This is just the latest of several times I have seen a car sell at a Mecum Auction and then 1, 2, 3 months later I see it again....What gives? Does Mecum bid these up and wind-up with the high bid and then re-auction them? Because I can't believe that the owner just keeps shipping the car to the next auction and hoping it'll go higher to cover the cost? And is this because the high bidder backed out, and how is that, theres a contract to buy if your bid is highest? WTH? This car SOLD at DALLAS for $12k in Sept 2017 https://www.mecum.com/lots/FL0118-310718/1974-buick-gs/ Here it is again for KISSIMME in Jan 2018 https://www.mecum.com/lots/FL0118-310718/1974-buick-gs/
Having bought cars at these auctions, believe me, you are not backing out of a sale like Ebay......you sign the paper the very moment after the hammer drops.
Dana will buy cars as well if he sees them go cheap. Also, he will guarantee minimums on high value cars to draw attention to the auction. He will go ahead and sell them at the next one.......
Seems like collusion to me if that's happening. Anyone affiliated with the auction should have no interest in the bidding, buying or selling.
I would feel that guaranteeing a minimum is different that actively bidding on a car. If the auction house is bidding against a person I would walk away.
There is the "RESEZRVE" option for all cars, Mecum just doesn't charge the fee to higher end clients because they get crazy money on the other fees, that's understandable....But that doesn't address this low end type of car and the shenanigans going on........ just sayin' Matt I completely agree.
I have a neighbor who has a business called Showtime Auctions. He came back from the Mecum Harrisburg auction with 2 semis full of cars. I guess he'll take them to another auction hoping to make money, maybe we'll see some of those cars at Kissimmee.
That’s how to make money at auctions. Buy 10-15 cars at a smaller auction then sell them at a bigger one. Mecum will discount his fees for large quantities of cars. You lose on some and win on others.
This is a car that has been in Various auctions in Houston. (prior owner wanted $36K @ Dan Kruse's Sale 11/16) Dana Could have bought the car for His collection or on Speculation for a Client who backed out of the deal & is putting the car out to regain his $$. All Auctions work with their Clients, especially those that consign large numbers or Very top end cars. (Look @ the B-J, Ron Pratt arrangement, Worldwide-gasmonkey, or Wayne Carini & Various Auctions) Are there those that get special Treatment? Plain & Simple, Yes. Not to knock Any Auction (Specialty, Dealer, whatever) Believe about 60% of what You Think You see. Auctions are going to make money. That is their Business & I can't fault them for that. Preparation, Advertising, Travel, are All expenses that people don't take into consideration as well as paying the Full time staff as well as Temps to drive the cars, Title Clerks, Runners, and the expenses for them, as well as rental on the Venue where the Sale is. They have a Large Overhead that people don't know or think about.
Yup, I have always said, "The only people making money at these auctions are the Auction Houses themselves".......And BTW Mecum went from $20 last year per spectator ticket to $30.......Not worth it in KC with only 700 cars IMO, but in Kissimmee with 3,000 cars, ok with me.
