The 2017 Paris Sales: The view from the Eiffel Tower

That’s it for another year. The car-lovers have left the French capital to those more interested in affairs of the heart, who will flock to Paris this week for Valentine’s Day.  We’ve crunched the figures to bring you an overview of the 2017 Rétromobile week auctions.

The figures say it all. Lacking a star car in the €10m+ category, it was inevitable that this year the overall totals would be down. Artcurial, thanks to the one-off Dino Speciale and a massive catalogue, came out top – but RM set the pace with a punch on Wednesday evening, staging a sale that instilled confidence in the market.

More specific indications of where the market is heading are hard to call. After stalling in Scottsdale, 1990s Porsches took off again. All three houses sold significant pre-War cars – but to generate a groundswell of interest these must be sporting, and from the Grandes Marques. The superlative Rétromobile exhibition definitely helped the cause – there were many “I’d really like one of those” moments, so it was over to the dealers and auction houses to come to the rescue.

Pre-War Americana wasn’t on that list, and nor were more modern Ferraris, although one 599 GTO was sold a day or so afterwards. Prices were slightly down against estimates, but the overall sell-through was a healthy 75%, up from 72% last year. The world moves on.

Simon comments: “And so it's back to business as usual. After a wobble last year and despite wider global uncertainty, the classic car market seems back on track, at least for now. It's a more rational place, though. Average cars sell for average prices or stay on the shelf. The best rarely comes up and, when it does, it sells for the most. The rest is just background noise.”

You can download a list of published results, sorted by make and model HERE.

RM Sotheby's, Bonhams and Artcurial in Paris, February 2017 (2016)
Combined figures:

Total gross cars: €74,656,187 (€85,864,902)
Number of cars not sold: 91 (102)
Total number of cars: 359 (364)
Number sold: 268 (262)
Percentage cars sold by number: 75% (72%)
Percentage by value average low/high estimate: 59% (57%)
Percentage of cars met or sold below low estimate: 55% (51%)
Percentage of cars sold below avge of estimates: 74% (77%)
Percentage of cars sold met/exceeded top estimate: 15% (13%)
Average price of cars sold: €207,956 (€327,729)
Average age of cars offered: 1967 (1961)
Percentage of cars offered at No Reserve: 31% (34%)

RM Sotheby’s in Paris, 8 February 2017

Total gross cars: €27,576,400 (€19,038,050)
Number of cars not sold: 17 (13)
Total number of cars: 77 (62)
Number sold: 60 (49)
Percentage cars sold by number: 78% (79%)
Percentage by value average low/high estimate: 64% (65%)
Percentage of cars met or sold below low estimate: 43% (76%)
Percentage of cars sold below avge of estimates: 65% (90%)
Percentage of cars sold met/exceeded top estimate: 18% (6%)
Average price of cars sold: €459,607 (€388,532)
Average age of cars offered: 1977 (1961)
Percentage of cars offered at No Reserve: 25% (31%)

Bonhams in Paris, 9 February 2017

Total gross cars: €14,295,491 (€12,389,180)
Number of cars not sold: 38 (54)
Total number of cars: 129 (130)
Number sold: 91 (76)
Percentage cars sold by number: 71% (58%)
Percentage by value average low/high estimate: 50% (37%)
Percentage of cars met or sold below low estimate: 73% (66%)
Percentage of cars sold below avge of estimates: 88% (87%)
Percentage of cars sold met/exceeded top estimate: 5% (5%)
Average price of cars sold: €157,093 (€163,016)
Average age of cars offered: 1965 (1959)
Percentage of cars offered at No Reserve: 19% (18%)

Artcurial in Paris, 10 February 2017

Total gross cars: €32,784,296 (€54,437,672)
Number of cars not sold: 36 (35)
Total number of cars: 153 (172)
Number sold: 117 (137)
Percentage cars sold by number: 76% (80%)
Percentage by value average low/high estimate: 60% (61%)
Percentage of cars met or sold below low estimate: 47% (35%)
Percentage of cars sold below avge of estimates: 67% (68%)
Percentage of cars sold met/exceeded top estimate: 21% (20%)
Average price of cars sold: €280,208 (€397,355)
Average age of cars offered: 1963 (1963)
Percentage of cars offered at No Reserve: 43% (47%)

Paris Sales 2017 – Top 10 by value

1. (Artcurial) 1965 Ferrari Dino Berlinetta Speciale by Pininfarina €4,292,000
2. (RM) 1934 Alfa Romeo Tipo B P3 €3,920,000
3. (Artcurial) 1948 Ferrari 166 Spyder Corsa by Scaglietti €2,892,000
4. (Artcurial) 1972 Lamborghini  Miura P400 SV €2,332,000
5. (Artcurial) 1935 Bugatti  Type 57 Atalante Découvrable €2,276,000
6. (RM) 1973 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 'Daytona' Spider €2,156,000
7. (Bonhams) 1935 Aston Martin Ulster Works Car 'CML 719' €2,012,500
8. (RM) 1988 Porsche 959 Sport €1,960,000
9. (RM) 1965 Ferrari 275 GTB €1,932,000
10. (Artcurial) 1936 Talbot Lago T150C €1,570,400

Photos by K500