NOTE: all prices below include buyers premium
The 45th edition of Salon Retromobile, the annual classic car and motorbike show in Paris, France took place from February 5th to the 9th, 2020. Retromobile is without a doubt the most important exhibition in Europe to both enthusiasts and trade specialists regarding the upper end of the classic collectible car market.
As usual, there was something there for everyone to enjoy. Three major auction houses started their European calendar in Paris this year with Artcurial, Bonhams and RM Sotheby´s taking center stage. Classic car and bike dealers, brokers and private collectors came together and displayed their cars, parts and automobilia…dealers were out in force! Manufacturers showed off their classic heritage and welcomed collectors with huge viewing areas with magnificent high-end displays. Event organizers, classic car clubs and publishers took their stands once again as well. Both French and international visitors came to Paris in droves once again, which of course is an attractive location for everyone and their entourage with the classic car festivities being the impetus at the heart of it all. Auction house Gooding & Co took a stand for the first time promoting their first-ever London auction (April 1) and displaying a highly original 1934 Bugatti Type 59 Sports and a 1961 Aston Martin DB4GT Zagato.
French auction house Artcurial displayed their usual mix of cars and automobilia, old to new, low to highly-priced, restoration projects to pristine cars of all value ranges. A 1936 DKW NZ350 motor bike sold for EUR 9,800 exceeding its estimate of EUR 4 to 6,000. A 1955 Talbot Lago T14 LS project car sold for an impressive EUR 171,000. A lovely 1929 Mercedes-Benz SS Sport Tourer did not sell with a high bid of EUR 4,9 million and a Pullmann Limousine Mercedes-Benz Type 600 in need of some major restoration work achieved EUR 232,000. Star lot for Artcurial was a 1965 Ferrari 275 GTB/6c with racing history which sold at EUR 2.44 million. All in all a long auction with many spectators and two to three auctioneers speaking simultaneously…French-style! 56 of about 166 lots remained unsold. As a side note to the cars, Lot 64, the enormous Mariquita, one of the most famous classic sailing yachts on the planet was offered in the broker market prior to auction at over 2,5 million Euro. It surprisingly sold on the auction block below 500K, but perhaps that is not so surprising given that it costs an estimated 2 million Euros per year to maintain!
British auction house Bonhams once again moved into the massive Grand Palais building at the bank of the Seine. Bidding was slow and hammer prices were generally below estimates. That said a wonderful 1931 Invicta 4.5 litre S-Type Low Chassis exceeded its estimate and sold for EUR 1,61 Million. A 1935 Mercedes-Benz 500 K Cabriolet A sold for 1.61 million. 36 of about 105 lots remained unsold including a Porsche Carrera 2.7 RS which did not sell for a high bid of EUR 500k.
RM Sotheby’s also held a one day auction during the week on Wednesday, notable sales were a Dino 246 GTS restoration project which achieved EUR 263.000 Euro (USD 290k), a lovely 67 Iso Griffo with EUR 275,000 Euro (USD 302,498), and a matching numbers 1954 300 SL Gullwing reached a fair EUR 1,074 million (USD 1,181m) for what the car deserved. A somewhat tired but matching numbers ´57 300 SL Roadster however fell slightly short of its estimate (EUR 800k to 900k) but still sold at EUR 764,375 . Two 1980s and 1990s Bentleys exceeded estimates and a Bugatti Veyron Super Sport sold at EUR 1.523 million. 23 lots remained unsold, (of about 79).
In the dealer market, a number of cars were apparently sold during the show including a Lamborghini Miura SV, a Ferrari 365 GTB 4 Daytona competition with NART racing history as well as a Ferrari 257 GTB/4 and a freshly restored Porsche 911s from the 1960s. In the car parts section of the show, we saw very active trading including an original body of a Bugatti Type 35 GP car. We also saw countless stands for model cars which proved to be very popular once again.
Overall sentiment at the show was upbeat: Enthusiasts really enjoyed seeing all these wonderful cars and displays. Collectors were happy as well because there were bargains out to be had and as far as the trade specialists were concerned it was clear that in most cases serious work (and the unusual very nice car!) was required to achieve successful sales.
Note: all prices according to “Hammer Price”
Paris Auctions – Full Lot Lists
| RM Sotheby’s |
| Bonhams |
| ARTCURIAL // Motorcars |
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