Mecum’s one-day no-reserve auction in late February of what had been the Jim Rogers’ Classic Car Museum collection had a few 1980s cars among the 231 total. As one would expect for long-time museum cars, all cars in the auction were explicitly represented as “may still need mechanical and fuel system maintenance” and “car has not been driven”. Most had at least had their engines started.

• 1984 red Avanti coupe with red interior and 22,000 miles. A Steven Blake-era Avanti (no more Avanti IIs by 1984) with a 180 bhp/190 bhp (depending on who you believe) Chevrolet 305 V8 and an automatic transmission—$10,000 is between #3 and #4 money according to Hagerty’s valuation tools
• 1986 brown Jaguar XJ12 Vanden Plas sedan with 4,800 miles—$20,000 seems like a lot of money for this car, even with the low mileage. The cream interior did look near perfect.
• 1988 triple white Rolls-Royce Corniche II convertible with 15,000 miles—at $68,000, by far the highest eighties sale of the auction and about $10,000 over Hagerty’s “all the money”
• 1980 red/silver two-tone Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow II sedan with red interior—$19,000
• 1986 red Porsche 928S coupe with automatic transmission—$17,000 indicates about #2 condition

The rest of the auction was perhaps a little more interesting than these five cars. The oldest car was a black and silver 1915 Ford Motel T while the newest vehicles (from 2012) were a brace of Fisker Karma sedans and a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter conversion. The least expensive sale was a yellow 1948 Chevrolet fire truck that went for $3,000 while the most expensive car was a beige 1962 Rolls-Royce Mulliner convertible that hammered for $320,000. The distribution of cost versus year is shown in the chart below.

What do you think of these results?

The January auction at Mecum Kissimmee 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 blue 1986 Porsche 930 Turbo slantnose coupe with 29,000 miles was a no sale bid up to $85,000) and add some of my opinions. Mecum Kissemmee is a huge event, so I’m going to separate it into two posts—this first covers from Friday to Wednesday (with no auctions on Monday).

Friday:

• 1986 silver Chevrolet Corvette convertible with the 4+3 manual—$9,000 hammer price
• 1986 red Chevrolet Corvette convertible with the 4+3 manual and 14,000 miles—”resale red” and relatively low miles pushes this sale to a slightly more respectable $10,250
• 1981 gold Pontiac Firebird Trans Am coupe—at $11,500 the first car in this auction to meet my criteria for serious 1980s collectability of original cars: selling for equal to or above its original base list price. I’ll mark these cars in bold green
• 1984 brown Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme coupe with 23,000 miles—$10,500 buys another one of these once hugely popular cars (Oldsmobile built 245,000 Cutlass Supreme coupes in 1984) that have started to show up at auction in the last year or so
• 1983 gold Datsun/Nissan 280ZX coupe—$4,000
• 1986 black Chevrolet Corvette coupe with 86,000 miles—$5,500
• 1986 black Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS coupe—$10,500
• 1986 red Chevrolet very custom pickup truck—$14,000
• 1989 camouflage AM General cargo truck—$8,750

Saturday:

• 1988 black Mercedes-Benz 560SL convertible with 15,000 miles—$40,000
• 1986 silver Mercedes-Benz 560SL convertible with 31,000 miles—$22,000
• 1981 brown Mercedes-Benz 380SLC coupe with 21,000 miles—$13,500
• 1982 silver beige Chevrolet Corvette Collector Edition coupe with 15,000 miles—$22,000
• 1980 white Alfa Romeo Spider convertible—$6,500
• 1988 black Pontiac Firebird Trans Am GTA coupe with 49,000 miles—$10,250
• 1980 silver/black two-tone Stutz IV-Porte sedan—$22,500
• 1982 white Mercedes-Benz 380SEC coupe with AMG body kit—$7,750
• 1988 black Porsche 944 coupe—$4,000
• 1986 black Rolls-Royce sedan with 44,000 miles—$7,500 for one of these cars whose values are in steady decline as the frightful cost of performing deferred maintenance for an imperfect car becomes more and more obvious

