Gooding & Co – Amelia Island Highlights

Posted on March 23, 2012 by classiccarweekly

Gooding & Co’s annual sale in Amelia Island, Florida produced some spectacular results. The inclusion of the Drendel Family Collection of rare Porsches certainly helped things. Ten cars broke the million-dollar mark (including buyer’s premium). Top sale of the auction went to the Porsche 917/30 we featured a few weeks ago, selling for $4,400,000. The second highest-selling car was also a car we featured, the 1955 Porsche 550 Spyder. The high-end of that car’s estimate was $2.6 million but it ended up selling for $3,685,000.

After that, two other Porsches, both of these ex-Martini race cars, were the next-highest selling cars. First was a 1974 Porsche 911 Carrera RSR Turbo 2.14 which sold for $3,2450,000.

Then there was this 1976 Porsche 935/76 which brought $2,530,000.

A few more of our feature cars followed these two awesome 1970s race cars. Next was yet another Porsche in this already Porsche-heavy sale (before you include the Drendel collection). It was the “winningest” Porsche 962 we featured. It sold for $1,925,000. Then, finally, something else: the brilliant blue 1951 Ferrari 212 Inter, which brought $1,375,000. After that was a 1948 Tucker 48 – the second Tucker sold at auction this year, which is kind of strange in itself. It didn’t bring as much as the one at Barrett-Jackson, but it still commanded a respectable $1,320,000.

The Porsche 911 GT1 Evolution race car, which I am still enamored with, sold for $1,265,000. Then another Porsche, a 1967 906E that we actually featured when it was listed with a Bonhams auction back in Scottsdale in January. It didn’t sell at that auction but did sell at Amelia Island at this auction for $1,001,000. The final million dollar car also brought $1,001,000. It was a 1971 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Spider.

The 1911 Rambler Touring Car we featured sold for $275,000, just barely short of its estimate. And the very interesting 1930 Willys-Knight Plaid-Side Roadster brought $220,000, exceeding its estimate by about $40,000.

Although there were a boatload of million dollar sales, there were also some bargains to be had. Among them, the TVR 3000S we featured that was estimated to sell for between $40,000-$50,000. It only ended up selling for $24,200. I recently saw a list somewhere of collectible cars that you should buy now because they are at their lowest price points they are likely to ever see. That TVR was on the list and whoever bought it scored. Another car that was on the list, the first generation Lotus Esprit. And one of those sold at this auction for $20,900.

And one final car, a very interesting 1941 Chrysler Town & Country Barrelback with the beautiful woodwork that is the trademark of the original Town & Country (not the sticker-sided minivans of the 80s). It sold for $286,000 and with the shape it is in (and the unusual bodystyle) I think whoever bought it got a great deal.

In all, the auction sold more $36 million worth of cars with a fairly high sell-through rate. For complete results, click here.

Milhous Collection Results

Posted on March 15, 2012 by classiccarweekly

RM Auctions’ “recent” sale in Boca Raton, Florida of the eccentric Milhous Collection of cars – and many other assorted expensive things – was a big success, with every lot selling. The auction brought in a total of $38.3 million. Top sale was the 1912 Oldsmobile Limited Five-Passenger Touring we featured a while back. The estimate on the car was $1.4-1.6 million but the car ended up selling for $3,300,000 including fees.

The second-highest sale at the auction was not a car. It was this 1903 Ruth Style 38-B Fair Organ:

It’s gigantic and sold for $1,265,000. Of the top ten sales, six were automobiles and four were organs or orchestrations. All four of these musical pieces sold for over $1 million.

Our other feature cars included the stunning 1913 Alco Six Model H Touring Car that sold for $506,000. The Duesenberg Model J Murphy Convertible Sedan sold for $990,000. The 1932 Marmon Sixteen brought $552,500. Our other feature car, the one-of-a-kind Rounds Rocket Indy roadster sold for $275,000.

Other highlights were this 1933 Chrysler Custom Imperial Five-Passenger Phaeton.

