Getting back into the blog flow for 2019 was not helped by the failure of my much-loved Macbook Pro last week. If you know someone who can pull email folders from an encrypted SSD with a damaged operating system, drop me a line. Apple’s Support team say it can’t be done but a local data recovery place managed to get 300GB of data off the drive this morning. Sadly no email folders as yet, but some clever person must exist who can do this.
Anyway, while I was off-blog waiting for a new Macbook Pro to arrive, we had some notable Porsche sales with lots of interesting data: more of this later. One sale in Phoenix, Arizona set a new world record for the 2010 Porsche 997 Sport Classic, when RM Sotheby’s relieved a lucky buyer of half a million pounds ($654,000) for the privilege of owning a 150-mile example.
Half a million pounds for a Sport Classic will leave a lot of people scratching their heads. Yes it is rare, and this was low mileage, and prices at the first Porsche sales of the year are often a little bit barmy, but that sort of money buys a lot of Porsche alternatives that can be driven. Odds are this purchase was to bolster an already substantial collection.
What is a Sport Classic?
First shown at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show, the Porsche 911 Sport Classic was one of several limited edition models built on the Gen 2 997 platform (Speedster being another). An upgraded 3.8-litre engine with Power Kit equipped the car with over 400 horsepower to offer to the road gods through a six-speed manual transmission. The 250-unit Sport Classic edition also featured Porsche Ceramic Composite Brakes and PASM as standard.
Several styling features set the Sport Classic apart. These included a Double-Dome roof, a ducktail engine cover and that evergreen Sport Classic Grey paint. The wheels were replica Fuchs (cast in a factory in Italy if memory serves). The Fuchs people told me that they were a bit ticked off that genuine forged Fuchs alloy wheels were not part of the recipe for maximum Sport Classic authenticity and that it was all down to price.
I was not that enthralled by the Sport Classic when it first came out and didn’t chase a test drive. The closest I ever got to driving one was in a feature on a replica that myself and Alisdair Cusick were commissioned to write for a 911 magazine sometime in 2010. Built by a Porsche place in Essex, the conversion was based on a well used Gen 1 997 C2, so not the widebody shell that the real one was built around. Thus the Sport Classic wheels (bought from Porsche) did not quite fit the arches properly and the bubble roof was a bit of a challenge. It had the right look side-on from a hundred feet away, but each step closer made it slightly less convincing, until you were standing next to it and looking through the window at tired leather and a Tiptronic shifter.
However wide of the mark that replica was, at least the owner drove it for a few thousand miles, which is more than the owner of the nigh-on brand new Sport Classic sold by RM Sotheby’s did. With just 150 miles on the clock, the car had been stored in California all of its life, so was offered in pristine condition. It sold for $654,000 including premium: a figure which made at least three people very happy. If you were thinking you might fancy a Sport Classic some time, you are probably not one of the three.
Following a retreat from the peak prices of 2015/16, the classic Porsche market worked hard to regain some momentum and settle back into a groove through 2017/18. Auction results for the last twelve months show how few really rare Porsches came to market through 2018, as many sat on their collections awaiting a more optimistic picture.
The truth was that things were not all bad and the lack of product may have helped what was offered for sale to do well: surprisingly well, in some cases. Here are the top five results from auction sales in 2018.
1: Porsche 959 Dakar – sold for $5,945,000
It’s hard to believe that the ex-1985 Dakar Porsche 959 was the headline auction result for the entire Porsche marque in 2018. This car was one of the first factory Porsche race cars I truly got close to, as it lived at Tuthills when I bought my first 911 and began spending time there. I enjoyed many hours in and around this factory rally car back in the day.
The car was offered at RM Sotheby’s groundbreaking Porsche-only sale at the Porsche Experience Centre in Atlanta. Truly selling to the converted, the Dakar 959 blew pre-auction predictions to pieces and sold for almost twice the low estimate, coming in just under $6 million including premium. A superb result for a factory rally car that failed to finish the Dakar.
