Is the post title too “on the nose?”
As down as yesterday’s post read, I actually felt even worse. When I woke up I felt so miserable that part of me thought it was going to be my last day on this earth. I feel a little better today, but I am still, to borrow a football expression, “behind the chains.”
Besides being a well-known expression, “Look Before You Leap” is also the name of an episode of Frasier that aired in late February, 1996 where Kelsey Grammar’s character, Dr. Frasier Crane, implores all of those in his circle to take advantage of the leap year/day by taking chances. The chance that he will take himself is to sing a difficult aria while appearing live on a PBS fundraiser. I am loathe to use Minions of The Evil Empire, but here is a link to a YouTube clip of the last four minutes of the episode. Frasier, Taxi and The Big Bang Theory are my three favorite sitcoms.
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Today’s post title could be used to describe the process of my writing this post. Usually I have some ideas a few days in advance that I write in the invaluable notebook on my computer desk. However, other than the intro I don’t really have any other ideas for today.
I guess I could write that Mecum’s Kissimmee auction last month was, given the context of the current collector car market, a big success. Since I don’t own the data nor did I collect the data myself I can only give snippets of information. To me, what really signaled the success of the auction was the fact that the average selling price increased by 9.5% in 2020 compared to 2019. When one considers that almost 2,000 cars were sold at Mecum Kissimmee that increase is an impressive number.
Barrett-Jackson, the other heavyweight in the world of American automobile auctions, had similar success at its signature event, the January Scottsdale auction. While not quite the same level of increase as Mecum, Barrett-Jackson’s average selling price for Scottsdale 2020 was 3.5% higher than for 2019. Again, given that more than 1,900 cars were sold by Barrett-Jackson at Scottsdale 2020 that increase is impressive.
While it’s just a sample of two auctions, and both events occurred before the coronavirus outbreak, the aura surrounding the signature auctions for Barrett-Jackson and Mecum is quite real and manifests itself in results. Remember that the auction results for Monterey Car Week in August, 2019 were quite disappointing. The average price per lot declined by 24% compared to 2018.
So, am I actually going to show any cars today? Well, if you insist…
This picture of a 2011 Maserati GranTurismo S is actually from AutoBlog, but a car like this in Black over Tan sold at Mecum Kissimmee for $36,300 all in meaning it hammered for $33,000. These cars were about $125,000 when new.
From Barrett-Jackson is a picture of a 1954 Jaguar XK120 Drophead Coupe, which is just a fancy way of saying convertible. This lot was sold at the Scottsdale auction for $143,000 all in, meaning it hammered for $130,000.
Trying to pick two cars from the nearly 4,000 that were sold at the two auctions wasn’t easy. If any of you looks at the companies’ websites and finds an interesting car or two, please feel free to let us know.
#LookBeforeYouLeap
#MecumKissimmee
#BarrettJacksonScottsdale
#somanycarsjustonelife
#disaffectedmusings
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