Well. I just bought my first car from an auction Saturday, December 2 at Mecum Kansas City. (see post elsewhere) Yes, I paid the full premium of 12% as a telephone bidder. I thought about going to Kansas City, made hotel reservations, was going to take my F 250 and 24' enclosed trailer but the more I did my research on the car through Mecum, the more I questioned why spend the money and if I was not the high bidder I had spent a bunch of money to lose it. The 12% telephone premium vs 10% on site in Kansas City premium was in the end, a $700 difference. Considering two -three hotel nights coming and going plus fuel and meals it was a wash so I stayed home as I got comfortable with the information I was getting on the car and did the telephone bid. This was a car that had a great history from original delivery in Dallas, 56,000 original miles, a repaint and new interior, and loaded with options so I had convinced myself I had to have it. (A sellers dream buyer!) I began my research three weeks prior and up to the morning of the auction. I asked questions and the Mecum rep went to the owner and got answers and additional photos for me. The car was scheduled to cross the auction block at noon, and at 9:30 AM the Mecum rep called me and said he was at the car and did I have any additional questions about it. Since I know 67 GS 400's pretty well having worked on or restored three of them I spent 20 minutes on the phone with him asking questions about particular details as he walked around the car. We did the same thing with questions about the interior. He gave me straight forward answers while not over selling the car. With the research I had done earlier and the answers to my questions I was ready to buy the car for even more than the final price. I know one should not buy a car if you have not seen it yourself and believe me I have been burned several times by violating that rule but in this case with close up hi res photos, a willing seller to answer questions, and the support from Mecum I felt confident in bidding on the car. End result is the car is in better condition than I thought it would be and I am one happy camper. This will be a long term hold for me along with the 67 GS400 Sportwagon 'clone' and I will drive them often and enjoy both. I cannot say enough good things about the Mecum experience over the three weeks of my research, the registration process to be a phone bidder, the 20% deposit I had to send based on what I thought my high bid would be, the final payment details and money transfer, the transportation department both before and after the auction, the super fast delivery, (the car showed up in Fort Worth Monday morning less than 48 hours after I won the bid!), and finally the title transfer within 8 days. I sent an email to owner Dana Mecum, his Chief Operations officer, and the Supervisor of transportation giving 'attaboys' to everyone by name I had contact with during my Mecum experience. I wanted them to know their staff was first class and how much I appreciated it. I copied all staff I interacted with on the email. The Transportation Supervisor sent me an email back saying how much he appreciated it and would be sure the driver saw the email. I have several friends who have know Dana Mecum for years and say he is a first class guy. In reference to cars being bought at auction and then showing up later at another auction, the car I bought was offered and sold in May 2017 at Mecum Indianapolis. It sold to a small classic car dealer in Merrill, Iowa who has been a Mecum buyer and seller since Dana Mecum started the company. So, the bought it, paid the buyers fees, held it 6 months and offered it at Kansas City. I just wish I had seen it listed at Indy and I probably would have bid on it then but, who knows what the selling price would have been had there been two active bidders. As I calculate it, the seller of the car to me did not make much money by the time you add in the buyers fee paid in Indy, transportation to Iowa, then the sellers Premium fee for the car to be sold on Saturday at Kansas City and then the fee paid once the car sold. I think they may have made $500 - $1000 in the end. My $0.02
I have to say, I often thought, is one bidder a paid employee ? until the price is driven up and the hook is set.hmmmm
Not always. There are times when a "Bid by Proxy" is involved, that being where a Bidder has contacted the Auction House and made a confirmed offer when the car crosses the block. The "House" will bid it at that point to the Client's figure. That is Not the Reserve, nor will the House raise the figure the bidder has given to above that amount. (Usually done on Very High End sales) I sold my 70 Convertible @ The 12 Houston Mecum Sale & was happy with everything & the way it was handled. I sold it below the reserve, My Choice, as I was still OK on that figure, & did negotiate with Dana on the selling commission, so it actually worked better for me & Everyone was Happy. I worked for the Sale in the 2013 & was treated Very well by the Staff & Family, although, when you work for them, You Work for your pay & Catered meals. JR
I was there today and those auctioneers bent over backwards to get bids where they should be. There were 2 Fiats that no one wanted to bid on and they squeeked $4k out of both of them.
It sold yesterday for $19,400 including buyers premium, so a really smart move to "whomever", it made over $7,000 more then when sold a little over 2 months ago.
I considered selling a Corvette I had through Mecum but went through eBay instead, which worked out well. During my research I learned that some brokers will go to the smaller Mecum and BJ auctions and buy a dozen or cars over a years time. Then they take them to the big auctions in January. They get a discount on entry fees when they enter so many cars at once. They may lose on some and win on others, but it must work reasonably well, as I’ve seen the same thing over several years.
