I can understand it if its some rare multi million dollar Ferrari, etc. but they seem to pay far more for "regular" type cars than they would ever spend if they looked privately. If you look at the prices they're paying from everything from American mullet muscle to VW vans at auctions I'm sure you could do much better on the private market. And let's not forget a lot of that price at auction is going to the auction house, so are auctions really the best places to sell?
Remember, most of the cars we see on televised auctions are #1 or #2 quality, and we don't usually get to see any of the lower-end cars. Still, with the prices we see, I'd say these auctions are great places to sell cars. Now, whether they're great places to BUY cars, maybe not so much, unless you figure you can buy a top car for way less than it would cost to restore one like it.
In reply to TR8owner: Unless you poured a ton of money into an overdone restoration, NO.
To me, it doesn't matter what the price is for any given vehicle, it's the 7 - 10% that you pay on top of that. And unless the auction is in your backyard, you still have transportation costs and maybe lodging. You would still have the latter if buying privately (maybe ebay) but able to avoid the buyer's premiums.
I watched a Ford Granada sell for $25k at Barrett-Jackson this weekend. What the hell?
SyntheticBlinkerFluid wrote: I watched a Ford Granada sell for $25k at Barrett-Jackson this weekend. What the hell?
That's as crazy a price as I can recall hearing! Wonder if it had a ton of meth in the door panels?
I would buy a custom car at auction. Something where I am paying half of the build cost and then drive it home. Seems like a great story if nothing else.
In reply to gjz30075:
"it's the 7 - 10% that you pay on top of that. And unless the auction is in your backyard, you still have transportation costs and maybe lodging. You would still have the latter if buying privately (maybe ebay) but able to avoid the buyer's premiums."
All of this plus the fact there just seems to be better deals on the private market if you look long enough. My buddy looked for two years for a Triumph TR3 and passed on a lot of good cars until he found the right one at the right price.
Its this feeding frenzy thing that seems to happen at auctions. I'd suspect there must be at least some buyer remorse the next day.
I would think that away from the much publicized and televised stuff that we all see, there are probably deals to be had on the fringes, like a euro car at a muscle car crowd. Outside all the hype and flash probably is the bulk of the sales volume wise though maybe not dollar wise...........Not that I have ever been to one. I have walked through the tents pre Greenwich Concours sales, I think it was Bonhams but may be wrong, and there was a basically stock and in decent shape Fiat X19 that I recall reading went for little....then again the first point is right, you could probably find a private sale for a better price.
Because if you are the right person at the right auction at the right time,with the right car on the block, you can get a great deal on the car of your dreams.
Most people watch too much Barret Jackson and believe what they see is the reality of the collector car auction; two silver-back gorillas hooting over the coveted prize in an effort to impress their mate sitting next to them. Many people who put their cars in an auction are desperate to get rid of them and the auction is the court of last resort.
There are plenty of good deals to be had at auctions. The TV versions don't show you the "realistically" priced cars. They want to present the high number cars so they can promote their service to potential sellers.
The last afternoon of the auction is a great time to look for bargains. The money is spent and people are leaving. I had a friend pick up a really nice 1957 Chevy Belair convertible for mid 20s on the last day. He would have bid to $35,000 but there was no one else to bid against.
When B-J was on Speed, there were often a number of reasonably priced cars sold during the "early" days - like Tuesday. A few years ago I remember seeing a very nice looking '69 Torino Talledega 500 428CJ/4 spd (a fairly rare car) sell for what seemed like a extremely fair price: $40K. I remember even the announcers mentioned that was one of the deals of the day.
I attend the GPK auction in Atlantic City every year (on Friday). While most of the cars there have reserves and the sell-through rate isn't very high (I'd estimate 50% at best), there are always a few cars that seem to sell at reasonable prices.
My wife and I occasionally go on vacation in the Coachella Valley in the SoCal desert (Palm Springs area). Keith McCormick has been running auctions twice a year there since the mid-eighties. They're lesser known and lower key events, and I don't know if they're even televised. I caught one of his auctions around ten years ago and aside from a handful of high end vehicles that went for big bucks (at the time) I saw a lot of people end up with real bargains. In addition to the two auctions per year, he maintains a showroom and lot on Indian Canyon Drive in Palm Springs and always has a collection of reasonably priced consignments on hand year round. Every time I'm out there I make it a point to stop in and take a look. Most of his vehicles are local, meaning they've been desert cars all their life. It's the place to look for one-owner rust free 70's and 80's era Mercedes SLs. Every time I've been there he's had several on the lot, usually from estate sales.
SyntheticBlinkerFluid wrote: I watched a Ford Granada sell for $25k at Barrett-Jackson this weekend. What the hell?
The guy that bought it can probably claim to own the best Granada in the world.
There are deals to be had, though...
TR8owner wrote: In reply to gjz30075: "it's the 7 - 10% that you pay on top of that. And unless the auction is in your backyard, you still have transportation costs and maybe lodging. You would still have the latter if buying privately (maybe ebay) but able to avoid the buyer's premiums." All of this plus the fact there just seems to be better deals on the private market if you look long enough. My buddy looked for two years for a Triumph TR3 and passed on a lot of good cars until he found the right one at the right price. Its this feeding frenzy thing that seems to happen at auctions. I'd suspect there must be at least some buyer remorse the next day.
Auctons and private sales might not end up too far apart when it comes to sales price. In reality, they are the same deal in reverse: With a private sale, the seller start out asking a bazillion dollars for his car, and the buyer tries to negotiate down from that.
With the auction, the car starts out cheap and the seller hopes to talk it upwards from there.
Ultimately with the auction there is another greedy mouth to feed who could care less about the buyer or seller, so it would be in the best interest to go private.
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