While a lot of snow fell shortly before the auction of the classic car gallery in Gstaad in 2017, the surroundings of the famous winter sports resort in the Bernese Oberland were only white to a limited extent on December 29, 2018. But it was still cold. The second auction in Gstaad met with great interest, and both the previews and the auction itself were very well attended.
Reinhard Schmidlin's team also went to great lengths to ensure an interesting end to the year in the mountains. 46 cars and 1 motorcycle worth CHF 9.5 million (EUR 8.4 million) were up for grabs and to set the mood, an Elvis impersonator and a Beatles revival band (more on this later) played music from the sixties.
Youthful offer
Typical for the current market situation, a relatively young range of vehicles was on offer; on average, the vehicles on offer were almost exactly 50 years old, with the extreme values in terms of vintage being 1932 and 2017.
Six pre-war vehicles were looking for new owners, half of which could be sold directly. Five cars from the new millennium could only be sold with reservations, with the exception of one car.
Reservations, but definitely high bids
Of the 47 vehicles, 13 (28%) with a value of almost CHF 2 million found a new owner directly. A further 20 lots (43%) were sold with reservations. The wires from Gstaad will be running hot in the coming hours and days in order to be able to sell at least some of these vehicles. The chances are good for almost half of these lots, as the bids for them were close to the estimated value. On this basis, renegotiations can take place and if all parties (consignor, highest bidder, auction house) make some progress, there is hardly anything standing in the way of a successful sale.
However, 14 cars were definitely not sold, so the non-sale rate is at least 30 percent. And this despite the fact that the average bids for these cars were also 77 percent of the median estimate.
Many internet bids
While the sales were mainly made to bidders present on site and, in individual cases, to telephone bidders, the large number of Internet bids, which often resulted in surprising price jumps, was striking. Some bidders will have preferred to take part from the comfort of their own sofa instead of making the often long journey to Gstaad.
In any case, the British auctioneer urged the people on site to outdo the internet bidders: "You're not going to leave this car to someone who's drinking whiskey on the sofa in his pyjamas while tinkling away on his laptop ...".
Elvis and the Cadillac
Elvis Presley is known to have driven a pink Cadillac. He would probably have liked the 1959 Series 62 with its huge tail fins even more. Exactly such a car, albeit not from a famous previous owner, was also for sale in Gstaad. However, the Elvis impersonator performed a song by the famous rock star as an intermezzo and got the bidding audience in the right mood.
Bidding started at CHF 60,000 and the hammer fell at CHF 75,000. CHF 84,000 (EUR 74,760) was the selling price including 12% buyer's premium/commission.
Baby, you can drive my car
However, the same sales pitch worked less well for the 1966 Austin-Healey 3000 Mk III BJ8, which once belonged to John Lennon. Although the Beatles revival band very skillfully sang the hit "Baby, you can drive my car", nobody wanted to acknowledge the necessary starting bid. The Healey was not sold.
Apparently the association with the pop star alone was not enough to attract bids. Or the interested parties thought it wiser not to make an appearance and try later. Presumably, however, a brightly painted VW Beetle 1300 ex John Lennon would have had a better chance of success.
Even Hollywood glamor did not automatically lead to high hammer prices, as was the case last year with the Bowie Volvo. After all, the Mercedes-Benz 250C 2.8 from 1973 once belonged to Richard Burton and this name is even still on the vehicle registration. Richard Burton is known to have been an actor and became famous with films such as "The Longest Day", "Cleopatra", "The Spy Who Came in from the Cold", "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf", "The Wild Geese Are Coming", "Exorcist II" and "1984". As Elizabeth Taylor's husband of two children, he was also a frequent presence in the tabloids. He also liked to drink one too many, which is why he had an alcohol detector installed in the Mercedes-Benz Coupé he owned in Switzerland. Unfortunately, the detector did not survive the years that followed, but the 1973 coupé did. Just like the original vehicle registration document.
Because the highest bid was ultimately only CHF 26,000, the Mercedes was only knocked down with reservations. Given the large gap between the estimated value of CHF 40,000 and 70,000, it is highly questionable whether the car can really be sold afterwards.
Unsuccessful Porsche 356 Carrera GT with Swiss racing history
Robert Calderari, a well-known Swiss racing driver in the fifties and sixties who even competed at Le Mans, drove a Porsche 356 Carrera GT supplied by AMAG Schinznach in 1958. Among other things, he fought for top places in various slaloms and hill climbs (e.g. Mitholz-Kandersteg and Ollon-Villars) and even came close to becoming Swiss champion with the car. The 356 "traveled" almost once around the world, with stops in the USA and Austria, before returning to its place of origin, Gstaad, for the auction.
