Mecum Auctions Monterey 2024 Highlights
Monterey Car Week kicks off for 2024 next week and Mecum has some significant cars set to cross their auction block. We’ve previously taken a closer look at the 1963 Shelby 289 Cobra Roadster that has close ties to Steve McQueen and discussed how that celebrity connection may affect its value. We also looked at a sampling of European exotic cars offered from Mike’s Collection but as the auction gets closer with each passing day it’s time to look at a few of the most significant and valuable cars set to be offered by Mecum Auctions at their Monterey Car Week sale.
The Ford GT40 Lightweight was born not out of necessity but simply because Ford could improve on the MkI GT40. It was a time when going fast on a track was still in its purest form. The GT40 Lightweight exists thanks to the drive of John Wyer who wanted to try again with the MkI cars that didn’t quite live up to the dreams of their engineers.
A total of ten GT40 Lightweights were produced and three of them were bought by Wyer who equipped their Ford V8 engines with Gurney-Weslake cylinder heads and Weber carburetors. The upgrades allowed the engines to reliably produce upwards of 440 horsepower, far beyond the limits found by Carroll Shelby when searching for every ounce of power in the Cobra.
Along with the increased horsepower, the GT40 Lightweights live up to their name with an aluminum roof making for a significantly lighter car that was capable of delivering ever more speed on the track.
The example to be offered by Mecum Auctions in Monterey rather incredibly still wears its original body on its original chassis. It boasts a successful in-period racing history that culminated in a GT championship circa 1973. Following a nut-and-bolt restoration that brought the car back to how it appeared when it was first delivered in all its Cirrus White paint, it was displayed at The Quail in 2023 after being authenticated by GT40 expert Ronnie Spain.
There weren’t many of these built and there are certainly fewer that are in the same condition as this example. Although Mecum has not provided their own estimate for this car, prices for a significant GT40 with racing history can approach $9,000,000 so we think the seller will be looking for something in that range.
Ferrari had a winning combination of V12 power and the perfect styling for its time with the 365 GTB/4 so it came as no surprise when they introduced the 365 GTS/4 Spider, although the significantly limited production numbers were perhaps a bit of a shock to some.
Ferrari built just 122 examples of the Daytona Spider from 1969 through 1973 which makes it a particularly rare model from the Maranello-based company. Of course that does help explain why the Spider is worth so much more than the Coupe.
The example being offered by Mecum Auctions in Monterey is stunning in its factory-correct color of Giallo Fly and has won the Platinum award at Cavallino on four separate occasions.
It includes a report by Marcel Massini and is certified by Ferrari Classiche with the Red Book included with the car. It’s a numbers-matching example and includes a Ferrari tool roll along with power windows and disc brakes.
Mecum estimates this will sell for $2,800,000 – $3,300,000 and that’s not out of line. We think the high-end may be a lower, with an all-in price of $2,850,000 able to bring this to a new home, but we’ll have to see how the bidders are feeling with this hits the block.
The first thing to mention about this Porsche 718 RSK produced in a center seat configuration is that we know the reserve. In fact, everyone who looks at this car on Mecum’s site will know the reserve as they’ve gone ahead and announced it ahead of the sale: $3,500,000.
Keep that number in mind – we’ll get back to it. Right now though, consider that Porsche only built 34 examples of the 718 RSK and of those, just 6 were built with a center seating configuration. Out of those six, only 4 were delivered with the ability to switch from a centered-steering position to an offset-steering configuration and this is one of those four.
Sure, it’s not something that can be done in five minutes, but it’s also less than a full day of work and that option may be worth something, maybe a lot, to the sort of Porsche enthusiast with pockets deep enough to buy this car.
Incredibly this car still wears its original Wendler alloy bodywork which is worth noting on its own. It’s been restored for vintage racing and its engine was recently rebuilt by Bill Doyle at Rennwagen.
It’s a well-known car, having won its class at the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance in 2009 and was entered in more than 100 vintage races.
Mecum Auctions expects this car to sell for $3,800,000 – $4,300,000 which is more than the previously mentioned reserve of $3,500,000. That sounds to us as though Mecum is quite confident in having a buyer for this car lined up. If this was a 550 Spyder we’d feel more confident about that estimate, but the Porsche market does some crazy things at often random times so it’s entirely plausible that this will sell within their estimate.
We’ll find out how these cars perform on the auction block, along with everything else Mecum will be offering for sale beginning on August 15.