A word on Barrett Jackson prices. I know a fellow who has both bought and sold cars at BJ. I asked him about some of the seemingly high prices at the show. He explained it as follows. To some guys ego is a very important issue, especially when it comes to cars (imagine that). Let us assume for a minute that the buyer of this CS was an informed buyer (perhaps not) and he says to himself, "this car is worth $30K". He goes to BJ with the intent of having fun, perhaps with his wife/girlfriend. The car comes accross the stage, the bidding begins, he and his wife/girlfriend are shown on the TV. The boys back home get to enjoy their friend's 2 minutes of fame on national TV. Somehow he can get a recording of the proceedings for his personal collection. Now the alternatives, overspend 20K on a car and buy 2 minutes of fame or spend that cash in Vegas at the tables, or in Aspen, or you fill in the blank. In he case of the car, he has something to show for his extra $20K including 2 minutes of fame. If he spends it in Vegas, well, he will likely have a headache to show for the evening. We all make choices in our entertainment. My friend explained that for most of the folks there, the upcharge for the fun is not a big issue as far as disposable income. So, will some cars trade too high? Yep, but that person has a real trophy he/she can have as a toy for years to come. And, Ah, the real boost to the ego.
I have been on the side of saying our CSs are too cheap compared to the other cars. I saw a pretty plain Jane 69 Mach 1(351 2V) on BJ sell for north of the price of this CS, so perhaps we are beginning to catch up. Even at say $40K I still like the value of our CSs compared to some other vintage Stangs. As we all have said before, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. My bet is we will see more GT/CSs next year. There is certainly an opportunity to Arb (buy at 15K, do 10K work, resell) some of these cars if this trade is even close.
My 2 cents.
Brian