Sunday:

• 1980 silver Chevrolet El Camino mild custom pickup truck—$15,000
• 1989 black Mercedes-Benz 560SL convertible—$15,000
• 1989 metallic brown Mercedes-Benz 560SEL sedan with 111,000 miles—$3,500
• 1986 white Pontiac Firebird Trans Am coupe—no mercy at Mecum at $3,000
• 1980 silver Chevrolet Camaro custom coupe with 64,000 miles—$8,500
• 1988 white Chevrolet Corvette 35th Anniversary coupe with 41,000 miles—$12,500
• 1980 bronze Jeep CJ-5 very custom SUV—$22,000
• 1987 black/burgundy two-tone Rolls-Royce Silver Spur sedan with 41,000 miles—$26,500
• 1984 white Buick Riviera convertible with white top and red interior, unusual turbo V6, and 40,000 miles—$19,000
• 1983 silver Datsun/Nissan 280-ZX coupe with turbo/automatic—$8,500
• 1980 blue MGB convertible—$5,750

Tuesday:

• 1984 white Pontiac Fiero Indy Pace Car coupe with 2.5 liter 4-cylinder/4-speed manual, headrest mounted speakers, and 550 miles—$13,750
• 1988 blue Pontiac Firebird Formula custom coupe—$5,000
• 1982 black Alfa Romeo Spider Veloce convertible—$5,750
• 1986 red Jeep CJ-7 custom SUV—$9,500
• 1981 silver Chevrolet Camaro very custom coupe—$14,500
• 1987 black Buick Regal Grand National coupe with 7,800 miles—$27,000
• 1980 gray Jeep Cherokee SUV—$10,250

Wednesday:

• 1987 orange Jeep Comanche pickup truck with 2.5 liter 4-cylinder/5-speed manual and 4-wheel drive—$2,500
• 1985 burgundy Chevrolet El Camino SS custom pickup truck with the classic Choo Choo nose—$10,000
• 1987 red Jeep Comanche pickup truck with  2.5 liter 4-cylinder/4-speed manual—$6,250
• 1981 gray/black two-tone Citroen 2 CV Charleston convertible with 28,000 miles—$20,000
• 1982 blue Fiat Spider convertible—$6,750
• 1985 blue Chevrolet K5 Blazer SUV with 350/automatic and 53,000 miles—$13,000
• 1985 blue Chevrolet Silverado custom stepside pickup truck—$19,000
• 1984 black Ford Bronco XLT SUV with 302/automatic, 4-wheel drive and 52,000 miles—$10,500
• 1984 black/silver two-tone Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck with 305/automatic—$8,000
• 1985 beige Cadillac Eldorado coupe with fake convertible top and 59,000 miles—$5,000
• 1985 white with fake wood paneling (of course) Mercury Grand Marquis station wagon with third row seats and 25,000 miles—$7,000
• 1980 blue Peugeot 504 station wagon with 2.3 liter diesel/4-speed and 19,000 miles—$12,500
• 1986 red Chevrolet Corvette convertible with 4+3 manual,  20,000 miles, and Indy pace car decals applied—$9,500
• 1989 blue Cadillac Brougham sedan with vinyl top and 15,000 miles—$11,500
• 1989 white Pontiac 20th Anniversary Turbo Firebird Trans Am coupe with cloth interior, no t-tops, and 2,800 miles—$34,000
• 1985 red Pontiac Fiero GT coupe with 2.8 liter V6/automatic and 1,500 miles—$17,000
• 1987 white Ford Crown Victoria with vinyl top and 12,000 miles—$7,250
• 1982 silver beige Chevrolet Corvette Collector Edition coupe with 63,000 miles—$13,000
• 1981 blue Toyota custom pickup truck with 56,000 miles—$16,500
• 1980 multi-colored Chevrolet Corvette very custom coupe—$14,500
• 1984 gray Mercedes-Benz 280SEL sedan with 81,000 miles—an ouch! at $3,000

As always, the January auction at Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale provided much interesting fodder for commentary. I’ll concentrate on the 1980s cars (and a few trucks) that sold (a 1989 red Ferrari F40 coupe was bid up to $975,000 but did not meet reserve) and add some of my opinions.

