Interests have shifted in the classic car world, with new interests being observed.
A nationwide lockdown is sure to shake up any industry and the world of classic cars is no exception. Car & Classic, one of the UK’s (and Europe’s, for that matter) biggest sales websites has reported on some interesting stats that show how the pandemic has shuffled the classic car market into a new order.
It’s not all doom and gloom, as the data shows an increase in interest in certain vehicles and an increase in traffic overall. For example, the Porsche 911 became the most searched car on the website, taking the top spot from the Ford Capri. In total, searches are up 39% across the top 200 cars, perhaps reflecting the increase in spare time we all had on our hands last year. What better way to spend your time than to look up your dream classic car online?
The data also suggests that interests focussed more to dream classic cars than more attainable cars such as the MGB GT. The Ford Cortina was the second most searched for car on the website in Q1 2020 but a year later in Q1 2021, it fell to 9th place. The top searches which used to be dominated by cars such as the VW Beetle, Cortina and MGB GT are now filled with dream cars such as the Porsche 911, Jaguar E-Type, Ford Mustang and Nissan Skyline.
More modern classics such as the BMW E30 (3 Series) have also gained interest, with that particular old beemer reaching 3rd place in search rankings. Japanese classics have seen a similar surge in popularity, with the Toyota Supra, Mazda RX-7 and Toyota MR2 climbing out of obscurity into the top 16 most searched cars. The Nissan Skyline, for example, jumped 131 places to 27th place when comparing Q1 of 2020 and 2021.
Chris Pollitt, head of editorial at Car & Classic, said the following:
“So many of us spend time ‘car and classicing’- searching through the 40-odd thousand cars we list for sale either in our classifieds or auction,”
“The searches highlight how the pandemic is driving and accelerating change in the classic car field. For some, it has meant more time to start a new project, for others, money saved not going on holiday could mean now buying the dream car they always wanted to own. The data also underlines that the classic car world is always changing.”
At the end of the day, trends change and while it looks like their data is showing JDM and other more modern classics are in at the moment, this time next year it could be pre-war vehicles or 70s hatchbacks seeing a resurgence.
Let us know what classics you’re current interested in, in the comments.
If you enjoyed this, you may also like ‘1959 250 GT SWB Remand & Modernised For 2021’
For more articles like this, receive our weekly e-newsletter, including partner deals and all things motoring, register your email below.
Please note: You cannot subscribe to Smart-Motoring unless you put a tick in the checkbox below to indicate have read and agreed to our privacy policy.
Would love a Jensen Healey if I could find a good one at a reasonable orice