AA996

I must say I’m somewhat disappointed in the result of this auction. For what arguably is the finest S4 in the country, this should have been a $40-50K car. Someone got a great deal.

Tom. M

Sorry to hear that it didn't go higher.

I'm beginning to wonder if there are two 928 markets. The "collectible" 928's that are low mile early or rare ones (or ones with notoriety) that go crazy at auctions (for the main purpose of saving as an investment), and then there are the "drivers" - 928's that are in extremely good condition, have low-average miles that an enthusiast would absolutely want to buy to "drive".
Either way, someone got a great car Nicole and hopefully they'll pop up in the community at some point.

hernanca

Yeah, that was a surprising bummer.

People complain about not understanding the market when so-so 928's (according to our collective 928 knowledge) go for crazy money. But THIS is what makes me question my understanding. A SPECTACULAR, meticulously maintained and cared for, and smartly upgraded 928 such as Nicole's going nowhere near where "the market" seems to be.

Were there just too many 928's on Bat? Too close to Christmas? What the heck?

Nicole

A few weeks ago, a 91 S4 that wasn't nearly as nice went for $47,928. I thought I'd be closer to that than what it turned out to be. I couldn't control the reserve, but honestly, I would have kept the car for that money. It's too good and unique for what it sold for.

I'm going to go for a walk on the beach to clear my head...

Geo55

Extremely beautiful car . Looked to be in perfect shape Someone stole it. My sympathy goes out to you.

GregBBRD

In order to get "big money" on BAT (or any auction) you have to get lucky and find two (or more) people who are really excited by the car.
You get one person, and they will, inevitably, get a good deal (since BAT insists on low reserves.)

I've had more than one client feel this pain.
However, I do feel your pain, Nicole.

Jerry Feather

Nicole, Congratulations on getting your 91 S4 sold for what I think is a decent price. It actually sold for a little more than I kind of predicted. I know you are kind of feeling like licking your wounds over the selling price, and I hope you do not take what I have to say as negative to your situation, but rather positive, but I think the reality is that you got a very good price for your car. My observation is that in this society American cars are and have been made for over 80 years to be throwaway at 100K miles. That has been engrained in our minds for that long or longer. Even though we in the 928 community know that a 928 is good for 300K miles or more, that has almost nothing to do about the concept of value based on the 100 k throwaway thing we all seem to have. Had your car had only about 74K miles on it I think it would have sold for your hoped for price, but I think that when you drove it for the extra 40K miles you basically used up the extra value. Not that you used up that much of the car itself, but you used up the value. All of the very favorite care you took of the car over your stewardship did nothing to cancel the extra miles you enjoyed putting on it. Again, it is simply a fact of mileage, and nothing you could have done to or with the car can take that value factor away from it. You got a very good price for your car. Enjoy it. And, I hope you stay connected to the 928 world in your future endeavors.

GT6ixer

Yeah, I think that one was Keith Martin's 928. So it probably garnered a little more attention because of his notoriety in the collector car world. I also suspect that bidders would have assumed (incorrectly) that Keith would know or have the resources to get that 928 "properly sorted". I seriously doubt he does (or did) and that your car was better maintained. Unfortunately in an auction format like BaT there is no way for the bidders to truly know your personal stewardship of the car. So all that provenance is more opaque and doesn't add the value to the "average" bidder like it does to all of us 928 faithful who are familiar with your dedication and love of these cars.

Hopefully the sting of the final sales price will fade when you consider that the memories and joy that car brought you are not tied to dollars and cents.

Nicole

You guys are probably right. And it's true - the world doesn't end because I got less than I expected. I will live, and I will have less expenses going forward.

I will exclusively use my electric chair going forward. It's incredibly cheap to operate - unbelievably so! The only costly thing are tires (500+ hp eat them alive) and insurance. Otherwise it's like an iPhone... one that makes "wheeee!"

Jerry Feather

Great, Nicole. I hope your electric chair is in fact an electric WHEEL chair and not the other. Sounds like the correct HP in either case.

Nicole

It's a Tesla Model S with Dual Drive. Not the Performance or Plaid, but still a rocket ship, compared to any 928. Wheeee!!!

Nicole

You are probably right.

But if you daily drive a 928 as nice as mine, it will wear down the interior quickly. The materials they used at the time were not as durable, and the window glass had little UV protection. So, a car with as much leather as mine will be worthless after a year of daily driving and parking in the sun.

Obviously, I have no idea what the new owner wants to do with the car, and it's none of my business anyway. But I hope he will appreciate that the leather is still supple without shrinkage after 31 years, and the dash and pod have no cracks. And that he won't ruin it all by year 32.

Shawn Stanford

Yeah, me too. I figured it for around $30k. I'm sorry you didn't get what you would have liked, but I'm not surprised. (Meanwhile: A nice '91 GT sold last week at Mecum for $16.5k, and I have a very rough '87 911 that will fetch $20k leaving on a trailer. Car prices are stupid.)

^This.

I would say 'drivers' begin in the mid teens, so there are a couple segments below that, for sure. That's where my cars are.

tv

1/2 price sale. Very disappointing outcome for such a nice S4. When I fist saw this thread and clicked the link I also saw an old beater 308 being sold. That underpowered, cramped poorly built buggy went for $66K. I saw one of the highway the other day and my 1st thought was what a little sh1tbox. Right now there is a 850csi brick STILL bidding at $66! These cars are lesser cars in every respect than the 928, build quality, performance, stature, looks. .................. So It makes you wonder, WHY? ................ Back in the day when all these cars were new the 928 outsold ALL of these in a massive way. It wasn't even close. In fact the 928 sales numbers were better than everything in it's category till TODAY.

So what happened to the lady who was interested in the high priced S4 in Missouri a month ago, did she buy or was she sufficiently scared off by the responses she got. Nicole's car would have been the perfect purchase for her. The 928 should be priced much higher than it is. It doesn't affect me as I will never sell, but I would like to see more appreciation shown to the car than it gets!

Happy Trails Nicole

PC-85-928S

How much does BAT get on a sale?
Is there a buyer and seller premium?