Adam`s $3 million Barrett-Jackson Auction

[Nickc0844]

I got this note from Adam this morning and figured I would share it. For those of you who don`t know, Barrett-Jackson auto auctions have some of the most prestigious cars in the world that has people flocking to them year after year. Just 2 weekends ago, they launched the biggest one ever, of which, Speed Channel had 24 hours of coverage on it. Expect big things in the years to come from it.

"Hello Friends,

Every year, I attend the Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction in Scottsdale, AZ. We don’t display there, rather, I just go to say hello to friends and customers. I meet people every year, and have met some of our most prestigious customers at this incredible event. This year was no exception. Here’s a story if you care to read on:

I was sipping a Bloody Mary while walking through a tent which housed the auction’s most important vehicles. It was Saturday afternoon and I was talking to Danny Quon, friend, customer, and Concours detailer. He was there with a car he was handling, the 1936 Airflow Custom, which later sold for $510,000. Danny’s Airflow was next to the exit, where the cars went when heading for the stage for auction.

As it began to pour rain, I watch three guys struggle to hold a piece of plastic over the interior of a gold, 1954 Olds 88 Concept car. They needed a fourth person to hold the plastic, as the rain was really coming down at this point. I grabbed the fourth corner and lifted the plastic before it touched the paint. Still sipping the Bloody Mary, I followed the car out the door, in the rain on 1/8 mile trip to the staging area. I took a big, final sip of my Bloody, and ditched the cup in the trash.

As we got under the staging tent, the interior has remained completely dry, but the front and rear of the car had gotten wet. I had two microfiber towels hanging out of my back pocket, and took one out to start drying the car. Will Raynor, the gentleman with the grey hair and beige jacket in the photos, is the detailer and car handler for the owner, Gordon Apker.

He opened the trunk and started removing some nasty towels. I looked at the towels, and then said, “Whhhooooooooaaaa! What have you got there?� I grabbed a few of my microfiber towels from my back pocket and handed them to the guys. I only had two, but instructed the guys to use only the towels I had handed over.

I ran to the golf cart, and sped to my truck in the rain, where I grabbed a dozen fresh new towels. As I arrived back at the car, it was just about ready to go up onto the stage. We gave it on last go-over as the Will started the car, and began to drive it into the building and on to the ramp. I just followed along, right up onto the stage with the car. The camera crew for the Speed Channel was all there, and the hype was intense.

I continued to wipe the car as the bidding began. The one person, in particular, was very excited about the car. His name was Alan Lewenthal, about my age and wearing a red Ferrari jacket. The bidding went over $1M in the first few minutes. My cell phone started to ring, and didn’t stop for the entire 10 minutes I was on stage. Ron Young was the first to see me on stage while watching the Speed Channel coverage of the event. He called first, “Hey Adam, you’re on TV!�

The bidding climbed to $2.5M, and the crowd was roaring. Alan jumped into the passenger seat, gently closed the door, and looked to the competing bidder, who I believe was Rob Reiner. “Come on! I’m taking this car home!� screamed Alan. When the bidding got to $2,750,000, Alan’s eyes began to water. I was standing directly next to him the entire time on stage.

At $3,000,000, the bidding was over. Alan was thrilled, and I was amazed that this had happened before my eyes. The following day, we stopped by to say hello, had a conversation with Alan, and took some pictures. The other person in the Adam’s hat is my friend, Scott Armstrong. I stay at his home in Phoenix every year for this event.

Following is a link to a streaming video history of the car, and I’ve attached pictures of being on stage, as well as with the previous and current owner.

http://autos.msn.com/advice/article....4022981&src=LP luxury

Check out the “Broadband Video� which is a commentary and history given by the Gordon Apker who sold the car at the auction.

On a side note the previous owner was on stage next to me, arms crossed, and laughing. He leaned over, laughing, and said, “You know, I sold Gordon that car.� “Really?� I responded smiling. “I sold it to him five years ago for $400,000.� Still laughing, he continued, “It’s great! Great for the business, great for the industry.�

Check out the history if you are motivated. It’s interesting."

Just a testament of where the industry is going.

[cwcad]

hey Nick,

thank you for sharing that little tid-bit. i watched the Barrett-Jackson car show on the speed channel with my wife. it was a wonderful chance to see many new and old cars. unfortunately i did not see the oldsmobile sold on the auction but did hear about it and was kind of wondering what it looked like.

i really enjoyed listening to the video and hearing the story. without your post of this information i would still be clueless as to what it looked like.

an appreciative DC member!!

[Nickc0844]

Your more than welcome my friend, that`s what DC is all about!!

[Bill D]

What a great write up! I almost spilled my dinner all over the floor that night when that car went to $3 mil

Whew! What horror! They were going to wipe that car, or any one of those at that auction with any ol` towels ! :eek I`m glad Adam saved the day! I`m still in shock how so few one of a kind classic car owners know about detailing and the proper products to do it with

I have a car bag (http://www.carbag.com)in which sits my Sunday driver. I read an account of an enthusiast at Carlisle who brought his, it was going to rain, he covers his car zipped it closed in the bag, and after the storm his was the only car that was absolutely dry and pristine. I`d say that should be a must have for any classic car owner touring shows.

[NYV6Coupe]

For the benefit of anyone that missed the Scottsdale, AZ Barrett-Jackson auction, there`s another auction coming up March 31 - April 3 from Palm Beach.

There was a GM exec at the Scottsdale auction who said that GM was going to be clearing-out some of their concept cars, many of which most people have never seen or were not aware of.

Take a look at this 1954 Oldsmobile F-88 that went for $3,240,000.00, info and picture obtained from Barrett-Jackson:

OPTIONS
COLOR - GOLD
TRANS - HYDRO
CYLINDERS - 8
ENGINE SIZE - 324
HORSEPOWER - 250
VIN - E54S003701

The XP-20 project, commonly known as F-88 was a pet project of Harley Earl (working with him was Bill Mitchell, Ken Pickering, Zora Duntov etc.). Four cars came out of the project, but only styling order #2265 (this car) survived. It was sold or given to E.L. Cord (Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg owner) in 1955. Hundreds of internal GM documents and original blue prints are still with this sole survivor.

[Bill D]

For the benefit of anyone that missed the Scottsdale, AZ Barrett-Jackson auction, there`s another auction coming up March 31 - April 3 from Palm Beach.

I`m really psyched about that one too! It`s like a second super bowl for car lovers!

[G35stilez]

Nice writeup Nick.

Great story

[shotime]

I couldn`t believe how bad some of the detailing was on some of the cars. There was one black Corvette I remember that had more cobwebbing than some of the work trucks I see at work. Some of the prices that those cars went for are rediculous.

[Exquisite]

I am in Arizona about 20 minutes from West World and I could not believe the condition of those cars. The majority of the cars were swirled and cobwebbed all over. You could even see them on Speed when the cars drove up, I was in shock! Anyhow, on a more positive note the cars themselves were beautiful.