Monterey 2012: A fine crop of cars
A friend of mine asked me what the quality of the cars is like this year in Monterey. I answered that there is some really great merchandise here, and he replied by rolling his eyes, reminding me that I say that every year. But the fact of the matter is it’s been true every time I’ve said it, and this year might be the best crop of cars yet.
To put things into perspective, there are more than 70 cars that have a legitimate chance to break the $1 million mark. Total sales could reach as high as $225 million. That’s as large as the economy of several island nations. RM and Gooding as usual have most of the high dollar offerings, but Mecum has some truly great stuff, as do Bonhams and Russo and Steele.
Some of the trends? A lot of great Shelbys were consigned, which is not surprising in the wake of Carroll Shelby’s death. Nobody is anticipating a huge spike in prices or demand for Shelby Cobras and Mustangs, but prices certainly aren’t expected to be soft there either.
Porsche prices have been extremely strong lately, with great 356s and early 911s in significant demand. Not surprisingly, there’s no shortage of early Porsches on the Monterey peninsula. Russo and Steele and Mecum have particularly strong selections of collectible Porsches. It will be interesting to see how things line up in supply versus demand.
Finally, on the topic of Porsches, I was driving down Lighthouse Avenue in Pacific Grove this evening and a Porsche and a real live 917K (without license plates or lights) passed by in the other direction. My jaw dropped. A $6 million-plus race car driving down the main drag in Pacific Grove. Only in Monterey this weekend.