Monday:

• 1984 white Cadillac Seville sedan—$4,500 hammer price.
• 1981 yellow tan AMC Spirit coupe—$4,500
• 1984 blue silver Mercedes-Benz 380SL convertible with 115,000 mile—$9,500
• 1982 gold metallic Chevrolet Corvette coupe with 77,000 miles—$10,500
• 1989 desert taupe Mercedes-Benz 560SEC mild custom coupe—an ouch! at $5,000.
• 1987 blue Volkswagen Vanagon camper—$7,000
• 1985 white Chevrolet Corvette coupe with 30,000 miles—$10,000
• 1987 dark red Callaway Chevrolet Corvette coupe with 14,000 miles—$16,000
• 1989 black Ford Aerostar custom van with 47,000 miles—$5,000

Tuesday:

• 1986 black Buick Grand National coupe—at $14,500 the first car in this auction to meet my criteria for serious 1980s collectability of original cars: selling for equal to or above its original list price. I’ll mark these cars in bold green
• 1986 white Zimmer Golden Spirit coupe—$17,000
• 1987 root beer Chevrolet C-10  custom pickup truck—$10,500
• 1980 white Toyota Land Cruiser SUV with 57,000 miles—$36,000
• 1981 charcoal metallic Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 coupe with 19,000 miles—$15,000
• 1980 black Pontiac Firebird Trans Am coupe with 10,000 miles—$34,000

Wednesday:

• 1984 tan Alfa Romeo Veloce convertible—$8,000
• 1980 brown Chevrolet Corvette coupe with 29,000 miles—$14,000
• 1989 silver blue/flint gray two-tone Chevrolet K-10 Blazer mild custom SUV—$13,500
• 1986 blue Mercedes-Benz 560SL convertible with 84,000 miles—$16,000
• 1985 red Porsche 928 coupe—$15,000
• 1984 bronze/gold two-tone Chevrolet K-10 pickup truck—$9,500
• 1981 black Pontiac Firebird Trans Am coupe with 29,000 miles—$23,000
• 1982 red Jeep CJ-7 custom SUV—$16,000
• 1985 yellow Ford F-150 custom pickup—$24,000
• 1989 silver Jeep Grand Wagoneer Limited SUV with 57,000 miles—$35,000
• 1981 blue Chevrolet El Camino mild custom pickup truck—being Buster Crabbe’s last vehicle didn’t help this model get more than $9,000.
• 1982 red Porsche 928 very custom roadster—$30,000

Thursday:

• 1985 red GMC C-15 custom pickup truck—$12,500
• 1980 black Chevrolet Corvette coupe driven by Zora Arkus-Duntov for a few months in 1980—$14,000
• 1984 red Jeep CJ-7 custom SUV—$15,000
• 1987 black Buick Grand National coupe—$21,500
• 1982 guards red Porsche 911 Carrera coupe with 80,000 miles—$34,500
• 1984 dolomite Mercedes-Benz 380SL convertible with 2,750  miles—at $40,000, still less than the original price paid
• 1981 black Chevrolet Corvette Greenwood GTO coupe with 4,400 miles—$31,000 for something very much of its time
• 1989 red Ferrari 348 TB coupe—$40,000
• 1981 black Pontiac Firebird Trans Am coupe—$19,000
• 1981 blue Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 custom coupe—$20,000

Friday:

