Too Expensive GT?

The GT as many of you know, is normally a performance car designed for long distance journeys in comfort. Many models come as a rear wheel drive, two door coupe, either with a  2+2 or 4 seater arrangement.  The GT stands for the Italian Gran Turismo. The GT is normally a model from a manufacturer marque that also makes 4 door saloon and SUV’s.  Luxury and sports car makers – the likes of Bentley, Ferrari, Maserati, Porsche, Aston Martin, Jaguar, offer a GT models in their line-up. 

GT models are priced at an expected premium due to low volume production and affluent customers can afford to purchase new.  The second-hand market pricing however, is an interesting situation. The fossil fuelled large engine chariots have now become affordable and if you can endure others frowning at you when planet Earth is mentioned, driving an older GT to the office puts a smile on your face they just would not understand.

Choose wisely a model with a good service history and sensible mileage, and the car should give you many years of pleasurable motoring. Obviously, premium vehicles come with premium running costs, but if you choose an older GT model, there are many specialist garages available to look after your car at more reasonable rates than the main dealer.

Now in 2024, if you are looking to buy a new GT, the market has changed. Many GT’s on offer now have a choice of a petrol, hybrid or fully electric variant. But, have you seen the price asked for any of these models now? 

Take the Maserati GranTurismo for instance, available in both petrol and electric options. The models start from around £130k. This is expensive for a GT! The Ferrari California a few years ago was an affordable new GT at £70k, then its replacement from their stable, the Portofino was priced at over £100k. Now the Roma GT model starts at £175! What’s going on? 

Some of the price increase can be attributed to the shortage of chips in recent years that has pushed up the production costs and the cost of producing an electric motor driven vehicle being more expensive than the internal combustion engine. Are manufacturers now though, as prices are comparable on their standard model line-up and revenue margins are tighter, looking to make a larger margin on new GT sales ? 

Coupe’s such as the BMW M230 and the rarer Toyota GR86 are cheaper alternatives that some class as GT’s, but any performance GT with a powerful engine now starts at a base price of around £50k – the Ford Mustang GT. Will the price of new GT’s lead to their eventual demise? Will all the GT’s migrate to an electric variant only ? 

In the near future, will it be just be supercars and hypercars available to order for the affluent drivers? Will the only GT’s available be on the used market? What will happen with their prices? Will they also become unaffordable due to a halt in numbers and demand?

The solution may be to purchase a used GT of your choice now, drive it, enjoy it, maintain it, keep it and as a bonus, it may appreciate in years to come. ©