IconCars

Petrol bans are coming, but they hit only new-car sales, and they are quietly splitting the classic market in two. Trophy blue-chips are pulling away from ordinary classics, and the gap has never been wider.

Blog • August 13, 2026

The hardest decision in collecting isn't which car to buy but whether to restore it — and increasingly the answer is don't. A car is only original once, and the market now pays a premium for honest, unrestored survivors.

Blog • August 13, 2026

The Lancia Stratos was the first car ever built purely to win rallies — a Gandini wedge with a mid-mounted Ferrari V6 that won three world championships in a row (1974–1976). Only about 492 were made.

Blog • August 13, 2026

The Bentley R-Type Continental was the fastest four-seater in the world in 1952 — a coachbuilt aluminium fastback and the most expensive car money could buy. Only about 208 were made. Quiet luxury before the term existed.

Blog • August 13, 2026

The BMW 507 is one of the most beautiful cars ever built — and it nearly bankrupted BMW. Only 252 were made, each hand-built in aluminium at a ruinous loss, and Elvis Presley owned one. Now a multi-million-dollar blue chip.

Blog • August 13, 2026

The Toyota 2000GT proved Japan could build a world-class sports car — an E-Type-like coupe built with Yamaha, a James Bond car, and the first Japanese car to sell for over $1 million. Only about 351 were made.

Blog • August 12, 2026

The Maserati 3500 GT was the first Maserati built in real numbers for the road — a Touring-bodied grand tourer that turned a racing marque into a maker of beautiful cars and secured its future.

Blog • August 12, 2026

The Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing turned a Le Mans winner into the most glamorous road car of the 1950s — gullwing doors, the first fuel-injected production engine, and the fastest car of its day.

Blog • August 12, 2026

"Matching numbers" means a classic still has the original engine it left the factory with — and it can double the value. Here is what it means and how the professionals verify it.

Blog • August 11, 2026