Would you prefer an accident-damaged car or one in mint condition?
12/01/2023
It is not all too often that two almost identical examples of a car in completely different condition come under the hammer within the space of a few weeks.
It is indirectly thanks to the movie "The Wolf of Wall Street" that the "accident car" from the movie was recently offered by Bonhams in Abu Dhabi and now, a short time later, its undamaged twin at RM/Sotheby's in New York .
In both cases, it is a Lamborghini Countach from the "25th Anniversary Edition" from 1989 in the US version, i.e. with comparatively ugly bumpers. It is unclear whether the sale of the two cars was synchronized; after all, the auction houses are competitors.
What is interesting, however, is that the estimated value in both cases is exactly the same, namely USD 1.5 to 2 million.
If you compare this estimate with the results achieved at auctions over the last six years, the film appearance here is apparently intended to make a car 3-5 times more expensive. In fact, similar models were sold for an average of EUR 356,085 between 2017 and 2023 (25 transactions are in the Zwischengas auction database) and even if only the years 2022 to 2023 are taken into account, the figure is "only" EUR 478,421 (11 transactions). It is clear from the data that this model variant has steadily increased in value in recent years, i.e. has become more popular.
Nevertheless, even if we assume a current normal value of around EUR 600,000, the "movie" premium would be a factor of 2 to 3. And it doesn't matter whether the car was heavily defaced during filming or whether it is a very well-preserved model.
It should be noted that USD 1.35 million was offered in Abu Dhabi for the non-drivable accident Countach. However, this was not enough for a (direct) sale.
And we will be able to report on how the bids turn out in New York after December 8, 2023. We are definitely looking forward to it!
