By Robert Emslie
How many Japanese production cars can you truly consider to be investment grade? Let’s get out our fingers and toes and count them, m’kay? First off there’s the Toyota 2000GT. There were only 351 of those produced from 1967 through ’70, plus 2 convertibles that built for Bond, James Bond. If you happen to be in possession of one of these cars, you are a millionaire. Other Japanese cars however have not seen such an epic climb in value. The next closest is probably Honda’s NSX, which today is tracking an ascent in value, but we’ll have to see just what happens to that earlier generation when the next one becomes available, if it ever does.
But what about Godzilla? Nissan’s GT-R is the ultimate expression of a car that has developed its own mythology, a good sign for future desirability. It’s also one of the most amazing and technologically advanced cars on the planet. I mean, is there anything more crazy than a front-engine, four-wheel drive car with a rear-mounted transaxle? Currently prices for the GT-R – new – are maintaining, but what about ten years down the road? Will the GT-R be another NSX,or even as heady a player as the 2000GT? Or, will it haunt the virtual pages of Craigslist like so many other Japanese once-greats, the Mitsubishi 3000GT, Toyota Supras, and Nissan’s own 300ZX?
It’s a weird thing about the Japanese cars of old, they just don’t seem to hold the passion of car people the way the products of German, Italian, American, or British manufacturers do. The question for today is what fate do you think will befall the GT-R, and do you think it is worth buying now with the intention of making a killing 10 or 20 years down the road?
Image source: Moibibiki
Jeff Glucker