The first classic car fair of the year is traditionally the trade fair in Maastricht, which has been known as "InterClassics" since 2016. This year, there was a special anniversary to celebrate at the MECC exhibition center - just half an hour's drive from Aachen: this year's InterClassics, which took place from 11 to 14 January 2018, was the 25th edition.
This makes the Maastricht event one of the oldest classic car fairs, albeit not one of the largest. But this is precisely what visitors who value quality over quantity appreciate.
Record attendance
And there are obviously more and more of them, as this year's Interclassics set a new record with 34,447 visitors. Over four days, 275 exhibitors once again presented the entire spectrum of the classic car scene on 35,000 square meters: 800 classic vehicles were on offer, as well as a parts market and other automobilia.
Naturally, the Dutch automobile clubs were also represented with their stands.
And on Saturday, the auctioneer Coys brought rolling cultural assets under the hammer. In addition to classics such as Ferrari and Mercedes, the offer included a DeLorean DMC-12, a Simca 8 convertible from 1950 and a very colorful Porsche 993 Cup car from 1994.
Upscale addition/alternative
There have never been more classic car shows than today. So you might wonder what sets the fair on the Meuse apart from the others. First of all, its central location in the border triangle is attractive for many exhibitors and visitors from the Benelux countries, Germany and northern France.
Furthermore, the organizer focuses primarily on the quality of the classic cars on offer and their presentation, although fewer cars of German provenance are on offer here than elsewhere. There is therefore no oversupply of Pagodas or 911s on the Meuse. In short: in Maastricht you will find a slightly different range of cars in all price segments and you often see new vehicles coming onto the market here earlier than at competing events.
Super classics and small cars
Traditionally, exquisite British classics such as Aston Martin and Bentley as well as the Italian cult brands Ferrari, Maserati and Lancia were once again well represented, flanked by exotics such as Iso Grifo and Rivolta IR 300.
But there were also rarities in other segments, such as a Zündapp Janus, various Peugeots from the 404 series, a Renault Floride, two Datsun Fairlady and a rare Mercedes 500 E from the 124 series. The latter was on sale for EUR 35,000. As always, visitors found a wide range of French everyday classics, US cars and classic Volvos.
Fans of the currently popular "low milage" cars also got their money's worth. There was a new Mexican Beetle from the "Ultima Edicion" as well as a low-mileage Alfa 33, Simca 1100, Ford Taunus 1300XL Coupé (1972), BMW 320 (E 21 from 1978) or Mitsubishi Lancer GLX from 1987. Yes, even the Lancer is already a classic car.
Visitors were pleased to note that even in the anniversary year of InterClassics, there were some very interesting offers at the lower end of the price scale. For just under 10,000 euros, for example, an Austin Mini Automatic from 1977, a duck in Charleston livery from 1983, a 1971 Fiat 127 or a Volkswagen Beetle 1302 in "World Champion" livery were available.
And in the price category up to 20,000 euros, a rare Renault R 30 with a V6 engine from 1979 or an Opel Rekord Coupé from 1965 were on offer.
The best of 18 special shows
Last but not least, it is the special shows that have been on offer since 2003 that make InterClassics Maastricht so attractive. The often unique exhibits are thanks to the cooperation of the trade fair organizers with top museums such as Louwman (The Hague), collectors and clubs. In these special shows, top-class companies (Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, BMW, Facel Vega, Ferrari, Jaguar, Mercedes-Benz or Maserati) were commemorated on the occasion of anniversaries.
Special topics were also addressed (e.g. Italian design, British luxury brands, Porsche and the Mille Miglia, famous movie cars or Bugatti racing cars).
In this anniversary year, the organizer did not miss the opportunity to present the highlights of the special shows of the last 18 years. For example, the winning car of the 1957 24 Hours of Le Mans, a completely restored Jaguar D-Type, was on display. Also impressive were two of the rare Fiat 8V ("Otto Vu"), a black example from 1955 - bodied by Vignale - was complemented by the white "Supersonic" (Ghia, 1953).
The mighty convertible Mercedes 500 K from 1939 and a sporty and successful Ferrari 250 SWB were not missing either.
And the Louwman Museum contributed the "official car of James Bond", a 1964 Aston Martin DB 5 from the film "Goldfinger".
Small but beautiful
Even if the Maastricht Interclassics can be characterized as "small but nice", this trade fair could not escape expansion in view of the ever-growing interest in classic automobiles. And so the exhibition organizers decided on a spin-off in the Belgian capital.
This second classic car fair has been successfully held under the name "InterClassics Brussels" at the Expo site at the Atomium every November for three years now.
