2023’s classic car market brings optimism for the future, according to report

By Aaron McKay

| 14 Feb 2024

Classic & Sports Car – 2023’s classic car market brings optimism for the future, according to report

The classic car market was busy in 2023, with more higher-valued vehicles than ever before.

This is the verdict from data aggregator The Classic Valuer. In its annual review, it found more cars selling at extreme ends of the market, but with lower sell-through rates.

The number of collector vehicles at auction rose 89% between 2019 and 2023, according to The Classic Valuer’s data, with the dramatic rise of online platforms identified as the main driver.

In addition, there may also be more cars coming to market, as auction houses such as RM Sotheby’s and Gooding & Company expand their private-sales arms.

This 1956 Mercedes-Benz 300SL hit $3.4m and was Barrett-Jackson’s top result at its all-time-best Scottsdale event last month

Further analysis has found that while the majority (32%) of cars sold are in the £10,001-25,000 bracket, it’s actually the sub-£10k and £100k+ lots that increased in volume the most during 2023 – by as much as 14.7%.

Curiously, growth of £1m+ lots was flat, year-on-year, at 0.4%, possibly marking a plateau for volumes that have doubled over the past 10 years.

Sell-through rates (the proportion of vehicles offered that sell) have dropped about 1% per annum, over the past few years, The Classic Valuer has noted.

Perhaps, as volumes increase, there are not quite enough buyers for all the classic cars on sale. In 2023, the average sell-through rate was 67%, below the low point of 68% set in 2020.

An important caveat highlighted in this report is the increase in no-reserve lots in classic car auctions; the sell-through rate of collector cars offered in 2023 with a reserve was 57%.

European sales account for most of the increase in collector-car volumes, such as at the highest-netting Bonhams|Cars Zoute sale so far, in October 2023

The data aggregator also consulted more than 500 enthusiasts to add a gauge of subjective feelings about the classic car market’s future – and, overall, they seemed buoyant.

Only 24% thought prices would fall, 48% expected them to rise, while 57% were generally optimistic about the future of the hobby. ‘Regulation and policy’ are the biggest concerns for 47% of respondents.

The backdrop to all this is a classic car market that, in the past few years, has been consistently breaking records – for individual models, but also for sales and events.

One of two Mercedes-Benz 300SLR Uhlenhaut Coupés sold for €135,000,000 (c£114m/$142m) to become the world’s most expensive car on 5 May 2022.

This £596,250 Ford Sierra RS 500 Cosworth set a new world record in February 2023

In a different part of the market, a Ford Escort RS Turbo, first owned by the late Princess Diana, obliterated the previous model record when it achieved a £730,000 sale price with Silverstone Auctions on 27 August 2022, and a Ford Sierra RS 500 Cosworth rocketed its model record from £132,750 to £596,250 at Iconic Auctioneers’ Race Retro event on 25 February 2023.

Plus, the combined totals of the four auctions held at last year’s Amelia Island sales on 2-4 March fetched a record for the event of $178m, while Monterey Car Week 2023’s $396.7m total, across all sales, almost matched its 2022 all-time best of $472.8m.

And 2024 looks to be getting off to a strong start: on 20-28 January, Barrett-Jackson enjoyed its biggest-earning sale ever, reaching $207.6m at Scottsdale.

Images: RM Sotheby’s/Iconic Auctioneers/Barrett-Jackson/Bonhams|Cars

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