It’s time for the big money bidders to hit the auctions – it’s Saturday at Monterey Car Week! Instead of picking the most expensive cars, we want to focus on Seven Saturday Star Cars, spread throughout the Monterey area.
Mecum is selling the 2004 Ford Shelby Cobra Concept – arguably the last “real” Cobra ever built. This thing just stops you in your tracks if you try walking past it. It’s similar to how people must have reacted when they saw the original Cobra for the first time – curiosity and maybe some bad thoughts. If this had been put into production, we’d see lots of them on the road today, but this is the one and only example ever built.
The last time it changed hands it was in non-running condition and since then it’s been all set up for the next owner to take it for a spin and absolutely dominate the local cruise night. Mecum expects “Project Daisy” – as it was known internally at Ford – to sell between $1,500,000 and $2,000,000 and with the interest we’ve noticed in other Shelby cars of late, a selling price squarely in that range won’t surprise us. Let’s just hope the right bidders are in the room – it’s always more fun to watch someone buy a car in person than to hear about a phone or internet bid!
Mecum will also be offering this 2005 Saleen S7 Twin Turbo on Saturday, with fewer than 800 miles on the odometer. Sporting a beastly 7.0L V8 and the aforementioned twin turbo, this Saleen will run from 0 to 60 MPH in just 2.8 seconds, no doubt aided by the six-speed manual transmission that helps put all 750 horsepower to the street.
Considering the low mileage and the fact that there are only thirteen other twin turbos that were built, it won’t surprise us if this breaks into the million dollar range. Mecum seems to agree with an estimate of $850,000 to $1,000,000.
Turning to RM Sotheby’s, this 1995 Nissan Skyline GT-R is the JDM car we dream of owning. This car will be going to a new home after it crosses the block as it’s selling with no reserve. The Midnight Purple R33 is in original and unmodified condition, and is relatively new to the US, having been imported in 2020. Showing less than 29,000 miles, RM Sotheby’s estimates a price between $90,000 and $120,000 and that’s a pretty fair number for this car. Of course, these days who knows – get a couple people in the room who “must own” that car and we could see a record set.
This Lexus LFA with the Nurburgring Package will also be crossing the block at RM Sotheby’s. Offered from the Fox Collection, this LFA – one of only 25 delivered in the US with the Nurburgring Package – has covered less than 1,000 miles since new. It features a rare black-on-black color scheme, perhaps an attempt to hide the 562 horsepower V10 engine.
Selling with no reserve, the car is accompanied by a set of LFA luggage, a crystal block containing a diagram of the car – in case you need to show off – and a pair of Scott Pruett’s racing gloves. RM Sotheby’s estimates it will sell between $900,000 and $1,100,000. Prices for “regular” LFAs have been moving up recently and the rarity of this example should push the value higher than most LFAs, but we’re not sure if it will break the seven-figure mark. We’ll find out when it ends up with a new owner!
Over at Gooding & Company we’re very excited to see the bidding on this 1980 Ferrari 308 GTS. This is another car that we are sure will have a new owner as it is also being offered with no reserve. But we don’t think that will be a problem for the seller, considering the car sits nicely in Rosso Corsa with a tan leather interior – a fairly iconic color combination for Ferraris!
Originally a European car, this 308 GTS has been the US for more than 30 years and comes with a massive amount of documentation. It may not have its original engine, but it’s still got the replacement from 1982 so when Gooding & Company estimate it will sell between $80,000 and $100,000 they may not be far off the selling price. It may prove to be a chance for one of the rare “well bought” cars coming out of Monterey Car Week – we can’t wait to see what happens!
Also being offered with no reserve by Gooding & Company is this 1989 Porsche 930 Slantnose Cabriolet. There should be no lack of interest in this car – it has the G50 five-speed transmission – a perk of being from the final year of the 930 – and all the paperwork to prove that it is a factory-equipped Slantnose. A chance to own one of the 75 examples built for this model year should be enough to get the bids into the auction estimate of $150,000 to $200,000.
Back at Mecum we find the seventh of our Seven Saturday Star Cars – this 1972 Toyota FJ-43 Land Cruiser. The FJ-43 is a rare version of the Land Cruiser and one that was never offered by Toyota in the North American market, but was quite popular in other parts of the world. This specific example was imported from Colombia, after which it underwent a frame-off restoration and looks like it’s all set for the new owner’s next off-road adventure. It may prove to be quite the affordable car, relative to many other offerings in Monterey, with no reserve and an estimate of $50,000 to $60,000.
Keep checking in with us as we share more photos and results from Monterey Car Week 2021 and be sure to check out our Top Ten picks for the weekend!