For the second year running international auctioneers Bonhams & Butterfields combined for the now annual 'America's Car Museum' auction last Friday, September 10.
The event was hotly anticipated with classic cars from the LeMay collection expected to feature at the auction, which was held at the Bicentennial Pavilion at the Hotel Murano in Tacoma, Washington.
The sale had an added bonus for collectors as all automobiles from the LeMay Collection were presented with no reserve. This ensured that those new to the classic car market had the perfect opportunity to pick up an entry level investment piece.
And despite the lack of a reserve price on these cars, the auction still provided some notable sales results.
One of the last ever Studebaker Avanti cars, which dated back to 1964 drew some attention. With a pre-sale estimated price of £6,480 ($10,000), this classic piece of American engineering obviously impressed collectors, with a final price of £9,480 ($14,625).
A classic 1968 Ford Mustang Convertible was also up for sale, going just above its estimated price of £9,075 ($14,000) to sell for £9,800 ($15,100).
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The biggest leap came with the sale of a 1954 British made Wolseley Police car. This lot carried a pre-auction target price of just £7,780 ($12,000).
However, once it rolled up to the auction block, it was clear that collectors saw the potential of investing in one of these truly rare automobiles. The car reached an impressive £20,480 ($31,590) - a massive 163.3% above the estimated price.
The top two lots at the event came from the 1930s. These cars offered a unique insight into the early development of the automobile, as designs began to focus more on performance alongside luxury.
The first was a 1936 Packard Dietrich Convertible Sedan. Featuring a V12 engine, the car became famous for its sleek low design and is a real rarity on today's market. Last week's event proved no exception with this classic car reaching £51,200 ($78,975) at the auction.
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Finally the star lot at the sale came forward: Ford's classic luxury brand Lincoln. A 1933 Lincoln KB Victoria Coupe came up to sale with a target price of £51,860 ($80,000). Once again, a car at the sale surpassed its predicted figure, with this model reaching a final price of £60,700 ($93,600).
The sale was part of a good weekend for investment grade automobiles at Bonhams with another Saturday auction in France seeing a world record price for an Aston Martin DB5.
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