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1968 Barrett-Jackson

J.Bart

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 12, 2003
Messages
800
it's not about the car or the money.
simple put : after seeing barret jackson in person, with my own eyes, i believe there are better places to sell a car.

see, the wizard doesn't want you to look behind the curtain, he want's you to only see the show.
 

robert campbell

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 10, 2007
Messages
4,321
No doubt that BJ is the show..... But if you are not selling and not caring then you are not part of the show.

If you are in it for the car.... You are not selling..... Then you do not care...

Rob
 

J.Bart

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 12, 2003
Messages
800
No doubt that BJ is the show..... But if you are not selling and not caring then you are not part of the show.

If you are in it for the car.... You are not selling..... Then you do not care...

Rob

barret jackson has most everyone believing that they are the show, but that's the hoax.
they only put on tv what they want you to see. a no-reserve auction caters to the buyer, not the seller. it's a liquidation auction.

but they have a superior marketing dept. that's their edge over the competition.
 

J.Bart

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 12, 2003
Messages
800
here is the other side of what i saw.
if bj is the big show and the most professional auction out there, then a car shouldn't be missrepresented? what they say a car is, should be what the car is. so
a buyer should be able to trust bj.

i saw a 69 torino cobra at bj. they said no sheet metal had been changed. they said it was an r code ram air car.
well the dash vin tag wasn't factory, it was some chome looking piece of metal with the numbers stamped from the wrong direction. i didn't get a look at the inner fender to check those numbers.
it had grand touring door panels, and a gt "non-ram air" hood.
if they can't catch that misrepresentation, then they better hire some ford guys that have some knowledge.
the car went for $31,000.00
i would have hesitated to give $10,000.00

i wondered if a person could trust bj to represent the cars acurately.
and i have my answer

"buyer beware"
 

gofastguy

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 26, 2007
Messages
143
Location
Canton, Ohio
Will this auction be televised?

I'm betting yes, extensively...It's my belief that B-J is not really a positive force in the hobby, although I love to watch. However, it's hard to argue that with that many car people with money that what a car brings is not what the particular vehicle is worth on that particular day.

Personally, I'd be too scared to do it...
 

hookedtrout

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 28, 2003
Messages
1,929
Location
Idaho
Sounds like somebody needs to start an elite on line classic car auction site to do what BJ and the likes are not. Ebay is too all encompassing with no validation, never been to BJ or any of the others but it sounds like they are all about the show for the most part.

Start a web site that caters only to classics and high $$ cars and give it some high standards and requirements, employ validated car inspectors throughout the US to inspect and validate the cars and if they can't be validated they can't be in the auction. Keep it small and precise with highly respected rules and people inspecting. Might just take off and you might just get rich. Then again it might not? Sounds easy, who has the $$?
 
OP
OP
R

rananim

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 15, 2002
Messages
71
Location
Poway, CA (near San Diego)
Thanks for all the words of encouragement! Seriously, I have gone the no reserve route a couple of times at Reno and ended up towing my car all the way home to Poway (San Diego). I restored it nearly 10 years ago and made a big mistake by not keeping it a "driver", and now it mostly sits in my garage, while the newer cars lose their paint to the sun. I don't enjoy taking it to shows, where I would rather look at someone else's car.

Ten years is long enough and the 16 year old in me has been satisfied. I'd rather use the money for other things. Fortunately, my "financial future" is secure, and I am not counting on this.

David brought up an interesting point, which I'll expand on: as we age, we may end up parting with our cars for economic reasons or to move on to RVs and other things. The generation behind us are more interested in the cars they knew - '70's, 80's, etc. It has been true of previous generations; you don't see too many young people driving the "Early Birds" ('55-57 TBirds) for example.
As much as I've enjoyed the CS, it is time for me to part with it and get back into motocross...
Sven
 

J.Bart

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 12, 2003
Messages
800
when my brother took the 427 super snake to mecum last nov. he said it cost a $1000.00
to run the car through the auction, and he could set a reserve price to protect himself.
 

robert campbell

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 10, 2007
Messages
4,321
Cory,
Sounds like a great idea! To do this effectively you would need a network of brand, year, model experts. No one person could contain all the knowledge necessary. They would need to be paid for their knowlege of cars. They could perfrom this remotely through close up pictures of the cars.

With that in mind it, the profits would be reduced, but it still seems feasible. BJ could do this, but they would say "why". It would be a slow build to respectability.

