Guides
Classic Car Buying, Selling and Ownership Guides
Each of these guides grew from questions collectors and families actually send us on WhatsApp: what a classic plate means in Dubai, what the 2026 market data really says, which air-cooled 911 to buy, how a classic should travel, how to sell one without a public listing, what to do with an inherited car or a barn find, and how to track down the car a father once drove. Every figure in them is attributed to its source, and where the sources disagree, we say so instead of picking the convenient answer.
If you are here to buy, the guides sit next to our model pages and country pages. If you are here to sell, skip to the section for sellers below.
Classic car plates in Dubai: the RTA rules for owners
Our guide to classic car plates and RTA rules in Dubai covers life after the car lands: the 30-year line and which models on this site are past it in 2026, the RTA technical test, right-hand-drive classics, agreed-value insurance and the usage terms attached to classic registration. Still bringing the car in? Shipping, duty and first registration are on importing a classic car to the UAE, and the road route into the Kingdom is on importing to Saudi Arabia.
Classic car investment trends 2026: what the data shows
The 2026 investment trends guide reads Hagerty's market commentary and Knight Frank's Luxury Investment Index without the sales pitch. It explains why Hagerty describes a strong top end with a soft underbelly, which models it has named as movers, from the Ferrari F355 to the Porsche 964, and what the 58.9% ten-year figure for classic cars does and does not tell you. Read it before you buy for value, and before you name a price as a seller.
Porsche 964 vs 993: the air-cooled buying guide
The 964 vs 993 buying guide puts the two last air-cooled 911 generations side by side: 2026 price bands, five-year trends, the common problems of each engine and gearbox, and which buyer each car actually suits. The model pages for the 911 (964) and 911 (993) carry the full check lists.
Shipping a classic car: enclosed container vs RoRo
The shipping guide explains why collectors pay more for an enclosed container, what salt air does to a car on an open RoRo deck, how marine insurance should be valued, and when a shared container is a sensible middle ground. It is the logistics half of every import we run.
For sellers: how to sell a classic car privately
Selling is the other half of this desk, and the one owners ask about least in public. Our guide on how to sell a classic car privately covers the private treaty sale, how to value a car against real comparables, how to vet a buyer before they see the car, and when an auction genuinely beats a quiet sale. Pair it with the investment trends guide to see where your model sits in 2026. When you are ready, a short WhatsApp message with the model, year and location is enough for a first private valuation, and nothing about your car goes anywhere public.
Selling or buying, a question the guides do not answer is a good reason to message us.
Ask a questionMemory and inheritance: the personal commissions
Two guides serve briefs that start with a person rather than a model name. Finding the car your father drove explains how we identify an exact model and year from an old family photograph or a memory, what 'the same car' means down to paint code and trim, and how the sourcing then runs. Inherited a classic car is for executors and heirs: what to do in the first week, how a real valuation is built, when a barn find carries a premium and when it is just a project, the estate paperwork that matters, and how the car sells without a public listing.
Why publish the homework
Because myths cost collectors real money in these markets: unverified exemptions repeated until they sound official, shipping shortcuts that scratch six-figure paint, auction habits imported into deals that deserved discretion. The guides say what is confirmed, what is not, and who to check with, the same way we run purchases and imports.