Classic car mechanic’s weekly motoring – The future may very well be the past

‘In the corner of the workshop, Olli Ragbin ponders the motoring world’

Classic cars are a) here to stay and b) going to increase significantly in value in the next 10 years.

How so, I hear you ask.

In the UK, manufacturing of electric cars fell by just under 30% in March. Whilst the year-on-year figures don’t look too bad, this is a sign of the choppy waters ahead for nearly all car makers who have invested heavily in the electrified future on the back of governments across the word incentivising the move away from fossil fuels.

The goal is a good one. We should be becoming ever more sustainable and tackling root causes of climate change. The solution when it comes to cars, seems to me to be much less straightforward.

On paper it adds up…..over the very long-term. On the negative side of the equation, there is the horrific cost of mining and refining rare-Earth minerals which are needed at the heart of the average electric car. Whilst we can become better planet dwellers by improving the source of electricity to give charge to these cars, we also probably need to change behaviours to make the maths add up…. like keeping cars for a lot longer than we do at the moment. If we ‘consume’ a new car every 2-3 years, then it impacts the perceived climate benefits when compared against a traditional (and very efficient) petrol or diesel engine.

The technology is new and developing and consumers need to be convinced. Until an EV can do 700 miles before needing a ‘refill’, then I won’t be buying one for transport. The infrastructure isn’t there to fully support the planned growth in use, and I do not want the stress of a 200-mile road journey, knowing that I may be queuing (best case) for my 40 minute charge or driving round looking for what will likely be an expensive nearby option with the fear (worst case) of running the car flat.

Electric cars are likely to be the future, but getting there is going to be a long (and at times painful) journey.

As the cars get better and better, there is an opposite (but I believe linked) factor that goes in the other direction. The experience of driving. Now this isn’t particularly a problem if you chose your car as a mode of transport and not much else. If however, you revel in the joy and involvement of motoring, this isn’t the sort of development that appeals quite so much.

Eric and I have a couple of projects on the go at the moment. Neither of which make much (if any) financial sense.

The second of the two is the old Rolls Royce Silver Shadow Series I. This was a relatively cheap car to buy. Rolls made loads of them and they are still around and about. They are not particularly cheap to service, but they are straightforward (even thought the braking and suspension system is linked and overly complex).

The big problems with Rollers from this age is getting them up to standard. Again, it’s not difficult, but it is both time consuming and costly. The reason that it’s a problem is that even when up to standard, their value doesn’t increase significantly, and so for prospective owners, the only thing that really makes any sense is to buy the very best one available or don’t bother at all.

In the game of 1970’s Rollers, it is very possible to pick one up for say £10k….. spend the same again… and then be left with a car that’s not worth a whole hell of a lot more than originally spent.

I do a lot of miles in my cars and I’ve got a diesel Audi A8… very nice it is too.. but driving the Roller is such a much more pleasurable experience. It floats. Yes, it’s crap at corners when taken above anything other than a walking pace, but for just floating around cocooned in Conolly leather in a hand-built car, it’s pretty much perfect. It is genuinely a joyous experience.

So as cars get better and better, the driving experience becomes more efficient (and less joyful), people will start to become nostalgic for the old skool. Cars like the Roller are going to diminish in supply as old ones rot out and become (even more) uneconomical to repair.

In short, reduced supply, increased demand, values go up. Not so much for the shonky ones, as getting one of these to solid is a much, much more painful journey than going from solid to ‘very nice indeed’.

I have also applied this logic to our first project, the Jag (SIII). These are even more scarce (on account of original build quality) and less desirable than the Roller. But to my eye gorgeous with its Pininfarina design and beautiful proportions.

This story is not unique to these two cars. I think it applies to almost all classics. Supply is going one way and I predict demand will go the other as people want to get back to the joy of motoring and to stand out from the crowd.

This may sound like a sales pitch for Classic Car Mechanic…. And indeed it is…partly! We can help you go from ‘good to great’…. Or from ‘shonky to solid’. But, you can take comfort in the fact that we too are customers ourselves. Doing our projects isn’t free (my ‘justification spreadsheet’ crumbles on exposure to air). Both projects have had many skilled hands from CCM getting them to where they are now, on their own little journeys, and all I can say is that for me, it’s worth it. They bring joy. And that’s what classics are all about. Emotion over maths.

Right, some photos!

Olli

This early E-type needs to be seen in the flesh to fully appreciate. Wow... just wow

Understated colours on 2 of Britain's finest

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Complicated, heavy, likes a drink, not me, the 5.3 Jag V12

Duncan the Wizard loves a P6. He particularly loves this one as it belongs to him. The caramel interior is a lovely contrast to the green coachwork... more to follow on this one