Porsche 550As dominated the big-money Porsche sales through 2018. With Le Mans competition history including fifth overall and second in class and a class win at the 1958 Nurburgring 1000kms, chassis number 550A-0145 was one of the most desirable examples ever to come up for sale.
Offered by Bonhams at its 2018 Scottsdale sale, the car sold to an American collector for a world record price of $5.17 million including premium.
pic courtesy of Bonhams
3: 1957 Porsche 550A – sold for $4,900,000
Number three on our list of top five Porsche auction sales in 2018 is another 550A, this time from 1957. Chassis number 550A-0116 was offered by RM Sotheby’s at the 2018 Monterey sale and a substantial Californian heritage did it no harm at all.
Leaving the Hollywood heart throbs to one side, Jack McAfee may be the number one name in vintage California Porsche history. McAfee’s Burbank dealership was home to an SCCA-winning 550A and this car was sold through the hallowed doors in February 1957. It was subsequently owned by several big names until a Freisinger restoration in the mid-1990s. The seller is hopefully delighted with a sale result of just under $5 million: within reach of the world record price set by chassis 0145.
4: Unraced 2007 Porsche RS Spyder – sold for $4,510,000
A fine Porsche RS Spyder race car sold by Goodings at its Pebble Beach sale took full advantage of the model’s exceptional profile in American racing history. RS Spyder 9R6.706 was the last of six carbon-bodied Porsche LMP2 prototypes manufactured for racing in 2007. Supplied new to a race team on the US east coast, the car was subsequently not raced by its Floridian buyers. Instead, it made its way into private hands.
The unraced prototype was one of three RS Spyders owned by the seller and was the first RS Spyder ever to be offered at auction. Few true Porsche rarities have emerged in the 21st century, but there can be no doubt that this is one of them. It sold for $4.51 million including premium.
pic courtesy of Gooding and Company
5: 1955 Porsche 550A – sold for $4,455,000
Last but not least in our run down of top five Porsche auction sales results for 2018 is this 1955 Porsche 550A, sold by Gooding and Company at its 2018 Pebble Beach event.
This 550A had been with its owner for more than twenty years and was offered as part of an impressive collection of highly original sports cars. Chassis 550-0053 was a matching numbers example with plenty of history including a recent visit to four-cam guru, Jeff Adams. Presented in beautifully sympathetic condition, it sold for $4.455 million including premium.
pic courtesy of Gooding and Company
The best of the rest – and what’s to come in 2019
Only a handful of Porsche cars broke the $3 million barrier in 2018 and there was a sizeable gap from the headline sales to the best of the rest. It’s clear that storied race cars pre-1970 remain of interest, including 550s and 718s, and there is also a market for low mileage rare 911s.
What will tickle the market’s fancy in the twelve months to come? There are some trends at work right now that should continue through 2019. The lowest mileage air-cooled road cars – rare ones, mind – are likely set for a safe run this year. Front-engined cars have softened a touch in recent months, but the nicer models are probably also good news.
The lion’s share of what does well this year will hinge on what collectors decide to send to market. It will be interesting to see what happens at this year’s early sales: roll on Amelia Island.
Amongst many Porsche announcements this week was news of the impending arrival of Luftgekühlt in the UK. The Californian classic Porsche expo’s UK debut at Bicester Heritage on July 29 has got those who like Porsche meets somewhat excited.
Luftgekühlt is the brainchild of Porsche works driver, Patrick Long, and creative director, Howie Idelson. Revolving around Porsche air-cooled cars from the first 356s to the last 993s, Luftgekühlt describes itself as “an experiential car culture event centred around a tightly curated list of historically significant or interesting cars, both race and street”.
