Muscle car values roar back to life

"Even as classic Ferraris, Porsches and Mercedes hit new highs, American muscle cars lagged behind the collectibles boom for most of the recovery. Now, however, they're roaring back to life." 

According to Hagerty, a collectible car insurer, muscle cars are now back to their 2008 peak for the first time since the recession.

The company's "Muscle Car Index," which tracks 15 of the top muscle car models, is up nearly 50 percent over the past year, with much of that growth coming in the second half of 2014. 

The average value of the top 15 cars is now closing in on $300,000.

Muscle car values took off especially fast after a 1971 Plymouth Hemi 'Cuda was sold by Mecum Auctions for $3.5 million last June.

Read more: American race cars are also on the move.