Auction Stats 
While we were expecting strong results this year in Amelia Island, it’s notable just how strong they were given the macro environment during which they took place (Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, increasing interest rates, a tough week for the stock market, deteriorating consumer sentiment, etc.). These results point to the resilience of the collector car market, and also to the longevity of the physical auctions.
At the auction in Amelia Island this year, 290 cars were sold in total, fetching $127.4M with an average sale price of $439.2K. This was an increase of 50% over the total dollar volume fetched for the same events in 2021 and 39% over 2020. Keep in mind that the Amelia Island 2020 events took place the week before the pandemic started, and Gooding didn’t host an Amelia Island auction in 2021.
For official results, please check each auction website.
At Amelia Island 2022, Gooding knocked it out of the park with the highest sale of the year so far of this Talbot-Lago for $13.4M. But even without that sale, their numbers were stronger than in the last 5 years. RM Sotheby's also had strong results with 5 of the top 10 sales and Bonhams sold almost half of the total listings, at 124 lots sold.
Let's dig into the data with everyone's favorite charts:
Amelia Island 2022: Remarkable Markets
One of the most interesting things we found from Amelia results was the high performing sales of a handful of “not so remarkable” 1980’s to 2000’s cars that would have most likely been ignored or overlooked in previous years. This points to the growing interest of a generation of collectors and enthusiasts who grew up with those cars. Here's a look at some of our favorites:
Porsche 968
This PTS Riviera Blue Porsche 968 sold at Gooding for $123K – four times as much as its CMB*, and almost $30K more of what it sold for in November 2021. Even though the average price for sales in the last 12 months were also 22% above that CMB, the car sold in Amelia represented the highest 968 sale in the last 5 years.
BMW M3 - E46
This Laguna Seca Blue BMW E46 M3 sold at Gooding for $106K. A manual car with low mileage and a special color, it was bound for a strong sale, but a six-figure price was not on anyone’s estimates – and 250% above the CMB! To put that sale into context, two other cars sold at auction in the past week (not at Amelia) for $60K and $49K, close to half of the Gooding sale. A testament to just how special these auctions are.
Mercedes Benz 450 SL - R107
Two 450 SL R107’s sold at Amelia: an ultra low-mileage 1980 example for $70K and this 1978 example for $35K – averaging a whopping $52K, which is almost 3-fold their market CMB of $18K. These slick German convertibles have seen a growing interest recently, shown by these strong sales in Amelia, and also by a very similar car in Scottsdale earlier this year.
Amelia Island 2022: Notable Sales
Besides these remarkable sales from these apparently “not so remarkable” cars, we also saw some great sales in Amelia. Here's our thoughts on the most interesting results from the weekend:
Corvette C2 427/390
The highest performing sale relative to its market was this incredibly original example of a C2 Corvette: a 1966 L36 427/390 example sold at Gooding for a whopping $533K – 5x its current CMB. The C2 427/390 market was already on the rise pre-Amelia with its last-year average price 27% over the market benchmark, and this sale absolutely shattered the previous sale record of $220K... Another great example of how highly original iconic cars can completely overthrow and out-perform their markets.
Porsche 930 Turbo - 3.0 L
Two 3.0 Liter Turbo 930’s were sold at Gooding: one very special, wing-less variant restored to a very high standard by Road Scholars for $544K ($400K above the CMB!), and a low-mileage, restored Turbo Carrera for $390K (3x the CMB). Sales in the past year have greatly out-performed the market (47% over CMB), and it was no surprise to see those two special examples sell so strongly, especially the rare wing-less example ordered new in Spain in its striking color combination.
Toyota 2000 GT
Possibly the most important example of the iconic Toyota 2000 GT crossed the block this past weekend at Amelia. Sold for a record-shattering $2.5M, this 1967 example was the first serial numbered 2000 GT prepared for SCCA racing in the late 60’s by Shelby. So, not only was this possibly the most significant example, but it also has a very interesting racing history.
Porsche Carrera GT
Featured previously in our 2021 Market Busters, the Porsche Carrera GT continues to perform. Strong sales at the end of 2021 motivated owners to start selling their cars, which is probably why we’ve seen seven cars sell at auction already this year, averaging close to $1.8M. Even though only one example crossed the block in Amelia, it was the seventh car to sell this year, fetching the highest price seen on this market – slightly above the $2M mark.
* The CLASSIC.COM Market Benchmark (CMB) represents a benchmark value for vehicles in a market based on data accumulated by CLASSIC.COM, calculated by our proprietary algorithm. Actual market value for a specific vehicle will depend on various elements, including the condition of the vehicle.