It’s a former Otis Chandler car with impressive styling and a 135 horsepower. It sold for $1,210,000.

In addition to the Rounds Rocket Indy roadster, there were a few other race cars that sold too. First was this 1949 Snowberger-Offy built by former driver Russ Snowberger and driven by George Lynch who failed to qualify it for both the 1950 and 1951 Indy 500.

It sold for $192,500. There was also a 1962 Lesovsky-Offy (aka the Sarkes Tarzian Special) driven by Elmer George (father of IRL founder Tony George) in the 1962 and 1963 race.

It bettered it’s estimate by about $50,000, selling for $330,000. From a slightly more recent era, this 1984 March 84C Cosworth driven by Teo Fabi – in awesome Skoal Bandit livery – sold for $110,000.

The most “affordable” car sold at this sale, that was not a motorcycle or tractor, was a 1962 Corvette Convertible that sold for $66,000 – it was the only car not to break into the six figures.

The other interesting “vehicle” sold was a 1941 Ryan PT-22 Recruit airplane. These planes were very popular in general aviation after WWII because they could be bought as surplus for a few hundred dollars. There used to be a handful of them based at a local airport back in the late 1940s and 1950s. At least one ended up in a creek (no one was hurt). This example sold for $241,500, slightly higher than what was paid for it after the war.

For complete results, click here.

Bonhams’ Shepton Mallet Motorcycle Highlights

Posted on March 13, 2012 by classiccarweekly

Bonhams recent (okay it was the 18th of February) motorcycle sale in Shepton Mallet, England featured a number of affordable bikes – a majority of all sales were of the sub-$7,000 type. The top sale was this 1932 Brough Superior Black Alpine 680:

It’s a good bet that when a Brough Superior shows up in an auction catalog that it will be the top seller of the sale. This time that was certainly true, selling for about $100,500 – more than double the price of second-highest seller. This is a time-capsule version that has never been restored and is not running. And the second-highest selling bike was a 1955 Vincent Rapide Series D for about $43,000.

The 1938 Ariel Square Four that we featured last month sold for a couple dollars under $19,000, which, I think, makes it the first motorcycle featured on this site to actually sell.

There were a ton of scooter or scooter-type… things (there was a Honda trike that looked like a toy) selling at this auction. Our picks for the coolest bikes sold were a pair of green ones. First, this 1957 Douglas 348cc Dragonfly:

It brought about $5,800 (I say “about” because the auction was in GBP and I have to do my own currency conversion). I just like the way it looks. Same with this 1978 Benelli 125 Turismo. There isn’t anything spectacular about it. I guess it’s because the paint is so nice.

Anyway, I wish I would’ve been there to buy it for its $1,082 selling price. For complete results, click here.

Artcurial Rétromobile Highlights

Posted on February 20, 2012 by classiccarweekly

The Artcurial auction at Rétromobile in Paris had a high sell-through rate with a variety of interesting cars. Unfortunately, we only had time to feature two of them. First was the 1938 Horch 853 Cabriolet that ended up selling for $520,732, slightly exceeding its pre-sale estimate. Our other feature car was the awe-inspiring 1913 Delaunay-Belleville that has been in the same family since new – almost 100 years. Artcurial provided a rather large range for the car’s estimate and it sold right in the middle for $600,834.

There were numerous really interesting cars (I keep mentioning that, don’t I?). Some were extravagantly priced while others were downright affordable, like this 1965 Renault 4 that was modified to a convertible shortly after purchase. Renault did produce a 4 convertible – called the Plein Air, but this car pre-dates that model. It sold for $16,690.

The next car was not, well, affordable. But it certainly is jaw-dropping. It’s a 1937 Mercedes-Benz 540K Cabriolet B with a 180 horsepower 5.4 liter straight-8. This particular car was once in the Rockefeller family and has an awesome paint scheme with black and silver with red highlights. It was the second top seller at $629,961.

