2009 RM Auctions Year in Review
Sports Car Digest | Dec 21, 2009 | Comments 0
RM Auctions marked its 30th anniversary in 2009 with a solid year of performance, including more than $190 million in sales with unit volume in excess of 1,450 motor cars, which included 12 separate auctions in four different countries.
As many as 10 collector cars accounted for million-dollar-plus transactions at auction, and RM broke its own world record for the highest price achieved at auction with the sale of the 1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa, s/n 0714TR for $12.4 million at its Ferrari: Leggenda e Passione event in Maranello, Italy in May.
World Records
In addition to setting the new overall world record for the most expensive motor car ever sold at auction, a number of other world records were achieved at RM events in 2009.
The sale of a historic 1952 Jaguar C-Type, s/n XKC-007 established a world record for a C-Type, selling for $2,530,000 at RM’s Sports & Classics of Monterey event in August.
A 1950 Aston Martin DB2 Team Car ‘VMF 64’ with Le Mans and Mille Miglia provenance, offered for the first time in 52 years at RM’s Automobiles of London in October, set a new auction world record for an Aston Martin DB2, achieving $910,745.
Earlier in the year, an award-winning 1932 Ford Model 18 Deluxe Three-Window Coupe doubled its original estimate, selling for a record price for a Ford Model 18 of $165,000 at RM’s Automobiles of Amelia Island sale.
RM now holds five of the top 10 records – and four of the top five records – for the most expensive motor cars ever sold at auction.
“The market for ‘quality’ motor cars – exceptional, rare examples with important provenance and documentation – remains stable, with outstanding cars continuing to attract great prices at auction. While some segments of the market have experienced minor price adjustments, these have been an expected result of the overall economy,” said Ian Kelleher, President and Chief Operating Officer, RM Auctions.
Single-Owner Collections
As specialists for estate and private collection sales, RM added to its track record of successful single-owner sales with 100 percent sell-through rates at each of the two collections presented in 2009.
The Nick Alexander Woodie Collection kicked off Monterey’s famed classic car week achieving in excess of $7 million in total sales. The four-hour auction attracted spirited bidding as 51 magnificent pre and post-war Ford & Mercury wood-bodied station wagons crossed the block before a packed house. The top-seller was a Dearborn award-winning 1946 Mercury Sportsman Convertible, the rarest Sportsman of all, which brought an impressive $368,500.
The Icons of Speed & Style event followed a month later when RM presented a ‘no-reserve’ single-owner collection of 80 American racers, hot rods and custom vehicles and 70 lots of period hot rod and ‘Kustom Kulture’ memorabilia to a standing-room-only crowd at the Petersen Automotive Museum, achieving total sales of nearly $7 million. A highlight of this event included the 1965 Dodge A100 Pickup Truck “Little Red Wagon” Wheelstander which exceeded its high estimate of $300,000 for a final sale price of $550,000.
2009 RM Auctions’ Result Summary (Click title for complete event coverage)
Automobiles of Arizona, Phoenix, AZ
Total Cars Sold: 106
Sales Rate: 83%
Total Car Sales: $18,211,025
Top Sale: 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 Berlinetta – $918,500
Collector Cars of Fort Lauderdale, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Total Cars Sold: 281
Sales Rate: 66%
Total Car Sales: $11,525,615
Top Sale: 1936 Packard Twelve Coupe Roadster – $220,000
Automobiles of Amelia Island, Amelia Island, FL
Total Cars Sold: 89
Sales Rate: 83%
Total Car Sales: $12,528,400
Top Sale: 1930 Duesenberg Model J Convertible Coupe – $1,072,500
Classic Car Auction of Toronto, Toronto, ON
Total Cars Sold: 143
Sales Rate: 53%
Total Car Sales: $1,893,269
Top Sale: 1951 Mercury Monarch Convertible – $192,500
Classic Car Auction of Michigan, Novi, MI
Total Cars Sold: 120
Sales Rate: 48%
Total Car Sales: $2,092,080
Top Sale:1950 Flxible 33’ Private Coach – $92,400
Ferrari: Leggenda e Passione, Maranello, Italy
Total Cars Sold: 27
Sales Rate: 75%
Total Car Sales: $28,430,875
Top Sale: 1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa – $12,402,500
Vintage Motor Cars of Meadow Brook, Rochester, MI
Total Cars Sold: 81
Sales Rate: 79%
Total Car Sales: $5,441,175
Top Sale: 1935 Auburn 851SC Boattail Speedster – $462,000
Nick Alexander Collection, Monterey, CA
Total Cars Sold: 51
Sales Rate: 100%
Total Car Sales: $7,018,000
Top Sale: 1946 Mercury Sportsman Convertible – $368,500
Sports & Classics of Monterey, Monterey, CA
Total Cars Sold: 156
Sales Rate: 83%
Total Car Sales: $28,854,600
Top Sale: 1952 Jaguar C-Type – $2,530,000
Icons of Speed & Style, Los Angeles, CA
Total Cars Sold: 81
Sales Rate: 100%
Total Car Sales: $6,748,115
Top Sale: 1965 Dodge A100 Pickup “Little Red Wagon” – $550,000
Vintage Motor Cars of Hershey, Hershey, PA
Total Cars Sold: 128
Sales Rate: 94%
Total Car Sales: $8,678,200
Top Sale: 1931 Marmon Sixteen Convertible Coupe – $517,000
Automobiles of London, London, UK
Total Cars Sold: 68
Sales Rate: 81%
Total Car Sales: $18,154,211
Top Sale: 2006 Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR Roadster – $1,020,034
[Source: RM Auctions]
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