Columns


  • 1937 Jaguar SS 100 2 1/2-Liter Roadster

    Once favored by impecunious young Spitfire pilots and cads about town, the SS 100 is now a blue chip collectible with price to match Founded in Blackpool by William Walmsley, the Swallow Sidecar & Coachbuilding Company branched out into motor manufacture in 1926, its first major success being an attractive sports saloon on the Austin…

  • 1995 Bugatti EB110 GT Coupe

    That Club Bugatti France actually welcomes owners of the EB110 is testament to the members’ regard for Artioli’s effort Forty years after Ettore Bugatti’s death in 1947, the once legendary marque-one of the most renowned in automotive history-was acquired by ambitious Italian businessman Romano Artioli. His aim was nothing less than a resurrection of Bugatti…

  • Factory Fake or Certified Authentic?

    The market continues to surge toward all-time highs and surpass the prices made 18 years ago as more and more people look to buy used cars at all levels. For those looking to buy, questions about authenticity and provenance continue to be one of their keys to valuation. As we noted in our review of…

  • Sell Now or Leave the Ferrari to the Kids?

    The IRS can’t tax you after you’re gone, so they tax you on the way out Last month, Publisher Martin made some insightful observations about the current state of the collector car market and how collectors should act in (September, “Time to Buy, Sell or Hold?” p. 10). I won’t question Keith’s views of the…

  • Banking on Ferraris

    One doesn’t have to be Fed czar Ben Bernanke’s tennis partner to know the world’s economic markets are volatile, but how does that relate to the present and future Ferrari market? As aspiring Ferrari-socio-economists, we always look at the past to gaze into the future. Let’s begin with the first fuel crisis of late 1973.…

  • Traveling Healey-Hopefully

    Constant attention is part of the experience of English cars. When you arrive at your destination, you have achieved something {vsig}2007-10_2073{/vsig} Most gearheads agree that a classic car doesn’t come to life until it’s driven on the open road. Highly organized thousand-mile tours have allowed many owners to put some miles under their classic wheels,…

  • Living the 356 Dream

    One of the best things is just banging around local roads and pretty scenery with a few 356s running along with you The Gathering of the Faithful. That’s what they used to call the annual meeting of 356 owners 30 years ago. Everyone got together, looked at each other’s cars, swapped tall tales, and generally…

  • 1961-79 MG Midget

    These are truly small cars. Anyone larger than 5’9″ driving one looks like a trained circus bear in a parade The early ’60s were the golden age of the British sports car. The British Motor Corporation (BMC) aimed to have a product for every possible driver. MG dealers were clamoring for a car smaller and…

  • 1967 Corvette 427/435 L71

    1967 Corvette 427/435 L71

      In the Corvette world, three models have dominated the collector market: the 1957 with fuel injection, the 1963 Split-Window Sting Ray with fuel injection, and the 1967 Sting Ray with the top horsepower 427 engines. Other years may have offered better performance, superior features, or better styling, but this threesome tops the value list.…

  • 1953 Chevrolet Corvette Roadster

    1953 Chevrolet Corvette Roadster

    The Corvette was introduced at the General Motors Motorama at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New York and it was a sensation. Its two-seater body was wrapped around the conventional perimeter frame chassis with independent front suspension and live rear axle. The body itself was a revelation, constructed from a revolutionary material called fiberglass that was…