Most cars are just basic transportation, but a few transcend the moment. Oh, to have bought – and kept – a 1970 Plymouth Hemi Superbird, a 2003 Ford GT or a Ferrari 250 GTO.
If you’re looking to buy a new car this year but want to get something that won’t be just another commodity, losing value every year until it’s time to trade in or, worse, send it off to the junkyard, McKeel Hagerty, head of the leading classic car insurance company, puts together an annual list of the new models most likely to become collectibles.
“They all have some characteristics that are shared by the great collectible cars” of years past, says the CEO of Hagerty Insurance.
The list automatically assumes the new McLaren P1, Ferrari 458 and other exotics are destined to be collector cars. So, the list focuses on models priced under $100,000. Not surprisingly, it focuses on performance cars, though not all are high-powered monsters like the 707-horsepower Dodge Challenger Hellcat or the Chevrolet Corvette Z06. The 25th Anniversary Edition Mazda Miata, fans are likely to say, has “just enough” to power to make it fun to drive.
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Imports dominate the list, with six of the Top 10. And prices vary widely, from as little as $24,950 for the Mini John Cooper Works Hardtop, to $78,995 for the Z06.
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Here, in alphabetical order: the 10 Most Collectible Cars of 2015:
- Alfa Romeo 4C Launch Edition. At $69,685, the little two-seater marked the return of Alfa to the U.S. market after a two-decade absence. “It oozes Italianess from every single carbon fiber, making it perhaps the hottest car on a very hot Hot List,” says Hagerty.
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Ford Mustang GT BMW M4 Convertible. At $73,450, it’s one of the most expensive models on the list. It offers “the silky torque of a twin turbo,” says Hagerty, who also notes it is one of only two BMW M models sold in convertible form.
- Chevrolet Camaro Z28. At $75,00,” think of it as “the ultimate road course Camaro.” More power, less weight is a formula for serious performance. This “monster” is a clear sign, says Hagerty, that “we’re living in a new golden age of automotive performance.”
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The Chevrolet Camaro Z/28. Chevrolet Corvette Z06. The most expensive of the 2015 class, at $78,995, it nonetheless “may well be the all-time performance-for-the dollar champion,” Hagerty suggests. It’s a supercar on par with some of Europe’s best for a fraction of the price.
- Dodge Challenger Hellcat. For $58,295, you get a blast from the past, a classic muscle car that has some very modern features that allow it to turn and brake as well as blast down the quarter mile. “Dodge just exercised the nuclear option with this beast,” says Hagerty.
25th Anniversary Mazda MX-5 Miata - Ford Mustang GT Performance Pack. For $37,125 you get plenty of extras on top of the raw performance of the new Mustang GT. “We think the GT performance package is the true driver’s car,” says Hagerty, adding it’s a great way to celebrate Mustang’s 50th anniversary.
- Mazda Miata 25th Anniversary Edition. For $33,000 you celebrate the end of one era and the beginning of another. This is a limited-edition version of the outgoing MX-5, so it defines collectible with only 100 coming to North America.
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The new Mini Hardtop JCW. Mini John Cooper Works Hardtop. At 24,950, the most affordable offering on the list. “The performance specs are impressive, but what will have collectors drooling in the future is the attention paid to the MINI’s design concept,” says Hagerty.
Volkswagen Golf R - Subaru WRX STI Launch Edition. At $38,190, this is a “smile-inducing” limited-edition take on the latest STI model. With Mitsubishi abandoning the EVO, it’s one of the few cars in its class, notes Hagerty, who praises its “stiff body, advanced suspension and turbocharged Boxer” engine.
- Volkswagen Golf R. VW finally delivers a serious player in the hot hatch segment, at $36,595. It pumps out 292 horsepower through a specially tuned 4Motion all-wheel-drive system and, says Hagerty, “It’s the Golf that GTI fan boys and girls have been begging VW to build.”
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Just wait a few years before buying, however. The auto manufacturers will always come out with a ‘better’ car making the depreciation on these cars insane. Buy them after depreciation and hold them for 40 years. The first of any series will always be the first, but no one cares when they are new. Typically the first of anything have horrendous reliability problems.
When I comes to collectables, I like to wait until they are a known collectable. Yes, the price will be higher, but there seems to always be a sucker that will pay you a small fortune for your ‘collectable’.
The only way any of these will be collector cars is if they are essentially stored unused. Few of them are limited edition in any sense, a number are overpriced (M4), and the Alfa combines its good points with horrible build quality and limited utility (it has no luggage space at all – it’s a Sunday driver at best). Haggerty would do better to refer to them as interesting cars or compelling cars, even if they are partially basing the “collector” moniker on inside knowledge of the milage their clients are putting on them.
It’s not like many of us didn’t know enough to buy a Superbird when they were released in 1970, we just could not afford one at the time… or now! LOL
Do not speak to me of the Superbird. I had the opportunity (but not the money or warehouse space) to purchase one in excellent original condition with a 440 six pack in 1985. The price? $6000.
Bryan, my stomach hurts at the very thought…
Paul E.
Sorry to hear of your loss, Bryan!
I’d have found a proper storage facility in ’85 if I could have bought a ’70 Superbird in good condition for $6K. LOL
I saw a car show the other day where these cars in excellent condition were in the $150K-$200K price range. That actually seems like a low number unless these were just the 440 6 BBL. models. The Hemi should be at least twice that price or more IMO. One of the last Hemi Cuda convertibles recently sold for something like $3.6 Million so it would seem like the Superbirds should be selling for higher prices with the low production volumes.
Paul, the most interesting part of this top 10 list, is that there is only 9. Certainly you left off a pickup truck of some kind.
Now you know why my hopes for a math scholarship to MIT went out the window. But, no, Norbert, the missing link here is the Camaro Z/28, not a pickup or SUV. The story will be corrected in a moment. Thank you for the catch!
Paul A. Eisenstein
Publisher, TheDetroitBureau.com
Paul – In this case the omission doesn’t really matter… LOL Just kidding!