Mecum’s April auction in Houston provided some interesting fodder for commentary. I’ll concentrate on the at least fairly stock 1980s cars (and a few trucks) that sold (remember that this is not a no reserve auction—a guards red 1985 Porsche 911 Speedster with black leather seats was a no sale bid up to $160,000) and add some of my opinions. Eighties vehicles were about 8% of the lots in this auction.
Thursday, April 6th:
- 1980 black Chevrolet Corvette custom coupe with burgundy leather seats, a 350 bhp 5.7 liter/350 cubic inch V8, and a four-speed manual—$4,000 hammer price.
- 1987 crystal/gray two-tone Lincoln Town Car Cartier Edition sedan with gray leather seats, a 150 bhp 4.9 liter/302 cubic inch V8 with fuel injection, and an automatic—an ouch! at $5,000.
- 1983 red Ford Mustang GLX convertible with a white top, white vinyl seats, a 175 bhp Windsor 4.9 liter/302 cubic inch V8 with four-barrel carburetor, and a five-speed manual—$6,500
- 1989 maroon/white two-tone Chevrolet 1500 Silverado pickup truck with red cloth seats, a fuel-injected V8, and an automatic—$6,750
- 1987 red Porsche 944 coupe with a 150 bhp 2.5 liter/151 cubic inch inline four an five-speed manual—$5,500
- 1985 black BMW 318 Baur TC2 custom convertible with a black top, a 295 bhp 3.0 liter inline six, and a five-speed—$5,500
- 1986 blue Jeep CJ-7 Renegade SUV with an inline six—$7,500
- 1983 blue Mercedes-Benz 380SL convertible with a blue top, blue leather seats, a 155 bhp 3.8 liter/234 cubic inch fuel injected V8, an automatic, and 86,000 miles—$14,000
- 1983 red/white two-tone GMC Jimmy SUV with a 5.7 liter/350 cubic inch V8 and an automatic—$15,000
- 1985 white Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz convertible with a white top, white leather seats, a 130 bhp HT-4100 4.1 liter/249 cubic inch V8 with fuel injection, an automatic, and 86,000 miles—$14,000
- 1985 red Porsche 911 Carrara custom coupe with black leather seats, a 3.2 liter/193 cubic inch flat six with fuel injection, and a five-speed manual—$24,500
- 1987 camouflaged AM General Hummer SUV with a green interior, a 6.2 liter diesel V8, an automatic, and 3,600 mile—$17,500
- 1986 black Mercedes-Benz 560SL convertible with a black top, beige leather seats, a 227 bhp 5.5 liter/339 cubic inch fuel injected V8, and an automatic—$12,000
- 1981 beige Chevrolet Corvette coupe with cinnabar leather seats, a 190 bhp L81 5.7 liter/350 cubic inch V8 with Rochester four-barrel carburetor, and an automatic—$10,000
- 1986 medium blue/dark blue two-tone GMC Sierra Classic 1500 custom pickup truck with a blue cloth seat, a 5.7 liter/350 cubic inch V8, and an automatic—$21,000
- 1982 white GMC Jimmy mild custom SUV with blue seats, a 5.7 liter/350 cubic inch V8, and an automatic—$18,500
Friday, March 24th:
- 1986 silver Chevrolet Silverado custom pickup truck with a black seat, a 7.4 liter/454 cubic inch V8, and an automatic—$30,000
- 1984 black/silver two-tone Jeep CJ-7 Laredo SUV with a black/silver interior, a 115 bhp 4.2 liter/258 cubic inch inline six with Carter two-barrel carburetor, and an automatic—at $20,000 the first vehicle in this auction to meet my criteria for serious 1980s collectability of original cars or trucks: selling for equal to or above its original base list price. I’ll mark these vehicles in bold green.
- 1983 light blue/medium blue two-tone Chevrolet El Camino pickup truck with blue cloth seats, a V8, and an automatic—$8,000
- 1986 black Porsche 911 custom coupe with a black interior, a 3.2 liter/193 cubic inch flat six with fuel injection, and a five-speed manual—$45,000
- 1987 black Buick Grand National coupe with a black/gray cloth interior, a 245 bhp LC2 3.8 liter/231 cubic inch turbocharged and fuel injected V6, an automatic, and 46,000 miles—$23,000
- 1987 red/white two-tone Chevrolet Silverado custom pickup truck with a red interior, a 7.4 liter/454 cubic inch V8, and an automatic—$14,000
Saturday, April 9th:
- 1981 black Jeep CJ-7 Laredo SUV with a black top, a black interior, a 110 bhp 4.2 liter/258 cubic inch inline six with Carter two-barrel carburetor, and an automatic—$41,000
- 1985 black Buick Grand National coupe with a black/gray cloth interior, a 200 bhp LC2 3.8 liter/231 cubic inch turbocharged and fuel injected V6, and an automatic—$18,500
- 1988 white Land Rover Defender 110 pickup truck with a black interior, an 85 bhp 2.5 liter diesel inline four with turbocharger, and a five-speed manual—$45,000
- 1988 white Lamborghini Jalpa coupe with white leather seats, a 255 bhp 3.5 liter/213 cubic inch V8 with four two-barrel Weber carburetors, a five-speed manual, and 18,000 miles—$74,000. Hagerty’s valuation tools see this as #3 money for a Jalpa.
1988 Lamborghini Jalpa, courtesy of Mecum Auctions. - 1989 red Ferrari Testarossa coupe with cream leather seats, a 380 bhp 4.9 liter/302 cubic inch V12 with Bosch fuel injection, a five-speed, and 1,500 miles—at $162,500, the highest stock eighties vehicle sale of this auction
- 1988 red Porsche 911 Carrera Cabriolet (either a factory custom or a custom) with black leather seats, a 217 bhp 3.2 liter/193 cubic inch flat six with fuel injection, and a five speed—$39,000
What do you think of these results?
Eighties Cars 