Cars
Why I Drive a $6000 Car
From the age of 22, I’ve always managed to find a unique car to use as a daily driver. Starting with a ‘73 Olds convertible (thanks Pops), then a slew of vintage Volvos, then a stock ‘37 Dodge (yes, driven daily), and then a phase around 2010 when I oversaw a rotating cast of Mercedes 300TD diesel wagons. Jaguars and Citroens followed.
When America Sneezes, the Car Market Catches a Cold
Economic uncertainty and political turmoil never bode well for the collector car market. As a rule, people don’t need the cars that I sell, they want them. But when buyers get spooked by what’s showing up in their news feeds, the notion of spending mad money on a fun car quickly recedes from their minds.
What the Cybertruck Could Have Been
The Cybertruck has had a rough go of it. From New York to Seattle, viral images of vandalism have made the rounds on social media. What was originally envisioned to be an efficient, fast, go-anywhere vehicle, the Cybertruck has instead found itself on the low rung of
Looking To the Past, Looking To the Future
A couple of nights ago I was browsing through old cars on Craigslist when I came across a weird one. Not a weird car, it was a ‘72 Scout, but it was being sold by a franchised Volkswagen dealer. There’s gotta be a story there.
Oh, the Places You'll Go!
The hardest part of my job is finding good cars for my inventory. If I go through a dry spell I’ll usually hop on Craigslist and have a look around. You’d be surprised at what you can sometimes find on there. Last December I came across an ad for what looked to be an unusually nice Karmann Ghia. Located just up the road in Tacoma, I emailed the seller f…
When Bad Things Happen to Good Cars
Old cars can be cranky, just like people. They can have good days or bad days, and if you happen to be behind the wheel when their mood turns sour, look out. Over the last 25 years I’ve sold close to 1000 cars, and thankfully, haven’t found myself on their bad side very often, knock on artificial wood.
Ode to the Misunderstood
In the early 1930’s, the engineers working at Citroën were allowed to dream big. Eschewing the traditional body on frame design of virtually all other cars, Citroën instead chose to use a monocoque body in their construction of the Traction Avant. It marked the first time that a mass production automobile utilized a unibody shell, and paved the way for …
Overlanding - Before It Was Cool
The overlanding trend really took off during the pandemic. Millions of people were stuck at home, suddenly realizing all at the same time that they needed to get OUT! Almost overnight, sales of SUV’s shot up, and companies started marketing accessories and conversions to modify them into getaway campers.
The Mercedes in the Barn
For many years I’ve bought and sold vintage Mercedes convertibles; the W113 SL models that ran from 1963 through 1971. These are known as the “Pagoda” series, owing to the concave rooflines of their removable hardtops. Twenty years ago they were undervalued, and with not a lot of competition for them I’d be able to cherry pick some pretty fantastic ones…
1937 Dodge Vs. 2012 Tesla
Folks that are into classic cars usually hold allegiances to their favorites. There are Corvette people, Porsche people, enthusiasts who collect Tri-Five Chevy’s, etc. I guess I could say that I’m into 1937 Dodge Business Coupes. I’ve had a bunch of them over the years and there’s something about their utility and styling that appeals to me.
Three Cheers for Buyers Who Know What They’re Looking At
If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck - it’s a duck, right? In the case of vintage cars with ultra-low miles, even more proof may be required. These types of classic cars are always subject to intense scrutiny because the ones that are deemed to be the real deal will usually sell at a premium above their average market price…
How Mecum Pulled off a Live Auction During the Pandemic
The state of Nevada reported its first death from COVID-19 on March 16th, 2020. The very next day, Governor Sisolak ordered all non-essential businesses to close immediately. This was a problem for the casinos, a big problem. These are places that never close, in fact, they don’t even have locks on their doors. There was only one time in history that Ne…
Success or Failure: It Depends on the Photos
It’s frustrating, and it happens to me a lot. I’ll find a car on eBay that could be a good one but I just can’t tell from the photos. Because there’s only six of them. Four exterior shots plus two interior, and zero of the engine bay or trunk - not to mention any close-ups or details. So I email the seller, asking if they have more photos that I can see…
Cheap Collector Cars? Sure, There’s Plenty to Choose From
When car people get talking, one of the time-honored traditions is to wax poetic about how cheap certain collector cars used to be. Porsche 930 Turbos? Nobody wanted them, too risky to buy with that motor. De Tomaso Panteras? Yeah, unloved, a real thin market back then
Cadillac Eldorados and The Wiseguys Who Loved Them
In Scorsese’s 1995 Casino, the movie begins and ends with an iconic scene where Ace Rothstein (played by Robert De Niro) narrowly escapes a car bombing in his 1981 Cadillac Eldorado. Rothstein’s voice-over states that a steel plate on the driver’s floor of the Eldorado is what saved his life.
