Author: Keith Martin
Keith Martin has been involved with the collector car hobby for more than 40 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, now in its 37th year. Keith has written for the New York Times, Automobile, AutoWeek, Road & Track and other publications, has been an emcee for numerous concours, and had his own show, “What’s My Car Worth,” shown on Velocity. He has received many honors, including the Lee Iacocca Award, the Edward Herrmann Award, was inducted into the Concorso Italiano Hall of Fame, and more. He has served on the board of directors of The LeMay Museum and Oregon Ballet Theater, and was formerly the chair of the board of the Meguiar's Award.
Keith’s Blog: The Modern-Day Three-Car Collection: AMG, Z4 and R8
I took the SCM 2004 Mercedes AMG SL 55 out for a 100-mile drive through the Oregon wine country last Saturday. It was a glorious early-spring sunny day. I spent most of the time with the top down. The most attractive feature of this 500-hp machine continues to be its […]
Keith’s Blog: Join the SCM Caravan to Concorso
We are currently planning our annual informal tour down the coasts of Oregon and California to Monterey. Anyone is welcome to join, although cars with at least a pretension of sportiness are preferred. Event stickers and SCM hats will be provided. At the moment, our plans call for me to […]
VIN-dicated
CARFAX was founded in 1984 in Columbia, MO, by a computer professional named Ewin Barnett III. He worked together with Robert Daniel Clark, an accountant from Huntingdon, PA. It started with a database of 10,000 records, but the company was soon getting reports from all 50 states. CARFAX is now […]
Keith’s Blog: Your SCM Books Are Finally in the Mail
Producing “The Best of Shifting Gears, Volume 1” and “The Best of Legal Files” has turned out to be a more formidable task that we imagined. But the books are finally printed and in the mail. Through the yeoman efforts of designer Jodi Ellis, print coordinator Matthew Strauss and editor […]
Keith’s Blog: Disco or U-boat? Two Eight-Cylinder Choices
It was a brilliant winter afternoon. The SCM 1991 928 S4, dark blue with blue leather, was slicing through the turns on Washington State Highway 14. It’s a two-lane road that follows the northern side of the Columbia Gorge. The road is vastly more interesting than the four-lane Interstate 84 […]
Keith’s Blog: Buying a New Car – It Has Nothing To Do With Performance
When it came to making a choice about buying a new car for SCM everyday use, the drivetrain and suspension were irrelevant. Over the past decade, I have watched with interest as new-car platforms have become increasingly digital. More features and benefits related to safety are standard with each new […]
Recognizing the Next Gen
We are now accepting nominations for SCM’s second group of 40 Under 40 honorees. First awarded in 2017, this program became our most popular in terms of industry recognition and resultant newsstand sales. It’s time to revisit it. In the October issue, SCM will again honor 40 enthusiasts under 40 […]
Keith’s Blog: Nominations Open for the 2021 SCM 40 Under 40
We are now accepting nominations for SCM’s second group of 40 Under 40 honorees. First awarded in 2017, this program became our most popular in terms of industry recognition and resultant newsstand sales. It’s time to revisit it. In our October issue, SCM will honor 40 enthusiasts under 40 years […]
Keith’s Blog: Have I Finally Outgrown Project Cars?
Our beloved original-paint 1965 Volvo 122S automatic is about to be listed on BaT, courtesy of Matt Crandall (911r) and Avant-Garde Collection. It was a good car when we bought it, and through the ministrations of Cameron Lovre at Swedish Relics it has become as good as it can be […]