With an estimated value of CHF 985,000 to 1.1 million, the hurdle for the fully restored 356 was set relatively high, but a maximum bid of CHF 850,000 was nevertheless recorded. So it wasn't that far off the target value, but the car was still virtually pushed away as "not sold".
Only one winner in the red Lancia trio
Lancia fans could look forward to three rare and attractive vehicles from the Turin-based car company. The first was an elegant Lancia Flaminia 2.8 3C Super Sport Zagato Coupé from 1968. Equipped with a V6 engine and a lightweight aluminum body, the car was one of the fastest cars on the road at the time and is one of the most sought-after Lancia cars today.
With a top bid of CHF 170,000, the red coupé did not quite reach the expected CHF 195,000 to 245,000 and was knocked down "subject to reserve".
The Lancia Stratos HF is considerably more expensive, but has become a sports car icon thanks to its countless rally victories. The Stradale version from 1975 in orange-red was expected to elicit CHF 550,000 to 575,000 from interested parties. However, no one wanted to offer more than CHF 450,000 - "not sold" was the verdict.
Things went much better for the rally star of the eighties and nineties. CHF 110,000 was offered for the Evo 2 version of the Lancia Delta HF Integrale from 1993, and the car was successfully sold for CHF 123,200 (EUR 109,800), well above the estimate of CHF 90,000 to 100,000.
Less is sometimes more
Two pre-war Fiat cars with Mille Miglia potential were auctioned in Gstaad. One was a four-cylinder Balilla 508 CS Coppa d'Oro from 1934, the other a 1500 6C with six cylinders from 1937 and post-war Barchetta bodywork.
While the Balilla was sold for CHF 162,400 (EUR 144,536), the six-cylinder Barchetta did not find a new owner despite a bid of CHF 180,000.
Neo-classic below expectations
Five cars in Gstaad were less than 20 years old, but no less interesting for that. The Mosler MT900 from 2005, for example, is one of only a few dozen American super sports cars built between 2005 and 2010. The technology and shape are more reminiscent of Le Mans than a road car, as is the enormous performance. There is probably only one such car in Switzerland and perhaps even further afield, so the asking price of CHF 235,000 to 255,000 seemed almost humane. However, nobody wanted to offer more than CHF 180,000, so the car was not sold.
The Aston Martin Vantage GT8 from 2017 was offered at a similar price; as a limited edition special model, the car had covered around 12,000 km on the road to date. Here too, the CHF 215,000 offered was only enough for a conditional knockdown.
The Porsche 911 GT3 RS 4.0 from 2011 fared no better. CHF 340,000 was only enough for a conditional knockdown; subsequent negotiations will show whether the car will change hands after all.
Four four-seater Ferrari
Alongside five Alfa Romeos, four Porsches and four Jaguars, Ferrari made up the largest contingent in Gstaad with four sports cars. The four cars with prancing horses were united by the fact that they were all four-seaters, which is actually a rare feature at Ferrari. This automatically makes them among the cheaper Ferrari examples, as two additional seats usually mean lower value at the same time.
The most expensive of the four cars was a Ferrari 365 GTC/4 from 1971, which was estimated at CHF 250,000 to 280,000. CHF 200,000 was offered, sale subject to reserve.
A very nice 400 GT from 1979 with a manual gearbox was worth CHF 75,000 to the highest bidder, falling well short of the estimate and was accordingly only knocked down subject to reservation.
An interested party only had to offer CHF 44,000 for the very well-maintained Ferrari Mondial 3.4 T Cabriolet from 1991, but here too only subsequent negotiations will show whether the sale will go through.
The Ferrari 456 M GT from 2000 with the rarely delivered manual gearbox was sold. In the end, the car went for CHF 58,800, but the lower estimate was not reached.
Maserati Bora at the end
The last car to go under the hammer was a yellow Maserati Bora 4.9 from 1973. Bidding started at CHF 175,000, 205,000 was finally called and the car sold for CHF 229,600 (EUR 204,344).
A conciliatory end to an auction that met with a great deal of interest and numerically not entirely satisfactory results. After all, just after 7 pm, i.e. after a good 3 hours and 20 minutes of auction spectacle, there was still enough time to enjoy a culinary dinner in beautiful Gstaad.
