Old Porsches: Good For Investors, Probably Bad For Drivers
Looking for a place to park that retirement cash? Find a Porsche crest.
Last year, the average sale price for 1974-1977 Porsches increased by 154 percent, according to Bloomberg — and the prices aren’t expected to drop anytime soon, according to the report.
“European sports cars in general have been on a real rise in the last couple of years,” Gord Duff, from RM Sotheby’s, told Bloomberg. “Ferraris lead the way and then you go to the next greatest European sports cars, which are Mercedes, and then you get to Porsches. If we are saying Mercedes have peaked, Porsches are the next best thing.”
North American car auctions brought in $1.45 billion this year, more than the $1.31 billion mark set in 2014.
That growth is partially fueled by an appetite for newer collectible cars, according to the report. According to Hagerty’s, collectors added 1980s-and-newer cars 17 percent more than pre-1980s classic cars.
“A new era of later model performance cars from instantly recognizable brands have irrefutably proven that the term ‘collector car’ is not synonymous with ‘old car,'” McKeel Hagerty told Bloomberg. “Porsche is next.”
Porsche’s appeal for relatively simple, reliable and iconic cars has led the pack, according to the report.
So for drivers looking for Porsches, the market is (and has been) relatively dry of a good deal. For investors, there’s enough to salivate.
( Our own Vojta Dobes has an interesting look at the classic car market based on recent auctions.)
More by Aaron Cole
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I was lucky in that I began driving air cooled Porsches back when the 1950's versions were just old Sports Cars , FWIW , unless you peak and tweak it , they're very good cruisers too . I drove a grey market 1969 911S Coupe off and on in the 1970's , it was a nice car , way faster than any air cooled car I've ever owned but " Sports Cars " are supposed to be just that : Sporting to drive , _not_ Race Cars , few Americans ever get this simple concept and so wind up disappointed . In time I bought a one owner 1963 356B Coupe and ran it a few years , it was fun but not nearly as fun as flogging that '54 Continental Coupe through the twisty back roads way back when so I decided to part with it , my Son took it and likes it as a track car but it'll never be fast enough nor handle well enough to suit him having learned to drive on modern seriously fast cars . ' investors ' and , IMO , always jerkhoff jackballs who don't know nor care about cars , they just have the love of money and ruin things for true Enthusiasts . Old 911 Porches do have their weak spots , cam chain followers etc. but they're fun cars none theless . Not for me , even if cheap . YMMV . -Nate
Mid-70s 911? I get a haddock just thinking about remembering those awful things. BTW a "haddock" is when you've been hit on the head with a large frozen fish. Porsche used an aluminum alloy engine case for the first 7 or so years of the 911. It worked quite well. Then with the 2.4 there was a sudden fit for light weight or something. That aluminum alloy was replaced with magnesium. At the same time, in the USA, there were tighter emission regs. This meant the engine ran hotter than before and now you could look forward (not very far) to cylinder head studs pulling out of their threads, crankcase warping and cracking, and enough oil leaks to make you think it was British. Of course there's the cam chain tensioners, mentioned in another post, that stopped tensioning. Leading to the chain jumping teeth on the sprockets and piston/valve collisions. If you get through that then there's the broken exhaust valves. Most of these cars had a diabolical shift linkage that often had reverse being selected instead of 2nd. With accompanying loud noises and destruction. The linkage can be replaced with the later one that actually worked, but then the car is no longer "original". Over the years fixes have been developed, at least short term ones, for all this. Just get out your credit card. That is if you can find one that isn't a rusted mess. Porsche did not use a rust preventive primer on the body/chassis until sometime later. So one does not have to spend more than the "collector" price to fix the car so it will be semi-usable I suggest getting anything 9-- 1978 and later. With the exception of the 930 and some other, usually non-USA models, which got many of the improvements some model years before. When the 1978 911SC was created, aluminum was rediscovered. That solved most of the crankcase problems, but you still need the 'turbo' cam chain tensioners if that has not already been done. Basically I look at most 911s as a modern version of foot-binding. You try to show your social status by how much discomfort you will put up with.
done this 2x before, never got money back, never got time back. I am a buyer at $300k for a 81 Porsche in nearish concours shape. Below this, to even touch it to restore- 12 grand on a paint job no problem, 3k on rubber seals, maybe 1 piece of small glass. Interior, carpet 1k, to take out and remove glue 1k, new dash, new door insides, fix bits that don't work, new dash, new seatbelts, new seats, new unrusted seat assembly, new rockers, new floorpans, new chassis metal, all new suspension arms, suspension bushings, unrusted nuts, shocks, new brake lines, SS braided, new brake pump, new rotors, new pads, new brake bits, new piston/rebuild kit, new wheel bearings, new diff, check electronic/wiring replace wiring, new steering wheel. Havn't touched motor. its just on worth it to fix up a 15-40k car if you want it minty and somewhat safe. Its just like these guys spending $8-15k to get into a '68 alfa duetto, beautiful car but slap a paint job over the rust and you are into rare sales values at $25k. and 95% need full pans,rockers and fenders, and chassis work. if you don't fix this, its a death trap. When a old Porsche from the 80's to 90's starts going for new Porsche money, buy new. Because the interior of old Porsche is just as shitty as 70's muscle cars, vinyl seats, plastic dash, plastic basket weave- which is German fake wood. early 2000's are even worse with their cost cutting. Save money and time, get an old NB and tool around in that for fun.
I would also comment on the rust issue. The owners manual for the early cars recommended an annual inspection to see if the body was compromised. Too many people didn't give a @$. Hence the survivors are worth a lot. Also many were hack repaired after collisions. Easier for rust to take hold.