Making predictions is easy. The hard part, as any weather forecaster will tell you, is making predictions that come to pass. Then again, there's no harm in trying, so as we close out 2022 and ring in 2023, let's put on our prognostication hats and give this a whirl.

One of the most reliable indicators of future change is past trends, and we've seen quite a few sea changes over the last few years that are sure to influence what we do with our collector cars over the coming year. Perhaps foremost on everybody's mind is electrification. Carmakers face mounting pressure to put more electric vehicles (EVs) in showrooms while more companies spring up every day to convert older cars to electric or build EV replicas of older vehicles under the Low Volume Motor Vehicle Manufacturers Act. If there's a beloved older car or truck that hasn't yet been offered with an electric motor under the hood and batteries where the gas tank once was, it's a good bet you'll see somebody announce one in the coming year. That said, the trend toward electrification will likely remain more of a steady march than a blitz, given that OEMs are slow to release complete crate EV packages and that widely available battery technology hasn't made any great leap forward since the introduction of lithium-ion batteries 20 years ago.

I will go out on a limb and predict that vintage EVs will start to become more collectible in 2023. Not necessarily homebuilt conversions, and not necessarily the pre-1930 electrics, rather the low-volume production EVs and mad scientist one-off prototypes of the Sixties through the Nineties. We've already started to see more of those emerge from long-term storage over the last few years as collectors warm to the idea of EVs and continue to seek out rare cars with unique backstories.

What about collector car prices in general? Some industry watchers have already declared a softening in values, and it's likely that the continuing federal reserve interest rate hikes will shift investor focus away from collector cars. Or maybe toward collector cars as a hedge against inflation? Economics makes no sense. We'll get a clearer picture on value trends in the coming weeks with the Kissimmee and Arizona auctions.

Restomods will continue to be popular, but I'm also seeing plenty of people souring on the extremes ($$) to which they're taken. Similarly, people soured on the extremes of the Pro Street, street rodding, and vanning movements not long before some new subculture replaced them as the hot showstopping style. Could 2023 be the year when some obscure automotive trend upends restomodding?

But those are just my thoughts. Feel free to offer your own Nostradamusings in the comments below, and Happy New Year to all that celebrate.