well i've been watching barret-jackson also and i am amazed at the prices those people are paying for some vehicles. one of the best so far was $100k for a late 40s early 50s black dodge 4x4 power wagon. it was nice but come on.. $100k? oddly, barret-jackson is getting on average $10k more for the same cars mecum sells. the only thing i can figure is that nuts winning "free" money at las vegas are just throwing money at these cars. the last two mecum auctions i watched had very nice cars selling for less than what the restoration cost would be. $20-35k for a completly restored muscle car seems reasonable to me and mecum has sold a lot of them in that range.
i will offer one thought in defense of the astronomical money barret-jackson (and others) are getting for collector cars: because hemi roadrunners, cudas, big-block chevelles, CJ mustangs, gto's, are selling for $100k everybody and their uncle is restoring and saving these cars. in fact, mark worman on graveyard carz had an orange 71 cuda someone dropped off that looked like it had been hit, rolled and then left in a field for 10 years. worman basically "created" a new car with all the parts he put on that cuda. so the rediculous prices some people are paying for these cars has created an entire industry of "restorers/flippers" and consequently, hundreds of muscle cars are being saved from the crushers and junk yards. someday (and probably not too far off) the bottom is going to drop out of the six-figure auction market for these cars and there are then going to be hundreds of perfect old muscle cars available to buy for (who knows?) $10k, 20k, 30k? i'm looking forward to the day that we will be able to buy any of these cars again for reasonable money. don't laugh.... i'm sure this is going to happen.
