With so many threats to economic stability at present, including skyrocketing new and used car values, recession worries, and global warfare jitters, you would think that purchases of hobbyist automobiles might be put on the back burner. However, the combined results from the 2022 Monterey Car Week would have you believe the good times are never-ending; hence why Monterey Car Week makes for an excellent, high-level example of how car auctions work.

Let The Good Times (and Big Checks) Roll

Five auction companies, Bonhams, Broad Arrow, Gooding, Mecum, and RM Sotheby?s, combined to sell a staggering $479 million in special-interest cars, trucks, motorcycles, and automobilia in 2022. Of those five, RM Sotheby?s was at the top of the heap, with a sales total of almost $240 million, which bested the other four auction companies? totals combined. RM also sold the highest-priced vehicle of the week, a 1955 Ferrari, for $22 million.
This was Broad Arrow?s inaugural Monterey event, and their sales totaled $55.2 million; Bonhams brought in over $28 million; Gooding reached $109.5 million, and Mecum raked in $46.7 million. Sell-through rates were equally impressive. RM hit an incredible 95 percent; Bonhams, Broad Arrow, and Gooding had sell-throughs in the 80 percent range; Mecum?s sell-through was reported to be around 65 percent.

How Car Auctions Work  

While it?s fun to watch from the sidelines as the big and not-so-big spenders alike use some discretionary income t...