jes999

This will go thru the Mecum Monetrey Auction on Saturday. Be interesting to see what it brings.

2005 Carrera GT @ Mecum Auction

XR4Tim

Looks very good in Basalt Black.

paver

It's worth looking at the entire auction catalog. A lot of cool Porsches in it.

Jamie140

340 plus fees.

jes999

Bidding stalled out at $290 which was below the reserve. Some big money paid for vintage Porsches & Porsche race cars including $875K for an RSR/IROC, $470K for a 73 RS lightweight and $5.5M for a 917, just to name a few

Carrera GT

I think the $290K (higher than I offered) stall is because that car looks "dusty and needs a good detail" even when it's (relatively) clean.

The problem I see with these "high line" format auctions is the scoundrels ask 10% on both sides the deal. Adding a 20% spread is just disgusting. It's a global market and they're not facilitating much of anything. I think better "hooked up" buyers and sellers are below 5% net ... after all, it's also a global recession and folks popping over a quarter mill for a non-investment car on the spot, just not happening.

The vintage and investment-grade Porsches did very nicely, but these are very different buyers putting away cars permanently, not speculating on higher numbers in the future, just knowing these cars are simply not going to be for sale again.

This reminds me of the late 90's when a very decent '73 RS lightweight was in the $100K's and a Touring was well below $100K and I found a lightweight, but sniffed at it being "too expensive" at $130K+/-, when a wiser voice mentioned "this is not a blip in prices, it's a tick on the way up, don't expect to get another bite at this car next year" ...

jes999

Mecum's commissions actually aren't too bad. 6% Buyers Premium and 5% Seller's Premium with No Reserve and 7% for Reserve. Barrett Jackson gets a 10% Buyers Premium and 8% on the Seller's side.

Carrera GT

The link I had seems to be broken. Maybe because I'm on wireless. I have to admit I'm not 100% certain it was 10% both sides, but I'm pretty sure the buyer's side was 10%. In any case, even 10% net is exorbitant -- these parasites are living on borrowed time. A fair market does not allow a 20% spread for the market maker.

For some, the money is of no concern and the car is nothing more than a portfolio line item or a trophy in a showcase of materialism.

For everyone else, cars should be exchanged between people in private sales.

jes999

The two previous Mecum's that I registered to bid at were as described (5% Buyer & 5% or 7% Seller depending on no res/res (plus "placement" fee)). Maybe the Monterey Auction had a different commission structure.

I agree wholeheartedly that for a vast majority of transactions, there is not a 20% spread.

I think that Mecum Monterey had a lot of Silicon Valley "new money" collectors bidding up some of the cars well beyond their intrinsic value. That being said, a car is worth what someone is willing to pay for it.

For some sellers, a high profile auction does maximize their value and for some sellers they are the only venue to acquire some vehicles.

TJF

There was another 2004 CGT Silver, 7,600 miles with new clutch at R&M monterey last weekend That didnt make reserve either. Last bid 290,000.

BlackSwan

I was in Monterey from Thursday. I previewed a few RM cars, spent a good part of Saturday on the golf course looking at the Mecum cars as well as seeing all the Porsche's hammer later that afternoon, and kicked off the weekend at Gooding.

Prices are up strongly on significant rare cars, particularly noticable in the 60's through 80's model years. I don't think the RS light at Mecum was numbers matching but it was very nice. The RM RS light was "a beater" (bidder on the Mecum car) but matching and went for the same price (440? 470?). The 250 alloy LWB California went for 10.25MM, 288 GTO for 950k, etc, etc. The good cars are ripping higher.

It also seemed apparent to me that there was a bid for what I would call good cars in exceptional condition despite not being collectable. For example, 911 2.7 and SC, the Testarossa, 930 Turbos, etc. An ultra low miles 993S went unsold at 90K!! Who in their right mind would bid that! Who would turn it down?

Finally, no one cares about CGT type cars. What do I mean? Impractical to drive, very expensive to maintain, electronic nannies (CGT the least offensive in the group on this measure), etc. The more modern supercars were just not in demand this weekend.

Regarding the auctions being parasitic. If this was the case wouldn't they be out of business? No one is forced to buy or sell there. My impression having dropped in on Monterey car week each year for the last four years is that the energy and focus of the weekend drives buyers to pay excessive prices for cars they are really hungry for.

Best buy of the weekend? Red/black 900 mile BMW M1 for 185k. Damn, why didn't I bother getting a paddle at Mecum?

BS

BlackSwan

Oh, and the 2005 CGT at Mecum was not a 300k car. Maybe it needed a detail but I've seen them so much cleaner. The yellowing of the carbon fiber really gets on my nerves too.

I will keep looking.

BS

Carrera GT

Thanks for the firsthand account. Each of the market letters said prices were sharply higher, but they tend to bias things towards a favorable market commentary.

As for auctions being parasitic, I think the broker-dealers are the parasites and the auctioneers are in on the racket. It's a closed system. Prices are hidden. Transactions are not documented. Provenance and appraisal are questionable.

If the system was efficient, the buyer and seller are both well served. But it's not a fair or open market. The dealers actively corrupt the process and the auctioneers create a market on top of corrupt dealer purchases. Harsh words, but in my humble, there it is.

TJF

Apparently
The 04 CGT 7,600 miles w new clutch
And tires did sell at the R&M auction afterwards for $295,000. 5,000 more the the last bid, seems strange?

Carrera GT

I hear of these "after" bids when the car doesn't reach reserve. I think it kind of defeats the purpose of the auction discount mechanism to determine the market, but I'm sure if I was selling and had a half second after the hammer to rethink my reserve from say $325 to $295 and the auctioneer reduced their costs to sweeten the deal (still free money in their pocket) I'd probably decide it's going to cost me the $20K delta just to take the car back to its storage and get it to the next auction -- and who's to say it would be a more generous crowd at the next venue?

Still, if the car is very good and well presented, I don't think $295K is too much for a car under 10K miles with good service doc and proof of no stories ... almost in my "envy" category of purchase prices, but I think I have my heart set on black or a paint to sample ... yes ... Champagne tastes on a beer budget ... : )