Now that all of us want instant gratification, particularly from your motoring writer in the business section, here are five future classics to buy now.
Mustang
1. The 2018 Ford Mustang BULLITT: Built to mark the 50th anniversary of the 1968 Steve McQueen movie, Bullitt, the 345kw V8 hunk will be on Australian sale in October for $75k. Initially you will only able to buy 700, all individually numbered, all dark green, all six-speed manual and all, especially the low-numbered cars, instantly collectable. Ford put 5601 awful Bullitt tributes out in 2001 and 6582 really good ones in 2008 and 2009. Steve’s original Mustang is owned by US paint salesperson Sean Kiernan and is worth close to $10 million.
2. Holden and Ford V8 manual utes: In 2014 Ford turned out 120 FPV Pursuit Utes to mark the end of 80 years of making cars with trays. Today you can buy a good used low-mileage manual from $50k to $165k for the last one made. Holden made its last ute in 2017. Buy any low-mileage Holden SS V8 manual from the last seven years. You’ll pay from $25k to $70k but both the Fords and Holdens are more sports car than work car and can only move up in price.
3. Honda S2000: The most awarded sports car in the world. It still consistently ranks in the most-lusted-after lists. Built from 1999 to 2009. You are going to have to pay $70k to buy in but they have a long way to go.
4. BMW M3 E46: Built from 2000 to 2006 this series is probably the best looking of all the Beemers and for around $30k up, you get a car that you could take to the track tomorrow and not make a dick of yourself. Drive it around town and feel like Craig Lowndes before he retired a couple of weeks ago after 35 years racing. Just make sure you get a proper BMW person (think Michael McMichael in Adelaide and David Dye in Perth) to check it over.
5. Porsche 944: You need to have owned a Porsche before you head off to the big luxury car lot in the sky. Now that doesn’t mean an old Boxster, which are having trouble moving off the lot at $11k. No. Given every other model (forget the 924) is having a big price run, I’d be looking at the often forgotten 944 (1982 to 1991). They are a good-looking, superb-handling, bullet-proof daily driver. The four-cylinder versions are cheap (we had one at the Shitbox Rally a year or so ago). I’d be buying an S, S2 or Turbo. Make sure it’s been properly serviced and Australian delivered. You can pay up to $100k for a great turbo and from $15k for a basic model.
If you want something more exotic then TV producer John (Reg) Ruggiero has his very original 1996 Maserati Ghibli with only 29,158 miles on the clock on the blocks for somewhere in the mid-nineties. The Ghibli originally sold for $170k (with Connolly leather and worth every penny). Not many were made and they go and handle like a rocket ship.
Of course, if you just want to perv on some classics, then here are two events to put in your diary. Next month we’re off to Leyburn (pop: 416) hoping for a wildcard entry in the 23rd Historic Sprints where over 200 serious cars will be racing around the streets of the town made famous by Brisbane’s best ever Rugby League star, Shane Webcke.
These days Shane does sports for Seven, gives great talks and of course still owns the Royal Hotel on the Champs Elysees of Leyburn. Don’t forget to mention The Weekend Australian for your discount on Shane’s two-schooner rump (1000g and gluten-free, $42). Shane says: ‘‘If any of your readers can eat the whole meal in 30 minutes you get two schooners on the house and your name on the ladder of fame,” Shane says. Well there’s a challenge for you readers. Shane did say it was vegan as well as gluten-free but you know what league-ies are like.
Anyway, Colonel Schiller will be running his 1939 MG TB and Mike Gosbell his 1957 Lotus 12 (which at one stage original owner Ernie Tadgell dropped a 16 cylinder Lycoming engine into for the Australian Grand Prix) past the pub.
Then I know you’ll be coming to Adelaide in early December for the Motorsport Festival where the highlight will be Michael McMichael and yours truly piloting the WART BMW around the vineyards in the Adelaide Rally. Just to try and regain some attention back to the track from our Beemer, the new million dollar Brabham BT62 will be running flat chat on the track for the first time.
As well as the new Brabham organisers are running a T51 Cooper driven by Jack, a BT17 Sports Car and the ex-David Brabham BT58 Formula One car. Dave Brabham will be taking to the Parklands Circuit after nearly 24 years from his last F1 race in Adelaide.
Informed sources are suggesting that Dave has already begged the Weekend Australian Rally Team for a turn behind the wheel and that, as part of the sucking up, has agreed to a photographic session at the Kenso during the festival.
