Barrett-Jackson Says “”Enough”

Faced with a spreading controversy that won’t go away, Barrett-Jackson on March 15 brought suit in U.S. District Court against the complaining seller of the ’70 Hemi ‘Cuda Ramchargers drag car at Scottsdale alleging breach of contract, interference with business expectancy and various other things.

Barrett-Jackson (which the filing discloses operates as limited liability companies (LLCs) organized in both Arizona and Delaware) claims the seller, David L. Clabuesch and something called “Thumbco, a Michigan Nominee Partnership”, has continued to spread scurrilous statements about B-J which has affected B-J’s Went Palm Beach consignments.

It isn’t clear from the suit’s documents or claims if Clabuesch et al have actually continued to make statements or if the whole problem is due to the persistence of the Sam Barer blog posting, although the filing’s inference is that most of the trouble is being caused by proliferation of the now-pulled Barer blog.

The lesson is: be really careful what you post on the internet.

It might get of control.

The lawsuit documents are available online and there is a statement on the B-J website.

Classic Carriages, Glendale, AZ

There's a new auction going on this weekend at the Arizona Stadium complex (where Barrett-Jackson had contemplated relocating a few years ago while negotiating with the City of Scottsdale.)
It's largely the creature of newbies to the auction business but they have put together a good group of cars.
The Glendale facility is immense, shiny, new and lavishly outfitted. There are some excellent cars and it is a good buying opportunity.
There also are a number of vendors, many family activities and a car show outside the stadium Saturday and Sunday.
C'mon down!

Auto Union Type D Update

Christie's circulated an e-mail notice today announcing, in relevant part, "...the Auto Union has not been sold as a result of the sealed tender bid process and will now be offered for sale by auction at a future date."

If we're fortunate they'll offer it at Monterey in August and hold a demonstration run before the auction.

Rick Carey

Christie's Gordon McCall's Bicycle LSR Attempt

Gordon McCall, all 6'5" of him, is going to attempt to set a new bicycle land speed record at Bonneville in October, riding in the wake of a 1000hp Dodge SRT/10 pickup.
The current record is 166.9mph [on a bicycle!]
There's more information on the team's website.

http://www.teammccallusa.com/vision.html

Go, Gordon!

Rick Carey

RM Amelia Island

RM's Amelia Island auction is this weekend and as usual RM has put together an outstanding consignment of 104 vehicles for this sale. The only category they seem to have missed is pre-1905 Brighton Run eligible cars; the 1909 Thomas Flyer is close, but VCC dating isn't horseshoes and close doesn't count.
Duesenberg? A LeBaron-bodied 1929 J Dual Cowl Phaeton (s/n 2149, engine J126).
Packard? A 1932 Twin Six Sport Phaeton with Individual Custom coachwork by Dietrich (s/n 900331, engine 900362, winner of the Gwen Graham award for Most Elegant Open Car at Pebble Beach).
Porsche? 917 Spyder (917.01.021), ex-John Paul Sr. & Jr. 935 IMSA Group 5 (JLP03) and ex-Joest 935/78 "Moby Dick" (935.81.J.R.001).
Shelby? King Cobra Cooper Monaco-Ford (CM/3/63), factory supercharged prototype '65 Mustang GT350 (SFM5010).
There are five Austin-Healeys, two BT7s and three BJ8s.
And so on. You get the idea.
The complete lot list as well as catalog descriptions and photos are on RM's website.
If you're down there and see me taking notes come up and introduce yourself so I can show off my tablet computer.

Rick Carey

Tablet Computing 101

That thing strapped to my hand at the auctions is a Motion Computing LE1600 Tablet Computer. It is, quite simply, the greatest thing since sliced bread when it comes to taking field notes. Is it perfect? No, but neither is sliced bread perfect for every meal.

The Motion LE1600 is a complete Windows PC with everything a good portable laptop should have except for a CD drive (too heavy) and an permanently attached keyboard. Mine has a 30gig hard drive and 512 megs of RAM. I carry a pocket 60gig hard drive for backup, particularly files of photos. It has a detachable keyboard that doubles as a display cover and I’ve added an extra battery. Used carefully in the field, with the built in Wifi turned off and the display brightness adjusted to ambient light, I get between 6 1/2 and 8 hours use between charges and can recoup 70-80% of a full charge in the course of a meal (or nap) break.

