The UK classic car market has remained stable during the global pandemic according to latest trends uncovered by Hagerty with modern classics on the rise.
Despite having to adapt quickly and move predominantly online, the market has not endured the shortfall experienced in other areas of the economy, with data suggesting there has been a significant increase in market activity compared to 2019.
Within the UK Hagerty Price Guide, which tracks a total of 40,332 classic car values from 1923 to 2005, the market saw an overall shift downwards of 0.47 per cent, with the mean figure of £238,683 down from £239,798. However, the Hagerty UK Classic Index, which monitors the top 50 cars most indicative of the UK market, shows an overall rise of 0.85 per cent since May. Nine cars fell in value, six rose and 35 remained static.
With one exception, the risers are all modern classics – aspirational 1980s cars popular with 40-something buyers. These include the VW Golf Mk1 GTI 1.6, the Peugeot 205 GTI 1.6, Audi Quattro and Porsche 944 Turbo. The exception is the Morgan 4/4 which reports a modest monetary rise.
Fallers tended to be those that appreciated rapidly during the last decade. For example, enthusiasm for early Land Rovers and Range Rovers has ebbed, and prices seem to have settled. The Daimler SP250 Dart, Aston Martin Lagonda S2 and DeLorean DMC-12 have also dropped, while some of the non-movers, like the BMW 2002tii and Ford Sierra RS Cosworth, are static after a consistent period of value movement.
Since the last Hagerty Price Guide update in May, values of MGAs have risen, with the average for a standard 1500 up from £25,125 to £27,125 and Twin-cam values up from £54,700 to £60,200. Front-engined Porsches (924, 944 and 928) have also enjoyed a modest rise.
Moving into the six-figure band, values for nearly all Aston Martin DB6 variants fell except the very rarest Vantage Volantes and Short Chassis Volante models. However, the £1m and over market is seemingly buoyant, with the highlight a 1972 Lamborghini Miura SV that fetched £1.91m at Silverstone Auctions in August – £200,000 over the HPG top value.
