Market Intelligence
Buying with reason. Insights from Pebble Beach
The article discusses the trends in the market for classic cars at the Pebble Beach auctions. The author examines 17 cars from various countries, indicating that the market is driven more by individual car history and characteristics rather than a particular model. The prices for classic Pre-War cars show a trend towards stability, while prices for Bugatti EB110 and Jaguar E-Type models have increased. Bonhams failed to sell their Jaguar E-Type Lightweight. Aston Martin DB5 once owned by Sean Connery was a hit, selling for more than its estimated price.
Whereas the Italian and German cars presented and sold – or not sold – at the Pebble Beach auctions allowed us to draw conclusions about the [Italian](https://tcct.com/news/2022/08/italians-up-and-down-at-the-pebble-beach-auctions/) and the [German](https://tcct.com/news/2022/09/pebble-beach-auction-analysis/) brands' market trends in the last two weeks.
The 17 cars I’d like to examine today, American, British, Japanese, and beyond, indicate only one thing: more than the particular model, what teases buyers is the car itself, together with its individual history and characteristics. And not only that: the market, despite an undeniably positive liveliness, is governed by its own set of rules. The example of the 938 Talbot-Lago T150-C SS Teardrop Coupe by Figoni et Falaschi, also known as “Goutte d’Eau” - literally “water drop” is illuminating. I was stunned when an example from Gooding was sold for $13,420,000 last March, well over double what I considered to be the correct price.
At Pebble Beach, RM offered the one from the esteemed Oscar Davis Collection with an estimate of $9m-$11m. Strategically prudent? Hardly, because the hammer price was $7,265,000.
