Convertibles over 50 years are the most stable in value, but there are always surprises
These days, even the business papers like to run articles about the fabulous returns on classic cars. But hardly anyone asks the question as to which new car buyer would have actually got the best "deal" in 1964.
We went to the trouble of comparing the prices of over 70 new cars at the time with their value today. In the best case scenario, the new car buyer at that time would get ten times the amount back today, but adjusted for inflation, it is only three times the amount.
The first ten places are interesting. While there are candidates here that one would have expected, such as an Aston Martin DB5 Volante or the Maserati 3500 GT Spider from Vignale, other vehicles are surprising.
The car with the third-highest increase in value is called the Citroën 2 CV Sahara and is a twin-engined duck. In 7th place is the Amphicar Schwimmwagen.
A little further back is the VW Beetle 1200, which at least leaves the Pagoda, the Mercedes Benz 230 SL, behind.
It should come as no surprise that convertibles have the best value stability (90%), followed by coupés (71%) and saloons (47%).
Here are the results of the small survey in a sortable table:
| Brand | Type | Body style | New price in 1964 (CHF) | Change in value* | Change in value without inflation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aston-Martin | DB5 Volante | Convertible | 56200 | 2.96 | 10.81 |
| Maserati | 3500 GTI (Vignale) | Convertible | 45800 | 2.75 | 10.02 |
| Citroën | 2 CV Sahara | Sedan | 9475 | 2.08 | 7.59 |
| Aston-Martin | DB5 | Coupé | 51450 | 1.98 | 7.23 |
| Facel Vega | Facel II | Coupé | 63750 | 1.6 | 5.84 |
| Lancia | Flaminia Sport (Zagato) 3-C | Coupé | 30800 | 1.55 | 5.64 |
| Amphicar | Schwimmwagen | Convertible | 13500 | 1.36 | 4.97 |
| Ferrari | 330 GT | Coupé | 51500 | 1.32 | 4.82 |
| Austin Healey | 3000 Mk. III | Convertible | 15700 | 1.17 | 4.27 |
| Jaguar | E-Type | Convertible | 26100 | 1.16 | 4.23 |
| Morgan | Plus 4 | Convertible | 11500 | 1.11 | 4.04 |
| Porsche | 356 C | Coupé | 18500 | 1.04 | 3.79 |
| Maserati | 3500 GTI (Touring) | Coupé | 45300 | 1.01 | 3.7 |
| Morris | Morris-Cooper S 1275 | Sedan | 10200 | 0.94 | 3.44 |
| Alfa Romeo | 2600 Spider | Convertible | 24150 | 0.8 | 2.91 |
| VW | 1200 Ghia-Karmann | convertible | 10975 | 0.76 | 2.76 |
| VW | 1200 | Sedan | 5555 | 0.75 | 2.72 |
| Fiat | 500 D | Sedan | 4250 | 0.74 | 2.71 |
| Jaguar | E-Type | Coupé | 27250 | 0.74 | 2.7 |
| DWK-Auto Union | 1000 Sp Roadster | Convertible | 14300 | 0.71 | 2.6 |
| Skoda | Felicia | convertible | 7800 | 0.71 | 2.59 |
| Mercedes-Benz | 300 SE Convertible | Convertible | 48000 | 0.69 | 2.52 |
| Mercedes-Benz | 230 SL | convertible | 30300 | 0.68 | 2.5 |
| Daimler | SP 250 | convertible | 19600 | 0.66 | 2.42 |
| Jaguar | Mk. 2 3.8 Litre | Sedan | 22600 | 0.63 | 2.32 |
| Lotus | Elan 1600 | Convertible | 17900 | 0.62 | 2.27 |
| Chevrolet | Corvette Sting Ray | Coupé | 30350 | 0.61 | 2.23 |
| Chevrolet | Corvette Sting Ray | Convertible | 30550 | 0.61 | 2.22 |
