Bonhams, Westin Kierland, Scottsdale January 23, 2026

In a three-auction week at Scottsdale this year Bonhams presented its usual one-day sale at the Westin Kierland. It offered a wide variety of cars with many choices for collectors.

Importantly, however, it featured one lot, an essentially brand new 2024 Bugatti Chiron Super Sport showing in the catalog photography a total of 2,740 miles on its odometer. It sold for $5,065,000 all-in, 46.3% of the $10,943,076 total sale of 48 lots. That is very concentrated at the tippy top of the market.

Without the Bugatti this would have been a very different sale for Bonhams but that is the way the market has been trending in the past year or so. Late model, ultra-high performance, limited production supercars have become the flavor of the day, amassing sale after sale of outstanding – sometimes incomprehensible – results and a compelling draw for bidders who seem to have little sense of history or relative value but a highly developed feel for prestige and bragging rights. And willingness to spend whatever it takes to impress 13-year olds.

Here are the numbers:

Year	Cars Sold/ Offered	Sale %	Sold < Low Est	Sold > High Est	Average Sale	Median Sale	Total $	No Reserve
2026	48/54	88.9%	64.6%	6.3%	$227,981	$84,000 [36.9%]	$10,943,076	59.3%
2025	No Data
2024	68/85	90%	69.1%	8.8%	$176,522	$31,300 [17.7%]	$12,033,520	60%

Only 13 lots are described here as I had only one day on-site after spending two weeks viewing over 100 vehicles and their history files to catalog for an upcoming auction.

---

[This photo is from Bonhams auction at the Audrain Newport Motor Week three months ago. Same car, different venue.]

Lot # 113 1957 Ford Thunderbird Convertible; S/N F7FH363673; Black, Black hardtop/Red vinyl; Black top; Estimate $150,000 – $175,000; Older restoration 1- condition; With Reserve; Hammered Sold at $120,000 plus commission of 12.00%; Final Price $134,400. – 312/300hp supercharged, automatic, porthole hardtop, chrome wire wheels, wide whitewalls, skirts, Town and Country radio, power steering and brakes, heater. – Owned by Bernard Fornas, former CEO of Cartier. A Minter restoration, now a few years old but still above reproach aside from some makeshift wood battery shims. – Offered by the Minters at Mecum’s Indy auction in 2021 where it was a $250,000 no-sale. Offered by Bonhams at the Audrain auction in Newport, R.I. three months ago where it was reported bid to $150,000. It is a surprising disappointment here for a Minter restored F-Bird and a superior value for the new owner.

Lot # 116 1966 Aston Martin DB6 Coupe; S/N DB62448R; Engine # 400/2394; Oyster Shell Grey/Oxblood leather; top; Estimate $250,000 – $350,000; Older restoration 2- condition; With Reserve; Hammered Sold at $220,000 plus commission of 12.00%; Final Price $246,400. – RHD. 3,995/282hp dohc six, 5-speed, chrome wire wheels, Vredestein tires, AM-FM, air conditioning. – Oil misted road dirty engine compartment. Very good paint and upholstery. Restored about 10 years ago and still in much the same condition as it was in 2015 but then the odometer read 93,545 miles and today it’s been turned over to 3,230 miles. – Sold by RM at Monterey in 2008 before restoration for $123,750, then at RM Monterey in 2015 for $429,000 fresh from restoration. At least it has been used about a thousand miles a year since 2015 and is a pleasing and reassuring car at a realistic discount for a RHD car in this LHD market.

Lot # 126P 1957 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster; S/N 1980427500085; Engine # 19898010003078; Ivory/Red leather; Black cloth top; Estimate $1,000,000 – $1,200,000; Older restoration 3+ condition; With Reserve; Hammered Sold at $855,000 plus commission of 10.58%; Final Price $945,500. – 2,996/235hp, 4-speed, Becker radio, body color wheels and hubcaps, Dunlop SP Sport D8 tires, Euro headlights – Wheel rims scraped by a very clumsy and careless tire mounter. Excellent paint, nearly pristine upholstery and bright chrome. Orderly, dusty driver quality engine compartment with oily film and some road grime on the crankcase and chassis. – Delivered new in Europe in Green with a Yellow leather interior, think how much impact it could have had in its original livery? Sold by RM at London in 2012 for $721,773 (£448,000 at the time, this result is £695,700). It’s hard to say (or maybe the highest compliment) but this is a driver 300SL Roadster, a car that is beautiful enough to be a joy to own but also not so pristine it can’t be used as was intended in 1957. It is an excellent value at this price.