Jbart, you have stumbled into the age old problem of car "hype". Just at a larger scale. I have helped "price" many a car for people who think their "mustang" is a huge pot of gold. Cars with rust bubbles on them that most knowledgable buyers would see in a second. I give them what I think is a fair price, but also tell them that some idiot may pay double that. Buyer beware!

I totally agree with you on the 1969 Torino. My brother-in-law just sold one a couple years ago for $15k that was very respectable. And real! That is the huge hype of BJ. People with little knowledge and deep pockets. Was the Torino real? Was it Ram Air? doubtful. But if the owner makes that claim it is the responsibility of the buyer to see it earlier and make their own judgement before the bidding.

Does it hurt BJ's reputation if they "hype" up a car that is so to speak, a fake. Yes, but they also move alot of cars that are correct.

Buyer beware as you said is the only way to avoid being scammed.

Rob
 

J.Bart

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 12, 2003
Messages
800
PS - If anyone wants to make an offer "I can't refuse" before I commit to BJ, let me know.
Sven

i have to say this out of concience, as i would someone putting their hand on a hot stove.
you're taking a big risk, no matter what they say, they ( barret jackson's), don't have to stick to their word, and you have no recourse.
gambling in my oppinion is for $100, $500, not my car.
i put my 70 fastback on ebay a couple of years ago, had offers from places like canada, and all over.
i ended up selling it to a local girl that came and looked at the car. she gave me full asking price which was more than i had hoped for, which was about $4000.00 below appraisal.
but i was a happy guy.
at bj your car could go for half or less than nada price, and there wouldn't be anything you could do to stop it.

other auctions have reserve's so you can protect yourself. like mecum.
i think barret jackson's is a bad idea.
 

rvrtrash

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 25, 2003
Messages
3,652
Jbart, I know you're passionate about this, but I think he gets it by now. It's his choice in the end what he does.

Steve
 
OP
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rananim

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 15, 2002
Messages
71
Location
Poway, CA (near San Diego)
I've had the car up for sale several times in the last few years, both on this site and at Reno, so I've put a lot of thought into it. If there isn't much interest here, where then? I chose BJ for several reasons: It gets really good exposure, it is being held nearby in a highly populated area with a port facility and lastly, I won't be bringing it back home. I have always believed that the car will sell for what it is worth - no more than someone who is willing to pay for it. The only question is whether they want it more than I do.
The best auction price that was made was $32,500 at Reno in 2006 - two years later it was $24,000 (after it got scratched while on display). If you guys are thinking it will go for a ridiculously low price, I hope you take advantage and bid on it. I would really like to see the car go to someone who appreciates our cars.
 
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J.Bart

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 12, 2003
Messages
800
please don't take what i say the wrong way. i had to speak up out of conscience.
we also thought that the car will bring what it is worth.. we should have sold it at the mecum and only took a loss of a couple of thousand dollars, instead of tens of thousands of dollars at barret jacksons.
the only reason barret jacksons have the status that they do, is because of their marketing dept.
i hope you get a decent time slot, it's your risk, for myself , i know what i saw and won't trust bj to get the most out of my cars.
i'll go there to buy a car, the good deals they don't put on tv.
 

Scott

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 17, 2008
Messages
126
Location
Coogee Beach, Sydney, Australia
Hi, just to further complicate this discussion, we have an auction/insurance company in oz (haven't met any wizards lately though, aussies don't really like all that jazz). You can see the list at shannons.com.au if you click on current auction.

Point is, cars sell for roughly what they're worth at this auction. Nobody gets that big a steal and sellers can opt for a reserve or not. Trouble is, after the sale the seller is left with a fraction of the selling price after all their fees and charges. I'm not talking about buyer's premium, there is a % they take off the seller in addition to the fee to enter the car. Is that the case with BJ and mecum?

I looked into selling a car with shannons but it worked out that at the dream high price it may have brought I'd wind up with about 90% of what I'd take privately. Since then I advertise on carsales.com.au (our national car sales website used by dealers and private sellers run by the pakers or murdochs I think) and stick a sign up in the window. Amazing how often it is the sign in the window that sells it - maybe because I drive them too much.
 

J.Bart

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 12, 2003
Messages
800
my reference to oz, is the movie the wizard of oz
bj takes 10% from the seller, and charges 10% to the buyer
mecum charges a flat fee of $1000.00 and you can set a reserve
 
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