Artcurial beached in St Tropez

With only around half the motor cars selling on the day, French firm Artcurial’s fortunes took a dip in St Tropez on Saturday. Just one car broke through the €900,000 barrier, which required buyer’s premium on the balance of the hammer price to be charged at 12%, not 16%. This made computing the final figures easier but was hardly a sign of a successful auction.

If attending the event by air, the location is not an easy one to get to. Blazing sunshine and the start of the summer holiday season probably made many think twice before making the trek to what is known as a highly congested hotspot. Add a market more in ‘thoughtful’ than ‘buying’ mood, and Matthieu Lamoure and his likeable team were always going to be up against it.

The top-selling 1963 Ferrari 250 GT/Lusso had lived a familiar life, globe-trotting from the country of its birth (when Grigio Argento with red) to the US in 1964, where it was repainted black/black when in the hands of “several American owners”, before returning to Europe in 2002. Time spent on the German track day scene and a couple of restorations later, it is now presented in fantasy ‘Grigio Fumo Metallizzato’. Ferrari Certification is waiting on its “return to the seller this week, requesting four minor modifications to obtain the Red Book”. Clearly an average car – one that sold for the equivalent of $1.35m, sort of where the market is today for a Lusso like this.

At a glance:

* Gross: €4,839,000 (2024, €10,628,175)
* Percentage sold by number, motor cars: 47% (2024, 66%)
* Top-selling car: 1963 Ferrari 250 GT/Lusso €1,156,000 gross, €1,000,000 net (est. €1.2m to €1.5m)
* Well sold? Purely on the figures, the 2010 Iveco ‘Terramare’ 4x4 Amphibious car bought for €104,400 all-in against an estimate of €50k to €80k, but it wasn’t a day for the record books. 
* Well bought? With only 45 lots finding new homes, impossible to say. 

Other results of note. All prices gross:

* 1968 Porsche 911 L Targa ‘Soft-Window’, €69,600. Slightly modified over the years for usability, but a single-owner car from new in Tangerine. 
* 1961 Aston Martin DB4 Series 3, €214,600. In running order but needing restoration. 
* 2021 Ford GT ‘Studio Collection’, €696,000. A ‘new’ car in France and VAT paid locally but watch out if exported. Sold on low estimate.
* 1987 Ferrari Testarossa, €208,800. White with blue leather, ‘monodado’ (single central wheel nut) car delivered new to Italy.
* 1965 Ferrari 275 GTB, Not Sold. Fully Red Book certified but another Ferrari prepared for fast, long-distance rallies such as the Tour Auto and Spa Classic. 

Artcurial has traditionally run a classic car auction at the Le Mans Classic but will not be holding one this year when the event kicks off this coming weekend. 

Artcurial in St Tropez, 28 June 2025 – results (2024)

Gross: €4,839,000 (€10,628,175)
Number of cars not sold: 50 (34)
Number of cars withdrawn: 1 (1)
Total number of cars: 95 (100)
Number sold: 45 (66)
Percentage cars sold by number: 47% (66%)
Percentage by value average low/high estimate: 19% (43%)
Percentage of cars sold below low estimate: 71% (62%)
Percentage of cars sold not met avge of estimates: 91% (85%)
Percentage of cars sold met/exceeded top estimate: 4% (3%)
Average year of cars offered: 1982 (1988)
Average price of cars sold: €107,533 (€161,033)
Percentage of cars offered at No Reserve: 34% (35%)

Photo by Artcurial