A quartet of interesting pre-war cars from lesser-known manufacturers than Mercedes-Benz include this 1908 Lorraine Dietrich 12 HP Touring car. It sold for $72,831.

Even older is this London-to-Brighton eligible 1898 (or 1899) Decauville Voiturelle. It’s an early French car that appears to be quite rudimentary by today’s standards. But this was quite a vogue car back in 1898 when over 600 of them were sold. I’m sure they cost a lot less in the 19th century than the $106,212 it went for in Paris in 2012.

The 1912 Gobron-Brillie 12 CV Torpedo Skiff by Rothschild (below) had been on sale in St. Louis at Hyman Ltd. for $325,000. It’s the only one in existence and it could have been yours for $273,117. That’s about a $50,000 savings over buying it off the lot.

The cheapest car (by price) in the entire auction (including motorcycles and scooters) was this 1933 Rosengart LR4 Torpedo that missed its estimate and was sold for $6,828.

Slightly newer is this 1969 Alpine A110 1600 Coupe – a great looking car with racing pedigree. It sold for $84,970.

Cisitalia is best known for their 202 road car and even their monoposto race cars. But they also built about 15 of the 33 DF Voloradente model in the mid-1950s. This 1954 model brought $189,665.

Something I personally thought was really cool was this 1977 Fiat 131 Abarth Rally – a homologation rally car built for the street. 500 were built with a 140 horsepower 2.0-liter straight-4. It’s boxy, so you know it means business. Sale price: $71,314.

Top sale of the auction (which it as by nearly a factor of 10) was this 1959 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spyder. It sold for $5,740,248. The average price for a LWB California Spyder over the past five or so years is about $3.4 million. Prices are rising.

Two other Italian gems were this aluminum-bodied 1967 Bizzarrini 5300 GT Strada – one of only 72 alloy 5300 GTs. A very desirable car, selling for $447,608.

The other was this 1947 Fiat 1100 S MM by Rappi. It’s eligible for all kinds of historic events including the Mille Miglia. These cars are very rare and, although it only has 51 horsepower, they are apparently quite fun – and stylish. $166,905.

This auction also featured more than a dozen rare cars in their original condition. Multiple cars from Talbot-Lago, Hotchkiss, Panhard, Talbot, and Salmson. Most were sedans from the late 1940s and early 1950s. They all looked stately and dusty and ready to be freshened and brought back to life. Prices ranged from about $27,000-$90,000 for the cars as they were in various conditions. None of them were especially extravagant, but the one that keeps catching my eye as I look through the results was the last lot in the sale – this 1939 Hotchkiss 686 Chantilly Limousine. It is in need of a restoration – but imagine how good it would look all prettied up. It sold as is for $39,450.

For complete results, click here.

Bonhams Paris Highlights

Posted on February 13, 2012 by classiccarweekly

Bonhams’ recent sale at Rétromobile in Paris featured some very interesting old cars – some of the most interesting of which did not sell. Unfortunately, due to the flood of Arizona auction results we’ve been posting, we were only able to feature one of the many awesome rides available at this sale. It was the 1928 Amilcar C6, which, coincidentally, did not sell.

Top sale of the auction went to this 1961 Aston Martin DB4GT:

A DB4GT is the perfect package of styling and performance from the early 1960s. It’s stunning design is brought to you by Carrozzeria Touring of Milan and it packs 302 horsepower underneath the hood. Only 75 were built and it brought the highest price I’ve ever seen for a DB4 (or any later Aston Martin) at $1,330,000.

A stunning 1935 Delage D8-105 Sport Coupe by Autobineau that looks ready to trounce all comers on the manicured fairway at Pebble Beach sold for $423,000.

There was also a Delahaye, a Talbot-Lago, a 1921 Bugatti Type 23 Brescia and a few custom Bentleys – all to suit your appetite fro pre-war beauties. But there were also things to be had that could be driven, not to mention afforded. Take this 1978 Porsche 911SC Targa that sold for about $16,600.

