Wheels: Classic cars can be a good investment

When I was younger, I would satirically say that all my investments have wheels. Mostly it was an excuse to sound responsible, while spending my meager disposable income on oddball cars and trucks. I had all kinds of justifications that would allow me to feel better about squandering my potential retirement for the latest must-have motorized conveyance. It turns out, I wasn’t as completely off the rails, as much as I was too broke to be an effective investor.

A bank in Germany has gone so far as to suggest that their more financially comfortable customers consider adding classic cars to their investment portfolio. Granted, Sudwestbank of Stuttgart’s definition of a customer worthy of this consideration is one who has at least $1.2 million in liquid assets. Jens Berner, a vintage-car expert at the bank is dispensing this advise after witnessing, following the last recession, collectibles such as art, wine and classic cars as viable and enticing investment alternatives. In fact, Sudwestbank developed a tool, the Oldtimer Index (OTX) in 2010, that includes the 20 highest-value local vintage and collectible cars that are at least 30 years old. German domestic vehicles such as Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, BMW and Audi are on the index that’s calculated annually by studying model prices in Germany’s Motor Klassik magazine, and marketplace, and registration numbers.