Cliff Chambers looks back through the TradeUniqueCars classifieds
Alfa Romeo Montreal – Advertised December 1999
Designed to showcase Italian excellence at the 1967 World Expo, Bertone’s Montreal spawned a road-going model that failed to do the business Alfa expected. Production began in 1970 and ended in 1977 and in between only 3925 of the stylish V8 were made. Of those, 180 were RHD cars and a lot less than that number came to Australia so they are rare and prices have been climbing. Recent local money has gone beyond $150,000 – understandable with 105 Series selling at $80K – and European results for LHD cars suggest that to be fair money for a RHD with good history.
Was: $29,000. Now: $135,000-150,000
DMC DeLorean – Advertised May 2001
No capacitor, flux or otherwise, to be seen and if this one did ever manage to reach 88mph you get the feeling there would be bits flying into the future well before you did. Never mind, it was a project for somebody. During its brief existence, DeLorean managed to find buyers for over 8000 cars; more than half of which are believed to survive. Should you not want to be messing with an old Irish-built version the current owners of the DMC brand will supply a new one for around US$100,000. Almost every Aussie car show includes a DeLorean so we imagine this car has survived.
Was: $32,000. Now: $50,000-60,000
MG TF – April 1986
Would have been handy to have this month’s featured DeLorean available so we could head back to 1986 to collect a few $15,000 MGs. A couple of years after this car was advertised the world went mad for T Series and especially the 1.5-litre TF. Surveyed values during the late 1980s saw TF averages soar from $15,500 to more than $33,000 by 1989. There and above they have stayed, avoiding influence from forces that affect more exotic sports models. Harder to kill than a crocodile in a blast bunker we suspect this TF would still be alive and providing pleasure somewhere.
Was: $14,900. Now: $40,000-45,000
Reader’s One That Got Away:
HOLDEN SUNBIRD
Thomas McDonald – Byford, WA
My auntie drove a canary yellow Sunbird in the 80s, we laughed at it and called it the “fake” Torana at the time. She eventually traded it in on a VC Commodore for next to peanuts after nobody in the family wanted it. I regret that the Sunbird is not in the family.
Classic Australian Family Car Value Guide home page
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