There was a collection of seven Morgans spanning the 1930s through the 1960s that crossed the block. Only one (the newest, a ’67 Plus Four) sold.

Of the more obscure (or just plain rare) cars sold, this 1905 Darracq Flying Fifteen was a knockout at about $235,000.

There was also a 1963 Apal-Porsche 1600, which was a fiberglass re-body of a Volkswagen Beetle with Porsche 356 running gear (only 30 of the 150 built had the Porsche powertrain). It sold for $36,000.

Now for something that isn’t red, a 1964 Renault Dauphine Gordini.

This was a car popular on racetracks back in the 60s, dominating 1.0 liter classes, winning its class at the Mille Miglia and the 12 Hours of Sebring. This is a road model with a 25-year-old restoration that can be enjoyed for $12,000.

Alvis built cars through the late 1960s but some of their large saloons and drophead coupes from the 1930s are quite striking – especially those with a two-tone color scheme, like this 1937 4.3-Litre Long-Bonnet Sports Saloon by Mayfair Carriage Co.

This is one of two Alvis 4.3s built by Mayfair and the only survivor. It’s pretty amazing. And for $119,000, well bought.

Another British car was this somewhat snub-nosed (and, dare I say, dorky?) looking Daimler:

It’s not a car you see too often, a 1956 Conquest Century Drophead Coupe. It has a 2.4 liter six making about 100 horsepower. It’s a fairly diminutive Daimler (check out our Barrett-Jackson feature car, the largest British car ever made) but it’ll do 90 mph and for $25,700, I wouldn’t complain.

This 1966 Jaguar FT Coupe is one of the rarest Jaguars you’ll find this side of a XJ13. It was a specially ordered four-seat coupe built by Bertone for the Italian Jaguar importer. Only two were made and it is quite striking. I don’t envision getting another opportunity at owning one for quite some time. It sold for $117,900.

Like low-volume cottage industry British sports cars? Then try this 1964 Diva GT D-Type.

Diva GTs were built from 1962-1966 and this one has known competition history from new. It is eligible for vintage racing events and looks like fun. It sold for $83,000.

Finally, from the “look how good-looking that car is” file, we have this 1964 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint. Alfas have always been gorgeous, but I love this car more than most. And in blue it just pops. For $62,000, I wish I would have grabbed it.

For complete results, check out Bonhams website here.

Mecum Kissimmee Highlights

Posted on February 8, 2012 by classiccarweekly

Mecum Auctions held their first event of 2012 not in Arizona, but in Kissimmee, Florida – where the weather is also nice. There were a bunch of rare muscle cars crossing the block including the top sale, a 1963 Shelby Cobra Dragon Snake.

This was the 93rd Cobra built and one of only eight Dragon Snakes modified for drag racing by Shelby. Because this car won so many drag races in its day, it is the winningest competition Cobra in history. It cost $8,990 new (a lot) and sold for $850,000 at auction (also a lot).

There were also two ultra-rare 1969 Chevrolet Corvette L88s – a convertible and a coupe.

These are the must-have ’69 Corvettes and you could have bought the pair. The convertible sold for $610,000 and the coupe was a comparative bargain at $270,000.

But it wasn’t all muscle cars. Of the top ten sales of the auction there were two gorgeous Packards. The first was a 1941 180 Darrin Victoria Convertible – one of 35 built. It has the Super Eight 180 engine and a good looking red and tan color combo. It sold for $220,000.

The other Packard is a very mean and sporty looking 1930 Eight Model 745 Waterhouse Victoria. If I could’ve taken one car from this sale home, this would be it:

Big pre-war Packards never really had much of a sporting air about them. But this one kind of does. Maybe it’s the slightly cambered front wheels or their hot rod look, but this car says “I want to go fast.” This is one of three known to exist. $225,000.

For complete results, visit Mecum’s website.