| NSU | Spider (Wankel) | Convertible | 11000 | 0.6 | 2.19 |
| Triumph | TR 4 | Convertible | 13400 | 0.59 | 2.16 |
| Citroen | 2 CV Paris AZL | Sedan | 4850 | 0.58 | 2.12 |
| Citroen | DS 19 | Sedan | 15750 | 0.53 | 1.94 |
| Glass | 1300 GT Coupé | Coupé | 14950 | 0.52 | 1.88 |
| BMW | 700 CS | Coupé | 7750 | 0.51 | 1.87 |
| Triumph | Spitfire 4 | Convertible | 8750 | 0.51 | 1.87 |
| Mercedes-Benz | 600 | Sedan | 74000 | 0.51 | 1.84 |
| MG | Midget Mk. II | Convertible | 7950 | 0.5 | 1.82 |
| Renault | Dauphine-Gordini | Sedan | 6390 | 0.5 | 1.82 |
| Volvo | 544 | Sedan | 9600 | 0.49 | 1.78 |
| MGB | MGB (Overdrive) | Convertible | 11600 | 0.47 | 1.73 |
| Sunbeam | Alpine Series IV | Convertible | 12400 | 0.46 | 1.69 |
| Renault | Caravelle 1100 | Convertible | 10650 | 0.46 | 1.69 |
| Austin Healey | Sprite 1100 Mk. III | Convertible | 7850 | 0.45 | 1.63 |
| VW | 1500 Ghia-Karmann | Coupé | 11975 | 0.43 | 1.58 |
| Renault | R 4 | Sedan | 4990 | 0.43 | 1.57 |
| Fiat | 1800 B | Sedan | 11250 | 0.4 | 1.48 |
| Mercedes-Benz | 300 SE | Sedan | 32300 | 0.39 | 1.42 |
| BMW | 3200 CS | Coupé | 46500 | 0.39 | 1.42 |
| Opel | Cadet | Sedan | 6800 | 0.38 | 1.4 |
| Simca | 1000 Coupé | Coupé | 11200 | 0.37 | 1.34 |
| NSU | Prince 1000 | Sedan | 7250 | 0.37 | 1.33 |
| Volvo | 1800 S | Coupé | 18950 | 0.36 | 1.32 |
| Opel | Rekord Coupé 1.7 L | Coupé | 10850 | 0.36 | 1.3 |
| BMW | 1800 TI | Sedan | 15200 | 0.35 | 1.28 |
| DWK-Auto Union | DKW F 12 | sedan | 7300 | 0.34 | 1.26 |
| Opel | Admiral | Sedan | 16900 | 0.34 | 1.24 |
| Mercedes-Benz | 190 c | Sedan | 15200 | 0.33 | 1.22 |
| ISO | 300 HP ISO-Rivolta IR-300 27 | Coupé | 41000 | 0.33 | 1.19 |
| Panhard | 24 CT | Coupé | 12500 | 0.33 | 1.19 |
| Maserati | 4 Porte | Sedan | 48900 | 0.31 | 1.12 |
| Alfa Romeo | 1600 Giulia TI Super | Sedan | 17900 | 0.3 | 1.11 |
| Rolls-Royce | Phantom V | Sedan | 108000 | 0.3 | 1.09 |
| Fiat | 2300 Coupé S | Coupé | 25900 | 0.3 | 1.09 |
| Rolls-Royce | Silver Cloud III | Saloon | 67700 | 0.29 | 1.04 |
| Jensen | C-V8 | Coupé | 43000 | 0.27 | 0.97 |
| Ford D | Taunus 12 M | Sedan | 7760 | 0.26 | 0.96 |
| Peugeot | 404/1600 9011 | Sedan | 10700 | 0.26 | 0.94 |
| Simca | 1000 | Sedan | 6590 | 0.25 | 0.9 |
| Hillman | Imp | Sedan | 6200 | 0.22 | 0.82 |
| Morris | 1100 | Sedan | 7350 | 0.2 | 0.74 |
| Lancia | Flavia Berlina 1.5 L | Sedan | 14850 | 0.19 | 0.69 |
| Rover | 3-Litre Coupé | Coupé | 23200 | 0.16 | 0.57 |
| Rover | 2000 | Sedan | 15900 | 0.14 | 0.51 |
Note: The calculations were carried out using the new price lists and Classic Data valuations on intermediate gas. The factor in the "Change in value" columns compares the current market value with the new price at the time (in each case with/without taking inflation into account). Reading example: The BMW 1800 TI cost 16,200 francs in 1964 and is traded for 1.3 times as much today. Adjusted for inflation, however, an owner who has kept the car to this day would only receive around 1/3 (35%) of the new price converted to today's conditions.
