We have previously looked at factory heritage programs available from many European automakers (“Collecting Thoughts,” April 2023). From Aston Martin to Porsche, owners can send their collector cars back to the mothership for verification and, in some cases, factory restoration. Now as Japanese collector cars increase in value, a similar-yet-distinct […]

The collector car hobby has witnessed sweeping changes and staggering growth over the past decade. Once a cottage industry, the collector car market has transitioned into a legitimate global business. Many smaller companies have enjoyed rapid growth and have garnered the attention and admiration of much larger publicly listed and […]

Back again we went, for the fourth post-pandemic-cancellation Monterey Car Week. It was, as they say, “bigger and better than ever.” Crowds were thicker, traffic was a nightmare, and hotels engaged in their expected price gouging. The cars, however, never disappoint. This year they again made up for all the […]

As you peruse Porsche classified listings, auction lots and SCM auction reports, you may have seen the term RoW, meaning “Rest of World.” Many buyers view RoW versions of Porsches (and other marques) to be pur sang — the way automakers chose to build them without intrusive North American safety […]

If there is one overriding issue that seems to dog pre-war cars, it is the question, “What do I do with it?” Driving such machines in modern traffic can be less than enjoyable. Even in the cozier confines of tours created for such cars, they present many more challenges than, […]

In early May, Ferrari 365 GT 2+2 s/n 11429, a non-running project, was sold on Bring a Trailer for $78,750, including buyer’s premium. A bargain price! At least until one digests that it was fitted with a 4.6-liter Cadillac Northstar V8 backed up with a 4-speed automatic GM 700R4 trans, […]

After languishing for years in California’s high desert, the 1948 Norman Timbs Special — a Motor Trend cover car in October 1949 — was restored to a fare-thee-well and won its class at several major concours. Timbs was an acclaimed race-car engineer who’d designed the Indy 500-winning Blue Crown Specials […]

Even among collectors, it is perhaps unusual to own the exact same car twice, with 40 long years separating the two experiences. I first bought this Pontiac GTO in 1981, after discovering it with a scattered clutch in a Sierra Nevada meadow. After torturing it for a summer, I sold […]

In 2005, I bought a Ford GT in what I consider the heritage colors — Midnight Blue with white stripes. These echo the Guardsman Blue with Wimbledon White stripes livery of the 1964 GT40 that won the Daytona 2000 km Continental. Even after more than 18 years and 20,776 miles, […]

Resto-mods have become prevalent, particularly at sales conducted by Barrett-Jackson and Mecum Auctions. At the annual giant Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show in Las Vegas last November, every crate-engine variant or upgraded component possible for resto-mod conversions was on display, even drop-in electric powerplants. There are many websites and […]