A Japanese car will sell for $2 million, plus 4 more predictions for 2022

[Hagerty]

The past two years have been tough on folks who forecast for a living. Even if we'd predicted that a fast-mutating virus would infect hundreds of millions of people, we'd be hard pressed to foresee the ways it would impact everything from supply chains and government policy to personal spending habits.
https://www.hagerty.com/media/market-trends/a-japanese-car-will-sell-for-2-million-plus-4-more-predi...

[OldFordMan]

And I predict for 2022 that folks will still be off their rocker and pay even higher prices for the vehicles they know nothing about while griping about how much tax they pay, which they also know little about how that money is spent.

[OHCOddball]

"Barn Find" car prices have gotten absolutely out of sight. Everyone thinks their rusty, mouse infested turd is worth a fortune. It is a PARTS CAR! Today's generation doesn't want to learn how to do anything. THAT is what the car hobby is about>>>learn how to fix it yourself and get the satisfaction of driving what you built. Plus few can afford to have a restoration shop do it for us. It is NOT about 'value'. You build/restore a car because you LOVE IT, not to make a quick buck. The big auction prices have no bearing on the real cars most of us have in the our garages. One comment said that gas cars will likely be legislated out of existence. Maybe. It WILL get more expensive to own and maybe we won't get to drive as much. We must make sure there is still a place for our antique/classic cars.

[uweschmidt]

yessir a real car has three maybe 4 components : Style Performance NOISE and Love and all of these can be very reasonable to find

[Fatcat321]

I certainly don't agree that project cars will continue to stay shelved. With the pandemic seriously restricting participation in car events, I see those active in showing and racing vintage cars returning their attentions to finishing those projects, getting them ready to use when things loosen up. Now is the time to concentrate funds into finishing those projects as events become more restrictive.

[Davidb]

The Earth will continue to orbit the Sun, for at least one more year. Nothing else really matters

[Cobra5oh]

Finishing my last full restoration. Not resurrecting rotting garbage ever again. Will build from scratch hotrods and race cars. Tired of rust, emulating crappy “correctness” and rules. Long live the gas powered hotrod!

[dfayette]

I have one more in me, then I just drive and look. But I agree no more rust buckets, that's just too painful.

[MustangJim]

I remember many years ago watching Barret Jackson on tv. The commentators we're talking about the lack of Japanese cars. And, the Japanese cars that did cross the block we're low value cars. The comentator expained that this is becasue Japanese cars we're not produced prior to WWII and that the cars that they did make had " no soul". They would probablty never have the value of the American and European Marques. Now I see statements that modern SUV's will never be collectible. Thank you for the insight of this article.

[J3]

In regards to comments on future gas prices, car guys have a perspective on the economy very view people possess. Pryor to COVID every significant economic downturn for 50 years was preceded by a spike in oil prices ie 1974, 1980 and 2008. The green new deal is projected to send energy prices through the roof ( ie electric prices in Europe are up 10 fold because the Wind diminished and the Europeans are further along on their version of the green new deal). Therefore, the politicians either need to come to their senses or their only supporters will be the wealthy costal elites.

[dd1]

The saddest prediction is number 5--shelving project cars. Automotive restoration is as American as the proverbial apple pie. Skilled automotive restorers are not easy to come by. I'm guessing it takes years to hone and perfect the welding and auto body skills to restore old classics. Believe it or not, many younger people of today have never heard of a carburetor, mechanical distributors or points. Yes, it's old technology but these simple technologies powered cars for decades and helped build the country we have today. It would be a terrible shame to relegate these technologies to nothing but Wikipedia pages, old pictures and museum pieces. I hope this is one prediction that's wrong.

[bruderdm]

I’d like to see all the doomsayers put their money where their mouth is and sell their ICE powered collections asap and drive the market down to make way for a bunch of new buyers.

