Interclassics show, Maastricht

Goldfinger DB5 and Le Mans D-type pull in the punters at Dutch show’s ‘greatest hits’ display

The organisers of the Netherlands’ classic car season-opener brought a veritable cornucopia of show-stopping cars – including an Aston Martin DB5 used in the filming of Goldfinger – to mark the event’s 25th anniversary.

There was no particularly themed special exhibition this year; instead the central area was devoted to the highlights of the previous 24 shows, which also included a 1957 Le Manswinning Jaguar D-type and a Ford Mustang used in the filming of Gone In 60 Seconds.

There was something for everyone in the show’s healthy dealer-led displays, starting at around € 8000 (£7100) for a nicely preserved Simca 1100 or Alfasud and well into sevenfigure prices for cars like the Ferrari F40 Competizione or Pininfarina Sergio.

While there was no further big price hikes noticeable at the top end, it has to be noted that the market for Seventies and Eighties saloon cars is leaving rock bottom, with some commanding prices that finally make restorations viable. Not that many of the offerings were in need of it – the number of very low mileage cars from all ages was astonishing and clearly shows the strong trend towards more authentic, unrestored cars being valued more than fresh restorations.

Traditional British sports cars like the MGB and Triumph TRs and Spitfire seem to have fallen out of favour with continental buyers recently, so they’re currently really good value.

Interclassics’ organisers said that the anniversary theme has helped to attract a record crowd to this year’s event, with 34,447 classic fans heading from across Europe to visit its four halls.

Show manager, Erik Panis, says: ‘Each year, it is a challenge for us to organise yet another high-quality exhibition for both visitors and exhibitors. As an organisation, we are incredibly proud of the fact that the general public turned out in such great numbers at this event at MECC Maastricht.

‘Never before in the 25-year history of InterClassics have we been fortunate enough to welcome so many visitors.’

Even with Interclassics’ own anniversary-themed display, the highlight of perusing the show’s four halls was the number of dealer cars up for sale, with the showgrabbing deals going to 1970s and ‘80s classics. This, one of the Aston Martin DB5s used...