Monterey Car Week 2019: Day One Auction Results

Monterey Car Week is full of things to do. In fact, there are so many opportunities for car lovers, we've put together an entire Monterey Car Week Events Guide just to make Car Week manageable for the average person. One thing there are plenty of: Collector car auctions, and Monterey sales often set the tone of the collector car market for the next year. Yesterday marked the first day of auction sales, and the valuation experts at Hagerty were kind enough to share their analysis of day one with us.

Hagerty said:

Total sales for Thursday evening were $27.4M compared to $9.2M for the same night in 2018. There are two main reasons for this noticeable increase: Bonhams added an extra day this year on Thursday for a now two-day auction at Quail Lodge and RM Sotheby’s added a third all-Aston Martin sale for Thursday, with more than 30 of the exotic English sports cars on offer. Indeed, two of the three higher-end catalog sales (RM Sotheby’s, Gooding & Company and Bonhams) are offering more cars in Monterey. But if we look at the larger picture there are fewer consignments on offer. Mecum, Worldwide, Gooding & Company and Russo and Steele all consigned fewer cars than in 2018.

RM Sotheby’s has been successful with other single marque sales, having conducted an all-Ferrari sale in 2017 and an all-Porsche sale late last year. Compared to the Porsche sale, the Aston Martin sale had a lower sell-through rate of 71 percent vs. 84 percent, but Astons are generally more exclusive cars and carried a higher average price of nearly $585,000. The first huge Aston of the evening was the 1965 DB5 Shooting Brake by Radford. One of just a dozen built, it sold for $1.765M to become the most expensive shooting brake (British-speak for wagon) ever sold at auction. Three lots later was a different DB5 entirely, and what people have been referring to all week simply as “the Bond car.” Used as a promotional car for Thunderball and fitted with all the appropriate gadgets, the 007-spec 1965 Aston Martin DB5 sold for $6,385,000 to become the most expensive DB5 ever sold at auction. There were other strong sales, but these were the only two home runs of the night at RM Sotheby’s, with the other star Aston – a 1953 DB3S works race car – failing to sell at a $7.5M high bid.

Bonhams consigned nearly 90 more cars than in 2018 and did so with varying degrees of success. Saving most of the more expensive cars for Friday, this extra day emphasized the more affordable end of the market with an average sale price less than one-third of Bonhams’ single day sale last year. Examples that sold very well were a 1971 Datsun 240Z selling for $44,800 and a 1979 Mazda RX-7 GS for $14,560.

Worldwide’s top sale was also the oldest and certainly one of the most interesting cars on offer this week, with the 1898 Riker Stanhope Electric selling for $605,000. Another big result from Worldwide was $242,000 for a 1965 Jaguar E-Type SI 4.2 Roadster.

Russo and Steele sold a 1964 Porsche 356C Cabriolet for a strong $115,500 and a 1986 Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3-16v for a surprisingly high $27,500.

At Mecum a 1972 AMC Gremlin X brought a strong $22,000. In addition to hundreds of cars, Mecum is also offering a variety of classic motorcycles, with Thursday’s star being a 1914 Harley-Davidson 10E Twin that sold for $77,000.

As jam-packed as Thursday seemed, it was still just a warm-up for what is to come. Gooding & Company begins its two-day auction on Friday with over 60 cars on offer, including a 1958 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider and the ex-Niki Lauda 1975 Ferrari 312T Formula One car. Other Friday highlights include a 1959 Porsche 718 RSK at Bonhams, an LM-spec 1994 McLaren F1 at RM Sotheby’s and a 1954 Ferrari 250 Monza by Scaglietti at Mecum.

Listed below are the raw results witnessed by Hagerty during the live auctions and may not factor in any post-sale deals that have occurred. These numbers include the appropriate buyer’s premiums.

Overall through Thursday from all auction companies

Cumulative Total: $27.4M

240/418 lots sold: 57% sell-through rate

Average Sale Price: $114,135

2018 Results for Thursday*

Total: $9.2M

188/345 lots sold: 54% sell-through rate

Average Sale Price: $48,880

* In 2018 Bonhams and RM Sotheby's started on Friday

Overall Top 10 Sales from all auctions through Thursday:

1. 1965 Aston Martin DB5 "Bond Car" Saloon sold for $6,385,000 (RM Sotheby's)

2. 1965 Aston Martin DB5 Shooting Brake sold for $1,765,000 (RM Sotheby's)

3. 1963 Aston Martin DB5 Drophead Coupe sold for $1,325,000 (RM Sotheby's)

4. 1930 Bentley Speed Six Le Mans Replica Tourer sold for $874,000 (Bonhams)

5. 1964 Aston Martin DB5 Saloon sold for $643,000 (RM Sotheby's)

6. 1960 Aston Martin DB4 Saloon sold for $621,000 (RM Sotheby's)

7. 1898 Riker Electric Stanhope Runabout sold for $605,000 (Worldwide Auctioneers)

8. 1961 Aston Martin DB4 Saloon sold for $577,000 (RM Sotheby's)

9. 1966 Ferrari 330 GTC Coupe sold for $450,500 (Bonhams)

10. 1969 Aston Martin DB6 Mk II Vantage Saloon sold for $434,000 (RM Sotheby's)

