Member Neil Mead has been keeping an eye on current prices paid at auction for various Barchettas and has kindly shared his research with us in the following article.
Martin Garrad
(Membership Secretary)
October 2017
“Appreciating Modern Classic” and “Already Going Up In Value” are phrases often used in classified ads and articles regarding the Fiat Barchetta but it can be hard to get a real idea of true values and demand for the “Little Boat”.
Some classified ads do appear to stay online for a long time and prices do seem to vary to say the least! Although the auctions can have some very interesting estimates sometimes they do at least show what somebody was willing to pay for a car on the day whether it be for selling on or to keep and enjoy.
Over the last few months I have spotted three Barchettas at different auctions which came in different price brackets so thought a quick run-down of the prices paid might be interesting to current and potential new owners.
Firstly at the Essex Classic Car Auction on the 7th May a 1997 red car (chassis no:23937) was up for no reserve and in terms of condition; I think a description of “Basket Case” wasn’t too unkind! With no MOT history and not having been taxed since 2007 the car needed front & rear bumpers, the exhaust had gone and the paint work had peeled badly. Possibly could have forgiven all of this but when I put my hand under the sills and heard a nice crunching sound on both sides then it’s time to walk away but somebody paid £630 inc fees so maybe it will be broken for the engine which apparently was all OK. .I did feel quite sorry for this car and would have loved to give it a home but a lack of space meant otherwise.
On the 28th August at Anglia Auctions a late facelift dark blue model from 2005 (chassis no: 57612) with 80,283 miles fetched £3675 inc fees which looked good value and soon appeared on a dealers website for £5495. It will be interesting to see how long it stays advertised. The car had reasonable history and apparently the variator had recently been replaced. Looking at the most recent figures from the “How Many Left” website at the start of this year there was just 87 facelift models on the road with 38 SORN making this appear to be a rare spot now, however, there always seem to be a few facelift models available via the usual websites with them being the last of the line.
At the Classic Car Auction Everyman Classics on the 23rd September a 1998 silver Barchetta (chassis no: 35451) achieved £6050 inc fees but this was certainly helped by the mileage of just 16,700 and a decent history file. This was at the bottom estimate of £6-£8k though which always seemed a little optimistic but this put the car at the higher end of values I have recently seen. Also the car wasn’t totally original with non standard wheels fitted and also an aftermarket rear spoiler which, if the Barchetta follows the path of other classic cars, originality will be a key point as time passes.
With the early cars now over 20 years old finding examples with comparable mileage and condition is always going to be hard but keeping an eye on these results and seeing how the values change as the number of cars on the road reduce should make for interesting viewing.
Neil Mead
(October 2017)