Russo & Steele Scottsdale Highlights

Posted on February 6, 2012 by classiccarweekly

This is our final Scottsdale auction recap. It’s been weeks since it happened but we finally caught up. Russo & Steele sold a wide variety of cars from the affordable (the lowest seller was a 1978 Triumph Spitfire 1500 Convertible that sold for $4,675) to the super expensive – the top sale was this 1968 Chevrolet Corvette L88 Roadster that sold for $687,500. It was one of only 216 built during three years of production.

The second top seller was a 1965 Shelby GT350 that was once used as a race car at the Carroll Shelby School of High Performance Driving. It has a fresh restoration and looks amazing. I could easily imagine myself tearing around a racetrack in this car. But for $467,500, it’s a little out of my range.

Our two featured cars from this auction, a 1973 Mercury Cougar XR7 Convertible and a Ketchup & Mustard-liveried ’96 RT/10 Viper both sold. The Cougar brought $17,600 and the Viper $39,050.

Other highlights included a pair of rare Mopar’s: this 1969 Dodge Charger Daytona:

sold for $118,800. And a blue 1970 Plymouth Hemi Cuda sold for $115,500. And finally, probably the rarest car in this sale was this 1984 Knudsen Baroque Cabriolet – 1 of 2 such cars built. Knudsen built 11 total Baroques in Nebraska in the late 70s and early 80s in a variety of bodystyles. When new, these cars cost between $80,000 and $225,000. According to the consignor, this car cost $86,000 in 1984. It sold for only $12,100.

For complete results, click here.

RM in Arizona Highlights

Posted on February 3, 2012 by classiccarweekly

RM’s big sale in Arizona (almost two weeks ago… we’ve kind of had a backlog of auction results to publish and they were the last to publish their results online). As I’m looking back at it, we featured a number of cars from this auction including their top seller: this 1957 Ferrari 410 Superamerica that sold for $1,815,000. The second highest-selling car was the first car we featured, the most fantastic looking BMW 507 Roadster I’ve ever laid eyes on. It sold for $990,000. RM sold 90% of their cars for a total of $25.6 million.

A trio of pre-1905 American cars all sold, including our featured 1901 Duryea Four-Wheel Phaeton that was purchased by Mr. Car Crazy, Barry Meguiar for $96,250. Also sold were the 1903 Waverely Electric Surrey for $110,000 and the 1903 Stearns Suburban for $82,500. One of two cars we featured that did not sell was the 1913 Pathfinder Touring car, which was bid to $90,000.

A giant 1956 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham Town Car Concept sold for $258,500, missing its reserve by $50,000. This car came from the John O’Quinn collection and had gone unsold at at least one other RM event.

From the 1950s we featured a 1953 Nash-Healey and a 1954 Allard K3. The Nash-Healey brought $71,500, just short of my projection and the Allard was a relative steal at $57,750 – less than half of what a similar car (or the same one) was listed as “for sale” for a few months back.

Other pre-war cars that sold were the very rare Brewster-Knight that sold for $88,000. And that wonderful, purple Isotta Fraschini sold for $407,000 – dead on what I said it would bring (no I’m not bragging). Also sold was this amazing 1937 Cord 812 SC Sportsman Convertible Coupe. One of 64 – yours for $385,000.

Supercar fans could have had their choice of our featured Tom Walkinshaw Racing prepared 1993 Jaguar XJ220 S that sold for $230,000. Or the always popular Ferrari F40, this a 1991 model that brought an astounding $781,000.

The other Ferrari we featured, a 1983 512 BBi sold for $96,250. And the other Jaguar, a 1967 Series I E-Type went unsold. There was another very rare old Ferrari at this sale, a 1952 342 America Coupe Speciale by Pinin Farina – one of six built and one of only three coupes built by Pinin Farina. It sold for $632,500.

There was a Duesenberg Model J sold at this sale and I’ve said previously that we’d feature every Model J Duesenberg that comes up for sale if at all possible. Well, we ran out of time before the sale. Once we clear the backlog and get caught up we’ll be sure to have a rundown of that car.

