LOCAL MARKET REPORT

After five days of miserable weather and continuous drizzle, it was with interest that I watched my son dedicate a full day to cleaning and thoroughly polishing his red MX-5. I must say, not a car I grew up with — different generations, of course! — however, a car which has cool looks and appeal.

Starting Out

Like father, like son, some may hint … certainly! In fact, that was the intention behind his purchasing of an MX-5 — he wanted to own his first classic! And I can hear some of you thinking aloud: “Will my Honda be a classic one day?” “When can my Z3 become a classic?” “What defines a ‘classic’?” “What drives collectability?” “Why are some cars more collectible than others?”

For all of us car owners, we certainly can relate to a common factor — that the minute a brand new car is driven out of a showroom, at that same moment in time, the car has already experienced a drop in value. Some cars depreciate to a degree, while many others suffer dwindling values, which they will never recoup, until they disappear. However, collector cars follow a different pattern. Their price structure over a period develops a curve; that is, the price drops initially, then comes stability; followed by an increase in price; and, ultimately, a price that surpasses the showroom price of the car. In time, it eventually becomes categorized as a ‘classic car’ — a car that represents a generation, an era.

In recent months, we have seen a wave of younger collectors coming in, driving up the prices of more-recent model cars, sometimes even upending the traditional market. This is unavoidable really, and should be encouraged, but it does not mean that we forfeit protecting, promoting, and preserving the appreciating values of the older vintage and classic vehicles in New Zealand.

Investing

I cannot emphasize enough to car clubs and motoring associations the need to foster the mentality that these cars are an alternative form of investment, thus saving them from going extinct and preserving our heritage. ‘Extinction’ includes seeing these cars in the wrong hands or left to deteriorate or exported to another country — where maybe the car is more appreciated and protected! It is our duty to entice upcoming generations into adopting a classic car as an alternative form of investment, to appreciate the car by paying its rightful price rather than claiming a steal. And, ultimately, to protect its heritage through the vehicle’s authenticity — for what it is!

Preserving

This is the ideal reflection of New Zealand’s motoring fraternity. We need to lobby for some serious systems to be put in place and for governing bodies to acknowledge and celebrate the age of the motor car. Converting the motor of a classic car into an electric motor is not preserving history! Motoring is a hobby, it is a passion. Many remark: “How can one replace the sound of a V8 with an electric motor?” It can’t be done, and that is where passion and preservation meet. There needs to be an undeniably romantic flavour towards motoring investment in New Zealand. The distinctive looks and the many designs that we now think of as classic were born in a bygone era. These are the cars that provided the setting and infrastructure for the golden age of the motor car. It is a fact that cars are safer these days and driving is far less of an adventure, but some of us still like to embrace heritage, so it’s great that our motoring heritage is properly recognized in this way. Historic vehicles are not just a hobby, or a toy for grown up boys, but, rather, a part of the cultural heritage of our country — cultural artefacts.

Curating

The automobile has transformed the world in which we live, and, in an age when it is trendy for some to blame the car for blighting our environment, I think it is high time that we also recognize and appreciate the positive contribution that cars have made to shaping our lives, our stories, and our childhoods. They are to be protected for what they are and preserved for what they are designed to be. The motor vehicle perhaps epitomizes what may be the largest amount of historical, technological, stylistic, iconographic, and aesthetic information and messages we find in one package, all of which are fundamental to the understanding of society and technology at any given moment. Our aim should be to retain the messages encapsulated in the statement above as the key to assessing the importance of preserving a vehicle and establishing its heritage status.

Clubs and associations should be in the business of constantly looking at ways to protect mobile cultural heritage and the means of spreading the importance of keeping these vehicles alive in our everyday lives and on our roads.

By implementing this mentality, we ensure that our heritage does not leave our shores, which is the reason we must focus on enhancing dialogue with anyone who is willing to cooperate, such as institutions, organizations, collectors, and museums. Through seminars, forums, publications, and editorials, we can reach out and communicate to our younger generation — and give them the possibility to understand the necessity of preserving and protecting historic vehicles for future generations.

And, as the MX-5 polishes up to a fiery red, I have been asked to go for a run in this future classic — and why not? — nothing beats a father and son moment.

Until next time, safe driving!