Monetery Auctions

[Tom Wilson]

Does anybody here go to the Auctions to watch? I have never been to one and was wondering if it was worth it. They are not cheap!

[Yale]

Are you going to Quail? If so you can cross the street to Bonhams(?) with your Quail ticket.

[klv]

Bonhams auction will include the Auto Union GP car that didn't get auctioned at Retromobile in Feb '08. Chance of a new record price for a car at auction I suspect - assuming there is still some money left about the place.

Still trying to work out which ones we can get to viewing wise over the week. We fly into SF on Tuesday afternoon and have to drive down to Monterey in our Mustang hire car. American cliches on standby!

[Tom Wilson]

I would like to see that Auto Union... Also a Mille Miglia, Superamerica & Bugatti. Sounds interesting

[xs10shl]

I tend to frequent most of them, so I'd offer you this advice, based on my own personal experiences:

If you've never been to an auction, and you want to see only one, I would suggest going to Gooding, possibly on Saturday eve instead of the Sunday auction. In my view, they've really emerged as the top dog of the Monterey weekend, and really put on a classy show. David Gooding comes off as having really researched his cars, and Charlie Ross is one of the best auctioneers in the business.

The action at RM can be either fun or extremely dull, depending on the vibe in the room. It's also guaranteed to be super-crowded. The auctioneer Peter Bainbridge can be very witty, but his counterpart Ian Kelleher, in my view, occasionally seems disinterested, depending on the day.

Bonhams can be fun, but I personally find the flow a little boring, and I'm not at all a fan of their "musical interludes" in between cars. As mentioned, they are selling a huge car (in all respects) and it would be worth it to see it go for big money (which is not a given, by the way). It'd probably be worth it just to hear the sound it makes.

Russo is loud, obnoxious, and intimate. They definitely run a high-power setup, with plenty of shill bidding and fast talking.

Being your first time, I think you'll have fun no matter where you go.

[carsinpedia.com]

I agree with xs10shi regarding the different auctions. Although it is price, it is worth going for the show and the event plus some of the cars are very rare and you will not seeing them anyplace else.
Also the catalogs which come with which come with the price of admission is well worth it.

[Rudy van Daalen Wetters]

Yale,

Are you coming out to Monterey?
I need at least two days warning...

Rudy van Daalen Wetters
1963 GTE s/n 4001
1966 330 GT s/n 8705