Jef, I agree with the thrust of your comments. The value of a car is determined by the market, not by it's worth to the owner and since the average later Alfa looks like just an orphaned old car to the general auto insurance market, it is best to secure agreed value insurance if you can and if you believe you have something special. I would contend, however, that some later Alfas are, or can be, indeed, collector cars. They are just collector cars with a relatively thin market. "Different" and "fun to drive" are certainly qualities which apply to all or most collector cars. Later Alfas are "in demand" and the values, while not all that high, are quantifiable and understood. Which is not to say that every GTV6 with rusty front shock towers or 164 needing a timing belt is worth a mint, or even salable. However, a Callaway-modified GTV6 or a pristine 164Q, or maybe even a 100 point Verde might command some reasonable money from a motivated enthusiast. By analogy, my neighbor's rusty Camaro with a stove-bolt 6 isn't worth as much as an immaculately restored '67 Z28 just because both are Camaros.
I live in an area where there are a lot of Nash and AMC collectors. I would never try to tell the guy who shows up at the local car shows with his pristine AMC Alliance that it isn't a real collector car. It arguably is, regardless of market value or general desirability. I guess my point is that the value of a specialty or collector car, from the most valuable Bugatti to the lowliest Nash Metropolitan (no offense intended), is defined by the market, and the market is composed of the set of enthusiasts who like and collect those cars. Some markets are broad and deep, e.g., Camaros, and some markets are narrow and shallow - that for 164's, perhaps. That a car has been sitting unsold for months, whether it is a Camaro or a Milano, is just the way the market has of telling you that your idea of your car's value is out of synch with your potential buyers' valuation. So, I'd propose that the Milano, GTV6 or 164 are, truly, collector, or enthusiast, cars, they just aren't valued that highly in the marketplace. That fact doesn't make them any less desirable to the "true believer." Best, Bob A. Kenosha, WI In a message dated 12/29/2010 11:16:50 A.M. Central Standard Time, [email protected] writes: To classify the Milano (and the GTV6 and 164 for that matter) as a collector car is a stretch. They are owned because they are different and/or great fun to drive. Collector cars are almost, by definition, 'in demand' with values that are quantifiable and understood. -- to be removed from alfa, see http://www.digest.net/bin/digest-subs.cgi or email "unsubscribe alfa" to [email protected]
