by Mike –
RM Auctions will host yet another new auction on Wednesday, February 5, 2014. The inaugural RM Paris auction is taking place during the Retromobile week and is in association with Festival Automobile International.
RM and a few other auction companies seem to have no shortage of excellent collector cars for sale. Recently in Arizona records were set yet again in the amount sold and the prices achieved for certain models.
But I have to wonder – how long will this party last? When will we start to see the same cars recycled through the auctions? Maybe we have seen that on certain cars but not as a general situation. Or, when will we see the number and the quality of the cars fade?
Do the sheer number of auctions and the number of cars sold through these auctions help push up prices? And if so are these prices sustainable?
I don’t know the answer to these questions but I do know when I look at the offerings of the top classic car auction companies I always see many cars that I would love to own. The new RM auction in Paris is no exception.
Here are just a few that I would be happy to drive home – after a boat or plane ride from Paris to California. My selections all have an unusual color for each marque – which I love.
1957 Lancia Aurelia B24S Convertible by Pinin Farina
The estimate is €225.000 – €275.000.
RM says,
118 bhp, 2,451 cc overhead-camshaft V-6 engine with dual twin-choke Weber 40 DCL5 carburettors, four-speed manual transaxle, independent sliding-pillar front suspension, de Dion rear axle with leaf springs and shock absorbers, and four-wheel hydraulic drum brakes. Wheelbase: 2,451 mm
One of only 521 built; fiercely desirable
Restored by marque specialists in correct colours
Formerly displayed at the Fiat Museum
This beautiful Lancia Aurelia B24S Convertible is here.
Fiercely desirable is an interesting descriptive term that I have never heard used before.
1957 Aston Martin DB2/4 Mk III
The estimate is €180.000 – €220.000.
RM says,
178 bhp, 2,922 cc double overhead-camshaft inline six-cylinder engine, twin SU carburettors, four-speed manual transmission, independent front suspension with coil springs, live axle rear suspension with coil springs and radius rods, and hydraulically assisted front disc and rear drum brakes. Wheelbase: 2,515 mm
From a prominent European collection
Delivered new in France with desirable front disc brakes
Matching numbers and original colours
Well-restored, carefully maintained, and rallied
Accompanied by FIVA papers and an Aston Martin build sheet
Eligible for the Mille Miglia
Details of this Aston Martin DB2/4 Mk III are here.
Eligible for the Mille Miglia also means it is eligible for the California Mille!
1964 Porsche 904 Carrera GTS
The estimate is €1.000.000 – €1.400.000.
RM says,
185 bhp, 1,966 cc DOHC air-cooled flat four-cylinder engine with two Weber 46 IDM 2 carburettors, five-speed manual transaxle, four-wheel independent suspension with shock absorbers, and four-wheel disc brakes. Wheelbase: 2,300 mm
Originally owned by Frazer Nash Works driver and Porsche privateer Dickie Stoop
The first example imported to England
Only 904 finished in Irish Green
Beautifully restored; only three owners from new
Recent engine rebuild by four-cam specialist Bill Doyle
Read more about this green Porsche 904 Carrera GTS here.
There are many more including a Lamborghini Miura once owned by Rod Stewart, below, that is a beautiful shade of blue, at least I think it is blue.
There is also a 1957 Fiat 600 Multipla, below, which we do not see often here in the US in any color.
If anyone goes to Paris with a suitcase full of cash and comes home with one of these beauties let me know.
Let us know your favorite in the Comments.
An alternative to an auction is to sell your classic car on My Car Quest.
That Carrera GTS will be gone quick!
I’m with you on that one. Did anyone call Jerry Seinfield?
On a serious note, classic car auctions are like any segment of free enterprise – they only exist if their services are in demand. The Internet is classic car auction’s best friend. It opened up the world of classic cars to a much wider audience, erasing continental boundaries. The sustaining prices of classic cars make them an attractive target to investors who in turn become collectors. The dynamics may speed up or slow down but I doubt they will crash like the real estate market.