There are a gazillion reasons a car or truck becomes collectible. Scarcity now or over time, low production from the beginning, good looks deserving preservation, unique (high or low) performance characteristics, the list goes on. Here are a handful of new cars I think will be collector items some day. Remember another factor before you torch me, though: Collectibility is in the eye of the beholder. Let the debates begin.
Aston Martin Vantage AMR
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© Aston Martin
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One could argue the Vantage AMR is going to be collectible because Aston is only making 200 of them, but I'd argue it would be a collector’s item even if the number were larger. The car is that special. The AMR is about 200 pounds lighter than the standard Vantage and has for power a hand-built Mercedes-AMG 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 (503 hp/461 lb-ft), propelling it to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds and on to a 195-mph top speed.
Audi RS6 Avant
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© sagmeister_potography
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What was once just some enthusiastic wishful thinking is now reality: The legendary Audi RS6 Avant arrives here soon, and for the first time. No, the RS6 won’t get a V10 like the previous version sold across the pond, but with 591 hp (590 lb-ft), Audi’s 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 makes more power anyway, good for a 3.6-second sprint to 60 and a top (track) speed of 155 mph.
Bentley Mulsanne 6.75 Edition
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© Bentley
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After 60-some years Bentley is saying goodbye to its 6.75-liter V8 (indeed the engine first debuted in the 1959 Bentley S2, and its basic form has stayed true all these years), as well as to the Mulsanne in which the engine most recently finds itself. To commemorate, the company is making 30 Mulsanne 6.75 Editions. Bentley calls the limited edition “the final act of a masterpiece of British automotive engineering and craftsmanship.” Indeed.
BMW M3
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© BMW
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You can’t get a 3-Series with a manual transmission anymore, but it’s a poorly kept secret the next-gen M3 is going to have one. That alone could make it collectible. But wait, there’s more: We also hear the twin-turbo six is going to have three power levels. Pure trims get 444 hp like today’s M3, Base trims jump up to 475 hp and Competition versions get a nice, round 500 hp.
Cadillac CT6-V
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© Cadillac
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If you go online you can still find CT6-Vs for sale. Even on cadillac.com you can still get a CT6-V, in all its 550-hp, 640-lb-ft, 3.8-second 0-60-mph glory. Or at least see pictures of one. Trouble is, production has stopped and we don’t know how many are floating around out there. Some of our spies say they're all gone, though that only gooses collectibility. The hand-built 4.2-liter Blackwing’s future is uncertain, as well. Great name for an engine, though, and sources say General Motors is still trying to find a home for it.
Corvette C8
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© Chevrolet
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I don’t really have to explain why this car is on this list, do I? The first midengine Corvette? This could be the most important Corvette launch ever. Of course it’s going to be collectible, no matter how many Chevrolet builds. Oh, and don't forget in March, Chevy stopped taking orders for 2020 models because of COVID-19. Instant classic.
Corvette C7
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© chevrolet
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Can’t go wrong with firsts and lasts really. Comic books, stamps, Beanie Babies … anything could be collectible someday. Thus both the first midengine Corvette and this, the front-engine Corvette’s last hurrah, make my list. The C7 was rude and a bit crude and we loved it and will miss it. “The speedo might as well not be there,” we wrote. “Everything about the car—how it feels, how it sounds—tells you that your real speed on the road, at any given time, is ‘whatever you want it to be.’” Get one now.
Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeye Widebody
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© FCA
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We like Challengers at Autoweek HQ. They’re good-looking and compared to the Camaro and Mustang are arguably the more comfortable, easy driving choice (hey, some of us are old). If we want to crank a Challenger up to 10, SRT offers the Hellcat. Sometimes, though, 717 hp just isn’t enough (can’t believe I just wrote that). So there’s this, the Hellcat Redeye Widebody. With 797 hp, 707 lb-ft, a chassis that can handle it and those cool fender flares, this is one glorious muscle car. No question, as we wrote earlier, Hellcat Redeyes are going to be “cherished years from now in the way people look fondly back at the powerful Mopars of yore."
Mustang Shelby GT500
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© Ford
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“The king of all Mustangs, near and far” is how we described the GT500 a few months ago at its launch. The GT500’s 5.2-liter supercharged V8 cranks out 760 hp (!) and is mated to an excellent seven-speed dual-clutch. The car can hit 60 mph in about 3.5 seconds and has a 180-mph top speed. More importantly the 500 excels away from the drag strip, as well: It’s just as fun to drive on a road course but the ride is fine, too—the car doesn’t beat you up.
Honda Civic Type R Limited Edition
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© Honda North America
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Basically what we have here is Honda’s mighty Civic Type R with 46 pounds removed and a more track-focused suspension tune. Honda built the Limited Edition for the track, hoping to reclaim the front-wheel-drive production car record around the Nordschleife. If Honda can pull that off the car’s future-classic appeal would go up some. And then there’s this: Honda is making only 1,000 examples, 600 for the U.S., 200 for Japan, 100 for Europe and the last 100 for Canada. Let the scrambling begin.
