How much is a classic car worth? As much as someone is willing to pay for it. How much is that? It depends on rarity, market segments and many other factors.

What are Collectors Looking For?

Time does not automatically increase a classic car’s value. Instead, collector’s cars fall into one of a few broad categories, and their value is measured accordingly. Typically, the better a car fits a category, the more valuable it will be.

• Drivers are cars that aren’t particularly valuable or important. This lowers the risk of ownership, making it possible to drive these cars for enjoyment.
• Restorations bring back the vehicle to its original factory condition. Depending on parts availability and cost, these fixes may use modern parts and techniques. For example, the restorer may choose to use modern paints and clearcoat to create a shinier, more durable surface.
• Original vehicles are well preserved and haven’t been restored. This gives the owner the most authentic ownership experience, warts and all. These vehicles can range from looking like they rolled off of the factory line to having rust and flaking chrome that adds patina. Documents and photos that establish provenance can increase the car’s value.
• Vintage racing gives people a chance to experience track driving in previous eras. Since cars are constantly rebuilt to increase performance and fit racing regulations, there are few “original” race cars. Buyers may seek out period correct performance parts, but they still need to fit their cars with modern safety equipment for club races.
• Restomods are built with modern components, so the driving experience is better without changing the essence of the car. Companies like Icon and Singer practically re-engineer the car from the ground up, creating a modern vehicle that looks old. With these vehicles, it’s the quality of workmanship, not the type of vehicle, that gives the car its value.

How are Classic Cars Categorized by Condition?

These terms are commonly used to describe a car’s state of repair and originality.

1. Parts car: The car itself is too damaged to go back on the road, but it has parts that are useful for restorations.
2. Basket case: The car was taken apart, and needs to be put back together to be restored. Most of the car parts are included. These cars are usually the result of a failed restoration after the owner realizes the cost and effort required for the project.
3. Restorable: The car is in poor condition, but it’s mostly intact and can be restored.
4. Good: The car is rough, but it’s basically functional. This is a good starting point for an easy restoration, or as a driver. A good condition car is only a step or two away from being ready for shows and drives.
5. Very good: The car is fully restored or in well-preserved original condition, and everything works.
6. Fine: The car recently underwent a restoration or is very well-preserved. It still has most of its original parts, and looks like it’s only a few years old.
7. Excellent: The car is in near showroom quality, whether it’s original or had a thorough restoration.

As a general rule, restoring a vehicle costs more than buying a vehicle that is already in good shape. However, buyers may choose a less pristine example because they can modify and drive it without worrying about losing value.

Is There an Antique Car Price Guide?

Like modern cars, there are several pricing guides for classic cars, each aimed at different types of markets and buyers. The most popular ones include the Collector Car Market Review, National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Classic Car Guide, Hemmings Motor News pricing data, and auction house Hagerty’s valuation tool.

While the NADA guide is good for judging dealership prices and Hagerty’s tool is based on auction results, they aren’t accurate for most transactions. These guides depend on publicly available sales information. That leaves out private sales, which account for about 70% of the classic car market. The best way to estimate a car’s value is with an official appraisal.

How are Values Determined for Classic Car Insurance?

A standard auto insurance policy uses a price guide to establish value. However, that’s not always practical with classics. If the car is less common, there may not be enough sales data out there to establish the car's value. In these cases, the company may conduct an appraisal to judge the true value of the car.

On high end cars, insurance companies offer the choice of insuring agreed value or stated value. Agreed value is the fair market value of the vehicle. These policies are expensive, so buyers may choose a stated value policy. This is a set amount that is not tied to the vehicle’s value. A stated value pays less than market value, but the premiums are lower, too. It's up to the owner to weigh their risk against insurance payments.

What Increases the Value of a Classic Car?

Modifications can hurt the value of a classic vehicle, unless they were performed by a famous shop or customizer. There’s a big difference in value between an amateur-built vehicle versus one built by a shop like Yenko or Saleen.

You may hear people talking about a collector's cars being “numbers matching.” Some cars have the VIN number stamped on several components, including the body, engine and transmission. If these numbers are the same, it means the car has its original components.

Certain options command a higher price, especially if they’re rare or improve the driving experience. A different engine or transmission may add 20-50% to the value of the vehicle. Extremely rare performance options can multiply value. For example, in 1970, if you knew the right ordering codes, you could buy a race-ready Corvette ZR1 from your local dealershp. With just 25 sold, a 1970 ZR1 is worth about 5 times as much as a regular Corvette from that year.

Tastes in cars change year to year. Unrestored classic car values have skyrocketed over the past 15 years, as buyers increasingly value authenticity over newness. These buyers are looking for the most genuine ownership experience, rather than having something that looks the part. Likewise, many buyers are looking for exciting and memorable cars from their youth. While muscle cars dominated auction sales a decade ago, we’re now seeing the values of American and Japanese sports car models from the 80s and 90s shooting up in value.

Authenticity boosts value, especially for rare cars. For example, Ferrari’s Classiche department doesn’t just provide parts for classic cars. They’ll also verify that a car is factory correct, creating a history of records from the car’s construction. A Classiche-certified car doesn’t just guarantee authenticity, it’s also eligible for the most exclusive brand-related events.

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