The 2026 version of Mecum’s huge annual Kissimmee auction finished on January 18th this year. In the middle of 2021, I gave up trying to chronicle every eighties vehicle sold at any particular auction—there’s often an endless sameness to them. So, I now only write about the cars and trucks that are less seen at auction—and those that sold (a white 1984 Mercedes-Benz 500SEC 5.4 AMG Widebody coupe was a no-sale at $325,000). Here are ten that caught my eye, described in a little more detail than I used to when these surveys were more exhaustive.
[Lot E17] 1987 Dodge Diplomat SE sedan. White with a Dark Red vinyl top and Red cloth 60/40 front seats. LA 140 bhp 5.2 liter/318 ci V8 with a two-barrel carburetor, a three-speed automatic, and an indicated 27,000 miles. A low $4,000 hammer price suggests that folks who appreciate late eighties rear-wheel-drive Mopars may not have been in the room.
[E191] 1984 AMC Eagle Limited wagon. Olympic White/Garnet Metallic two-tone with Honey leather front seats. 110 bhp 4.2 liter/258 ci inline six with a two-barrel carburetor, a three-speed automatic, and an indicated 33,000 miles. $10,500 for one of these Eagles that definitely have an enthusiast following.
[J47] 1984 Oldsmobile Ninety-Eight Regency Brougham sedan. Dark Sable Brown Metallic with a Dark Sable Brown vinyl top and a Sable Brown divided front cloth seat (plenty of brown here). LV2 140 bhp 5.0.liter/307 ci V8 with a four-barrel carburetor, a four-speed automatic, and an indicated 5,800 miles. $11,000 doesn’t seem like a lot of money for this lovingly kept Olds.
[K231] 1983 Rolls-Royce Corniche I Drophead Coupe. Blue with a gray convertible top and blue leather front seats. L410 237 bhp 6.75 liter/411 ci V8 with fuel injection, a three-speed automatic, and an indicated 100,000 miles (this Corniche was enjoyed). $35,000 for a car I should probably write about at some point—I wrote about the concurrent Silver Spirit last year.
[M221] 1985 Chevrolet Camaro Sport Coupe hatchback. An unmodified third-generation Sport Coupe is now as rare as hen’s teeth, but Mecum had one this year. Black with Red standard cloth bucket seats (no fancy Custom interior here). LB8 135 bhp 2.8 liter/173 ci V6 with fuel injection, a five-speed manual, and an indicated 3,700 miles. $6,000 shows the limits of the market for mid-eighties Camaros that are not Z28s or IROC-Zs, even with impressively low miles. I have written about the 1984 Sport Coupe.
[G269.1] 1985 Toyota Celica GT-S convertible. White with a black convertible top and gray cloth front bucket seats. 22R-E 113 bhp 2.4 liter/144 ci inline four with fuel injection, a four-speed automatic, and an indicated 151,000 miles. $11,500 for a final year example of the third-generation Celica.
[T22] 1984 Dodge Daytona Turbo Z hatchback coupe. Gunmetal Blue Pearl Coat/Black two-tone with gray cloth front bucket seats. Turbo I 142 bhp 2.2 liter/135 ci inline four with fuel injection and a turbocharger, a five-speed manual, and an indicated 5,100 miles. $12,000 for this top-of-the-line first-year Daytona that I have written about.
[T292] 1980 Chevrolet Corvette Duntov Turbo convertible. Red with a black convertible top and red leather/gray cloth front bucket seats. 300 bhp (estimated) 5.7 liter/350 ci V8 with a four-barrel carburetor and a turbocharger, a four-speed automatic, and an indicated 15,000 miles. $35,000 for this rare Corvette—American Custom Industries made 86.
[T358] 1983 Jeep Wagoneer Limited SUV. Topaz Gold Metallic with woodgrain side panels and nutmeg leather front bucket seats. AMC 175 bhp 5.9 liter/360 ci V8 with a two-barrel carburetor, a three-speed automatic, Selec-Trac four-wheel-drive, and an indicated 35,000 miles. An impressive $80,000 for this Wagonmaster-refurbished Wagoneer.
[S174] 1980 BMW M1 coupe. White with BMW Motorsport tri-color stripes and blue leather front bucket seats. M88 273 bhp 3.5 liter/211 ci inline six with fuel injection, a five-speed manual, and an indicated 20,000 kilometers. $700,000 for this car, once owned by F1 champion Niki Lauda—which may be why it sold for more than Hagerty #1/Concours money.
Eighties Cars 