Auction houses saw a lot of money pass through their doors in 2018, with clearance data showing strong support for classic car investment throughout the year. Some key areas of the market have surged ahead, while traditional markers appear to have edged up in modest growth. From a wider perspective, the classic car investment market saw modest growth in 2018.

Two cars that stood out for us this year were a Honda Integra Type R DC2 that sold at auction for US$65,000 – or around AUD$91k at the time. And at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO sold for US$48m, or AUD$61m. The Ferrari providing the seller with a return of 372% in less than two decades (adjusted for inflation).

Locally, Peter Brock’s 1982 Holden Commodore racing car realised AUD$2.1m at auction in Spring. The star of Shannon’s Spring Auction, a 1971 Ford XY Falcon GTHO Phase III failed to see a result and was ultimately passed-in. This, after Lloyd’s broke records earlier in the year, with their own GTHO Phase III changing hands for $1.03m.

Long gone are the days of cheap neglected cars being snapped-up on Gumtree and eBay for a song – the cheaper end of the market is now very competitive, pushing strong prices for cars that nobody wanted only a few years ago. This is particularly true of older Japanese cars, with Toyotas and Datsuns finding strong support from younger enthusiasts.

Modern classic BMWs and Mercedes-Benz models are still finding their footing, but pre-1980s vehicles seemed to have been on much stronger ground in 2018, provided they are the top trim and are reasonably maintained.

Private sales appear to have gained favour over the traditional auction platform, with healthy cars and equally healthy prices being sought and found.

For our analysis on these market trends and what they mean for you, be sure to join as a member of Harris & Silverman, where we’ll explore which models to buy, sell, and hold.