by Wolf Richter
Wolf Street
Affordable Classics rise the most, American Muscle Cars fall the most. Ferraris flat, after big drops earlier. Beautiful machines all of them.
Selling these beautiful machines, from American muscle cars to rare Ferraris, got a lot tougher during the Pandemic, after it had already gotten tough before the Pandemic. Auction activity in August dropped to the lowest level since August 2010, according to vintage-auto insurer Hagerty’s September report.
The big event for classic cars was Monterey Car Week in August, normally a series of auctions spread over the Monterey Peninsula, in California, where some of the rarest and most sought-after cars were sold each year. But this August, the auctions took place mostly via online or phone bidding, and some closed-room bidding, and in reduced capacity. The anchor event, the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, was canceled. And the limited auctions that did take place didn’t even take place in Monterey. So maybe next year.