Event Coverage Anybody watching Barret Jackson?

Auctions always are a crapshoot. I remember Mecum @BTT50s 20 years ago and there were bargains along with the overpriced stuff.

 

I agree with Brandon B in post #30 and not use Richard Rawlings and Gas Monkey garage as a barometer for the old car market. I did a google search on Richard Rawlings and found he has a net worth of $15 million. Aaron Kaufman, his ace mechanic, has a net worth of about $3 million. Richard Rawlings gets $ 50,000 an episode for his reality TV series Fast N Loud. I wouldn't feel too sorry for our friend Richard as it looks like he has enough capital to suffer a few losses at the BJ Los Vegas auction. He is a very smart fellow and I'm sure he will bounce right back. If you are looking for some interesting reading just google "Richard Rawlings" as I just did. He also has quite the house!!

 

Well, I think the guys with money do drive the market, any market. Everyone complains that the auction prices make guys with the pos think it's gold and they want too much for it. That makes me think the rich guys at auction have driven up the market on classifieds as well.
I'll make you guys complaining how these guys think their junk is worth a lot feel better. Spend time at the auctions hanging out with the sellers and you'd be surprised how many of these guys show up with their cars at auction. I met a guy at Reno, an auction newbie, had a 57 Chevy. Hate to be rude but the car was a pile, really bad body work, bad styling (who dechromes a 57?) being a 4 door with the back doors welded shut, real lack of detail. Had it scheduled for Friday evening where the 50 to 100 K cars are listed so I asked him what he hoped to sell for, he told me 60K, said he seen 57s bring that much all the time. Then he confided in me, told me he had stolen the car on Ebay, he was only into it for 25 + auction costs so anything over 30 was going to be pure profit, he expected to double his money! He'd been watching the auctions and thought it would be easy money. Shook my head and walked away, knew that guy was over his head. Sure enough, the auction worked it hard but it hammered for 22 leaving the guy with a 10K loss after commissions. Guess the guy that bought it was in the same boat, must of thought 22 was a buy since he took it to Vegas 6 weeks later where it hammered at 18 netting him a 6/7k loss. One example but believe me, plenty guys just like that there, watched TV and thought they had a gold mine in the garage just to find out the auctions are real world too!
That saddest one I witnessed was a guy with a really ugly, wierd style T bucket at a Mecum. The guy must of thought he had something since he paid to get there plus paid extra for a prime time slot but it's the only time I've seen at an auction when they couldn't get anyone to even bid on it! Pushed it off without a single bid. How embarrassing must of that been for that guy.
I always hear guys comment on how cheap such and such car sold for on TV, if you were there and saw the car in person there is usually a reason it sold cheap that didn't show on TV. Just because there is a room full of deep pockets doesn't mean they spend too much on bad cars, for the most part the buyers are pretty savvy.

 

You guys are so depressing I worked hard for all my cars my kids will get them and I'm dead so what will I care

 

Passed on it,watched cartoons with my granddaughter Veda. HRP

 

Well, this deuce three window just sold for $85,100. I really think that original or well built period correct '32-'34 stuff will always bring the money. That being said I'm 34 and hope the prices continue to fall so I can afford some of this stuff.

 

Metalman you are so right on. I go to Mecum Anaheim each year and there Thursday cars that are so bad no one bids. Also the owners you see trying to get what they have in them and could never happen. They pay for all the work, not mechanical at all, and see that pie in the sky.

 

Your right Jimmy, plenty of guys over proud of their car and they waste their time and money at reserve auctions. If you were in Anaheim last year you might of seen a 57 Ford. Nice car, it bid to what I thought was exceptional strong money and I couldn't believe he wouldn't take it, took it home. Saw the same car at Scottsdale, didn't bid up as high so took it home again. No surprise, there they were in Houston, once again, still lower yet bid, no sale. Geez, the guy must of dropped close to 10 thousand going to all these auctions. I wonder if he'll every get the clue his car is not worth what he thinks it is. I was chatting with his wife in Houston, she sure wasn't happy about it.
BTW Anaheim is one of my favorite auctions. Sold a 56 Chevy there last year.

 

I happen to catch a little of it Friday and thought the prices were almost real even when you have the premium fee included. But I saw the cars on the TV so they looked pretty good, was wondering what the real story is though when you're there in person.