• 1983 black Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 custom coupe—$15,000
• 1985 blue/silver two-tone Chevrolet C-10 custom pickup truck—$16,000
• 1981 stainless steel DeLorean DMC-12 coupe—$27,000
• 1984 white Cadillac DeVille custom pickup truck—$19,000
• 1981 black Pontiac Firebird Trans Am coupe with 80 miles—$50,000
• 1981 white Pontiac Firebird Trans Am very custom coupe—$92,000
• 1988 guards red Porsche 911 Turbo coupe with 29,000 miles—$105,000

Saturday:

• 1986 red Porsche 930 Turbo R69 Rinnspeed coupe with 9,500 miles—$150,000
• 1988 red Ferrari Testarossa coupe with 280 miles—at $245,000, by far the top 1980s sale. It looks like the era of the relatively inexpensive Testarossa is over.

Sunday:

• 1989 black BMW 635CSi mild custom coupe—$7,500
• 1982 white Chevrolet C-10 pickup truck—$11,000
• 1986 white Chevrolet Crew Cab custom pickup truck—$11,000
• 1988 blue Oldsmobile Cutlass very custom coupe—$7,000
• 1981 tan Jeep CJ-8 Scrambler custom pickup truck—$10,000
• 1989 candy red Jaguar XJ-S very custom (LS2 engine) coupe—$17,000
• 1980 red/black two-tone Datsun 280ZX mild custom coupe with 58,000 miles—$9,000

Looks like a lot of Mercedes-Benz SLs, turbo Buicks, Chevrolet trucks, and Jeeps. What do you think of this year’s results?

This year’s Barrett-Jackson Las Vegas auction included a good number of interesting vehicles. As usual, I’ll concentrate on the 1980s cars (and some trucks) that sold and add some of my opinions. Where I have covered the specific year and model of a car in this blog, I link to it.

Thursday:

• 1984 maroon Buick Riviera coupe with 36,000 miles—at a $30,000 hammer price the first eighties vehicle sold in this auction is also the first eighties vehicle 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. This was also the highest eighties car or truck sale of the auction.
  
• 1989 white Cadillac Allanté convertible with 68,000 miles—an ouch! at $5,000.
• 1986 silver Pontiac Grand Prix 2+2 coupe—$8,500 for this acquired taste
• 1981 tan Toyota pickup truck with 61,000 miles—$7,000
• 1984 white Ford Mustang GT-350 convertible—$6,000
• 1988 white/gray two-tone Pontiac Firebird Formula with 8,000 miles—$12,000
• 1988 white Chevrolet Corvette coupe with 69,000 miles—$8,200
• 1981 tan/brown two-tone Chevrolet Corvette coupe—$8,500
• 1988 red Cadillac Allanté convertible with 31,000 miles—$9,000. Red plus half the miles evidently equals $4,000.
• 1989 white Pontiac 20th Anniversary Turbo Firebird Trans Am coupe—$17,500 is between #3 and $4 money, according to Hagerty’s valuation tools.
• 1985 white Chevrolet C-10 custom pickup truck—$18,500
• 1989 red Chevrolet Camaro IROC Z-28 very custom coupe—$21,500
• 1984 gray/white two-tone GMC Sierra 1500 custom pickup truck—$18,000
• 1981 red/orange two-tone Jeep Scrambler custom pickup truck—$20,000
• 1981 silver DeLorean DMC-12 coupe — $20,000
• 1985 Chestnut Metallic Rolls-Royce Silver Spur sedan—$15,500
• 1981 red Porsche 911 Carrera coupe with 31,000 miles—$29,000
• 1987 black Buick Grand National coupe with 33,000 miles—$22,500
• 1986 red Ferrari Mondial 3.2 convertible with 26,000 miles—$24,000

Friday:

• 1986 black Buick LeSabre Grand National coupe with 17,000 miles—$25,000 for this rare car.
• 1981 silver DeLorean DMC-12 coupe with 4,000 miles—$35,500
• 1980 white Pontiac Firebird Turbo Trans Am Pace Car coupe with 234 miles—at $50,000, the highest eighties car or truck sale of the auction.

