'Barrett-Jackson' Car Collecting a Hobby and Investment

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., Nov. 30, 2004 -- Car collectors know the value of their pastime, which if executed the "Barrett-Jackson" way, can yield an investment return that most hobbies don't. To help collectors, the Barrett-Jackson Auction Company created the Barrett-Jackson Mini Index to set the industry standard of how to verify the quality and price of classic cars.

"Car collecting is a hobby first, with an added investment for the buyer who is smart about approaching the industry," said Craig Jackson, president of Barrett-Jackson. "The BJ Index measures the value of cars and passes on this service to buyers to make an educated decision and a solid financial investment."

In recent comparison, the BJ Mini Index outperformed the Dow Jones Index by nearly seven percent, showing the car collecting industry yields investment opportunities.

"The Barrett-Jackson Mini Index was up 25.9 percent year to date over 2003. The Dow Jones Industrial is up 0.81 percent for the same period and the S&P 500 Index is up 4.69 percent," said Stephen Drake, CPA for Barrett-Jackson. "This means that the Barrett-Jackson Mini Index outperformed the Dow industrial average [total returns including reinvested dividends] by 37.8 percent for the one-year period. The BJ Mini Index beat the Standard and Poors (S&P) 500 Index by 35.6 percent for the same period."

Over the past five years, the BJ Index has consistently outperformed both the Dow and the S&P 500, showing the BJ Index up 14.9 percent, the Dow down 7.21 percent and the S&P down 19.40 percent.

Index information was gathered from seven cars representative of the overall direction of the car market. These cars are primarily European and American sports cars and U.S. muscle cars from 1957-1970.

The January 2004 Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale Auction showed 40 percent of consigners were new to the auction block. Barrett-Jackson helps educate buyers by having a reputable third-party at the auction to inspect the cars. This, paired with the BJ Mini Index, is the "Barrett-Jackson" way of car collecting that turns first-time buyers into repeat investors.

The Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale Auction is scheduled for Tuesday, January 25 to Sunday, January 30, 2005 at WestWorld in Scottsdale, Arizona. For more information, visit www.barrett-jackson.com or (480) 421-6694.