Luftgekühlt translates as air-cooled, and air-cooled Porsches are the stars of this ticket-only show. Air-cooled Porsche cars attending LuftGB are invited to park in the main event space. In addition to the ticketed parking within the Luftgekühlt display, there is a designated Porsche-only parking zone. Ample general admission parking is included in the ticket price. Those aged 15 and under go free, with adult tickets priced at £12.50 each.
“We are thrilled to announce that Luftgekühlt will be crossing the Atlantic and landing at Bicester Heritage, Oxfordshire, UK on Sunday July 29, 2018,” says the press release. “LuftGB will be our first overseas event and, together with our motoring and racing friends from across the pond, we will be channeling the informal, fun spirit of the early versions of Luftgekühlt to tell a new Luft story.
“The venue is Bicester Heritage, a former WW2 RAF Bomber Training Station. As the only hub for historic motoring of its type and scale in the world, and with over 35 specialist motoring businesses onsite, Bicester has a lot of heart. Its aesthetic, grit and heritage will frame the Luftgekühlt story in a perfectly British way.
“Like past shows, our first overseas foray will feature a blend of curated, invite-only rarities and ticketed enthusiasts’ cars. There will be a limited number of slots to fill within the venue, and they will be reserved on a first-come, first-served basis.
Despite July being a busy month of Porsche meets, with Classic Le Mans this weekend and Goodwood Festival of Speed straight after, the Porsche crowd is likely to turn out in force for the first-ever UK Luftgekühlt gathering. I spoke to one of the organisers on Tuesday and was told that the meet was already one-third of the way to being sold out. Anyone who would like to attend had better get their skates on. You can buy tickets here.
The last few months have seen a slowdown in air-cooled Porsche market activity. Long-time owners who have watched their hobby become a speculator playground may have welcomed the lull, but there’s no guarantee of its permanence.
A seasonal slowdown has always been the way of classic Porsche prices. As the cars get put away through September and October, so the market tends to hibernate, with fewer cars available and buyer attentions elsewhere as Thanksgiving, Christmas and myriad other distractions keep people at home through the snowy winter months (northern hemisphere folks).
As the weather improves and the evenings get lighter, the classic car season starts to pick up. By the time we get to Essen TechnoClassica in late March/early April, the market is getting back up to speed and we begin to see where the haves and have-nots might be found, as record prices for particular makes and models are set in a retail rather than auction context, in front of Europe’s largest single audience of devoted classic car fans. Once Essen has happened, we start to see price trends taking shape for the year ahead and that is always an interesting point.
Falling prices for classic Porsche
A number of recent Porsche insurance valuation customers have asked how the fall in Porsche prices is progressing. Looking at current selling price data and the supply levels for RHD impact bumper cars in particular, I see no sign of falling prices for ‘regular’ 911s. 964RS and Carrera RS have come back a bit from their ultimate highs, but that adjustment happened a while ago and has stabilised since. Demand for ordinary 911s has not melted away and with constrained supply, prices are stable for now.
A market slowdown just means fewer buyers are out there, but when the sale is not an urgent one, you just sit it out and wait for buyer numbers to increase. That is what’s happening now. There has been no obvious fall off in prices for SCs, 3.2 Carreras and 964 Coupes since this time last year.
As an impartial market observer rather than a Porsche dealer, I see no obvious signs of a serious downturn for air-cooled Porsche selling prices. The biggest risk to prices would be a sudden spike in owners wishing to cash in their chips, but I don’t get the feeling that this is imminent.
Long-Time Owners mothball their cars
No doubt many owners have stopped using their 911s in recent years. As one Californian owner of a number of hot rods said to me recently: “my local shop is so busy that I can’t even get a quick re-seal done. It’s good that they’re busy, but an indicator that finding a shop that is both good and relevant is tricky at the moment. I also have to say that I am distancing myself from the early Porsche crowd on the basis that it’s no longer the same demographic. There are plenty of old crowd like me, kind of hiding out now: still with the cars but not out there in the public eye so much.”