Saturday:

• 1987 black Buick Grand National coupe—$21,000
• 1988 brown Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith II sedan with 50,000 miles—$10,000. It is the wrong color, of course, but will these cars ever recover?
• 1986 tan/brown two-tone Rolls-Royce or Bentley sedan (not at all clear from the description, but the grill is a Bentley’s)—$7,000

Prices for all cars didn’t seem very strong at this auction—or for that matter at Reno Tahoe, but some eighties cars and trucks did okay. What do you think of this year’s results?

Mecum’s September auction in Dallas included a lot of cars and trucks from the 1980s. As always, I’ll concentrate on the cars that actually sold (remember that Mecum’s events are not no reserve auctions—a white 1987 Porsche 911 Turbo coupe with 92,000 miles was a no sale bid up to $65,000) and add some of my opinions. Where I have covered the specific year and model of a car in this blog, I’ll link to it.

Wednesday:

• 1987 black BMW M6 coupe—$10,000 hammer price
• 1985 maroon/gray two-tone Chevrolet El Camino pickup truck—$5,500
• 1986 tan Chevrolet Silverado mild custom pickup truck—$10,000
• 1987 red Porsche 944 coupe—$5,000 is between #3 and #4 condition money, according to Hagerty’s valuation tools.
• 1981 blue Mercedes-Benz 380SL convertible—$5,000

Thursday:

• 1982 white Ferrari Mondial coupe with 37,000 miles—$12,000
• 1980 green MGB convertible with 28,000 miles—$11,000
• 1985 black/silver two-tone Rolls-Royce Silver Spur sedan—$8,500 for this car whose values are in slow but steady decline as the frightful cost of performing deferred maintenance for an imperfect car becomes more and more obvious.
• 1986 red Chevrolet K10 mild custom pickup truck—at $16,000 the first eighties vehicle sold in this auction is also the first eighties vehicle 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.
• 1987 white Chevrolet K5 Blazer SUV—$12,000
• 1982 red Fiat X1/9—an ouch! at $3,000 for this tiny (12.5 feet long) little wedge.
• 1982 red Toyota FJ-60 Land Cruiser SUV—$11,500
• 1988 black Chevrolet K5 Blazer mild custom SUV—$12,500
• 1989 burgundy Ford Bronco XLT SUV—$10,500
• 1983 black/silver two-tone Oldsmobile Hurst/Olds with 42,000 miles—$12,000 for a chance to use that crazy Lightning Rod shifter.
• 1984 tan Dodge Caravan minivan with 71 miles—$7,000 for a minivan you can drive right to AACA judging.
• 1988 black Dodge Lancer sedan with 28 miles—$5,500
• 1987 red Dodge Daytona coupe with 22 miles—$9,000
• 1988 mauve Dodge Colt station wagon with 41 miles—$8,000
• 1985 red Jeep CJ-7 SUV—$13,000
• 1980 red Chevrolet Corvette coupe with 26,000 miles—$10,000

 Friday:

• 1983 white Excalibur Phaeton Series IV coupe – $24,000. Excaliburs are generally regarded as the best of the neo-classics and they do have a following—this is reasonable money for a Series IV.
• 1988 gray/blue two-tone Chevrolet K5 Blazer SUV with 93,000 miles—$13,500
• 1986 white Chevrolet K5 Blazer SUV with 52,000 miles—$16,500
• 1980 black MGB convertible—$5,000
• 1980 black Chevrolet Corvette coupe—$19,500 is right at solid #2 condition money for a late L48 shark with an automatic, especially one that doesn’t have notably low miles. The black exterior/red leather interior combination along with the mirrored t-tops may have added some money to the final number.
• 1980 green Toyota FJ-43 Land Cruiser SUV—$38,000
• 1985 red Jeep CJ-7 custom SUV—$26,000
• 1987 white Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser station wagon with 76,000 miles—$7,000 for what I see as the most surprising that it was saved eighties car in this auction. Who buys this car and what are their intentions for it?
• 1981 red Chevrolet Corvette custom coupe—$18,500
• 1982 gray Datsun 280Z coupe—$7,000
• 1982 silver DeLorean DMC-12 coupe—$19,000