 

I'm seeing the same thing at Mecum in Texas today. Lots of questionable cars going cheap but some nice ones going cheap too. They're selling the Jim Fasnacht and Ron MacWhorter collection cars and comparing them to what they were purchased for a year or two ago. These were two of the guys who were buying and causing prices to rise. They were talking to some of the winning bidders who admitted that they bought the vehicles for considerably less than what they expected and were willing to pay.

Auctions don't work out well unless there are 2 or more bidders that want the vehicle. At all auctions, no matter what is being sold, there are opportunist bidders who hope to buy something that nobody wants. Then there are dealer types who buy low and sell high hoping to get something to resell. Then you have people buying for personal use willing to pay market value. At the high end are the collectors with more money than they need willing to overpay for certain items. Then there are always some crazy people who will overpay from getting caught up in the bidding.

Auctions are really driven by the dealers and collectors. When prices are on the rise and there is demand for items the dealer types show up and are willing to risk paying a little more. Collectors usually enjoy things for a while then grow tired of them or they grow old and don't have anyone to leave them to. If they have someone to leave their collections to, they often get sold.

It appears to be at a point where car collectors are selling their collections which removes them from the buying side. It also puts more cars in the market. More cars + fewer buyers = lower prices. Falling prices make dealers wary of being able to make a profit so they aren't willing to pay as much. They also try to sell any vehicles they have before prices drop even more. Collectors who bought as an investment might get concerned and sell before prices fall lower.

Any item only has value because someone is willing to pay something for it. When nobody is willing to pay what it costs to build something, nobody will build it. When someone can buy something already built much cheaper than they can build it, most will buy.

 

Maybe I'll be able to afford a new Hot Rod in a few years.
Car prices are falling globally, slowly but surely.
Soon, they will become like horses, when the automobile was introduced.
Could be as little as ten years, and we will be trailering our cars to shows, just like horses.
So, anyone have a cheap 32 Ford four door sedan?
Untill then, I'm going to use my Hot Rod every chance I can, I don't care about resale, only that I got to drive my Hot Rod in my lifetime.

 

They Shoot Horses Don't They?.....(Its an old movie with Bruce Dern in it)....

 

So... the hobby is changing!!! Who would have guessed? The only thing constant is change. Happened to buggies, drag racing, NASCAR, NFL, MLB, etc, etc. Got to enjoy it while you can, not everything is about making money.

 

Don't know about y'all but I don't get tied up in my underwear worrying about the worth of my cars and where the prices are headed. The old car hobby is a great enjoyment for me perhaps reliving my youth. I could care less about Barrett Jackson and Mecum and the prices the cars sell for. I just enjoy working on and driving my old cars.

Gary

 

Not sure what people drive like in your town, but if its like mine I would prefer to trailer one of my cars to a car show. At least it's there.

 

Does anybody think some of the cars that are involved in bidding, suddenly gets a quick hammer?

while others go on and on with few bids.

Just seems to me..

 

I have stopped watching a lot of car auction because the prices many of the cars are selling for is just to depressing.for me.
Turkey Run is almost here and if you really want to just buy a car and not spend the next 5 years building one go to the Turkey Run show with cash and you can leave with the street rod of your dreams for 50% or less of what it cost to build one.
Sad but true !!!!
Jimbo

 

The ones that go on and on either have a reserve price set or there really weren't any bids and the auctioneer is faking it. If something doesn't have a reserve, they won't waste much time trying to get a higher bid.

 

It's called, "Show Business". When there's nothing else on TV, I've caught a couple auctions. I mute the TV and play some music. In walking by, I may see a cool ride. Other than that.......

 

Money, ego and trailers have taken over a segment of the hobby.

 

There's a non-cable channel here, that has a show called, "The Appraisers". These 3 "experts" travel around and check out folks cars and kinda half assed give an estimate of worth. Last night, in the closing moments of the show, they had some quick clips of some owners telling what they thought their cars were worth. It was freaking hilarious!

2 had me rolling on the floor. An old guy with a late 30's car saying how he figured to get $95,000 and a guy who said his early 70's butt ugly, BMW 2002 should bring $100,000! It made me think, "Do they sell moonshine at these damn auctions?"