For complete auction results, click here.

Gooding Scottsdale Highlights 2012

Posted on February 2, 2012 by classiccarweekly

Gooding & Company’s Scottsdale auction featured some major cars selling for some major cash – $39,833,900 all told. It was also one of the more successful auctions in recent memory, with only two cars going unsold for not meeting their reserves. Top sale at this auction was a 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Alloy Gullwing. Mercedes-Benz built 29 aluminum-bodied 300SL coupes and this is number six. This is as desirable as Gullwings come and it exceeded it’s estimate by $1.5 million, selling for $4,620,000.

Also, somewhat shockingly, every car we featured here on this site from Gooding’s auction sold. The 1930 Duesenberg Model J Disappearing-Top Convertible Coupe sold for $2,640,000, which was the third highest at the sale. Second place went to the 1959 Ferrari 250GT California Spider – a car that Gooding seems to find one of for each of their sales. Where are these things coming from? It brought $3,905,000.

Other million dollar sales included the 1971 Lamborghini Miura P400 SV we featured a few weeks ago, selling for $1,100,000. There was also this matching-numbers 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 which sold for $1,200,000.

The final million dollar sale went to this awesome 1965 Ferrari 500 Superfast which was hammered away for $1,100,000. It’s one of only 36. It has 400 horsepower – more than just about every muscle car of its day – but the shape of it is so much sleeker than a GTO or Mustang. Super fast indeed.

Two cars that Gooding promoted heavily in the lead up to the auction also showed well. There was a brilliant green 1971 Maserati Ghibli 4.9 SS Spyder which split its pre-sale estimate, selling for $880,000.

Also, this 1969 Iso Grifo 7 Liter – one of only 66 Grifos built with the 7.0 liter V8 making more than 400 horsepower. A 1960s supercar in crazy purple paint? Yes, please. It satyed nearer its lower estimate at $352,000.

Another purple exotic was the 1927 Bugatti Type 38A Tourer by Figoni that we featured. It brought a hefty $495,000. Among our other featured cars, the 1967 Trident Clipper V8 was a steal, missing its estimate entirely and selling for $39,600. Our final feature car was an unbelievable 1937 BMW 328 which was well bought for $517,000. Another rare BMW sold there too, this 1958 507 Roadster. While not as good-looking as the car offered by RM across town, it still rang up a hefty $962,500.

Other interesting sales included a 1938 American Bantam Roadster which far exceeded its pre-sale estimate of $35,000-$55,000 and ended up selling for $90,200. Cute sells.

There was also an ultra-rare 1969 Chevrolet Corvette L88 Coupe. The car is a survivor – unrestored in Monaco Orange with less than 18,000 original miles. This was the king of Corvettes in 1969 – the L88 option got you more horsepower than a ZL1. This car was rated at 430 horsepower but likely put out more like 560. It doesn’t play around. And neither does its hammer price of $451,000.

And from the fun-file: this 1963 Volkswagen Beetle Sunroof Sedan – which sounds pretty normal from the name of it. Until you see it:

This car was featured in the film Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo. There are desirable, well-optioned Volkswagens, but people are going to recognize this one. And for $66,000 ($15,000 below it’s pre-sale estimate) it’s going to be a lot of fun. For full results click here.

Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale Highlights Pt. II

Posted on January 31, 2012 by classiccarweekly

Friday, Saturday, and Sunday – but especially Saturday – are the big days at Barrett-Jackson in Scottsdale, Arizona. The past few years have seen this event be strictly a No Reserve auction with every car that crosses the block selling, but this year there were some heavy-hitters in the auction’s new “5000 Series” of classics that did in fact have a reserve. And not all of them were met – like the 1955 Flajole Forerunner we featured a few weeks ago: it was a no-sale.