Because the screen is a Wacom digitizing tablet there are some tasks, like photo manipulation, cropping and editing that are actually easier and faster on the tablet PC than on a desktop with a mouse or trackball.

But the key to tablet computing is handwriting recognition.

It is provided by Windows XP Tablet Edition and the software writers at Microsoft have done a marvelous job. It reads my writing (which frequently is difficult for humans to accomplish) with a reasonable degree of accuracy and consistency, converting it to text and inserting it into application programs as needed. It works contextually, putting words together and assessing – within limits – their sense and adjusting until it reaches a compromise that makes the most sense (or the least nonsense) within its limited experience. It learns to some extent, and has an easily accessible user dictionary for adding arcane terminology like “4-barrel”, “Bel Air” or “Giulietta”.

The built in handwriting recognition dictionary caters to tablet computers’ biggest vertical market, medical records, with many arcane medical terms that aren’t in your Funk & Wagnall’s.

It’s far from perfect (you might notice me muttering at it sometimes, trying to get it to realize I really want to write “cosmetic”, not “comities”) but also far better than good enough.

I use the LE1600 to enter a complete description of each car I review at the auctions, right down to the narrative comments on equipment, options, powertrain, history and appearance. I used to take rapidly scribbled and freely abbreviated notes and then transcribe them after the auction. The tablet computer process is slower in the field – I feel it I am able to write up about 20% fewer cars in the field using the tablet computer – but it virtually eliminates data entry after the sale; all I have to do is proof and edit what I wrote on-site and add the sale result and comments. That cuts the redundant data entry time after the sale by 2/3 to 3/4, a huge improvement in turnaround time and productivity.

It also eliminates an unbelievably boring, repetitive and unproductive data entry process that stultified creativity and snuffed out enthusiasm. That alone is enough to make the tablet worthwhile.

The Motion’s novelty has introduced me to some very interesting people on airplanes and in media centers.

Motion makes only tablet PCs. During my research it was clear that most so-called tablet PCs are actually laptops with write-on screens. They are designed to appeal to corporate types who are looking for the latest bragging rights during the endless succession of meetings which comprise corporate life. Motion’s tablets are designed to be used as tablet computers. They are light (first and foremost), fully functional PCs that rely on handwriting recognition for data input. Everything else follows from that.

It took years for the cost and performance curves to cross, but in my case they now have and the payoff on the $2,500 or so investment was well under a year. [As a practical matter it got extended a little because my first LE1600 suffered an uninsured cappuccino inundation which required replacement. It still works, but with a peculiar display anomaly.]

This isn’t particularly relevant to the collector car auction market, but definitely is to the process of reporting on it quickly and accurately.

Rick Carey

Monterey: As If It's Not Busy Enough

I got an e-mail from Michael T. Lynch this evening announcing the Carmel-by-the-Sea Concours on the Avenue on Tuesday of the week leading up to the Monterey Historics/auctions/Concorso/Pebble Beach.
It's being backed by Doug and Genie Freedman who have made something of an institution out of their Thursday lunch at Il Fornaio in Carmel during the Pebble Beach Tour.
The Concours on the Avenue will be judged ("professionally", Michael T. said, although I have yet to meet a "professional" concours judge). There will be some thirteen classes for post-WWII cars.
Ocean Avenue in Carmel and portions of several side streets will be closed for the Concours.
The Concours on the Avenue's charity of choice is the Carmel Foundation. Fittingly enough, the Carmel Foundation supports services for the area's seniors.
Monterey week needs another event like a hole-in-the-head but it won't hurt to have something going on that has "low-key" somewhere in its concept and description, a place where Cosworth Vegas, S/Cramblers, K-code Fairlanes, Dart Demons, Austin-Healeys, Bitters, TVRs and Monteverdes can be shown without feeling vaguely like staff attending the aristocracy.
Continuing information about the Concours on the Avenue might be found at the motorclub events website.

