapter of the Pacific Coast Rover Club puts together a summer tour. Camping out is a part of the equation. Our trip started in…
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Keith’s Blog: An Austin-Healey 100S and a World War II PT Boat
There was something for everyone at the 18th Annual Collector Car and Classic Boat Show on August 26-27. Held in Lake Oswego, Oregon – a suburb of Portland – this show from the Oswego Heritage Council always attracts great cars and great people. For example, an Austin-Healey 100S was on hand, amid a Bugeye Sprite,…
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Keith’s Blog: Broken Bradleys and Alfa Romeos – My Monterey Week
Monterey Mayhem is done for the year. Thousands of classic cars are streaming away from the Peninsula — some in trailers and some driven. During the week, I watched RM Sothebys sell an Aston Martin DBR1 for a record-breaking $22.55m, Gooding hammer a Porsche 917K for new record of $14m and Bonhams set a record…
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Keith’s Blog: Just 160 Miles to Go Until Monterey
As I write this, it’s Monday morning and Day Three of this year’s journey from Portland, OR to Monterey Car Week. Our 1967 Alfa GTV has covered over 700 miles and is packed and ready for the final leg. My co-pilot is SCM styling and design analyst Robert Cumberford, who started this trip from his…
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Keith’s Blog: Three Alfas Start, Two Finish the Forest Grove Wine Tour
“Dad, there’s a big clunk from the front of the GTV.” That was my daughter Alexandra’s message to me as she headed home from Durant Vineyards in Dayton, Oregon. We were on the 15th Annual Wine Tour, held as a prelude to the Forest Grove Concours d’Elegance. I enjoy this casual drive every year, as…
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Keith’s Blog: Happy Independence Day
I’m on a big Land Rover club expedition through the rugged terrain of eastern Oregon right now, and I keep thinking how lucky we are to share this great world of old cars and their adventures. Bradley is along on the trip, and he’s seeing some amazing sights — and loving every minute of bouncing…
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Keith’s Blog: Unrestored in Costa Rica
The crappier the car the better. That seems to be the mantra of some collectors these days. Instead of trying to restore cars to better-than-new condition, they look for the most original vehicle they can find. The more bedraggled the better. You can even find people who will “un-restore your car” and make it look…
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Keith’s Blog: When It’s Time for a Car to Go
We’ve decided that our time with the SCM Mehari has come to an end. A couple of Alfas are coming out of restoration, so we need to free up some space in the garage. We’ve enjoyed the Mehari — and we’ve done quite a bit to make it a very good driver (all things in…
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Keith’s Blog: Driven: Two Alfas, a Lotus and a Viper
I had a gearhead’s holiday last weekend. In the course of two days, I got to put nearly 100 miles each on the SCM Lotus Elise, the ACC Dodge Viper ACR GTS and two vintage Alfas — the 1965 Giulia Spider Veloce and the 1967 GTV. These are all sports cars, but they each represent…
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Keith’s Blog: I Almost Bought a Junior Z
Online auctions have transformed the collector car world. In a matter of minutes — in your own office — you go from contemplating a quiet lunch to posting a $35,000 bid. I was editing the next issue of American Car Collector last Friday when a text message popped up on my phone. “BaT Auction Alert:…