Monterey, Marriott Hotel, 13-15 August 2015
The progenitor of the Monterey auction scene, Rick Cole, returned
in 2014, with a small but select array of cars on offer at the
Marriott Hotel in central Monterey. He held his first auction there
in 1986, when the historic gathering comprised of only two events,
the races at Laguna Seca and the Pebble Beach Concours
d’Elegance, thus introducing a commercial aspect to the events
on the peninsula, which have grown exponentially since then.
Nearly three decades later he has returned, and introduced a
different approach to the traditional car auction scene, based on a
similar pattern used by the major online auction companies.
Essentially, the bidder can view the car at their leisure, register to
bid and then place bids, either at the auction venue, or remotely
from their mobile or fixed internet device, whilst keeping up to
date with the bidding at the same time. For the seller, upon
acceptance of the car for consignment, a reserve can be set and
there is no entry fee, whilst for the buyer there is a 10% buyer’s
premium, much in line with the other auction houses.
... MediaCenter Gallery >>>
All the lots were displayed indoors within the ballroom of the
hotel, or its environs, hence the need to restrict the numbers, with
viewing all in one location. However, even with the limited number
of cars, space in the area was cramped relative to the displays of
the other auction houses in action during the Monterey week.
Amongst the 37 cars on offer there were 13 Ferraris. One of which
was the unique Ferrari 410 Sport Spider, chassis # 0592 CM, a
unique example in spider configuration, and one with an
uninterrupted history, which is understood to feature all its original
components. It was in the collection of renowned Ferrari collector
Robert Dusek for some 40 years, before being sold privately to a
European collector in 2008, and this was the first time that it had
been offered for public sale. The bidding stalled at $22,111,000,
but it is listed as “Sale Pending” with post auction negotiations
taking place. Another Ferrari that didn’t achieve its reserve was
the 250 GT SWB Berlinetta, chassis # 3735 GT, which was bid
up to $9,650,000, and is also the subject of post auction
negotiations.
Amongst the “high number” sales was a Ferrari 275 GTB/C,
chassis # 07477, which achieved $12 million, which along with
another pair of Ferraris which both sold for $2.2. million, a regular
short nose 275 GTB, chassis # 06891, and a 250 GT S2 PF
Cabriolet, chassis # 3807 GT, were the big sales of the auction,
as a pair of Mercedes-Benz 300 SLs, a Roadster and a “Gullwing”
Coupe, together with a 540 K Roadster failed to make their
reserve figures, although both 300 SLs are listed as Sale
Pending. Overall this “experiment” in bringing on line
auctioneering to the car auction world could be deemed a
success, as there was a 62% sell-through rate, and maybe some
of the consigners put too high a reserve on their cars based on
current market trends and expectations, as has been the case in
some recent auctions.
... Results >>>
Keith Bluemel
08/2014
|
