Gen X, millennial buyers cause boom in modern classic values

A Ford Escort RS 1800 that sold at auction in July for a record £276,848 is evidence of the growing appeal of modern classics to the Gen X and millennial generations, who now have the money and desire to realise their childhood poster-car dreams, say experts.

Backing the claim, the same experts point to a similar model sold in 2015. Compared with July’s example, which was merely a restored former press car, this RS 1800 had been rallied by Ari Vatanen and Roger Clark, yet it sold for just £85,500, or £118,800 if adjusted for inflation.

Peter Haynes, marketing and business boss at RM Sotheby’s, said the scarcity and appeal of modern classics from the past 50 years are major influences on the prices that these new generations of buyers are paying for them.

“When did you last see a Ford Sierra XR4i or a Vauxhall Cavalier SRi?,” he asked. “They may have been volume sellers, but many have been scrapped and are today extremely rare and so increasing in desirability and price. It’s a generational thing that has been happening over the past 10 years. 

“Thirty to 60-year-old enthusiasts are increasingly drawn to the cars of their youth. At all price points, people are buying the cars they most identify with.”

John Glynn, managing director of Specialist Car Valuations, said interest in modern classics isn’t confined to the usual suspects such as BMW M cars and Mercedes-AMGs. 

“The 2009/10 scrappage schemes have made most cars that survived more desirable, often to people who do a bit of ‘man maths’ to justify spending over the odds,” he said. “Some people are making a lot of money and, with profits on private sales of used cars being free of capital gains tax, buying in-demand classics or those with potential is a smart investment.”

He continued: “At the other end of the price spectrum, even youngsters excluded from the housing market by high prices are instead spending £5000 to £10,000 on fledgling modern classics. From Ford Escort XR3 cabriolets to Land Rover Freelanders, the best examples are all becoming more expensive.”

However, John Mayhead, editor of the Hagerty Price Guide, believes the market isn’t as buoyant as recent eye-catching auction results might suggest.

“Only 70% of Hagerty Price Guide cars rose in value during the past year,” he said. “The post-Covid rush to buy and the explosion in online auction sales sent prices to new heights but many have since fallen to more affordable levels. The market is divided and nuanced, with exclusive top cars still in huge demand and performance variants of, for example, 997-generation Porsche 911s enjoying a lot of interest.