DEALER TALK: HEXAGONCLASSICS

The proud owner of a 911 Carrera 3.2 bought decades ago when they were still affordable, Jonathan Ostroff has a passion for air-cooled Porsches, and anyone who visits Hexagon Classics’ impressive showroom in East Finchley will find the very best of these

How long have you been in the Porsche business?

Since 2000. I bought my first Porsche, a 944 Lux, in 1986 and as soon as the opportunity presented itself I joined the motor trade. I worked with HR Owen Porsche at Hatfield and then with Lancaster Bow (later Porsche East London), before joining Hexagon of Highgate in 2006. My best sales year was 2001, when I managed a total of 191 – and that was before we had introduced the Cayenne! I used to visit Hexagon founder and present chairman Paul Michaels’ amazing showroom in the late 1960s and ’70s (it was an official Porsche dealer then) with my father. Now I welcome the new generations of “father and son” car enthusiasts here every week.

What Porsches do you specialise in?

All the interesting ones! We stock everything that we’d like to own ourselves: low and ultralow mileage classic 911s, 928s, and the occasional Cayman or Boxster thrown in for good measure. The emphasis is on sourcing the best air-cooled cars and niche 997-model 911s, so largely pre-991, but we constantly break our own rules.

What’s your cheapest, and most expensive, Porsche presently in stock?

We currently have a 10,000mile 2016 Boxster Black Edition for £39,000, and a “1 of 17” right-hand-drive 1973 911 Carrera 2.7 RS “Lightweight” for £995,000. Both offer excellent value, in totally different ways.

What would you recommend as the best “first Porsche” to buy?

For investment quality cars that can be enjoyed regularly, I would look towards a lowmileage 997 GTS Coupe or Cabriolet. But the maximum fun for money could even be a 924S!

Where do you get your stock from?

Because the company has been dealing in unusual sports cars since 1963, much of our stock comes from private and trade sellers, who want to achieve the best price for their low-mileage or rare cars. We reject many of the cars that we are offered because they won’t suit our stock profile, and always pay very good money for the best cars. Our buying team travels all over the globe to inspect and purchase special cars, and our chairman loves having the best selection of classic and modern classic Porsches in stock for customers.

What warranty do you supply?

We work with the RAC warranty system, so that we can offer a comprehensive policy that provides really good cover for our customers wherever they reside in the UK. We employ Porsche factory trained master technicians in-house to inspect and work on all our cars, which means that the standard that Hexagon work to is equal, if not better, than those of the official dealerships.

What’s hot currently?

We cannot get enough ultra-low mileage 997 GTSS, Turbos and GT series cars. The best righthand-drive “Pre-impact bumper” cars are also highly desirable. These cars have to be tip-top though, as customers are demanding the finest “no stories” cars for their collections.

What’s best value at the moment?

The burning question. Value could be a car that you use regularly and enjoy driving spiritedly, or it could also mean a car that is possibly underpriced in today’s market and hence has some growth potential. If you manage to combine both, that’s real value.

Name a car that you have recently sold, that you would have happily kept for yourself

That would have to be a low mileage, two-owner black 993 Carrera Cabriolet. Its new owner (who incidentally also owns a magnificent collection of sports cars), likes to ring me every few weeks to tell me how much he loves his 993! I don’t think that there’s been a better modern Porsche series than the 993.

What car do you drive every day?

That’s where I’m very lucky. It varies between a 911 Carrera 3.2 Sport, a BMW V8 and an original 1963 Austin Mini. Sometimes I’ll take out one of the new Lotus cars that we sell, just to re-connect with the brand. Road testing the wide range of our classic cars is a definite perk of the job.

What are your plans for the future?

We are very fortunate that Paul Michaels has always been forward thinking and has been a genuine pioneer in the motor business. We are extending our servicing, restoration and car storage activities, as well as working with new technologies such as the latest spray-on/peeloff protection wrapping, which is an amazing process. If possible, we will try to be even more selective with our stock offer, to make sure that we carry on selling the hard-to-find cars that we are famous for.