[Sharx]

Instead of arguing the politics of why....why not look for solutions to not allow the hobby to diminish or die? I am always reminded when I read the problem of the future of car collecting a day years ago when I ran a car show that had 700+ cars attend. A very young teenage kid pulled in with a beautiful purple late '60's Dodge Challenger. I made sure he parked with the similar muscle cars of his car's period. But he could have not been seen as more "alien" than someone from Mars as he was at least 20+ years younger than every other car owner. So I decided instead of walking over to tell him I admired his car and thanking him for bringing it, I would stand back and watch what happened for a few minutes. To my amazement, but not my surprise, not a single owner or even a guest came over to ask him about his ride. It was easy to see why we have a problem with this issue. There is a disconnect between middle age and older car guys (probably less with women) and the teenagers growing up that he have not been inspiring to be a car collector/owner. Fathers are not getting their kid(s) hands greasy, they are not showing them the "buying process" and all it entails. They are telling them they don't like "their choice" instead of allowing them the independence of what they want. There are countless other things that have slowly been being lost or diminished it their kid(s) minds and eyes. Heck, has there ever even been a story about a kid (not father/son) who explains WHY he loves his old car in a Hagerty magazine or online? Well there should be, because all of the above and this will inspire his buddies and many other kids his age to become the next generation of old car loving adults someday which WILL continue the "Hobby" as we would want it to.

[Cobra5oh]

I agree and try to engage all ages at shows I participate in and attend - sometimes tho impressions are made that a person did or didn’t build their car vs just wrote a check.  Check writers have nothing to add to a discussion as they know nothing about their car. 

[mllniumjadeflcn]

This is patently false. And to point, I know of way, WAY more people that pay someone else to restore their pre-war/post-war/muscle car dinosaurs than anything else.

[dfayette]

I run a couple shows a year.  At one of the shows the club presents a trophy to the one person with their car in the show that personifies the hobby, as in, built his car, shows his car and does things that promote the hobby, and we make a big deal of it.  We have entries of all ages and find that the younger car owners are looking for a way to be involved, but don't like the attitudes of some of the old guys.  I talk to them and try to discover their interests, which are very different from mine, but that's the way the hobby has evolved over the past 50 years or so, and it will keep evolving despite how we feel about it.

[Rider79]

On the contrary - due to age and time issues, I have long written a lot more checks than spun wrenches, but I (with all due modestly) know a LOT about my cars, and take pride in that knowledge.

[1971]

There is no late 1960s Dodge Challenger. They were 1970 to 1974. He must have been driving his dad’s car or a car that his dad bought for him. I would have talked to him, just to see if he knew anything about the car. If he had some knowledge about what he was driving and was enthusiastic about it, I’d be pleasantly surprised.

[mllniumjadeflcn]

And this is exactly what is driving young people away from the hobby.

[miata93]

On the other hand, maybe you could teach him something.

[MidntPurpleRain]

@1971 you are right, but the most pedantic among us are what is turning potential enthusiasts off. Especially for the old guard who is unwilling to teach but willing to criticize.

[Geok86]

You are part of the problem.

[miata93]

Here is an article to which you refer:

https://www.hagerty.com/media/hagerty-community/rides-from-the-readers-1962-studebaker-gt-hawk/

Re: 20-year-old Jake R. Kaywell

[5869Corvette]

Yes, we are a cliquey bunch. We have a number of show and shines where I live and lots of younger enthusiasts with tuner type cars. The interaction is not great but much better than I would have thought. It all about the car that has your teenage memories!

[Postie-13]

Let's be honest about the classic hobbie: it doesn't matter what the price of gas is.
We will continue to enjoy the ride, regardless of what it is. Original, high performance or just a clunker; it doesn't matter. The feeling of going for the ride is what is all about!

[BMD4800]

Bingo.

I use race gas. Couldn’t care less about the price per gallon. Part of the fun.

[wdb]

Wow. Either my comment regarding the predictions was lost, or it was moderated out. If the latter, I suppose I have to rant about politics to get published.

Sigh. Don't you all have enough other places to spew this bile. Do you have to do it here too. Shameful.

[buckshot575]

Too bad to hear that a foreign car will sell for more than 2 million. If it wasn't built in North America, it is no classic in my mind

[mllniumjadeflcn]

Too bad you’re wrong.

[MidntPurpleRain]

@buckshot575 you do realize that a Ferrari 250 GTO is the most valuable car on the planet at $70 million, right? Hate to breaking it to you but certain Japanese collector cars hav already traded for about that privately. 

[BMD4800]

Value is driven by demand. It is fluid.
Tulips were a store of wealth, until they weren’t. If your buying old cars as an investment, you either enjoy a very robust portfolio, and congrats, or you have a terrible financial advisor.
These are okay things for the Uber rich. Good for them, but not my thing.

[MidntPurpleRain]

@BMD4800 I understand the market for collectibles far better than you might realize, but I merely pointed out how flawed that logic is. Where I draw the line is where individuals feel that they can decide what is and isn't collectible to the broader masses. People like that are what drive budding enthusiasts away.