I know my friend is busy on exciting new work projects and has less time available to socialise, but I hear the same story from lots of people, not just in CA. I’m in the same boat and I don’t really mind not using my 911, as I have lots of other stuff to get done and twelve other cars to busy myself with.
Despite the palpable changes in demographic and available leisure time, there has been no huge flood of much-loved cars to the market. These 911s form part of the owners’ life stories, they embody a lifelong ambition to own a 911 and of course, they are making money parked up. If the market were to collapse, it would utimately cost the owners nothing. Their 911s are bought and paid for, and a fall in prices and change in the crowd might encourage them to start using the cars again. So they are not coming up for sale.
No big influx of cars and no changes to the external factors = no big drop in price.
2017 Price Predictions
The owner/enthusiast in me hopes that average examples through Europe and the USA being advertised for ridiculous prices will all remain unsold through 2017 and encourage overenthusiastic speculators out of the market. You may think this unlikely and I am inclined to agree. My inner price geek expects realistically priced examples with good history in good condition to continue to sell at the current level, if not a tiny bit more as this year gets started.
The advice to anyone considering an air-cooled Porsche purchase of the common-or-garden variety (SC, standard Carrera etc) who might be waiting to see if prices come down remains as it has been for several years: stop waiting. Buy a good solid car with history and start enjoying it ASAP. That advice has not changed in the decades I have been watching this market and it still holds true today.
My friend Guy Allen has released a new Porsche print. An atmospheric rendition of the SWB car in flight, it’s another great example of why Guy is one of the UK’s busiest illustrators.
Guy’s previous Porsche work is all over Ferdinand. I’ve commissioned him a few times for impactbumpers t-shirt artwork and we’ve also released prints of this work together. Those prints all sold out long ago, and I would not be surprised to see this one sell out just as quickly.
The SWB 911 has enjoyed a renaissance in recent years. Once ignored as the runt of the litter due to the twitchy handling and smaller engines, contemporary Porsche fans now rightly regard its Germanic purity and unique driving experience as a pivotal step in Porsche history. The SWB cars were the original lightweights and the thread of their lineage must be carefully picked through the model lines – some 911s follow the founding philosophy much closer than others.
My first proper experience of a SWB car came while I still lived in Ireland. A friend’s dad was a keen rally driver and also owned a garage. He had a SWB car in for some work and I would see that driving around quite a bit. It was LHD and may even have been something famous once upon a time, but I never got close enough for a proper look. Years later, when Jamie and I shot a well-known piece featuring two SWB 911s on our first trip to California (Short but Sweet: read it here), I remembered that early rally car and thought how well it would have slotted in with Bob Tilton and Chris Nielsen’s rally inspired R Gruppe machines. I should have bought a SWB project car then, but I missed that particular boat – they are now well out of my reach.
Experience the SWB cars in depth and you gain a unique understanding of the original 911 ethos, but race a SWB car hard and win with it, and you enter another dimension of 911 folklore. The UK saw a huge jump in SWB enthusiasm when the 73rd Goodwood Members’ Meeting featured the Aldington Trophy: a race for pre-’66 SWB 911s only. Mark Bates raced the EB Motorsport SWB 911 at Goodwood among a select group of its peers and spent most of the lap going sideways in some very close battles. Mark finished on the podium after a great hour of racing and people still talk to me about that mental race – a fine day in the SWB story.
Away from the circuits, SWB 911s make highly prized road cars, but finding original interior parts and trim is now perhaps the hardest part of a SWB restoration. There is plenty of choice as to who restores your SWB car but, with waiting lists as long as they are at the very best workshops, it might be quicker to learn the skills to restore it yourself! Plenty of Porsche fans are doing just that and, as a DIY diehard, I think that is brilliant.
Guy’s SWB Porsche print is produced on archive quality heavyweight paper. It is a limited edition of 200 large-format A2-sized prints (A2 is 420 x 594 mm). The prints are signed and numbered and you can take a closer look at them here.
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