The RM Sotheby’s Monterey 2015 auction was held August 13-15 at the Portola Hotel and Monterey Convention Center in Monterey, California, resulting in $172.9 million in total sales and an 86 percent sell-through rate. No less than 36 lots achieved individual million-dollar-plus results, with four lots exceeding $10 million.The sales figure from RM’s three-day event ranks as the highest grossing collector car auction of all time, besting the company’s 2014 Monterey performance by more than 20 percent.
“We’ve certainly reached new heights with this year’s Monterey sale, setting multiple new benchmarks,” said Ian Kelleher, Managing Director, RM Sotheby’s West Coast Division.“The results truly speak for themselves and reflect our commitment to bringing not only the best to the market, but backing our product by extensive research and documentation. In addition, the Monterey event was truly a fantastic showcase of the RM and Sotheby’s teams working in concert to build a global platform for collector cars. Bidders hailed from 31 countries, 20 percent represented first-time clientele, and we welcomed increased participation from collectors in the 30 – 40 age bracket. It was definitely a weekend for the history books, and to cap it off with a Best of Show win at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance made it all the more thrilling and memorable.”
The 2015 RM Sotheby’s Monterey sale was extended to three days, with the auction room attracting a standing-room-only audience across all sessions. In total, RM Sotheby’s was responsible for six of the top 10 sales of this year’s Monterey Car Week, including the top sale of the week – a 1964 Ferrari 250 LM from the Pinnacle Portfolio, which garnered $17,600,000 to set a new auction record for the model.
Offered on Thursday evening, it was the Pinnacle Portfolio – a private collection of 25 post-war sports cars – that set the tone for the three-day event, realizing $75.4 million in auction and post-auction private sales to set a new record for a single-day, single-vendor automobile auction, along with establishing numerous other auction benchmarks. In addition to the sale-topping Ferrari 250 LM, the group was highlighted by results for contemporary supercars, for which pre-sale interest led to record-setting values. Headlining this group was the 1998 McLaren F1 ‘LM-Specification’ which spurred lively bidding to sell for $13,750,000 to set a new record as the most valuable British car ever sold at auction. One of the sale’s most exciting moments came when the 2005 Ferrari Enzo, originally gifted by the factory to Pope John Paul II, crossed the block, more than tripling the previous record for the model at a final $6,050,000. Additional highlights included a 1994 Ferrari F40 LM for a record $3,300,000; a 2005 Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren for $495,000; and the 2005 Saleen Twin Turbo for $682,000 against a pre-sale estimate of $350,000 – $500,000.
Multiple new auction benchmarks were set during the course of RM’s 2015 Monterey event. A 1953 Jaguar C-Type Works Lightweight brought $13,200,000 on Friday to become the most valuable Jaguar sold at auction, while on Saturday, a 1956 Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta Competizione ‘Tour de France’, the first ‘Tour de France-winning’ TdF, also achieved $13,200,000, a record price for the model at auction.
Other notable sales included:
- Aston-Martins from all eras achieved strong results, with many examples well-exceeding pre-sale expectations. Stand-out lots included: a 1940 Aston Martin Speed Model Type C for $1,155,000; a 1967 Aston Martin DB6 Mk I Shooting Brake for $682,000; and a 2013 Aston-Martin Centennial DB9 Spyder by Zagato for $693,000 (against a pre-sale estimate of $380,000 – $450,000);
- a 1910 American Underslung Traveler Toy Tonneau doubled its estimate at $1815,000 (a record for the model); and a 1933 Marmon Sixteen Victoria Coupe also well-exceeded expectations at $907,500;
- 1952 Jaguar XK120 Supersonic attracted pre-sale interest to sell for $2,090,000 – a record for a Jaguar XK120 sold at public auction.
RM Sotheby’s Monterey 2015 – Top 20 Auction Results
1. 1964 Ferrari 250 LM – $17,600,000
2. 1998 McLaren F1 ‘LM-Specification’- $13,750,000
3. 1953 Jaguar C-Type Works Lightweight – $13,200,000
4. 1956 Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta Competizione Tour de France – $13,200,000
5. 1959 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider – $8,500,000 (post-sale)
6. 1950 Ferrari 275S/340 America Barchetta – $7,975,000
7. 2005 Ferrari Enzo – $6,050,000
8. 1931 Bentley 4 1/2-Litre Supercharged Two-Seater Sports – $4,015,000
9. 1966 Ferrari 275 GTB/6C Alloy – $3,960,000
10. 1994 Ferrari F40 LM – $3,300,000
10. 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 – $3,300,000
11. 1972 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Spider – $2,750,000
12. 1971 Lamborghini Miura P400 SV – $2,475,000
13. 1985 Ferrari 288 GTO – $2,420,000
14. 2012 Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Super Sport “300” – $2,310,000
15. 2005 Maserati MC12 – $2,090,000
16. 1952 Jaguar XK120 Supersonic – $2,062,500
17. 2015 McLaren P1 – $1,980,000
17. 1995 Ferrari F50 – $1,980,000
19. 1963 Ferrari 250 GT/L Berlinetta ‘Lusso’ – $1,815,000
19. 2006 Bugatti Veyron 16.4 “001” – $1,815,000
19. 1910 American Underslung Traveler Toy Tonneau – $1,815,000
For complete auction results, visit rmsothebys.com.
The RM team also clinched its sixth ‘Best of Show’ win at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance on Sunday, with the 1924 Isotta Fraschini Tipo 8A F. Ramseier and Cie Worblaufen Cabriolet, owned by The Patterson Collection and freshly restored by RM Auto Restoration, taking top honors at the event. The win represents RM’s sixth ‘Best of Show’ at Pebble Beach in the new millennium, and was joined by a number of other awards for other RM Auto Restoration prepared cars.
RM Sotheby’s continues its 2015 summer calendar of events, September 7 in London, England for its annual sale at Battersea Evolution held in partnership with the UK’s Concours of Elegance.
For further information, visit rmsothebys.com.
[Source: RM Sotheby’s]