A few of the other cars we featured did sell – and for a boatload of money. The 1930 Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8A by Castagna sold for $1,100,000. The 1928 Daimler Double Six P.1.50 Limousine brought $1,155,000. The 1930 Duesenberg Model J Murphy Town Car was hammered sold for $1,045,000. Another “bargain” was the 1954 DeSoto Adventurer II which sold for $1,430,000. Keep in mind, all of this happened within about an hour’s time.

One car we didn’t feature was this 1947 Bentley Mark VI by Franay:

It came from the collection of collector Ron Pratte and sold for $2,750,000, which was just barely more than I was going to offer to pay for it. The other mega-sales included the 1933 Pierce-Arrow Silver Arrow. The live television broadcast of the auction showed an overhead shot of the Silver Arrow and the lines of that car are actually perfect. It is breathtaking. It sold for $2,200,000. And the top sale of the entire auction was the 1948 Tucker Torpedo (also from Ron Pratte’s collection) which was hammered away for an astounding $2,915,000 – about three times my estimate of $1 million.

The only other million dollar sale was this all-original 1954 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing:

$2,200,000 brought this car home. It only had 4,149 original miles on it and was one of 146 Gullwings built that year. Other highlights from Saturday included a 2009 Devon GTX – one of just two produced. It’s a Dodge Viper-based supercar that went out of production as quickly as it entered it because the Viper was axed just after the GTX was announced.

A 650 horsepower American supercar that was originally supposed to cost $500,000 sold for $220,000.

Another car that has started to interest me a little more is this Chevrolet Corvette 2003 Commemorative Edition built by Advanced Automotive Technologies. It’s a standard 2002 Corvette with a custom built body. Coachbuilding isn’t quite as vogue as it used to be but I think over time these cars won’t depreciate wildly like some other “customs.” It sold for $66,000. Another one sold on Friday for $88,000.

And of course ultra-rare muscle cars are the order of the day at Barrett-Jackson. Among Saturdays highlights was this barn-find (yet mechanically “refreshed”) 1965 Shelby GT350. I hope whoever bought it doesn’t restore it – although they paid a pretty penny for it at $385,000.

Another rare Ford was this 1969 Ford Talladega Prototype. This car was built by Ford for Ford. It’s the only red Ram Air Talladega built. Regular Talladegas aren’t something you see everyday, much less a factory prototype. $137,500 sale price. Oh, and do everyone a favor. If you’re going to sell your car at auction and you‘re responsible for the photography: get a quality camera.

Friday also had its share of highlights including the Nash Bridges Cuda we featured. Last time it sold it was right at about $150,000. This time it sold for $88,000. Other interesting Friday cars included this 1970 Pontiac GTO Judge Ram Air III Convertible ($158,400).

There were a pair of ultra-rare and very famous 1960s drag cars. First, this 1964 Ford Thunderbolt sold for $242,000.

And right after that crossed the block, this 1968 Plymouth Barracuda Super Stock rolled across. It’s an actual “Mr. Five & Fifty” drag car built by Hurst for Chrysler. It also sold for $242,000.

Something from the quirky side was this 1929 Ford Model A Snow Bird built by B.P. Arps Company of Wisconsin. This was something that was done back in 1929 and there are multiple of them out there. It could have been yours for $66,000.

In 1987, Buick took their not-your-daddy’s-Regal Grand National and souped it up to 276 horsepower and 360 lb-ft torque and called it the GNX. They built 547 of them and recently that have become the most collectible American car of the 1980s. This time capsule example with only 1,200 miles on it sold for $88,000. For a 1980s Buick.

The only thing truly odd to cross the block on Sunday was this 1971 Kelsen Sports Rider Electric. It was a street-legal microcar built in from 1963-1973 in California. There were a number of companies who built similar vehicles and I’m not sure I’d drive any of them on the street. A golf course, maybe. When new in 1971 it cost $1,295. It sold on Sunday for $1,540. It’s not really appreciation if you’ve had to sit on it for 40 years to make $250. I used to have a ’92 Century – maybe I should have held on to it and used it to start a retirement fund.