Monterey prediction: Hagerty expects more million-dollar sales, ‘shift’ to cars from 1980s and ‘90s

Hagerty, the classic car insurer and valuation tracker, forecasts $415 million in sales at the various auctions scheduled next week in on the Monterey Peninsula. That figure falls short of the record $428 million in sales posted on the peninsula in auctions last year, but again far exceeds the $306 million in sales in 2013.

And while Hagerty expects total sales to slip, it predicts there will be “a signifiant increase” in the number of million-dollar — and multi-million-dollar — sales.

It also anticipates a bump in the prices being paid for cars produced in the 1980s and ‘90s.

“Overall growth is still strong,” the company said in its annual pre-Monterey news release.

Hagerty noted that total sales last year benefited from the offering of cars such as a 1962 Ferrari GTO that sold for $38 million.

“This year’s auctions do not currently have any automobiles expected to reach bids of more than $20 million,” Hagerty’s news release said.

“Additionally, there are 9 percent fewer cars scheduled to be shown at the Monterey auctions this year compared to last year.”

But, the release continued, “there are 14 percent more cars with the potential to sell for more than $1 million this year. Of the 141 cars currently listed with the potential to sell for more than six figures, a larger number are from the 1980s and the ‘90s than in past years, and of those, 35 percent are Ferraris, 9 percent Porsches and 9 percent Mercedes-Benz.”

In the news release, Hagerty chief executive McKeel Hagerty is quoted as saying, “We expect 2015 to be a solid year, perhaps even a more predictable year, for the Monterey auctions. There are more million dollar cars but fewer wild-card sales that might dramatically swing the final results.

“As we have reported with the Hagerty Market Ratings, the market is stabilizing. There are still buyers at every price level, and sellers are expected to set more realistic reserve prices than they have during the past six months.”

The Hagerty release also pointed to a “shift in decades.”

“There is a 75 percent increase in the number of 1980s cars up for auction, 23 percent increase in the number of 1990s cars and 11 percent increase in cars from 2000s.

“Whereas, the number of pre-war cars up for auction this year has decreased 37 percent compared to last year. There are also 9 percent fewer cars from the 1950s, 17 percent fewer from the ‘60s and 13 percent fewer from the ‘70s than last year.”

Hagerty sees the highest bids of the week being made on cars such as a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT California, a 1998 McLaren F1 LM and a 1953 Jaguar C-type, the news release added.

More coverage of Monterey Car Week 2015