Broad Arrow’s debut auction at the Amelia Island Concours

New kids on the block Broad Arrow held their second major league sale earlier today. After a premiere at Monterey last year, the firm is now part of the Hagerty conglomerate so granted official auction partner status at ‘The Amelia’, the rebranded Florida concours also owned by the insurance giant.

Working on unofficial, on-the-night figures, we predict a total exceeding $25m. RM Sotheby’s grossed $46.25m at the Ritz Carlton in 2022, its final year there.

Bidding on the headlining 1968 Porsche 907K stalled in the low $3ms and it became another sports-racing casualty of this year’s Florida classic car auctions.

The event was conducted by experienced auctioneer Lydia Fenet who was in charge in California last August, assisted by Alain Squindo introducing the lots. It’s a good combination with Fenet engaging with bidders rather than simply droning “I have $250k, will you give me $260k”. The lowish, 71% sell-through on the day (boosted to 81% with post-sales)  was more to do with a mixed catalogue of probably 20 cars too many than the person calling the shots from the rostrum.

At a glance (on the day):
 
* Gross, motor cars: $25,670,340
* Percentage sold by number: 71%
* Top-selling car: 2015 McLaren P1 $2,425,000 gross, $2,200,000 net (est. $1.8m to $2.1m)

As we predicted, the mad, bad and dangerous to know 1991 AMG 6.0 Widebody Coupé did well. The bright blue king of the 1990s Autobahn achieved $885,000 all-in against a pre-sale guide of $750k to $850k. Earlier in the auction another early, ‘pre-merger’ AMG took off: the 1987 Mercedes-Benz AMG ‘Hammer’ Saloon (est. $575k to $625) was ‘double-tapped’ in Fenet’s characteristic way for $700,000. That’s $775,000 with premium.

The red 1974 Ferrari Dino 246 GTS, lacking in the ‘Chairs and Flares’ department, failed to scale the heights achieved by ‘chairs’ Dino GTSs at Gooding (green, $967,500 gross) and RM (red, $758,500 gross). Offers on it stopped at $410k in the room, though it was later sold for $425,000 with premium.

The three matching McLarens provided some of the highlights of the event and the eventual highest-selling car. Each one comfortably outdid lower estimate. Neither Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster sold on the day.

Other results of note (all prices gross):

* 1972 Maserati Ghibli 4.9 SS, $162,400. US car with big engine and 5-speed ’box and only three owners from new. Was silver, now black.
* 1967 Iso Grifo GL Series I, $335,000. Non-original engine type, but non-matching correct-spec motor comes with car. ZF manual a plus, though we trust buyer has done the necessary pre-sale checks to see if this was present from new.
* 1937 Bugatti Type 57C Vanvooren Roadster, $1,132,500. Traditional open touring Bugatti with Parisian coachwork by Carrosserie Vanvooren. Sold at today’s money.
* 1976 Ferrari 308 GTB 'Vetroresina', $173,600. Purchased for $184.8k in 2018, so has not proved a good investment for the vendor, but a model that might get swept along in the current enthusiasm for small, mid-engined Ferraris such as Dinos. Might.
* 1987 Porsche 959 Komfort, $1,710,000. Unknown early history (not good) but more recent life spent in the care of Bruce Canepa’s shop in Scotts Valley, California (good). Bought at market price for average car.
* 1969 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 ‘Daytona’ Competizione Conversion, $588,000. Considering the inconsistent results for the model, the chances of selling a ‘tribute’ to the great Comp’ 365 GTB/4s might have appeared slim. But the Roelofs Engineering name is as good as it gets in the world of historic-racing Ferraris, and a potent ‘events’ car found a new home right at the end of the auction at a price fair to buyer and seller alike.

It’s still early days for Broad Arrow – new recruits Jakob Greisen and Caroline Cassini joined the team from Bonhams for the Amelia sale. Next stop for the firm is a single-marque Porsche sale in Atlanta, Georgia, over the weekend of 8-10 June.

Broad Arrow at the Amelia Island Concours 4 March 2023, official results

Gross: $28,601,380
Number of cars not sold: 21
Number of cars withdrawn: 0
Total number of cars: 109
Number sold: 88
Percentage of cars sold by number: 81%
Percentage by value average low/high estimate: 55%
Percentage of cars met or sold below low estimate: 58%
Percentage of cars sold below avge of estimates: 72%
Percentage of cars sold met/exceeded top estimate: 11%
Average price of cars sold: $325,016
Average year of cars offered: 1977
Percentage of cars offered at No Reserve: 31%

Photos by Marcelo Murillo for K500