What is Value?

"mikecyc72usa" (mikecyc72usa) 10/28/2016 at 22:50 • Filed to: FIA, Cobra, 289, Maserati, Ghibli, Spyder, vintage, classic, Jaguar

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Value: the regard that something is held to deserve; the importance, worth, or usefulness of something.

Easy to understand, no? We all know the definition, be it noun or verb. When it comes to cars, it’s pretty black and white. Or is it? Recently I realized that value is very subjective, and varies greatly from person to person. I think it also depends on which branch of the car hobby you find yourself. For example, take the Maserati Ghibli Spyder below.

This exact car, the Ghibli prototype Spyder was owned by a friend of my father’s until last year when he sold it at RM in Monterey. The hammer fell at a bit over $900,000.00, which was a bit lower than hoped for. Let’s think about this. This car sold for almost a million dollars. It is truly one of a kind. But that’s not the special part about it.

Alex drove this car. A lot. He drove to shows up and down the East coast. It didn’t always want to cooperate. It drove in traffic going to Hilton Head, around Savannah, and on I-95. It sometimes got caught in the rain. But it was driven.

What strikes me about this is that I was part of a discussion the other day where people were up in arms over a Miura being driven in the rain for a story. My response was “so what, 20 years ago I was friends with guys in the Indianapolis area who drove their 60's Ferraris, Jags, Maseratis, etc in the rain and snow year round.” Oh the howls of the masses. Not only did they think it was stupid, they also even doubted it happened.

I come from a family and social circle that believes a car is meant to be driven, not cosseted. Metal can be fixed. And as I discussed this with my girlfriend, I realized that the ones who howled the loudest were the first ones to point out how much a car is worth. With that, I realized that there are investors and enthusiasts to make a complicated dynamic simple. There are degrees of both, with some overlap even, but I feel there are 2 camps.

If I had the money, I’d likely drive a Ferrari Daytona almost daily, or an older Jag or Triumph Italia. Pretty valuable, all, and not exactly common. I also enjoyed the investors saying how you are risking a priceless car in the rain because of accident risk. Of course, statistically whether you are driving a Yaris or a Miura, the odds of getting in an accident don’t change. That is if you drive both exactly the same.

Pouring rain, but out and about to check out off beat places around Austin.

I drove all my “collectible” cars year round in Indy. I never owned modern cars. But for me, monetary value isn’t my concern. Driving my cars no matter the weather or distance is what I love. I get my value from my cars and motorcycle not in worth, but in experiences. Finding myself in bad weather, or a new place or whatever, that’s the value to me. Being able to laugh about some weird event that only could have happened at the wheel of a Triumph, Jag, Ferrari, etc is the value in owning these cars for me.

Oh, and my dad’s friend Alex? He has an actual FIA 289 Cobra he drives on errands and to the grocery store, as well as an insane low mileage first year Mustang convertible. In fact, when the Mustang was taken to a show in FL and they convoyed down with my dad, the mileage to and from the show was equal to 8% of the total mileage on the car when they left. Those guys are my heroes. Get out and drive.

RallyWrench > mikecyc72usa 10/28/2016 at 23:38

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Amen. Old cars are kinetic art, best appreciated in motion.

CaptDale - is secretly British > mikecyc72usa 10/31/2016 at 11:39

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That’s a truth! I have always wanted to DD something old and classic. I planned on doing that with my Austin Healey Sprite (when and if I get her back together). Why have a car and let it rot in your garage? Sitting will take a much greater toll on the car than driving it. Not only will all the rubbers and lubricants go to shit, but no one except the wealthy will see them and that is a toll on the young car people.