Jaguar F-Type SVR
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© Jaguar
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Like Mercedes-Benz’s AMG or BMW’s M, Jaguar’s Special Vehicle Operations is always experimenting and tinkering and messing with things, trying to cajole the most out of its engines, cutting weight, working on aero goodies ... you get the idea. With 575 hp, a 3,950-pound curb weight and active aero, the F-Type SVR is the epitome of that labor. It’s a gorgeous, fast coupe that the company calls the “ultimate Jaguar expression.”
Jeep Gladiator
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© FCA US LLC
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I know, I know, Jeep is going to make a gazillion of these things. But this is a well-conceived, body-on-frame/live-axle pickup, not a Wrangler with a bed slapped on the back, and I predict its combination of timeless looks, attention to detail and capability no matter the conditions will make the Gladiator a future collectible. As we wrote back in March last year, “basically, this thing just feels right -- like it’s always been around. It’s great that it’s finally, actually here.” Everyone loves Jeeps, and the Gladiator really has no competition.
Kia Stinger
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© Kia
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Is the Stinger on the list because there are rumors floating around that it’s going away after just a few years? Is it because there have been fewer than 40,000 sold so far? Yes and yes, but those aren't the only reasons: The Stinger intrigues me because a sporty rear-driver doesn’t really fit into Kia’s reputation for solid, reasonably priced transportation appliances. There have been many cars throughout history that fit the same bill. It’s sort of like Oldsmobile, a company that made solid, reasonably priced transportation, zigged and did the Rocket 88 and the like. Cars like that are cool. If the Stinger is really going away, in a decade you’ll wish you’d bought one.
Mazda Miata
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© Mazda
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I know, I know, too easy. But the latest Miata is such a gem I couldn’t leave it off the list, so I stand by this one. The engine loves to be up near the redline, the steering and handling are lovely, and the six-speed manual is just a delight. I think the Miata is the best sports car for the money in a very long time. That means it is going to be treasured for decades to come.
McLaren GT
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© McLaren
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OK, I might be cheating a bit here: There’s a good chance most McLarens likely one day become collectible because the small company just can’t crank ’em out in large numbers. Introduced last September, the GT is more of an everyman’s McLaren, with a softer ride and a little more luggage space than your garden-variety supercar.
Mercedes-Benz E-Class Wagon
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© Mercedes-Benz
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Mercedes-Benz makes quite a few cool cars destined to possibly become classics, particularly its AMG performance arm. I could easily pick, say, the AMG GT-C, and ramble on about its hand-built V8 and 3.6-second 0-6o time and blah blah blah. That would be taking the easy way out. No, my heart is with the E-Class wagon, a car I and my Autoweek partners in crime have had a crush on for years. The company doesn’t bring too many to the U.S., adding to its future appeal.
Porsche Cayman GT4
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© Porsche
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Porsche’s motorsport department, not the production car team, developed the new Cayman GT4, and the company says it offers “unfiltered driver’s car character and track-oriented performance.” The GT4 uses the same flat-six found in the 911 Carrera S, though the GT4’s is normally aspirated, and produces 414 hp. A six-speed manual is the only trans available. The GT4 is designed as a car meant to be driven on a track or the street, or you can drive it to the track and race all weekend and then drive home, as the tradition goes. We’ve driven it both on the track and the street, and figure that not only will Porsche sell every one it can build, they’ll also go quickly.
Subaru STI S209
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© Autoweek
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Subaru Technica International’s tuned cars have been around for 30-some years, and the S models have represented STI’s best engine and suspension tuning and aero capabilities for 20 of those. The resulting huge-winged, four-door, S-badged sports cars are the fastest, most powerful, sharpest-handling Subarus the factory can produce. Think World Rally Championship cars for the street. The latest car, the S209, is STI’s peak (so far). Subaru’s familiar 2.5-liter turbocharged flat-four is tuned to make 341 hp (up 31 hp) and 330- lb-ft (up 71). The chassis has been worked over extensively, too, of course. Just 209 are being built, and according to Subaru’s site you can still “reserve” one. Act fast.
Toyota Supra
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© Toyota
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If you can find a fourth-gen Supra in excellent condition you’re going to pay dearly for it, and I'm betting the same will eventually happen for this, Gen 5. Supras have gone up and down the sportiness scale over the decades—the first were Celica-based. This latest version, a collaboration between Toyota and BMW, unveiled at the 2019 Detroit show, is arguably the sportiest yet. The sweet BMW turbo straight-six’s 335 hp feels about perfect for this 3,400-pound coupe, and the ride/handling mix is excellent. The new Supra has in fact already showed its collectible chops: Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda signed the first production model, and it went for $2.1 million with the proceeds going to the American Heart Association and the Bob Woodruff Foundation.
VW Golf R
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© VW
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Volkswagen’s Golf R, a niche model appealing to true performance-hatchback fans (not sure how many of y’all are left), tops the Golf lineup. Wearing a $40,395 base sticker the R isn’t cheap, but if anything it has been further refined and is a remarkably civil, everyday-drivable car that can still tackle an autocross or track day when you’re in the mood. Yeah, these days there are quite a few cars that offer that sort of dual-purpose personality, but few of them do it with the R's overall composure, at least at the roughly $40K price point. It’s a car that makes me smile every time I have one in the driveway.
