…and not for the better…
by Mike Gulett –
Regular readers of My Car Quest know that I celebrate the new issue of the Sports Car Market Pocket Price Guide around this time every year. But last year under the new Editor-in-Chief, Jeff Sabatini, there was a change that I missed then. But this year I did not miss the changes because one of my favorite makes (Bizzarrini) was deleted from the guide. This change and the others I found this year are not good…
A disappointing development this is…SCM reduced the number of models covered by about 1,000 cars and the result is that the number of pages were reduced from 104 in 2022 to 74 pages this year (2024). This was done by removing several makes while adding a few with a total reduction of 24 makes. This includes removing Bizzarrini (no GT 5300), Jensen (no Interceptor) and Sunbeam (no Tiger) – plus others.
Spyker and Tesla were added along with a few others. They should be adding more makes and models not deleting any of them. Even if a make did not have any auction results for the year readers are still interested in the data this guide provides like the values for years past and the number made.
“The Ones That Matter”
This is the name of the editor-in-chief’s explanation for these recent changes.
“We asked each of our contributors to identify the models that make up the bulk of today’s auction action, cars that are both interesting to collectors and exciting to bidders. This clean-sheet approach yielded more than 1,000 valuations covering the breadth of the market and reflecting those vehicles that we report on every month in the pages of Sports Car Market.”
The title “The Ones That Matter” leads us to believe that the 1,000 or so models they deleted do not matter. I suspect there are many collectors besides me that do not agree with this assessment.
In the November 2023 issue of Sports Car Market magazine they reported a Bizzarrini GT 5300 that sold at RM Sotheby’s for $915,250 USD in August 2023 but this model is not included in the latest issue of their price guide. Does the Bizzarrini GT 5300 “matter” to SCM or not? If it “matters” then it should be in the price guide and if not then why bother reporting the auction results in the magazine?
On the cover of this price guide in previous years was the statement “Over 2,000 up-to-date prices” and the last two years the cover instead says “Over 1,000 up-to-date prices”. Going in the wrong direction for sure – the number of collector car models is certainly not going down.
I suspect this is an SCM cost cutting measure and not an improvement on reporting about collector cars that are “interesting to collectors and exciting to bidders”.
Click on the image below for a larger view of my Sports Car Market Pocket Price Guide comparison for the past six years.
Let us know what you think in the Comments.
I too, was surprised ny the deletions. Where’s Aston Martin’s Vantage, especially the limited production V12 Carbon Black, Vantages in general, their best selling car
and the Intermeccanica Italias, which have been getting increasing interest and value. If the purpose of this guide is to report valuations then it should do so, as it has in the past. Cutting data for cost reasons??… then raise your subscription price a few dollars but don’t abandon the reason subscribers have made you successful !!
THEY DO NOT HAVE ANY STREET EXPERIENCE–SHOULD BE ADDING –THIS IS THE BIBLE OF OF EVERY ENTHUSIAST–THEY SHOULD HAVE HIRED SOMEONE WITH STREET EXPERIENCE IN APPRAISAL SERVICES
I hate to remind anybody but it sure seems to me that as we get older and build experience collectively, we begin to become our own “mentors” and have real knowledge and judgement trusted institutions cannot hope to acquire. Then we are rewarded further by omissions like these and that impending feeling that we are from a different era no longer valued! As a former museum volunteer, we need to thank our museums (ultimately Dept of Interior) for vindicating us from time to time! Patronize Patronize Patronize!
I see the change relfecting the nostalgia of the young is not our nostalgia, coupled with the thinning out of the middle class. Technological change also affects demand: Will an obsolete fuel injector have the same role and value as the Carter carburetor on a muscle car?
The editor wants to maximize his profit. The smaller market segments that interest us don’t matter to him.
Hi MIke
Totally agree. I hope all is well.
Buddy