Mopar Winners & Losers At Mecum Kissimmee 2017!

“SOLD!” Is a word that makes for big smiles in the world of collector car auctions, and it echoed again and again through the Silver Spur Arena in Kissimmee, Florida for 10 days in 2017. This year brought a number of collections into the Sunshine State for Mecum Auctions huge season-opening event, adding up to almost 3,000 vehicles crossing the block. Several hours of the auction was broadcast live on the NBC-SN (Sports Network), while thousands of people flocked into Osceola Heritage Park to watch and partake in the action.

We are going to list the top 50 cars that sold (see chart below), and follow-up with a few that ended up as part of “The Bid Goes ON,” a special process that Mecum uses to unite sellers and buyers who are willing to pay above the final bid total. In looking at the market trends that this event has established in recent memory, some might argue that prices were a little down in 2017. On the contrary, some cars generated world records—$193,000 for an AAR ’Cuda for one that sold, and no less than $875,000 for a Six Pack ’Cuda convertible that did not. Nevertheless, we did not see the sort of overall records that the Wellborn Museum and Brett Torino collections generated in recent years, in part due to the unique rarity and condition that those groups featured.

What was a big deal in 2017 was vintage racecars, with longtime collectors Don Fezell and Gary Runyon both bringing in literally dozens of factory performance classics of the Super Stock and FX era. Top bid-getter was the ex-Lee Smith “Honkin’ Hemi,” a 1965 Plymouth Belvedere that is one of two remaining from the factory’s notorious 1965 “funny car” project. It climbed to $410,000 without a sale. The 1965 “Hemi Honker” Dodge of Bud Faubel did sell at $230,000, which is a strong price for a 1964 lightweight Hemi. This was also noted as the first Hemi car ever sold to the general public. All told, each man sold a number on the block, a few more on “The Bid Goes ON,” and took a couple of cars home. It is possible the event actually saturated the small but higher-priced market on these particular types of cars, in part by losing the normal sense of exclusivity that one or two alone present. It certainly was not for a lack of trying on the part of Mecum, who generated a catalog devoted to each collection and featured them prominently in their periodicals and advertising.

Ironically, that bid on the “Honker” was identical to a winning number that came in on the Sunday before, the first weekend of the auction, on a 1969 Hemi GTX convertible. Hemi B-Body convertibles remain strong, with two other examples of the same model from 1968 generating $175,000 and $180,000 respectively. Several E-Body convertibles were no-sales despite strong action, as were Hemi wing cars—many of these owners deciding to wait it out for another day. It is an event of interesting contrasts. B-Body models in general seem to be good market indicators, with Hemi models in general above $75,000 when everything is correct; Six Packs are close behind, but color, optional equipment, and originality play heavily into individual vehicle valuations. The brighter the better, and regardless of other factors, column shifters can be a challenge in the modern marketplace…

While nothing was far out of the ordinary, bargains could be found almost every day this year, especially with a number of “no reserve” collections going over the block during the event. Indeed, there were a number of cars that we would have considered well-bought, all depending on what you desired to spend. Taking care to read the catalog descriptions as well as on-site examination is always a plus, but the overall sales total, which exceeded $86M for 2017, tells you cars were changing hands.

With a new political climate, it is possible that some investors are looking at more traditional forms of returns in business rather than collector cars, but all told there were a great many cars that did sell in Kissimmee. Take a look at our lists and some of the eye candy from this event. You can get full results and info on upcoming auctions at www.mecum.com

Mecum Kissimmee 2017

Top 50 Sold Mopars

Top 10 Unsold Mopars

The Bid Goes ON!

The post Mopar Winners & Losers At Mecum Kissimmee 2017! appeared first on Hot Rod Network.