CONTENTS
| Pre-amble
:- About this project; choice of subject and choice of
format. The Car :- History and description of the Lotus Esprit model. Description and history of JPS No. 21 and my reasons for buying it. The Thesis :- An attempt to deconstruct the concept of "value". Introduce the factors that are significant in the construction of "value" of a classic car. Suggest a paradigm for their inter-relationship and hierarchy. Factors to be considered -
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| The Classic Car Market :- Brief overview of the dynamics of the classic car market and its relationship to macro economic trends, the rise of the classic car industry (ie. auction houses, dealers, restorers), the growth of research and publications (ie. books, magazines, design history and the museum), the rise of heritage and nostalgia as a social phenomena (car clubs, collecting as a hobby) and the growth in personal surplus wealth (ie. the new socio-economic groups and the rise of the modern collector). | |
| "Classic" status :- The definition of "classic" as regards cars. The alternative concept of the "Cult" car. The importance of 'period', country of origin, means of manufacture and original cost/market position, within this definition. | |
| Comparative Value :- Comparative value judgements in the classic car industry. The 'iconic' car. The significance of 'marque' and 'model' in value judgements. The factors that underpin such judgements (ie. the history of personalities - company owner, automobile engineer, designer). The concept of car "genres" and their hierarchy, and the rise of the 'super car'. | |
| The Individual Car - "Quality" :- Rarity and condition as significant factors. The issue of originality vs restored; the ethics and the debates. The problem of the car as a museum object. | |
| The Individual Car - "History" :- An analysis of the importance of a cars provenance (ie. the historically significant owner or race history as factors in classic car values) | |
| The dynamics and hierarchies of Classic Car "Value" :- A summing up of the complex network of factors that give rise to the extremes of 'market value'. Define the categories of "Exceptional" and "Non-Exceptional", and their three sub-categories, as a model for classic car "value". | |
| Tables of statistics for prices for the year 2000 :- Highest and lowest values for fifty makes in the UK market. Top and bottom ten car makes. Highest priced cars at international auctions. Lotus prices at auction for year 2000. | |
| "Best Buy : Lotus Esprit" :- Article in "Classic and Sport Car" magazine, March 2000 issue, pages 94-101,featuring my JPS No.21 | |
| Thumbnail photographs of my Esprit S2, JPS No.21 : click on the picture you want to see to enlarge it. Short video clips of the Esprit; you have to wait a long time for them to load though! | |
| Log your comments for discussion here. | |
| A list of relevant web sites and e-mail addresses |
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