Rick Carey

Christie's Cuts Its Motor Cars Buyer's Premium in the U.S.

Showing it is serious about its North American business, Christie's has quietly cut its buyer's commission rate on Motor Car consignments to a flat 10%.
This comes as Christie's has revamped its North American Motor Cars staff, naming Christopher Sanger a Vice President of Christie's. Mark Donaldson, who has been Christie's Motor Cars presence in Beverly Hills, has left the company effective after the Retromobile auction. A replacement will be, but has not yet been, named.
Commissions have been a serious issue and Christie's corporate had already acknowledged Motor Cars' competitive challenge by letting it maintain a split commission rate that was lower than Christie's charged on other goods, particularly after a recently announced commission increase. The decision to sell automobiles with a flat 10% buyer's premium removes a serious impediment to buying at Christie's where the prior 17.5% premium on the first $200,000 bid meant that on a $50,000 car a buyer wrote a check for $58,750 at Christie's against $55,000 down the street at RM. On a $200,000 bid the penalty for doing business at Christie's was $15,000.
They're nice folks, but one has to wonder exactly what buyers got that was worth that price, and the revised pricing implicitly recognizes that the answer was, "Not enough."
The change should have a positive effect on the sales at Greenwich and Monterey later this year, both in buyers readiness to raise their hands and bid and in sellers willingness to consign good cars.

Rick Carey

Christie’s Auto Union Type D Resolution

Christie’s yesterday released the following statement in conjunction with Audi Tradition resolving the outstanding issues surrounding the Type D Grand Prix car which was withdrawn from Christie’s auction at Rétromobile on February 17.

In a joint effort with Audi Tradition over the past three weeks, we have completed considerable additional research on the race history of the 1939 Auto Union D Type V12 Grand Prix Racing car originally scheduled for sale at Retromobile in Paris on February 17. Our joint research confirms that the car’s chassis is frame 19, and not 21, the chassis of the 1939 French Grand Prix winner.

Regarding racing history, Audi has confirmed that chassis 19 is a genuine 1939 D Type chassis and that it was first raced by Rudolf Hasse in the Eifelrennen on the 20th May 1939 at the Nürburgring, in which Hasse finished in 5th place. It was next raced at the 1939 French Grand Prix in the hands of legendary Auto Union pilot Hans Stuck, who brought the car home in 6th place, behind the company's 1st and 2nd finishers. Audi has kindly been able to support these race results with extensive documentation.

During our now completed verification process, no alteration has been made to the car itself which we believe to be the only Auto Union to which Grand Prix racing results can be attributed.

Christie's was delighted at the response and interest that the car received in the run up to and while on view at its highly successful Eu7.2m auction in Paris. Based on our now completed research, we are accepting sealed tender bids for a period of one week today and invite prospective bidders to contact Christie's London office directly to receive applications for this tender.

I was a little confused by the verbiage of the third paragraph so I contacted Rik Pike in Christie’s New York media office and he got Rupert Banner, head of the Motor Car department, to call me to explain just what Christie’s and Audi Tradition meant by “During our now completed verification process, no alteration has been made to the car itself….” The explanation is simple, and good to know. Basically, Rupert said, this is known as the best, most complete of all the surviving Auto Unions and they just wanted to let people know that nothing has been moved from, or to, this chassis. The car will go back to Crosthwaite and Gardner where it was restored to be re-stamped with the correct frame number.

The Audi Tradition documentation mentioned in the release goes with the car.

It’s still an incredibly cool car, impressively built and detailed with ingenious mechanical touches that make it a delight to examine. It has to make memorable sounds and be fantastic to watch (let alone drive) on the track. The change in race history is an intriguing value equation. A race winner (particularly the French GP winner) is as good as it gets, but Herman Muller doesn’t exactly strike a responsive chord and a race history with Hans Stuck (Senior) is terrific. I think they balance each other out, an evaluation which Christie’s – which hasn’t changed the estimated value – seems to share.

I hope Christie’s finds a buyer for this car so there’s at least a slight chance of seeing and hearing it on the track sometime soon.

Rick Carey