Welcome to the Mad House of Modern Classic Auctions
By Autodrome International
Let’s not pretend the classic and supercar market hasn’t had a few too many espressos and an identity crisis. The numbers are in, and once again, the auction houses have proven that if you bolt on nostalgia, a pedigree, and just enough insanity, someone will raise a paddle.
Let’s start at the top.
£3.5 million ($4.7USD) for a 1989 Ruf CTR Yellowbird.
No, your eyes aren’t deceiving you. That’s not a typo. That’s the price of a Mayfair townhouse for a car that started life as a Porsche 911 and then got a whiff of radioactive tuning sauce from the mad scientists at Ruf. It’s a legend, yes — but now it’s officially a museum piece that eats Ferrari F40s for breakfast.
Make it stand out
Market insight? Heritage turbo weapons are now fetching Pagani money. Let that sink in.
£1.9 million ($2.6USD) for a 918 Spyder in Weissach Martini drag.
Lightweight. Hybrid. German. Which is usually the recipe for a kitchen appliance. But the 918 isn’t a toaster — it’s the last great hyper-hybrid before EVs became soulless drones. And with a proper spec, like this one, you’re not just buying a car — you’re buying the death rattle of the analogue era. Loud, fast, and painted like it’s about to bomb Le Mans.
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Singer 911s hitting £754,500 ($1,016,929 USD)
This isn’t a fluke anymore. It’s a movement. People will now pay nearly three-quarters of a million quid for a Porsche 964 that’s been taken apart and rebuilt like a Fabergé egg. Rob Dickinson and co. have turned resto-mods into religion — and the congregation just keeps growing.
Then there’s the 1980 Ferrari 308 GTB Michelotto Group B £666,328 ($897,753 USD)
Group B rally car? Yes. Built by Michelotto? Also yes. But the devil’s price tag feels a little too on the nose. This is the collector’s equivalent of buying a Stradivarius just to display it in a steel panic room. Rare. Dangerous. And virtually unusable without a full FIA prayer circle.
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And what about the Ford GT £676,500 ($911,717 USD)
A blue-collar Le Mans icon that Ford tried to build in limited numbers. Now becoming the gentleman’s alternative to a Carrera GT. Still misunderstood, still undervalued (just wait), but growing teeth on the collector circuit faster than you can say “Ken Miles”.
Make it stand out
Now for the real takeaway:
This isn’t a bubble — it’s a power shift.
Cars with narrative and scarcity are winning.
Rebadged racecars, homologation specials, and bespoke oddities are climbing fast.
The speculators who once chased Huracáns and “investment Ferraris” have moved on. Now they’re after cars with provenance, story, and raw scarcity. The moment a car becomes unrepeatable, it becomes priceless.
Autodrome’s Bottom Line:
This market isn’t cooling off — it’s polarizing.
The mundane stuff is sinking.
The legendary stuff is going thermonuclear.