Carpe Diem: At the Pebble Beach 2026 Auctions, Every Assessment Is a Certainty

If there is one thing I enjoy, it is surprising people. For example, what does a 1930 Bugatti have to do with a Lamborghini Revuelto? In a few days the most exciting week of the year will be upon us – the Monterey Car Week – and the auctions will take centre stage. I could have written a preview, picked the most expensive lots and commented on them. But that would have been predictable. I therefore approached this week with two fixed points in mind. The first was to surprise – to surprise you, but also the people who will hear you talking about little-known cars with curious histories. Read on, and those who listen to you will think you have read all 2,000 pages of the Monterey catalogues. The second point, given that records have been broken again and again in the first part of the year, and will certainly be broken again, is this: you will not find a Ferrari among the cars I have chosen.