Classic car prices dip as collectors flock to 1990s icons

The Jaguar E-Type, previously regarded as a star of the classic car market, is falling out of favour as collectors shun it and other traditional classics for younger vehicles from the 1990s.

According to Hagerty, a classic car insurer, the average price of an E-Type S1 3.8 coupé has dropped from £89,575 to £72,250 in the past two years. For that other coveted classic, the Aston Martin DB6, the slide has been even steeper: down from £344,000 to £190,500.

Across a basket of five traditional classic cars, prices are down by an average of 13%

Explaining the price falls, John Mayhead, editor of the Hagerty UK Price Guide, said: “Collectable cars such as E-Types and DBs are seeing their prices either slip or stagnate because those people who always wanted to buy one have probably done so and paid the highest prices, while those who’d like to buy one cannot yet afford to.

“Regarding the DB6 and its earlier forerunner, the DB4, their problem is that they aren’t the DB5, the model most associated with James Bond and the one people really want,” he said.

Richard Wrightson of The Classic Motor Hub said less than perfect examples of collectable classics are suffering the harshest price drops.

“Buyers are a lot more discerning than they were five years ago when everyone jumped in and paid top money for cars such as E-Types, for example, that had been converted from left- to right-hand-drive, only to get their fingers burned,” he said. “Now, they are prepared to wait for exactly the right car. The urge to rush out and buy something at any price has gone.

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“I’d certainly rather wait to buy a £200,000 E-Type in tiptop condition than a cheaper example that requires work and so, increasingly, would a lot of people. Recently, we sold a £300,000 E-Type while those we’ve had for £100,000 have struggled to attract interest.”