A rare high-performance 1963 Ford Galaxie 500 XL packing a 427 cid V8 led the bidding at Mecum Auctions’ second annual Denver sale, which realized $11 million in sales with 402 collector cars sold out of 611 offered, for a nearly 66 percent sell through rate.
The total was off from Mecum’s inaugural Denver sale, which totaled more than $12 million for 396 vehicles with a 66 percent sell-through. This year’s auction was dinged by the no-sales of several modern exotics that failed to meet reserve, including one of the headliners, a 2006 Ford GT Heritage Edition that was pulled after bidding stalled at $240,000.
The restored Galaxie is a desirable R-Code performance model that was originally built to race in Australia, and while it has been converted to left-hand drive, it retains the export dashboard. The Ford, which sold for $155,000 (plus auction fee), came with a letter of authenticity signed by Lee Holman of Holman & Moody, the company which created many of the winning competition Fords of that era.
Along with the Galaxie, the top-10 sellers in Denver were performance machines, nine from the U.S. and one from Germany. Following the Ford were three Chevy Corvettes: a 1963 split-window coupe, $140,000; a 1957 resto-mod roadster, $135,000; and a 1967 427/400 hp convertible $125,000. Coming in fifth was a 1970 Buick GSX Stage 1 at $115,000.
Corvettes took two other top-10 spots, with a 1966 coupe at No. 6 selling for $115,000 and a 1965 convertible that reached $72,000 at No. 9. The remainder of the top 10 were a 1967 Shelby GT500 fastback, No. 7 at $80,000; a 1986 Porsche 930 turbo, $80,000, at No. 8; and a 1967 Pontiac GTO Judge hitting No. 10 at $67,000
The top-10 list for Mecum’s Denver sale is:
1. 1963 Ford Galaxie 500XL at $155,000
2. 1963 Chevrolet Corvette split window coupe at $140,000
3. 1957 Chevrolet Corvette resto mod at $135,000
4. 1967 Chevrolet Corvette 427/400 HP convertible at $125,000
5. 1970 Buick GSX Stage 1 at $115,000
6. 1966 Chevrolet Corvette coupe at $115,000
7. 1967 Shelby GT500 fastback at $80,000
8. 1986 Porsche 930 Turbo) at $80,000
9. 1965 Chevrolet Corvette convertible at $72,000
10. 1970 Pontiac GTO Judge at $67,000
(All sales results reflect hammer prices and do not include auction fees)
Mecum’s next auction takes place July 21-23 at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg, followed by Mecum’s sale in Monterey, California, known as The Daytime Auction, on August 13-15 during Pebble Beach Concours week.
For for Denver results, visit the Mecum website.
