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5 collector cars to put in your garage this week

What makes a car collection interesting? For us at Classic Driver, it’s all about personal taste, an eclectic mix – and not taking things too seriously. So why not shuffle your garage around a bit and park that certified rally legend right next to a bread-and-butter classic from the 1980s?

Porsche lovers, embrace this air-cooled Flat 4

You still might have to wait a couple of years for that self-driving Porsche van – but you can already step your game up with this fully restored VW T2A Porsche mechanical assistance van, currently for sale at House of Cars in Belgium. No matter if you are looking for a “Renndienst”-style support vehicle for your historic racing endeavours, or just need a bully bus to sleep in during the next Luftgekühlt festival, this air-cooled Flat 4 ticks many boxes.

Like a virgin

While most Lancia 037 Stradales have been driven like the Group B rally beasts they vouched for as road-going homologation specials, this car was rather treated like a museum piece – or a delicate egg. With three documented owners from new and displaying fewer than 16,300 km on the clock, the matching-numbers car, adored the cover of the Lancia bible ‘037 Ultimo Mito’ and is now waiting for a new owner to pick it up at Girardo & Co. Please just don’t thrash it around your backyard, will you?

Underdog no more

If the world was like it used to be and we could meet for a pint or two to discuss all the underrated and forgotten cars one should buy before it was too late, the Alfa Romeo Junior Zagato would certainly be mentioned at some point. Designed by the legendary Ercole Spada for Zagato, the wedge-shaped and kamm-tailed sports coupe is certainly one of the most charismatic examples of 1970s coachbuilding culture and quirky Italian design. This well-restored car in ‘Giallo Oro’ is currently for sale with Auxietre & Schmidt. 

A GTI for half the price

While it’s almost impossible to find a first-generation Volkswagen Golf GTI that does not cost a fortune, the VW Scirocco has so far been neglected by collectors – even though it shares the same engine. This car from 1983 is powered by the iconic 1.6 EG 110CV engine and features the period-correct ATS wheels and red textile and leather interior. It is currently for sale with CC in Portugal.

The sublime elegance of a used Bentley

What always fascinated us about the cultural aspects of owning a Bentley in the last century was how owners kept their cars for decades, driving them on a daily basis and not even thinking about replacing them with the latest model. Owning a brand-new car fresh from the showroom – just like a pair of unworn leather shoes or a wristwatch that didn’t have scratches your grandfather put on it in the trenches of the Somme – seemed like an unthinkable, almost vulgar act of nouveau-richeness. But times have changed, and so you can now buy a long-wheelbased and rarely driven 2007 Bentley Arnage RL with it’s divine 6,75 litre V8 for the price of a well-specced, new BMW 3 Series – just like this timeless neo classic coming up for sale at Historics Auctioneers on 12 December. Give us just one good reason not to raise our hand.