Why Electric Cars Are The New Collectible Classics

Most vehicles lose a third of their value as soon as you drive them away from the dealership, before a decade or so of decline lead to a date with the scrap yard. But some cars meet a much more lucrative fate. If you had been rich enough to pay $18,000 for a Ferrari 250 GTO in the early 1960s, your car would now be worth tens of millions. But how do you know when a car will end up being hundreds or even thousands of times its original value? It’s impossible to tell the future, but if the vehicles on show at Salon Prive earlier this month are anything to go by, quite a few coming classics will be electric.

Here are some of the standout vehicles at the Salon Prive event, which took place in the regal surroundings of Blenheim Palace in London, home of the Duke of Malborough.

Everrati Porsche 911 (964) Gulf Signature Edition

What better place to start than with an electric car that already takes a classic as its basis? Everrati has been making a name for itself as an electric classic car converter focusing on switching old Porsche 911s to EVs. The Gulf Signature Edition builds on the 911 (964) conversion that has grabbed so much press attention and gives it a classic racing livery, which the company has full permission from Gulf Oil to use.

We all know 911s are fast, even during the 964 era from the late 1980s and early 1990s. But Everrati’s electrification makes their version even quicker. The Signature Edition has 500bhp and 500Nm of torque, enabling a 0-60mph sprint time of under 4 seconds. The original petrol car had half the power and took more like 5.5 seconds to hit 60mph with a manual gearbox. The Everrati car can last more than 150 miles thanks to its 53kWh battery.

There will be very few of these cars made, so they are highly likely to be collectable classics. Everrati is also branching out into electric Ford GT40s, too.

AVA “Tara Browne” AC Cobra

Another classic car converter that I’ve already written about, AVA, had the completed version of its Tara Browne AC Cobra on show at Salon Prive. This is bound to be collectable, because it’s a work of art created by the original artist behind the famous car from 1966, Dudley Edwards. Inside the multi-colored body lurks a beast of a motor vehicle, with enough power to sprint to 60mph in under 3 seconds, where the original AC Cobra took 5.6 seconds. Although this car will be a riot to drive, you might want to spend more time on the outside looking at the incredible paintjob. AVA is also making some special edition electric Land Rovers, each of which has a narrative around it that could give it the uniqueness required for classic status.

Hispano Suiza Carmen

Any classic car fan will have a soft spot for Hispano Suiza, a Spanish luxury car manufacturer with a history dating back to the 19^th Century. The company’s first cars were electric, so it’s fitting that the reborn brand (now run by the family of one of the founders of the original Hispano-Suiza) is also electric. The Carmen is an electric hypercar with 1,000-1,100hp, depending on model. This delivers up to 180mph top speed and 0-60mph in 2.6 seconds. Not everyone likes the looks of the Carmen, but it is certainly unique, and the design is intended to echo the H6C Dubonnet Xenia, a one-off car the company built in 1938 for French pilot and racing car driver Andre Dubonnet. The interior boasts incredible attention to detail too. Love or loath the Carmen’s looks, this €1.65 million ($1.9 million) electric hyper GT will be produced in small numbers and that rarity could well mean future collectible value.

Pininfarina Battista

Croatian company Rimac may be the (non-Tesla) electric startup that has truly pushed the boundaries of what EVs can do, but it is most infamous for building the car that Richard Hammond crashed and burned in during an episode of the Grand Tour. However, the powertrain that has enabled Rimac’s Nevera to trounce a Tesla Model S Plaid on the drag track is also to be found in the Pininfarina Battista, accompanied by chassis styling from one of the most legendary car design brands in automotive history. That design flair could make the Battista as collectable as previous Pininfarina creations, such as the Ferrari Daytona, many of which were on show alongside the Battista at Salon Prive.

McMurtry Speirling

Anyone who has driven an EV knows they are fast, but the two main global electric racing series – Formula E and Extreme E – remain niche. McMurtry hopes to make EV racing much more accessible to a mainstream audience with its Speirling race car. It may look like a miniature Batmobile, but the Speirling has real racing potential. It has a 1:1 hp to kg power to weight ratio (twice that of a Tesla Model S Plaid) and utilizes an 80hp fan to provide active downforce of more than 500kg. McMurtry doesn’t quote the 0-60mph sprint speed, but it can reach 188mph in under 9 seconds and has a top speed of over 200mph. Most importantly, its sub-1 ton weight and 60kWh battery mean it can race for 30-60 minutes at a time and supports 600kW charging for fast pitstops. It’s a potential electric racing classic.

GFG Style Kangaroo

The Kangaroo is a one-off concept car, which may look like another hypercar but is actually an electric SUV. The innovative chassis can be lifted by 120mm to give the vehicle serious offroad ability. It boasts 360kW (483hp) of power and 680Nm of torque, with all-wheel-drive and steering. It can sprint to 62mph in 3.8 seconds, with a limited top speed of 156mph and 280-mile range. This working concept car created in 2019 is utterly unique.

Little Car Company DB5 Junior

Adults don’t have to be the only electric car collectors. Kids can join in too with the Little Car Company DB5 Junior, part of the company’s range of downsized electric replicas that started off with the Bugatti Type 35. Available as 5kW (6.7bhp) or 10kW (13.4bhp) versions, which cost £35,000 ($48,000) and £45,000 ($62,000) respectively, these tiny future classics let your kids pretend they are James Bond for real, but could also be valuable assets for the future.