"Young and classic cars are still a worthwhile investment for enthusiasts, but the air is getting thinner for pure speculators for the time being," comments Steffen Dominsky, editor of the "Service & Technology" section of "kfz-betrieb": "Overall, however, young and classic cars remain a popular piece of contemporary history and a nostalgic reflection of the digitalization of mobility."
A number of dealers specializing in the classic car trade have seen a significant drop in turnover, i.e. vehicle sales, over the past year. And the results of various classic car auctions, such as the recent one at the Retromobile classic car fair in Paris, also indicate that the market has overheated. Many high-priced vehicles fell short of expectations or simply failed to sell.
One trigger for the price euphoria of recent years was speculation, or rather speculators, i.e. people looking for a good investment. In times of zero interest rates, coupled with a great deal of global political turbulence and exaggerated or insecure real estate markets, the flight into the precious metal sheet metal was a welcome alternative for many. However, this demand now appears to be saturated.
Fortunately, this is only half the truth. After all, the majority of typical speculative goods are vehicles from around 70,000 euros upwards - the top of the market. Most of the vehicles below this, i.e. the broad masses, are unlikely to be dragged down by a possible downward spiral. However, they have not been swept up in the past few years either - exceptions prove the rule.
In general, the classic and vintage car market will continue to diversify, i.e. split up. While individual models in a series will continue to achieve good growth in value, others are likely to lose even more financial significance in the future. There is also the large area of servicing and restoring classic vehicles. Here, too, there are constantly new changes that do not make life easier for all those involved - regardless of whether they are entrepreneurs or vehicle owners.
You can find out what these are in the cover story in issue 10/11 of the trade journal "kfz-betrieb", which will be published on March 10, 2017. Journalists can order a free reading copy of this issue from: pressestelle@vogel.de.
"kfz-betrieb" is the most widely read trade magazine in the automotive industry and has been informing the automotive trade and service sector for over 100 years. "kfz-betrieb" is the official organ of the German automotive trade (ZDK), the professional interest group for around 38,000 car dealerships and workshops. News from the entire automotive industry is available at www.kfz-betrieb.de and in the daily newsletter. The parent company Vogel Business Media is Germany's largest trade media company with 100+ trade journals, 100+ web portals, 100+ business events as well as numerous mobile offerings and international activities. Its headquarters are in Würzburg. The company celebrated its 125th birthday in 2016.
