Harley Earl’s
Corvette #1 Seller at Mecum’s Chicago Auction But It Should Have Brought More
By Rick Tavel© October 15,
2013Harley Earl's 1963 Corvette on the block at Mecum's Chicago Auction |
If you are into collector cars, and particularly collector
Corvettes, you might have made a point to watch Velocity® TV this past Saturday
to see one of the crown jewels of the Corvette kingdom go across the
block. Mecum’s “Windy City” auction was held October 10 -12, where
almost a thousand cars crossed the block and 64% of the cars were hammered
sold. Though the Schaumburg Convention
Center offered shelter from the rainy weather, the weather still appeared to
have an effect on the a crowd and the bidding, quite a contrast to the Dallas
auction held only a few weeks before.
One of the headliners of the auction was a collection of four world
famous funny cars, the iconic Hemi Under Glass cars, famous for their unmatched
“wheelies”, which not only failed to
meet the reserve but was so far below the seller’s expectations that the four
car collection will be broken up and sold individually in Kissimmee, Florida,
in January. Even though the turnout was
excellent for a first time event, and the final
tally showed over $18,6M in sales the bidders appeared to lack
intensity.
The legendary Hemi Under Glass doing one of its famous wheelies |
on the car
was met and it sold. The owner must have
been pleased since the car was purchased in 2010 for just under $1M and a 60%
return on investment at three years is pretty healthy. But the dilemma is, why, in the hottest
Corvette market in history, did one of the five Corvette “Crown Jewels” sell
for only $1.5M, especially in comparison to the 1967 Corvette that just set a
world’s record in Mecum’s Dallas auction just a few weeks before?
“Has the bottom dropped out of the Corvette market?” one
might ask. I don’t think that is the
case and the Corvette market appears to still be red hot. But there must be a reason and before
collectors run for cover, I am offering a few for consideration.
Another factor that enters into the equation and one that
may have held down the price of the car is the lack of excitement that seemed
to permeate the audience. I am not referring
to the “hype” from Mecum, the Mecum team does a great job of “hyping” their cars,
and especially their “star” or “headline” cars, but sometimes the audience is
just tough, no excitement or electricity in the room. You’ve heard comedians refer to this. And maybe the often reserved Midwestern
demeanor entered into the equation. I
remember one of the toughest speaking engagements I ever had was to a reserved
Midwestern audience where I just couldn’t get the audience engaged. (Please no
letters, I have lived in the Midwest most of my life and yes I am aware that
Bloomington Gold is in Illinois.) True,
a lot of the hype and excitement at an auction is created by spirited bidding
and it appeared that throughout much of the auction it was this “spirited”
bidding and an excited cheering crowd that was missing. Usually when bidding reaches six figures or
more the audience gets involved, clapping and cheering, but there was little
cheerleading for the Hemi Under Glass funny cars or the Harley Earl Corvette.
1. 1963 Harley J. Earl Corvette (Lot S110) at $1,500,000
2. 1969 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 (Lot S135.1) at $500,000
3. 2005 Ford GT (Lot S219) at $240,000
4. 1965 Shelby Cobra, CSX4337 (Lot S205.1) at $140,000
5. 1967 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible (Lot S233) at $135,000
6. 1968 Dodge Hemi Dart Lightweight (Lot S116.1) at $125,000
7. 1969 Pontiac Trans Am (Lot S151) at $118,000
8. 1962 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible (Lot S157) at $110,000
9. 2013 Chevrolet COPO Camaro (Lot S174) at $105,000
10. 1951 Willys Overland Custom Pickup (Lot S116) at $100,000
Mecum’s Dallas
Auction September 4 – 7, 2013 Total Sales $37,913,093
1432
Lots offered 986 Sold 70% Sell Though1. 1967 Chevrolet Corvette L88 Convertible (Lot S123) at $3,200,000
2. 1969 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 (Lot S127) at $530,000
3. 1957 Chevrolet Corvette Airbox (Lot S121) at $290,000
4. 1969 Chevrolet Yenko Camaro (Lot S134.1) at $275,000
5. 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle LS6 Convertible (Lot S122) at $275,000
6. 2005 Ford GT (Lot S107) at $255,000
7. 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 (Lot S125) at $250,000
8. 2008 Lamborghini Murcielago LP640 Roadster (Lot S110) at $230,000
9. 1965 Chevrolet Chevelle Z16 (Lot S165) at $225,000
10. 1967 Chevrolet Corvette Coupe (Lot S204.1) at $205,500
So there may be some justification
for the price of the Earl car and the fact that it did not set a record. It may also be an example of the well known
adage: the bottom line is, a car is worth only what someone is willing to pay
for it. And in the case of the Harley
Earl 1963 Corvette that price was $1.5M,
a long way from a world’s record.
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