A pair of modern supercars – one domestic, one Italian, each boasting horsepower exceeding 700 – were the top sellers at Barrett-Jackson’s seventh annual Las Vegas auction, which upped its ante with total sales of more than $33.3 million, the most ever, including $1,642,500 raised to benefit local and national charities.
As expected, the charity sale of the first production 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat went into orbit with a high bid of $825,000, with 100 percent of the proceeds benefiting the Opportunity Village Foundation for people with intellectual disabilities. An additional private donation doubled the amount for Opportunity Village.
The next highest sale was for an ultra-exotic orange-and-black 2013 Lamborghini Aventador, which sold for $440,000, including auction fee, to become the highest non-charity sale at the auction.
More than 700 cars crossed the block at the Mandalay Bay Event Center, about 50 more than at last year’s auction, which topped $32 million. Sales percentage was more than 99 percent for Barrett-Jackson’s customary overwhelmingly no-reserve auction.
This weekend’s sale was also the final Barrett-Jackson event telecast by the Fox family of networks, formerly the SPEED Channel, as televising switches over to Velocity and the Discovery Channel starting with the Scottsdale auction in January 2015.
Other top non-charity sales, a mixture of modern and classic, included:
• 1971 Plymouth Hemi ‘Cuda – $385,000
• 2006 Ford GT – $291,500
• 1966 Ford Shelby GT350 – $220,000
• 2013 Lamborghini Gallardo – $220,000
• 1936 Packard Eight Phaeton – $176,000
• 2011 Bentley GTC Supersports – $176,000
• 1969 Chevrolet COPO Camaro – $172,700
• 1957 Mercedes-Benz 190SL roadster – $165,000
• 1968 Ford Shelby GT500 Fastback – $165,000
All non-charity sales include auction fees.
The reserve sale of a famous 1963 Chevrolet Corvette coupe race car, best-known for its role in the movie “Viva Las Vegas” starring Elvis Presley, was unclear Sunday night. While the car was not included in a Barrett-Jackson media release among the top auction sales, it is listed on the auction website as having made reserve and sold for $363,000.
The other Elvis car at the auction, a 1967 Cadillac Coupe De Ville known as the “Honeymoon Car” because the star and his newlywed wife Priscilla drove it when they were in Nashville, sold for $88,000. The celebrity connection was apparently not a huge draw for this piece of Elvis Presley history.
Another star car, a 1970 Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow formerly owned by Johnny Cash, also sold for $88,000, including fee.
The sale of the Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat, a one-of-one example of the 707-horsepower muscle car, was made all the more remarkable by the additional donation from the Engelstad Family Foundation that matched the $825,000 hammer bid. Including that amount, the Hellcat raised more money for charity than any other car in Barrett-Jackson history. The Engelstad donation is not reflected in the $1,642,000 charity sales total for the Vegas auction.
For the charity sales, Ford and Chevrolet joined Chrysler in donating top examples of their latest muscle cars to benefit worthy causes. From Chevy, a 2015 first-edition Corvette Stingray sold for $400,000, benefitting the CARE House of Oakland County, while Ford’s 2015 50 Years Limited Edition Mustang raised $170,000 for Get Your Heart Racing.
Other charity sales included a 2014 Z/28 Camaro that benefitted the YMCA of Southern Nevada, for $147,500, and a 2012 Ford Fusion Race Car, which sold for $100,000 to aid Paralyzed Veterans of America.
“Our Las Vegas auction continues to grow in popularity as a world-class destination experience, offering a truly electric atmosphere only found in the Entertainment Capital of the World,” said Craig Jackson, chairman and CEO of Barrett-Jackson. “From a 2013 Aventador Lamborghini to a ’28 Model A Ford and the first Dodge Hellcat, there was something for everyone on this year’s docket. And virtually all of our vehicles were sold at no reserve, indicating the true market value of the collector car hobby.”
