Bonhams, Greenwich Online Only, October 21-25, 2021
While Covid 19 has brought many adjustments to the collector car auction calendar, other influences have also had their effect. The emergence of new events like Chattanooga have attracted auctions – in that case Mecum. Hagerty’s acquisition of the Greenwich Concours from the founding Wennerstrom family and a Covid-related hiatus in 2020 saw Bonhams well-established […]
Bonhams, Audrain Concours Auction, October 1, 2021
Benefactor Nick Schorsch, CEO Donald Osborne and Museum Executive Director David DeMuzio, along with a pantheon of employees and volunteers spared no effort in bringing a world class concours d’elegance to Aquidneck Island and Newport, Rhode Island. After an auspicious debut in 2019 and an involuntary hiatus in 2020 the 2021 Audrain Motor Week and […]
Bonhams, Goodwood Festival of Speed, July 9, 2021
The only problem with doing this auction remotely is that it invites reviewing hours of professional video of the cars in the Festival of Speed, not in the Bonhams auction. A cagey conclusion: The Goodwood Festival of Speed in July or the Goodwood Revival in September are events no one who loves competition cars should […]
Bonhams, Amelia Island, May 20, 2021
Amelia 2020 was the last pucker before things froze up for Covid and amazingly fourteen months later the delayed Amelia Concours and auctions from Bonhams and RM Sotheby’s signaled the beginning of the end of lockdowns, masks and social distancing. Mecum Auctions was selling cars live, online and on television in Indianapolis this week but […]
Bonhams, Supercars on Sunset, April 10, 2021
At first glance this appeared to be a smashing good idea: Gather a selective consignment of low mileage, late model, expensive high performance cars at a receptive and attractive venue. Bonhams leveraged the exclusivity by applying a reduced flat 8% buyer’s commission rate that reflected the six- and seven-figure pre-sale estimates. The late model high […]
Bonhams Les Grandes Marques du Monde á Paris, March 10, 2021
No, it wasn’t at the Grand Palais des Champs-Élysées, it wasn’t during Rétromobile, nor in fact was it even in France. Les Grandes Marques du Monde á Paris was literally aethereal and online only. It also didn’t share the usual exceptional collection of rare, valuable and famous European cars and obscure French marques and models […]
Bonhams “Legends of the Road” February 19, 2021
Bonhams “Legends of the Road” auction is a prime example of the flexibility and effectiveness of “pop-up” auctions in the CoViD era. There were only six lots, but several were exceptional and all had good stories to tell about collecting, preserving and driving. Bonhams, to their credit, produced a full printed and distributed catalog, something […]
Bonhams, Scottsdale, Arizona, January 21, 2021
2021 didn’t open like any other year for Bonhams. The cars were previewed on the finely trimmed lawns of the Westin Kierland as before but the auction was live/online and the consignment was only a third of the lots in prior years. It was a reduction in scale common across the Scottsdale auctions. The bidding […]
Bonhams, New Bond Street, London, December 16, 2020
Missing from Bonhams annual season-ending London auction at its New Bond Street headquarters was one single crucial element: a seven-figure car. They had an Aston Martin DB5 and its successor, a DB6 Vantage Volante. They had a Bentley R-Type Continental H.J. Mulliner fastback, all bid to strong six-figure amounts but all also failed to find […]
Bonhams, London, October 30, 2020 There was no London to Brighton Veteran Car Run but the Spirit Lives
CoViD claimed another victim when the 2020 London to Brighton Veteran Car Run was cancelled. That didn’t deter Bonhams from celebrating veteran and vintage cars (and a road locomotive) on October 30. Re-branded “The Golden Age of Motoring” there was a diverse consignment of vehicles dating from 1900 to 1939. Out of 34 lots offered, […]