ONES THAT GOT AWAY

THE CARS WE SHOULD HAVE BOUGHT OR ARE JUST GLAD WE DIDN’T...

Tell us in 60 words the car you should have bought, or were lucky enough to buy!

Send Se your tale to uniquecars@bauertrader.com.au with ‘Gotaways’ in the title

SAAB 90900 TURBO My neighbour owned a black Saab 900 from new. I always loved the shape and tri spoke sp alloys. He had it for seven years and parked it on the highway verge with a for sale sign in the mid-90s and it was sold within a few days. It may have gotten away as I was in no position to t buy it, but they are substantially cheaper today! Now I need to find a decent one. STEPHEN SANCHEZ S - BANYO, , QLD

AUGUST 2003 DAIMLER SP250

Daimler wanted its two-seater Dart to sell well in the USA, so it styled the car to suit that market. Problem was that the Dart, which would rapidly be renamed SP250 after Dodge complained, was launched in 1959 with a finned fibreglass body which looked better suited to 1954. The engine was a V8 but at 2.5 litres a bit small to be competing with 4.6-litre Corvettes. Then in 1961 along came Jaguar’s E-type. Only 2654 of the V8 Daimler two-seater were built from 1959-64, so cars like this are scarce. UK sales suggest a good one will have almost doubled its 2003 value.

AUGUST 1986 ASTON MARTIN DBS V8

The day that Aston-Martin discovered the limitations of its glorious straight-six engine it began designing one of the world’s best V8s to replace it. That car, as displayed here in early DBS form, appeared in 1969 and changed little during a lifespan of 20 years. Australia during the 1970s managed to support a couple of active Aston-Martin agencies and V8s were relatively common sights in major cities. Later imports boosted local numbers but more cars available in a market that still views them as desirable hasn’t hurt sales and values continue to climb.

APRIL 1996 PONTIAC TRANS AM

Seeing this Trans Am in Bandit Black with its ‘screaming chicken’ hood emblem sent memory cells scooting back to 2016 and the sale of a similar Pontiac. That car had been the property of screen legend Burt Reynolds, who although aged 80 and in fragile health, attended the sale to watch his car set a world record price of US$550,000. While this one won’t be reaching six figures for a while, its stocks would certainly have risen on the back of the Reynolds sale. Today, and providing its keepers during the past 25 years have been kind, $65,000 is certainly possible.