Saturday:

• 1981 beige Chevrolet Corvette coupe—$12,000. The wrong color can just kill you with Corvettes.
• 1986 black Buick Grand National coupe with 9,000 miles—$29,000
• 1987 white Mercedes-Benz 380SL convertible—$7,000. Are the folks who are bringing these cars to auction making any money on them?
• 1983 Mustard Yellow Toyota FJ-40 Land Cruiser SUV—$57,000 makes this iconic truck the highest eighties sale of the auction.
• 1987 orange Land Rover Defender 90 SUV—$39,500

This certainly was a very different sale from the last Mecum auction at Monterey—for example, this one had trucks, and they sold for good money. What do you think of this auction’s results?

Mecum’s August auction in Monterey included a good amount of cars from the 1980s. As always, I’ll concentrate on the cars that actually sold (remember that this is not a no reserve auction—an orange 1980 BMW M1 coupe with 22,000 miles was a no sale bid up to $375,000) and add some of my opinions. Where I have covered the specific year and model of a car in this blog, I’ll link to it.

Thursday:

• 1981 white Chevrolet Camaro Z28 coupe with 58,000 miles—at $13,000 the first eighties vehicle sold in this auction is also the first eighties vehicle 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.
• 1989 yellow Chrysler TC by Maserati convertible with 4,000 miles—$7,000. As I’ve said before, there are a few loyal owners of these, but this is a case where absolutely no one else gets it.
• 1984 white Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz convertible with 40,000 miles—$13,500. According to Hagerty’s valuation tools, all the money for a 1984 Eldorado convertible in #1 condition is $18,300, with values sliding up.
• 1988 black BMW M5 sedan—$18,500
• 1980 gray Mercedes-Benz 450SL convertible with 85,000 miles—$9,500
• 1987 white Avanti convertible (I really wish Mecum would stop listing these as Studebakers)—$14,500
• 1981 silver Mercedes-Benz 380SL convertible with 85,000 miles—an ouch! at $6,000: that’s about #4 condition money, according to Hagerty’s valuation tools.
• 1989 black BMW 635csi mild custom coupe with 67,000 miles—$22,000
• 1984 silver Ferrari Mondial convertible with 54,000 miles—$20,000 shows that there is still relatively little love for these cars that listed for $65,000 when new (about $149,000 in today’s dollars).
• 1985 silver BMW M6 coupe with 93,000 miles—$29,000 for this handsome car in the correct color.

Friday:

• 1985 black Mercedes-Benz 500SEC coupe converted to a convertible by AMG with 37,000 miles—only $17,500 for this answer to a question that few would ask.
• 1986 black Porsche 930 Turbo coupe—$60,000
• 1989 red Ferrari Testarossa coupe with 10,000 miles—$70,000 is about #2 condition money, according to Hagerty’s valuation tools.

Saturday:

• 1989 red Porsche 930 Turbo convertible with 13,000 miles—$125,000
• 1986 red Porsche 930 Turbo coupe with 43,000 miles—$77,500
• 1980 blue Renault Series 1 R5 Turbo coupe with 51,000 miles—$130,000 for what was probably the most interesting eighties car in this auction.
• 1989 white Porsche 911 Speedster convertible with 1,400 miles—$300,000 makes this car by far the highest eighties sale of the auction.

The Monterey location makes this a very upscale auction for Mecum. The eighties numbers were dominated by Porsche—Mecum moved more than half a million dollars worth of them. What do you think of this auction’s results?