Gooding & Company Realizes More Than $131 Million and 37 World Records from its 2011 Automotive Auctions

Reflecting the Rising Currency of Collector Cars,

Gooding & Company Realizes More Than $131 Million and

37 World Records from its 2011 Automotive Auctions

SANTA MONICA, Calif. (October 13, 2011) – Gooding & Company is pleased to report its 2011 year-end sales of more than $131 million, a 14% increase in sales from its 2010 results. The auction house realized 37 world records,  including those for the 1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa Prototype that sold for $16.39 million, the world’s most valuable car ever sold at auction, and the Whittell Coupe Duesenberg Model J that sold for $10.34 million, the most valuable American car ever sold at auction.  Two-hundred and ninety cars were sold at auction throughout the year, averaging $451,867 per car sold. 

“2011 was an excellent year.  We saw dynamic bidding at all three auctions and achieved extraordinary milestones for our company, including a 100% Saturday sale in Scottsdale,” says David Gooding, president and founder of Gooding & Company.  “More than ever before, we’re seeing incredible strength at the top of the market; we sold 27 cars at values greater than $1 million each at our auctions this year and I anticipate this number will continue to rise in 2012.”

Rick Carey, Auction Editor of SportsCarDigest.com, reports that Gooding & Company closed three of the world’s top five 2011 automotive auction sales to date, the Ferrari Testa Rossa Prototype and the Whittell Coupe from Pebble Beach ranking number one and two, respectively; additionally, the 1927 Mercedes-Benz Type S 26/180 Sportwagen that sold for $5.04 million in Pebble Beach is the fifth highest transaction and consolidates Gooding & Company's position at the pinnacle of collector car auction sales.

Over the years, Gooding & Company has auctioned more than $25 million in collector cars consigned to benefit charity, which has impacted various causes and foundations around the world. An exceptional philanthropic achievement in 2011, Gooding & Company and Sheryl Crow realized the record-breaking, charity-driven sale of the Grammy-award winning artist’s 1959 Mercedes-Benz 190 SL at the Pebble Beach Auctions in August.  The star’s classic roadster sold for three times more than its estimate and proceeds benefitted the Joplin Schools Recovery Fund, one of several charitable funds developed to rebuild the tornado-devastated region of Southwest Missouri.  The generous buyers of the car made headlines several weeks following the auctions by matching the car’s hammer price with a second donation to the fund. 

Gooding & Company’s top ten sales in 2011 are listed below in order of value.  For additional history, complete lists of prices realized for every auction to date are posted on Goodingco.com’s auction results page.  

Scottsdale Auctions, January 21 & 22

•  $34,980,000 total sold including a 10% buyer’s premium
• 3 % sales increase from 2010
• 121 of 129 lots sold
• 94% sales rate
• Average price per car sold: $289,000
• 100% of reserve lots sold at Saturday Auction
• Eleven world records

Gooding & Company ignited the year with an outstanding $34.98 million Scottsdale sale, highlighted by the company’s unprecedented achievement of selling 100% of its reserve lots in one auction day, and selling the most valuable car of Scottsdale Auction Week for the fourth consecutive year, the $2.09 million 2006 Ferrari FXX Evoluzione.  A special interest for Ferrari enthusiasts around the world, the presentation of 11 Ferrari supercars and modern prototypes from the estate of Benny Caiola realized $5.225 million.  Demand for original, preservation-class quality cars was high, resulting in outstanding results for the 1953 Fiat 8V Supersonic that sold for $1.705 million and the 1962 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster that sold for $951,000. 

Amelia Island Auction, March 11

• $17,879,550 total sold including a 10% buyer’s premium
• 11% sales increase from 2010
• 70 of 85 lots sold
• 82% sales rate
• Average price per car sold: $255,400
• Seven world records

Gooding & Company’s second-annual Amelia Island Auction realized more than $17 million in sales, an 11% sales increase from its inaugural auction in the new Southern Atlantic market.  Post-war European sports cars performed well, such as the 1951 Ferrari 212 Export Cabriolet and 1971 Lamborghini Miura P400 SV Prototype, which sold for $1.87 million and $1.705 million, respectively.  Preservation-quality examples also sold to high market demand, such as the unrestored Bentley R-Type that sold for $770,000.

Pebble Beach Auctions, August 20 & 21

• $78,181,900 total sold including a 10% buyer’s premium
• 21% sales increase from 2010
• 106 of 127 lots sold
• 83% sales rate
• Average price per car sold: $737,500
• Nineteen world records

The highest recorded sale in Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance history, Gooding & Company's outstanding Pebble Beach Auctions realized more than $78 million in collector cars sold, which is an exceptional $13.6 million increase from the previous year. In addition to the significant world record sales of the 1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa Prototype for $16.39 million and the Whittell Coupe Duesenberg for $10.34 million, the auction house’s market-leading results produced an impressive list of 19 world records across a myriad of American and European marque categories.