Converted classics are not worth more
01/06/2021
Owners with special requirements were always happy to have cars converted to suit their needs. This resulted in unique pieces or at least extraordinary creations that rarely come back onto the market. The fact that RM/Sotheby's can offer four of these special constructions at the Arizona auction on January 22, 2021 is therefore an even more extraordinary moment. However, the investment was probably only worthwhile for the original owners in exceptional cases, but let's take a look at the four cars.
There is the Mercedes-Benz 560 TEL estate pictured above from 1990, converted by Caro International GmbH from Hamburg. They converted the W126 saloon with the large V8 engine into a station wagon, which together with the base probably cost around DM 337,000 at the time. Now the estate is being offered at an estimated value of $ 30,000 to 40,000 and not even this price is guaranteed, as no minimum bid has to be reached.
Converting a Ferrari Testarossa into a Spider was also a complex process. The 1987 example was converted by R. Straman Coachworks, based in Costa Mesa, California, and probably cost around USD 140,000. A very good standard Ferrari Testarossa will certainly fetch over USD 100,000 today and the black Spider offered at an estimate of USD 125,000 to 175,000 is not expected to be much more expensive, especially as no minimum bid is required here either.
The conversion of an early Ranger Rover from 1971 into a convertible, carried out by Special Vehicle Conversions Ltd from Uckfield (England), cost just under £5,000 pounds. At the auction on January 22, 2021, the restored right-hand drive Range Rover is expected to fetch between USD 40,000 and 50,000; a standard Range in the same condition would hardly be sold for less. Here, too, "without reserve" is offered.
Which brings us to the last of the four conversions, a Mercedes-Benz 560 SEC Convertible from 1986, which was also converted into a four-seater convertible by R. Straman Coachworks and remained in the first owner until 2018. The car is said to have once cost around USD 115,000, but now, 30,000 miles later, the estimate stands at USD 40,000 to 50,000. Perhaps the hammer will fall sooner, as no minimum bid is required here either.
Four individual cars, four stories. In a good two weeks, we will finally know how badly the investment in such conversions will pay off in the long term.