[BMD4800]

As do I.   

What is and what isn’t a collectible depends upon your goal.   

Are we talking enthusiasts or collectors?    

Enthusiasts like what they like.  Collectors who seek a profit follow the trends.

[MidntPurpleRain]

@BMD4800 I don’t agree with your assessment on collectors. I think the term you’re thinking of is speculator or even investor.

Jay Leno is a collector and I think anyone who says he’s not an enthusiast would be laughed out of the thread. I’ve met him and other collectors of his level and they are just as passionate as any other average enthusiast. They can be the same thing. In fact I’d argue that few collectors are speculators or investors in my dealings.

[Tera155]

GET OFF MY LAWN...
Man, if these comments represent the hobby it may be time to get a new hobby. Guys take it easy -- jeez. My recommendation would be to stop the politics and talk about the benefits of fuel injection over carburation...

[Cobra5oh]

Think those are quite one sided and obvious to all by now…lol

[BMD4800]

Okay, the TBIs on carb intakes? Cuz plenty of documentation to support the former.

[GLaing]

I enjoyed this article because I love cars. The times are changing though. I have a red 68 jaguar e-type coupe which I love to drive on fridays and get many compliments from random drives each time,.... but, sadly not one of my eight grandkids gives a rip about it or other classic cars. It doesn't have a screen in it, no USB ports and no cup holders and the radio sounds funny. I don't think any of them will want to inherit it. Guess I'll have to be buried in it (which makes me smile)

[BMD4800]

Have you tried engaging them in the hobby? Or is it grandpas car “don’t touch”?

[Driveit]

So, let me get this straight. This is no longer a car forum but a "political" forum where all of the extremist talking points are repeated over and over again. I humbly request that Hagerty monitor these forums and remove all this obsessive extremist crap. There are lots of other sites for that type of discussion.

[BMD4800]

Driveit, you are third in line for your autonomous transport. Please note your request to travel to “the mountains” has been determined to be unnecessary.

[Doug42]

Boy the majority of comments are way off base. I do agree that many enthusiasts are not very welcoming at shows. This is the reason I don’t attend them. I’m in the correct age group. It seems it is a closed club. I know what I have and I don’t need a Rotary or Lions club trophy. When you receive Best of Class at a national meet of your national brand club that is all you need. It appears to me that somewhere this hobby has turned into a for profit making organization. Some of us have the necessary set of skills (metal fabricating, body work, paint, engine rebuilding) and a location and tools and equipment to complete a restoration. I agree with the commentator that it is difficult to find professionals with these skills. They are aging out. I also agree with number five of the predictions.

I read in Hagerty that playing oldies music turns off younger car lovers. Do we really need this. We need to attract young people not turn them away.

[KYColonel]

If you're suggesting vulgar rap as a means to attract the younger generation, leave me out of it. I'm 70 years old and I do not intend to spend my days at a car show listening to the boom boom of that so-called music. If that's what it comes down to, color me gone.

[5869Corvette]

And you think 20 somethings want to listen to Elvis? I bet when you were 20 your parents hates your music.

[KYColonel]

Give me one top 40 song from the 50's or 60's that used a vulgar expletive or phrase over and over again in every measure. You can't do it. So don't compare Elvis to the thug "so-called musicians" of today's generation. I really don't see a comparison between The Big Bopper and Benny The Butcher.

[Doug42]

I am suggesting no music so people can converse with each other.

[Oldroad1]

Yes intelligent, useful conversation.

[SteveNL]

Miatas have been grossly under priced forever, but there are just so many nice examples with low miles showing up for sale that supply & demand seems to keep prices low. But one shouldn't conclude that they aren't great cars just because they are cheap to buy. Some day they will be worth more, but maybe not in 2022.

It's kind of sad to think that more restorable cars may be going to the bone yard because younger people don't have the motivation or skill to restore them. But very few people restore cars without finding themselves financially underwater at the end. That's why it's called a hobby.

[miata93]

Now the turnover in so called bone-yards is to rapid for hobbyists. They get them, strip them and then shred them right away.

[BMD4800]

The classic yards charge a premium and keep the cars.
The modern classics, yes, few will survive. But that’s not much different than the 70s. When 73-76 GM wagons were new, lots of 50s and 60s cars were used in demo derbies.