Buy Low, Ride High

You can’t schedule, or predict, an epiphany—they just happen. Such as the moment you first realized that girls (or guys) might actually like you. When you suddenly understood calculus. Or—as occurred to me at the Mecum Auction in Monterey, California—you realize the fantasy car you’ve secretly lusted after just might be within reach.

1998 Ferrari 456 GTA

This gleaming silver lining of the Great Recession finally whacked me in the head like a billet con-rod when a seductive 1998 Ferrari 456 GTA, its 5.5-liter, 48-valve V12 engine rumbling, crept onstage on that nice afternoon. Priced at nearly $240,000 when new, the most expensive Ferrari of its time had motored just 9,271 miles, and a close inspection revealed nary a rock chip, a blemish, nor a fault extant. It was, in a word, perfect. And when the gavel banged its base a few minutes later, this poster car for the conspicuously rich traded owners for just $47,000—less than 20 percent of its original price and fully $10,000 less than a loaded 2010 Buick Enclave crossover. Hmmm…Buick or fantasy Ferrari?


There are several reasons why the values of such exotics tend to dive like frightened mergansers as the cars age, a well-known phenomenon only exacerbated by the recession. First is that technology, nouveau styling and exclusivity are key drivers for high-end car buyers. Time erodes the importance of the first two, and those with the means to afford these four-wheel Rolexes naturally move onto newer models. Second, once these cars are out of warranty they are extremely expensive to maintain and repair, and the second-tier buyers attracted to them as used cars are unwilling to assume this risk without substantial concessions in price. And third, when every automaker and dealer in the kingdom is offering the deal of the century to move new inventory, the value of used goods is further crippled.

Remember, It’s Your Fantasy

Nowhere is it ruled that your fantasy car must be a swoopy 200-mph exotic. It can be as simple as a Model A Ford, as lavish as a ’58 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham, or as contrite as a bathtub Porsche 356. With today’s kinder, gentler collector-car pricing, whatever your taste and budget, there’s probably a rolling entrée to suit. Some other fantasy vehicles selling for near credit-card money at Mecum in Monterey:

• 1983 Porsche 944 Callaway Turbo, $6,600
• 1966 Pontiac GTO coupe, $21,200
• 1971 Chevrolet Corvette 454 convertible, $28,090
• 1997 Aston Martin DB7 Volante, $34,980
• 1965 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud III, $45,580
• 2004 Bentley Arnage R Mulliner, $68,900

Making the Fantasy Last
Here is some advice for choosing your fantasy car in this unprecedented down market.


Consider usefulness—Q: If stuck on a desert island, would you rather have a ’57 Chevy Nomad or a ’67 Maserati Ghibli, both valued at $70,000? A: The Nomad, because it can haul more coconuts. Silly joke, but there is a kernel of value here, because investing in a fantasy car that has some utility value is better than owing a garage queen that’s too finicky for a cappuccino run.