For These 6 Classics, a Little Better Costs a Lot More

When shopping for a car that is anything older than brand new, condition is important. We’re not just talking about shiny paint and un-scratched wheels, either. There are mechanical considerations. That cheap convertible from Facebook Marketplace isn’t going to be quite so cheap if it needs a new clutch and a head gasket in a few months.

That’s why, when it comes to classic and collector cars, we differentiate between several condition grades when we put together the Hagerty Price Guide, and when we review and rate cars at auction. Obviously, a car in really great condition is worth more than one that is just OK. But while the gap between #3 (good) and #2 (excellent) values is sizable for all collector cars, it’s a gaping chasm for some.

The valuation gap between “good” and “excellent” in these six classics is bigger than for any other vehicles we price. The cars themselves don’t have much in common, but they’re all relatively widespread and affordable vehicles that are easy to find with high miles and flaws, and rarely were babied in somebody’s garage.

1978–85 Mercedes-Benz 300D

Mercedes-Benz built its W123 generation of executive sedans from late 1975 to early 1986, and over roughly a decade the combined sales of coupes, sedans, wagons, and limousines totaled nearly 2.7 million. That made it the best-selling Benz to date. It also hails from a time when Mercedes nomenclature actually made sense, so a model name’s number (200, 220, 280, 300) signified displacement in liters (2.0, 2.2, 2.8, 3.0), and letters signified body style or engine. So, a 280CE is a 2.8-liter (280) coupe (C) with fuel injection (E). A 300D is a standard four-door with a 3.0-liter (300) diesel (D) engine.

W123s were an ’80s yuppie favorite, but these are also remarkably robust cars in that classic German over-engineered sense. This is especially true of the diesel models, which have been known to eat up miles and ask for seconds. Diesel W123s have been popular as taxis in Europe and all over the developing world. Because Mercedes-Benz cranked out so many of these cars, because they’re so solid, and because they’re straightforward to maintain, there are still a lot of them on the road. But there aren’t a lot of pristine, low-mile examples to choose from. That’s why the gap here is so huge. Finding a running, driving 300D isn’t that hard. Finding a perfect one is.

1981–93 Volvo 240 GL Wagon

Much of what is true about the Mercedes is also true about the 200 Series Volvo. Both cars were built during the same time (though the Volvo lasted longer). They were both massive sellers with similar production numbers. They are both famously overbuilt cars for which 100,000 miles is barely broken in.

The Volvo 240 was a big seller in this country, including the wagon version. Once they veered into used-car territory in the 1990s, they got cheap and stayed that way. They’re still not particularly expensive, but the appeal of these unburstable Swedish bricks is definitely there for nostalgic millennials and really anyone looking for an interesting but easy-to-live-with old car. Again, like the Mercedes, the reason for the big gap between #2 and #3 values is that scruffy 240s are all over the place, while perfect, low-mile ones are unicorns.

1953–67 Volkswagen Beetle Convertible

The first Beetles were sensible two-door sedans, but by the early 1950s there was clear demand for a fair-weather Bug, and Volkswagen sold a convertible version all the way up until 1980. Generally, the soft-tops are worth significantly more than the standard car.

All things air-cooled, including Volkswagens, have soared in value over the past 10 years, even though Beetles were always cheap classics before the mid-2010s. But growth for the cleanest examples has seriously outpaced that of rougher, driver-quality cars. For example, a ’66 Beetle convertible in #3 condition has appreciated 108 percent over the last 10 years, but the same car in #2 condition has appreciated 155 percent.

1979–83 Datsun 280ZX Coupe

Datsun brought its Z-car into the disco era with a model that was bigger, heavier, and softer than the original 240Z that so thoroughly disrupted the sports car market a decade earlier. “What was once an appealingly lean sportster has been transformed into a plush boulevardier,” said Car and Driver. The new 280ZX was more grand tourer than all-out performer, but that meant a nicer interior and a more comfortable ride. There were also T-tops for when the sun was out.

The buying public didn’t complain much, and Datsun sold nearly 332,000 examples in five years in the U.S., including a four-seater 2+2 version and a turbocharged model. It then quickly became one of those cheap and fairly reliable sporty used cars that very few people bothered to pamper and preserve. That’s why, when it comes to the non-Turbo versions, a condition #3 example is essentially worth one-third of what a condition #2 example is.

1984–2001 Jeep Cherokee XJ

Jeep’s second-generation Cherokee (aka the XJ) was the company’s first all-new design since 1963, the first with unibody construction, and the last produced under the direction of longtime American Motors design chief Dick Teague. The boxy proto-SUV lasted through the AMC, Chrysler, and DaimlerChrysler eras and sold 2.5 million copies. The new-for-1993 Grand Cherokee was actually supposed to replace the Cherokee, but the original was so popular that it lasted for another eight model years.

People have always liked the XJ Cherokee, then, but it’s never been expensive, and their values only started growing in an appreciable way during the 2020s. An XJ that hasn’t rusted or been wrecked or rolled over isn’t easy to find, so clean ones have appreciated at a faster clip.

1980–86 Ford F-250