Results broken down by Auction Company:

RM SOTHEBY'S

Cumulative Total through Thursday: $14.0M

24/34 lots sold: 71% sell-through rate

Average Sale Price: $584,754

Overall Top 10 Sales:

1. 1965 Aston Martin DB5 "Bond Car" Saloon sold for $6,385,000

2. 1965 Aston Martin DB5 Shooting Brake sold for $1,765,000

3. 1963 Aston Martin DB5 Drophead Coupe sold for $1,325,000

4. 1964 Aston Martin DB5 Saloon sold for $643,000

5. 1960 Aston Martin DB4 Saloon sold for $621,000

6. 1961 Aston Martin DB4 Saloon sold for $577,000

7. 1969 Aston Martin DB6 Mk II Vantage Saloon sold for $434,000

7. 1987 Aston Martin V8 Zagato Coupe sold for $434,000

9. 1957 Aston Martin DB2/4 Mk II Coupe sold for $302,000

10. 2003 Aston Martin DB AR1 Convertible sold for $296,500

BONHAMS

Cumulative Total through Thursday: $7.5M

72/89 lots sold: 81% sell-through rate

Average Sale Price: $104,600

Overall Top 10 Sales:

1. 1930 Bentley Speed Six Le Mans Replica Tourer sold for $874,000

2. 1966 Ferrari 330 GTC Coupe sold for $450,500

3. 1956 Porsche 356A Carrera GS Coupe sold for $412,000

4. 1973 Porsche 911 Carrera RS 2.7 Coupe sold for $379,000

5. 1957 Porsche 356A 1600 Super Speedster sold for $315,200

6. 1970 Mercedes-Benz 600 Pullman Limousine sold for $266,560

7. 1995 Porsche 911 Carrera RS 3.8 Coupe sold for $231,840

8. 2003 Aston Martin DB AR1 Convertible sold for $218,400

9. 2003 BMW Z8 Roadster sold for $207,200

10. 1971 Ferrari 365 GTC/4 Coupe sold for $196,000

WORLDWIDE AUCTIONEERS

Cumulative Total through Thursday: $3.0M

25/37 lots sold: 68% sell-through rate

Average Sale Price: $118,228

Overall Top 10 Sales:

1. 1898 Riker Electric Stanhope Runabout sold for $605,000

2. 1931 Cadillac Series 370A Fleetwood Roadster, 2/4-p. sold for $297,000

3. 1958 Porsche 356A 1600 Super Speedster sold for $264,000

4. 1965 Jaguar E-Type SI 4.2 Roadster sold for $242,000

5. 1969 Dodge Charger Daytona Hardtop Coupe sold for $203,500

6. 1930 Cadillac Series 452 Fleetwood Imperial Landau Cabriolet, 5/7-p. sold for $176,000

7. 1966 Jaguar E-Type SI 4.2 Coupe sold for $154,000

8. 1908 Stevens-Duryea Model X Touring sold for $110,000

8. 1958 Mercedes-Benz 190SL Convertible sold for $110,000

10. 1967 Oldsmobile Toronado Mannix Roadster sold for $101,200

2018 Cumulative Results

Total: $5.5M

33/59 lots sold: 56% sell-through rate

Average Sale Price: $167,267

MECUM

Cumulative Total through Thursday: $2.4M

101/223 lots sold: 45% sell-through rate

Average Sale Price: $23,468

Overall Top 10 Sales:

1. 2007 Porsche 911 GT3 RS Coupe sold for $137,500

2. 1969 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 Sport Coupe sold for $80,300

3. 1914 Harley-Davidson 10E Twin Motorcycle sold for $77,000

4. 1933 Ford Model 40 Street Rod Coupe sold for $63,800

5. 1967 Volkswagen Samba Van sold for $63,800

6. 1973 DeTomaso Pantera Coupe sold for $55,000

7. 1987 Buick Regal GNX Coupe sold for $50,600

8. 1988 BMW M5 Sedan sold for $50,600

9. 2001 Porsche 911 Turbo Coupe sold for $50,050

10. 2008 Audi R8 4.2 Quattro Coupe sold for $49,500

2018 Results through Thursday

Total: $3.1M

128/233 lots sold: 55% sell-through rate

Average Sale Price: $24,325

RUSSO AND STEELE

Cumulative Total through Thursday: $0.5M

18/35 lots sold: 51% sell-through rate

Average Sale Price: $27,842

Overall Top 10 Sales:

1. 1965 Porsche 356C Cabriolet sold for $115,500

2. 1971 DeTomaso Pantera Coupe sold for $73,700

3. 1991 Land Rover Defender 110 sold for $68,200

4. 1972 Datsun 240Z Coupe sold for $34,100

5. 1986 Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3 16v Sedan sold for $27,500

6. 2013 Mercedes-Benz E550 Cabriolet sold for $26,675

7. 1926 Kissel Brougham Coupe sold for $25,300

8. 1991 BMW M5 Sedan sold for $24,200

9. 2001 Mercedes-Benz SL600 Roadster sold for $19,800

10. 1977 International (IHC) Scout II Traveltop Utility 4x4 sold for $17,050

2018 Results through Thursday

Total: $0.6M

27/53 lots sold: 51% sell-through rate

Average Sale Price: $20,594