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A Porsche that was expected to sell for more than $ 20 million escaped auction Saturday night, after the sale was turned upside down by a technical mistake.
The car, a "Type 64" from 1939 that was already controversial in the collector's world, was auctioned Saturday night at RM Sotheby's in Monterey, California as part of the extravaganza sales. automobile Concours D'Elegance.
RM Sotheby's auctioneer auctioned for $ 13 million. However, the giant screen of the auction hall indicated $ 30 million in the first round. The next auction was $ 14 million, but the screen was showing $ 40 million – an error that continued up to $ 17 million, while the next one was $ 14 million. screen showed $ 70 million.
The crowd burst with cheers and shouts as the price on the screen showed that the Porsche was selling at a record price. But at $ 17 million, the auctioneer stopped bids and announced that the screen showing $ 70 million was wrong and that the first bid was $ 17 million.
"I say 17, not 70," said the auctioneer, Maarten ten Holder. "It's 17 million."
The crowd in the auction room – often turbulent after a day of holidays and events in the area – immediately started booing and screaming for the mistake.
There were no more offers after $ 17 million. And since $ 17 million was below the reserve price – or the minimum required by the seller – RM Sotheby's withdrew the game.
"The car has not met any reservations," RM Sotheby's said in a brief statement. "We will make every effort to sell the car after the sale."
Some audience participants stated that since ten registrants were Dutch, his "17 million" sounded like "70 million", so the director and audience were confused.
Whatever the reason, the sales debacle was an embarrassing and costly mistake for RM Sotheby's, who was planning to auction nearly $ 200 million worth of cars over the weekend.
"We are proud to conduct our world class auctions with integrity and take our responsibility to our customers very seriously," said the company. "It was by no means a deliberate intention on the part of anyone at RM Sotheby's, it was an unfortunate misunderstanding amplified by the excitement in the room."
It also marked the culmination of a week of sales well below expectations and could raise fears for the collector car market. Total sales of six auctions during the week are expected to exceed $ 380 million, according to Hagerty, the insurance company and valuation of vintage cars. But Sunday morning's preliminary total, with virtually all auctions completed, was only $ 245 million – a 34% drop from last year.
Experts said that the sudden fluctuations in the stock market and fears of a global slowdown may have weighed heavier than expected in the minds of wealthy collectors.
"Whether it's the threat of recession, high economic volatility or too many cars crammed into too few hours, no one can deny that this year's Monterey Auction Week results are depressed," Hagerty said in a statement. .
Sotheby's managed to sell a 1994 McLaren F1 for $ 19.8 million, which is close to its estimate of $ 21 to $ 23 million. And he sold one of the James Bond Aston Martin DB5 – used in the "Thunderball" promotions – for $ 6.4 million Thursday night. Gooding & Co. sold a 1958 Ferrari 250 California LWB Spider for $ 9.9 million.
But with the Porsche, which according to Porsche AG was not a real Porsche, RM Sotheby's also did not auction a 1953 Aston Martin DB3S race car, which was to be worth $ 8.75 million. raise only $ 7.5 million.
Other auction houses have also been expensive, such as the 1959 Ferrari 250 Monza 1959, sold at a price of $ 20 million.
The only segment of the market that was strong this week in Monterey is the low-end, for cars under $ 75,000. A 1970 TR6 Tri6ph cost Bonhams $ 28,000, more than double the current market value of Hagerty. And a 1961 Chevrolet Impala convertible sold for $ 66,000 – also well above its book value.
"With all these statistics pointing to a market plummeting, the question will be whether this is felt in the broad or isolated market of this week's sales," Hagerty said.
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