Lot # 127 1955 Porsche 356A 1500 Speedster, Body by Reutter; S/N 80341; Engine # 34439; Blue/Cream leatherette; Beige cloth top; Estimate $440,000 – $500,000; Recent restoration 2- condition; With Reserve; Not sold at Hammer bid of $390,000. – 1,488/55hp flat four, 4-speed, silver wheels, hubcaps, Dunlop tires, Solex carburetors, tool kit, manual, spare. – represented as the matching numbers engine and transmission with Kardex documentation. Gorgeous paint, spotless interior. Freshly restored and better than new. Restored engine compartment but it reeks of gasoline and there is minor paint bubbling on the pan. – Don’t smoke a stogie in this Porsche which has a fuel leak somewhere and is far too beautifully restored, preserved and presented to be incinerated by a careless cinder. Covered in PPF (Paint Protection Film, aka chipguard) which is becoming a new standard for blending appearance and sand and stone chip resistance. In 1955 an obsessive owner couldn’t have wrapped it in Saran Wrap… which didn’t exist in 1955.

Lot # 133 1989 Porsche 930 Turbo Coupe; S/N WP0JB0937KS050588; White/Black leather; top; Estimate $600,000 – $700,000; Unrestored original 2 condition; With Reserve; Not sold at Hammer bid of $510,000. – 3,299/282hp, sunroof, body color Fuchs wheels, Bridgestone RE71 tires, whale tail, 5-speed, Blaupunkt cassette stereo, air conditioning. – All original, 404 miles. Like new. One of the last 51 produced. Original broadcast sheet [sic] documented. – A perfectly restored concours-ready ’89 930 Turbo is a $400K+ car, but what of a never touched, 404 mile, original, as it came from the dealer 930? Is a $100K premium enough? Apparently not for this consignor. Is the $600K low estimate too much? Apparently it was for the Bonhams Scottsdale bidders. Reality lies somewhere between, although closer to the high bid here than to the estimate. A 930 Turbo has never brought close to the pre-sale estimate (except when it was one that had been owned by Steve McQueen) and it was unreasonable to disdain the amount offered here.

Lot # 136 1956 Ferrari 250GT Coupe, Body by Boano; S/N 0581 GT; Engine # 0581 GT; Ivory/Red leather; top; Estimate $650,000 – $750,000; Recent restoration 2- condition; With Reserve; Not sold at Hammer bid of $535,000. – 2,953/240hp V-12, 4-speed, Marchal headlights and fog lights, Crome spoke Borrani wire wheels, Pirelli Cinturato tires, heater. – Excellent paint and interior. Good chrome. Restored old undercoat in the wheelwells. A few sand chips and wiper scratches on the windshield. Restored nearly like new and very thoughtfully and thoroughly presented. – An exceptionally handsome Ferrari, done to high standards. The old undercoat is somewhat troubling, but not enough to quibble with this car’s presentation. The reported high bid here is modest for the car’s presentation, particularly considering that it sold at Gooding’s Pebble Beach auction in 2019 for $522,000 before the current restoration. The value gulf between this classic 250 GT and the 7- and 8-figure prices of some modern high performance Ferraris is stark evidence of the shift taking place in the collector car market, and is especially notable among Ferraris which have a history that reaches back from SF 90s and LaFerraris to the beginning of the second half of the last century.

Lot # 137 1937 Riley 15/6 Boattail Special; S/N 47K3085; Blue/Brown leather; top; Estimate $60,000 – $80,000; Rebodied or re-created 3- condition; No Reserve; Hammered Sold at $60,000 plus commission of 12.00%; Final Price $67,200. – RHD. 1,726/56hp six, rally timers, Retrotrip rally odometer, altimeter, 4-speed preselector gearbox, luggage rack, cycle fenders, dual aero screens, bored to about 1.7 litres, Lucas headlights, body color wire wheels, Excelsior tires, single sidemount, alternator, three SU carburetors. – Sound older paint, road grimy and oily chassis. Good chrome and upholstery. A proven tour and event car with a rebody to period sports appearance. – This was an intriguing car, watched over carefully by its consignor who was more familiar with how it drives than with its technical details, and that is not a bad thing. It is a very good value in driving enjoyment and event eligibility in this transaction.

Lot # 142 2006 Ferrari F430 Spider Convertible; S/N ZFFEW59A660148807; Red/Black leather, Red Daytona bars; top; Estimate $350,000 – $450,000; Unrestored original 2 condition; No Reserve; Hammered Sold at $325,000 plus commission of 11.54%; Final Price $362,500. – 4,308/490hp V-8, 6-speed, SF shields, yellow calipers, CD stereo, manettino steering wheel, Challenge alloy wheels, Bridgestone tires. Assembly number 65950. – Chipguarded deck under the top seat and represented as given the Saran Wrap treatment (“Paint Protective Film”). Good original paint, barely used upholstery. “Sticky buttons” remedied. – $200,000 for the 6-speed which is marginally insane but how the Ferrari market trends today. It probably languished on the Wide World of Cars lot when new as buyers swarmed to the fashionable F1 paddle shift gearbox. The worm has turned in recent years and this is a $150,000 Spider with the F1 but warrants this price with the old fashioned, but now fashionable, 6-speed.

