Amelia Island Concours Founder Bill Warner recently sent us a picture of himself and his copy of Sports Car Market. He added the comments, “SCM is the pulse of the collector car culture. Every page is educational. Legal Files columnist John Draneas’ articles have priceless information and advice. I would not miss a single issue.” Bill’s been a subscriber since 1997. Where do you read your SCM? Send a photo and a couple of sentences to me at keith.martin@sportscarmarket.com. We’ll feature one lucky SCMer a week in this blog and in our social media promotions. Want to join SCM? Here’s a special ..read more

Most cars lead a mundane existence, barely noticed accessories to our lives. We drive them to the supermarket and the malls. If they are lucky, and the kids put away their bikes and skateboards, they might get parked in the garage once in a while. Classic-car tours flip this paradigm on its head. We just returned from the Oregon Region of the Porsche Club of America’s NW Passage. This was its 27th annual running, overseen by a committee headed by Jeff Gretz and Heinz Holzapfel. SCM has been a sponsor from the very first. For five days, four nights and 1,300 miles, cars were not afterthoughts ..read more

The SCM 1966 Alfa Romeo Spider Duetto is currently up for auction on Bring a Trailer. Part of what I like most about the BaT experience are the questions that get asked by the auction watchers. Several have commented about the overspray (from the long-ago respray) on the underside of the car, under the hood and in the door jambs. I’ve been aware of these “flaws” since I bought the car. But I chose not to do anything about them. First, my cars are for driving and not for showing. It was more important to me that the suspension be dialed in just right than the striker plate on the door jamb be d ..read more

We just had the 1991 Alfa Romeo Spider S4 out for a 4th of July parade. We hadn’t had the fancy tonneau cover that goes over the folded top on the car in a couple of years. Consequently, we had to stretch it to fit and consequently pulled a couple of snaps loose. Once it got some heat from the sun into it, it settled down. As we got ready to put it away, I wondered if I should leave the tonneau on the car, stretched and snapped into place, or fold it in half and put it back into the trunk. In the same vein, are we better off storing the car with the top up, or folding it and tucking it away? A ..read more

There’s been a lot of buzz about classic English sports cars recently. Most notably, some Austin Healey 3000s that used to be able to crack $125k are now selling for half that online. I grew up with these cars; my first two roadsters were a Bug Eye Sprite and an MGA, so I will always have a fondness for them. Do you think these cars are just so primitive now that collectors have moved on? Is the current drop in prices a buying opportunity, or are the values just the new normal? Let’s consider Triumph TR4s, MGBs and Big Healeys. What do you think you need to pay for a proper #2 car, and where w ..read more

I mentioned last week that Chevrolet Corvairs, Corvette C3s and Avantis are on my online auction watch lists. Having a watch list is similar to subscribing to a series of documentaries on The History Channel. I’m not sure I want to know much more about Roman chariot warfare, but don’t mind prowling around a little bit. For a brief moment, I was on fire to add an Avanti to our collection, but a little research turned the flames into embers. However, by joining the relevant social media affinity groups, I’m now aware of the various pecking orders in the Avanti world with early supercharged, 4-sp ..read more

A few weeks ago, in my discussion of how I bid online, I mentioned the different models I was watching. I concluded by saying that Chevrolet Corvairs and Porsche Macans were also currently on my watch list. Looking at online auctions is a lot like no-risk fishing. You bait your hook by putting cars on your “notify me” or “watch list,” then go on about your daily activities. Every now and then, without warning, your electronic bobber disappears under the surface as your list gets a hit. The no-risk part is that once you have a successful strike, you are not committed to reel in your catch. You ..read more

1991 Plymouth Laser RS S/N 4P3CS44R3ME148237. 148,600 miles. “2.0-liter inline-4, 5-speed manual transmission, front-wheel drive, 16-inch wheels, pop-up headlights, pop-up sunroof, cloth upholstery, automatic front shoulder belts, power windows, air conditioning.” Condition: 1. SOLD AT $5,538. Cars & Bids, 5/22/24. Chrysler teamed up with Mitsubishi to create Diamond-Star Motors in 1985. Chrysler had been importing Mitsubishis since the 1970s and selling them as “captive imports” under its domestic brands. Mitsubishi wanted to expand its own footprint in the U.S., following the lead of Hon ..read more

“Trevor” was surprised when a California state investigator and two sheriff’s deputies rang his doorbell. They were armed with a search warrant authorizing them to search his garage and to seize his cell phone. The garage search located exactly what they knew would be there — a high-dollar sports car with Montana license plates. The investigator explained that Trevor was in violation of the California law that required him to register the car in California, and to pay a use tax for that privilege. He should expect substantial penalties and criminal charges to follow. It was also suggested that ..read more

The Toyota MR2 rocked the sports-car world when it arrived in 1984. With a mid-engine, rear-drive design that stood on the shoulders of the Porsche 914 and Fiat X1/9, the lightweight Toyota offered nimble steering and adequate speed at a truly affordable price. American buyers stepped up, purchasing more than 37,000 of them in 1985. Even with the introduction of a supercharged version, sales dropped off bit by bit until 1990, when the second-generation MR2 was launched for the 1991 model year. By most estimations, it was a much better car, with more power, exotic looks and generally higher per ..read more