Gooding & Company, Omni Amelia Island Plantation, Amelia Island, Florida, March 7, 2014
Bitter cold didn’t do much to deter the bidders at this year’s Gooding & Company Amelia Island auction although it kept the line long at the Chubb Insurance latte stand.
In addition to some superior Porsches and the beautifully original, preserved and maintained Ferrari 250 Europa GT s/n 0409GT this year’s Gooding Amelia auction presented a cross-section of postwar BMWs, from an Isetta to a 507 roadster that tested the depth of the BMW collector car market.
While the total sale was slightly up from 2012, the mean and median transaction values declined, reflecting the character of the consignment. BMWs just don’t sell like the Drendel family collection of Porsches in 2012, a hard act to follow.
Also surprising was the weakness displayed by prewar cars. David Gooding has probably done more to promote prewar, and particularly early brass and nickel era cars and antiques, than anyone else in car collecting, but here in Amelia a selection of well known and very attractive cars came up unusually short. Those that sold did so at modest prices (except for the Rolls-Royce PII Henley Roadster.) Of 13 prewar cars offered eight were sold, a 61.5% sale rate that pulled the overall sell-through down significantly.
Cars at the top of the market, or those that seem to be in collectors’ headlights these days like the Lancia Aurelia B24S Spider America, unrestored 300SL Roadster, Dinos and BMW 507, did well. But the Porsche RSK sold for only rounding error more than it had brought a year and a few months ago at Gooding’s Scottsdale auction in 2013.
Still, when all was said and done $31 million in sales in a single day is indicative of the enthusiasm of collectors and the abundant liquidity they still bring to the collector car market, even if some of it goes to chasing fads.
Gooding and Company Amelia Island 2014 – Auction Report
Gooding and Company Amelia Island 2014 – Auction Report Page Two
Lot # 25 1964 BMW 3200CS Coupe, Body by Bertone; S/N 76344; Engine # 41380; White/Blue leather; Estimate $65,000 – $85,000; Older restoration, 3- condition; Hammered Sold at $44,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $48,400. No Reserve – 3,168cc V-8, 160hp, 4-speed, Becker Europa AM-FM, P/W, hubcaps, aluminum trim rings, rear window defroster. – Clean, orderly used car with a decent repaint and chrome. Cracked, torn original upholstery. Clean and orderly underhood. Restored in 1989 and seriously used since. – Rare and pretty (in the Bertone style of the day seen with some variations on several marques including Alfa Romeo), the well used condition of this 3200CS contributed to its less than stellar value in the eyes of the Amelia Island bidders. At this price it represents a sound value that will accrue driving enjoyment for its new owner.Lot # 26 1957 BMW 503 Coupe; S/N 69185; Engine # 30211; Red/Red leather; Estimate $225,000 – $275,000; Visually maintained, largely original, 3- condition; Hammered Sold at $200,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $220,000 – 3,168cc V-8, 140hp, column shift, Blaupunkt multiband radio, wheel covers, Michelin X blackwalls, Talbot mirrors. – Quick older repaint, good chrome. Cracked upholstery with dead cushions. A tired but rare BMW. – This result makes the 3200CS sold just before it for $44,000 hammer seem an even better value. This is good cabriolet money for a tired fixed roof 503, an expensive car.
Lot # 33 1956 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider Race Car; S/N 149500348; Engine # 131541849; Blue/Black leatherette; Estimate $45,000 – $65,000; Modified for competition during restoration 3+ condition; Hammered Sold at $56,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $61,600. No Reserve – Later (1957) engine, 5-speed, white painted Panasport alloy wheels, driver’s rollbar and windscreen, Pirelli Cinturato blackwalls, metal passenger’s seat tonneau cover, fuel cell, Supertrap exhaust. – Clean, sharp vintage race car with very good cosmetics. Race prepared when new by Conrero and raced by Charlie Rainville, possibly to a class win at Sebring in 1957 (or maybe it was another of Rainville’s three Giulietta race cars.) Later restored by Al Leake and updated with dual Webers on the current engine. – Even without solid attribution of the Sebring appearance this Alfa Giulietta is a sharp, up to date vintage racing car that brought a realistic price.Lot # 34 1972 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona, Body by Pininfarina/Scaglietti; S/N 15741; Engine # B2056; Bordeaux/Black leather; Estimate $750,000 – $825,000; Cosmetic restoration, 2 condition; Hammered Sold at $700,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $770,000 – Becker Europa II stereo, P/W, alloy wheels, Michelin XWX tires, Classiche certified, books, tool roll. – 10,978 miles from new. Very good recent repaint, detailed chrome and partial new interior. Detailed to an extraordinary degree. Seat facings have been replaced, sides are older and showing age. – This Daytona traces the model’s recent history in the market, having been sold by Christie’s in original condition in Los Angeles in 2000 for $94,000, then offered at RM’s Arizona auction seven months later with a high bid of $110,000. The current paint and much of the interior, as well as meticulous detailing, is recent, but barely scratches the seven-fold increase in value in 13 years. An excellent example, with low miles and an encouraging history, this is not an unusual result in today’s erratic Ferrari market, but fully values this Daytona for what it is.
Lot # 62 1955 Ferrari 250 Europa GT Coupe, Body by Pinin Farina; S/N 0409GT; Engine # 0409GT; Dull Grey, Eggplant roof/Burgundy leather, Grey cloth; Estimate $2,500,000 – $3,000,000; Unrestored original, 3- condition; Hammered Sold at $2,300,000 plus commission of 10.00%; Final Price $2,530,000 – Silver painted Borranis, blackwall Pirelli Cinturato tires, Marchal head, fog and driving lights, extensive documentation, original tool roll, manual, brochures. – 14,224 km from new, owned 45 years by Raffaele Lacarbonara until 2012. Aged and tired but mostly original car. Chrome is peeling, upholstery is cracked and pulled. Probably too well preserved ever to be restored but for the right owner has just enough patina for some additional use not to have significant effect on its originality or value.. – Many onlookers were transfixed by this Europa GT and its history, a highly desirable combination of style, performance, originality and careful long term preservation that is avidly sought by collectors today. Based on its combination of attributes it is impossible to argue with the bidders’ determination of value. Classiche certification will add to its aura of authenticity.
Gooding and Company Amelia Island 2014 – Auction Report Page Four