RM Sotheby’s, Monterey, August 17-19, 2023
After a pair of post-COVID years in the rarified stratosphere RM Sotheby’s three-day Monterey auction came back to more dense atmosphere in 2023, still exceptional but less effusive than it was in 2021 and 2022. It showed that RM understands it (and its Monterey competitors) can’t simply bulk up with hundreds of cars to build […]
Broad Arrow|Radius, Jet Center, Monterey, August 17-18, 2003
2023 was Broad Arrow’s second auction at the Monterey Jet Center coincident with the Hagerty Motorlux kickoff party. Last year was Broad Arrow’s first live auction, although the Broad Arrow team has decades of experience, coming mostly from RM. I’m going to put the numbers first to get the details out of the way: The […]
Bonhams|Cars, Quail Lodge, Carmel Valley, August 18, 2023
Bonhams brought THE headline car of the Monterey Auctions to Carmel Valley, the 1967 Ferrari 412P (330P3/P4 in the old style nomenclature), like the Lola T70, a sublime blending of form and function that represents an “old style” application of intuitive aerodynamics. And it sold, on only two bids, for $27,500,000 hammer, $30,255,000 including the […]
Mecum Auctions, Harrisburg, PA, July 26-29, 2023
Many auctions over the years have assayed the auction market in the Northeast. All but RM Sotheby’s annual auction at the AACA Hershey swap meet and Bonhams who persists with Greenwich and Newport, RI at Audrain have recognized defeat and tucked their tails between their legs and retreated to more rewarding settings. That is, until […]
Barrett-Jackson, Las Vegas, June 22-24, 2023
It was sixteen years ago, in 2008, that Barrett-Jackson first ventured to Las Vegas. Held at the Mandalay Bay Hotel’s arena where as is common in casino design getting to the auction arena meant traversing the gaming area. They hope you’re going to be beguiled by the constant commotion, lost in the deliberately confusing layout […]
Artcurial Motorcars, Le Mans Classic, June 30, 2023
What better place to sell a racing car … or any performance car for that matter … than at the historic Le Mans Circuit just two weeks after the annual endurance classic during the Le Mans Classic historic races? It’s fair to say interest and awareness were higher than usual in 2023 following Ferrari’s overall […]
Artcurial Motor Cars, Paris, July 6, 2023
Ferrari 250 LM s/n 5901 Just a week after conducting its annual Le Mans Classic auction at the Sarthe Circuit, a sale of some 120 lots, Artcurial Motor Cars presented a single car sale at its Paris headquarters. But what a car it was: 1964 Ferrari 250 LM s/n 5901, one of only 32 250 […]
Broad Arrow, Porsche Experience, Atlanta, June 10, 2023
1947 must have been a special year because 2023 has notable 75th Anniversaries including Ferrari, Porsche and (the odd bed-fellow) NASCAR. Broad Arrow marked Porsche’s 75th with an all-Porsche auction at Porsche’s Experience Center at Atlanta in early June. It follows the first Porsche Experience Center auction by RM Sotheby’s in 2018 marking Porsche’s 70th […]
Bonhams, Goodwood Members Meeting, April 16, 2023
Members Meeting is a fun venue, both for the on-track activities and because Bonhams brings a wide variety of intriguing cars for the auction. There really is something for everyone and, based upon the prices realized and the performance against the pre-sale estimate ranges, bidders keep their heads screwed on tight, looking through the shine […]
Mecum Auctions, Houston, April 13-15, 2023
Mecum’s press release states this year’s sale brought in a total of $37 million and a 77% sale rate. Unfortunately, Mecum has declined to provide a complete post-sale auction report so it’s not possible to separate the cars and trucks from the Road Art and miscellany. Still, $37 million is not to be sneezed at […]