Nothing is eaten as hot as it is auctioned ... or something
06/21/2023
This phenomenon is familiar from gastronomy, where simple (but by no means bad) dishes are often stylized as haute cuisine with romantic embellishments, which is intended to create a different expectation in the guest - not least in terms of price. This is also practiced in a very similar way at classic car auctions. Unfortunately, even at the largest auction houses, the world of classic cars is not just made up of special bodies, racing cars and one-offs. Every now and then, mass-produced cars also have to be sold because - as the name suggests - they are the only way to achieve the desired mass in the catalog. You can't make a living from super classics alone.
Of course, you also want to sell the most normal cars as expensively as possible. So you add an engine capacity, the body shape, the designer and some equipment detail to the former sales designation - even if there is only one possible value for each of the first three variables and the fourth is irrelevant. And so a likeable Triumph TR4 quickly becomes a pompous Triumph TR4 2.1 Bucket Seat Roadster by Michelotti. Does this make the name more impressive or more ridiculous? Well, I have a very clear opinion - which apparently does not coincide with that of the average auction clientele. Because there is no other way to explain such attention-seeking self-evident ulcers.
To explain: although the number of characters has tripled, the additional information gain is zero. Pretty much all TR4s had bucket seats, a 2138 cubic centimeter engine and a two-seater body designed by Michelotti. Yes, on request there was also a slightly smaller engine for the two-liter motorsport class as well as an overweight coupé called the Dové GT - but this only makes a distinction necessary if the auction car has one of these features. Otherwise, you only make an ordinary TR4 seem more unusual than it actually is. Or to put it another way: of course you can season boiled potatoes with ten different types of fleur-de-sel - but in the end, boiled potatoes are still just boiled potatoes.