Lot # 143P 2024 Bugatti Chiron Super Sport Coupe; S/N VF9SW3V36RM795097; Glacier White/Blue leather; top; Estimate $4,500,000 – $5,000,000; Unrestored original 2- condition; With Reserve; Hammered Sold at $4,600,000 plus commission of 10.11%; Final Price $5,065,000. – 7,933/1,578hp W-16, 7-speed automanual, Black alloy wheels, Blue calipers, carbon brakes, clear roof panels, Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires, natural carbon fiber mirrors – Dirt under clearcoat on the splitter, cracks on the side skirts, scraped front wheelwell chipguard.. Unblemished upholstery. Excellent original paint. At least it shows some evidence of use and 2,740 miles in the catalog photography. – An astounding vehicle that brought an appropriately astounding price. It may be tagged “Elephant Blanc”, but with 2,740 miles in about a year it has been driven enough not to be a white elephant, making it a bit unusual among its mates from Bugatti.

Lot # 145 1959 BMW-Isetta 300 Cabriolet; S/N 501977; Ivory/Beige leatherette; Black vinyl top; Estimate $40,000 – $60,000; Cosmetic restoration 2- condition; No Reserve; Hammered Sold at $42,000 plus commission of 12.00%; Final Price $47,040. – 298/13hp, 4-speed, hubcaps, whitewalls, luggage rack, “Tropenluftung” tropical sliding side windows. – Excellent paint, top and interior. The left corner of the folding back window is loose. Small crack under the left c-pillar. Old undercoat in the wheelwells. Good glass. Misadjusted odometer wheels. – Very cute and unusual even among its contemporaries, an ideal summer car for getting attention in Malibu or East Hampton. It didn’t get much attention here in Scottsdale despite being displayed among the feature cars in the auction and is a sound value in this transaction that might well sell better at Monterey in August.

Lot # 152 1967 Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GTV Coupe, Body by Bertone; S/N AR252792; Red, Gold coachlines/Grey vinyl; top; Estimate $30,000 – $40,000; Original, modified for competition or performance 3- condition; No Reserve; Hammered Sold at $42,000 plus commission of 12.00%; Final Price $47,040. – 1,570cc/more than the stock 125hp, 5-speed, gold painted Cromodora alloy wheels, Vredestein 195/65-14 tires, BWA leather rim steering wheel, underdash engine gauges, ashtray and drop-in cigarette lighter, braced roll bar, headers, 45DCOE Weber carburetors, velocity stacks, oil cooler, front underbumper air dam. – New brake booster. Dirty but mostly original engine compartment. Mediocre old paint. Dented left front fender. Chipped door edges and nose. Big paint scrape on the passenger’s door. A driver that deserves, and needs, attention. Runs well if a bit smokey. – The first of a group of single owner Rosso Alfa Romeos that brought up the end of this auction. Reasonably estimated and enthusiastically viewed during the preview, this is a good example of Alfa enthusiasm and a willingness to tinker in search of even better performance. It needs help but its potential was not lost on the assembled multitudes. The over-estimate price it brought reflects its needs but also its potential.

Lot # 153 1967 Alfa Romeo Giulia Super Berlina; S/N AR334866; Red/Gold velour; top; Estimate $15,000 – $25,000; Visually maintained, largely original 3 condition; No Reserve; Hammered Sold at $32,000 plus commission of 12.00%; Final Price $35,840. – 1,570cc/97+ hp, 5-speed, 40 DCOE Weber carburetors, Kenwood cassette stereo, woodrim steering wheel, stock wheels with hubcaps, Falken tires, Carello headlights and driving lights. – Sound protective repaint with a few nose chips, good but strange upholstery. Orderly engine compartment showing some miles. Runs well. – Capable of surprising performance and roomy enough to take the family out for a pasta feast this is one of three bright red Alfas from the same owner that highlighted the tail end of today’s auction. Frequently viewed and modestly estimated it appeared to be a bargain in the making but it handily tripped through its pre-sale high estimate to bring a fair and reasonable final result. It is still a sound value and an unusual piece of Alfa fun.

Lot # 154 1977 Alfa Romeo Alfetta GT Coupe; S/N AR116150001963; Red, Green, White beltline stripes/Black vinyl; top; Estimate $10,000 – $20,000; Visually maintained, largely original 3- condition; No Reserve; Hammered Sold at $18,000 plus commission of 12.00%; Final Price $20,160. – 1,962/130hp, Weber carburetors, 5-speed, Bosch rectangular fog lights, Alloy wheels, Sumitomo tires, Tornado outside mirrors, air conditioning, 5-speed, woodrim steering wheel, Mario Andretti edition. – Chipped old paint. Sound original upholstery. Orderly but aged engine compartment. Decent chrome. A usable but used driver that has the (questionable) distinction of having been a Harrah’s casino jackpot prize when new. – Overshadowed in the U.S. by its V-6 powered GTV6 variant, replacing the Spica fuel injection with Webers has made this 4-cylinder competitive with the GTV6’s 154hp. Notwithstanding that, the Alfetta is little known and unpopular and this is a healthy but appropriate result for one with the fairly common Weber carburetor retrofit.