Cars From the Fifties Are Dead
It’s been a bitter pill to swallow, but unless you’ve got a 300SL Gullwing or maybe an Eldorado Biarritz, cars from the Fifties are dying in the marketplace. The trend line has been going downhill for a while now, and there’s a simple explanation for it: The buyers just aren’t there anymore. Buyers for collector cars generally fall into a specific demog…
Beware the Scammers
As we all know by now, the internet can be a dangerous place to buy anything of value. Last year, over twelve BILLION dollars were lost to online scammers, and that was in the US alone. Scam advertisements for cars, especially collector cars, are plentiful and can usually be spotted easily by applying this age-old rule:
Caveat Emptor: The Perception and The Reality
I’ve been burned on a few deals over the years, and as you might guess, almost all of them were on cars that I had bought online. Sure, I’d vetted the cars (and sellers) as best I could, had long phone conversations with them beforehand, requested and received additional photos, and otherwise had performed my due diligence. In each case, the car’s probl…
The Time that Jay Leno Helped Me Sell my Car
In my line of work it pays to snoop around. Here in the Pacific Northwest there’s numerous dealers like me who specialize in funky old cars, and I’ll occasionally pop over to their websites to see what they have in stock. Last year I was checking out a dealer’s page when I saw something unusual. This dealer usually trades in motorcycles but sometimes he…
The Terror of Selling a Car at No Reserve
In an auction, “No Reserve” means that there is no minimum price required for the item to sell. Whoever holds claim to the highest bid when the auction ends is the winner. No, that doesn’t mean you’re going to be able to take that Ferrari home for $10K, it never works out that way. In fact, many sellers choose to run their auction at No Reserve for the …
How could a 1953 Ford have only 2,681 miles?
They say that owning a well-preserved antique car is the closest thing to having a time machine. Your driving experience is seen through the eyes of those who have sat in that seat before you, as you absorb the same stimuli that they did. The sound of the transmission winding up in first gear, the scent of rubber flooring and horsehair seat stuffing, th…
Making a Mistake on a $100,000 Corvette
Corvette people are a different bunch. Get them together and you’ll hear lingo such as Big Block, Tank Sticker, Bonding Strips, Rock Crusher, Side Pipes and Matching Numbers. I know what these all mean, but I’m certainly no expert on Corvettes. Trust me, there’s plenty of other people that are, with astounding depths of knowledge about them. For this re…
The Deal That Ended in Flames
I’ll admit that I tend to anthropomorphize cars. There are happy cars, sad cars, mellow cars, grumpy cars. But I’ve never had a car that I thought of as cursed, until last year.
The Dog and Pony Show
I’m always up for a trip to Las Vegas, so if there’s a car auction scheduled you can bet that it’s already on my calendar. There are usually two major ones spaced throughout the year in Vegas: Barrett Jackson and Mecum. Both auctions typically roll about 600 cars past the block over three days, with the lower priced stuff running on Thursday, mid-level …
The time I bought an Aston Martin that didn’t run
Sometimes it’s hard for me to find cars for my inventory. That said, I’m real picky about what I buy and take a pass more often than not, so maybe that’s on me. I usually list one or two cars a month for sale and sometimes have to get creative if my inventory starts to run low. If Craigslist or Hemmings doesn’t turn up anything for me I have no problem …
The $1.4B auction website that some people still don’t know about
Haven’t heard of bringatrailer.com? You’re not alone. I often get calls from people looking to sell a car, and invariably it goes something like this: