The Mustang Club of America and Ford Motor Co. have announced a joint celebration marking 50 years of the original pony car, the Ford Mustang, from April 16 through April 20 in two places at once.
Open to everyone, including the multitude of Mustang enthusiasts, the twin parties take place at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C., and Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas, Nev. The Mustang fun will include live music, cruises, ride-and-drive, exhibitions, celebrities and of course, pony rides.
With a brand-new 2015 Mustang all saddled up and ready to run, Ford is focusing on its wildly successful progeny. More than nine million of them have been sold in the past half century, and nearly everybody has a Mustang story to tell.
Photo courtesy of Horseless Carriage Club of America
How time flies when you’re driving an ancient automotive device, so crank up Ole Bessie for the 77th anniversary Horseless Carriage Club of America convention and tour. It all takes place Feb. 10-15, 2014, on the snowless roads in and around Sierra Vista, Arizona.
Photo courtesy of Horseless Carriage of America
It you can get there early, as in Feb. 9, there’s a pre-tour shakedown run.
Highlights of this chug-chug around southern Arizona include Tombstone and the OK Corral; the strange, artsy town of Bisbee; incredible Karchner Caverns; a real, live ghost town; the Mexican border; plus lots and lots of beautiful Sonoran Desert. Bring water.
For more information, get out your kerosene-powered computer and log on to: hcca.org.
Mecum Auctions and NBC Sports Group have announced a three-year contract that will provide more than 425 hours of classic car auction coverage, including 125 hours of programming in 2014.
NBC’s coverage of Mecum Auctions begins with Mecum’s 10-day January auction at Kissimmee, Florida, where the auction house plans to offer some 3,000 vehicles for bidding.
Kissimmee coverage begins at 1 p.m. (Eastern time) on the Esquire Network. Coverage on Esquire continues until January 24, which NBCSN joins the effort.
Finally, at 3 p.m. January 26, NBC will show a one-hour special featuring the highlights of the Kissimmee event.
Esquire Network, NBCSN and NBC are part of the NBCUniversal family of networks.
The NBCSN and NBC coverage will be streamed online via NBC Sports Life Extra. Coverage can be seen on desktop computers through NBCSports.com/liveextra. There are apps for watching the online coverage on iPhone, iPad, IPod touch (at the App Store) and on Android handset and tablet devices (at Google Play).
After Kissimmee, the Mecum/NBC contract will show coverage of 2014 auctions at Houston, Kansas City (both the April and December sales), Indianapolis, Seattle, Harrisburg, Monterey, Dallas, Chicago, Anaheim and Austin.
(Editor’s note: One of the features we hope to include as a regular part of this blog are photos and stories from those often unexpected but usually very pleasant surprises found while exploring the rust and dust of the old roads. Let us know if you’ve come across such places so we can share your stories and photos as well.)
Photos by Larry Edsall
Bobby Troup wrote about Flagstaff, Kingman, Barstow and San Bernadino, and for some reason he didn’t forget Winona, though I’ve been there and saw nothing that might be a reason for memorialization in a song. Unless, perhaps, Winona wasn’t just the way station between Gallup and Flagstaff but a woman who shared the town’s name?
Regardless, Troup didn’t include Newberry Springs in his lyrics for (Get Your Kicks On) Route 66, perhaps because even back in 1946 Newberry Springs was little more than a watering hole in the Mojave Desert (they wouldn’t film the movie Bagdad Cafe there until the mid-1980s), or maybe because Vartan “Willie” Kalajian had yet to establish his business in Newberry Springs.
We were driving the California section of old Route 66 when we spotted what appeared to be an auto salvage yard hidden behind trees and protected by a big fence. However, it never — well, not usually — hurts to see if you can get in, so we followed a long, sandy driveway to an open gate.
There sat Willie himself, wrenching on a spotless white Karmann-Ghia he was building up for his daughter.
Willie mind if we wandered around and took some photos?
Help yourself, he said.
Later, we got to chatting and realized that if we’d have asked to stay for dinner, Willie likely would have been accommodated.
Willie’s business is Willie’s On & Off Road Center, which specializes in Volkswagens and in using VW parts to build dune buggies, he said. After our trip, we checked his website (www.williesoffroad.com) and learned he also scouts locations for movie shoots, and provides vehicles for those movies and location support for film crews working throughout the region.
Soon, we’ll start previewing the upcoming Arizona Auction Week events and the highlights of consignments at the various venues. But before we look ahead to 2014, we need to check the rearview mirrors and do a little review of the classic car auction year 2013.
We’re limiting this top-10 list to auctions held in North America, so don’t expect to read about the all-time at-auction sales record for a single classic vehicle — the $29.65 million and change someone spent at a Bonhams auction in England this year to buy one of the 1954 Mercedes-Benz W196Rs that Juan Manuel Fangio drove to his second World Driving Championship.
Actually, I guess you just read about it. Oh well, on with our top-10 auction highlights for 2013:
10. RM does a one-day sale of much of the collection of Texas auto dealer Dan Davis. The sale realizes $21.2 million, including a record $1 million for a Japanese car, albeit a true classic Japanese sports car, one from the few dozen 1967 Toyota 2000GTs exported to the U.S. market.
9. One of 20 1967 Chevrolet Corvette L88 convertibles sells for $3.2 million at Dana Mecum’s auction in Dallas. Provenance matters, the Corvette came with the time slip from its sprint to the NHRA A/Sports national championship.
8. There were new players in the auction scene and some familiar faces were playing in new places. Consider: RK Motors staged its first two auctions, including one with a remote bidding parlor in Abu Dhabi; Motostalgia did its first auction; Barrett-Jackson added Hot August Nights in Reno; Russo and Steele added Newport Beach and Las Vegas to its travel itinerary; the tiny town of Nocoma, Texas, rekindled its automotive history with a Vicari auction and big cruise-in; and Auctions America visited California (more on that in a moment).
7. An amazing amount of money was left on the table as consignors refused to relent on their reserve prices, even in the face of million-plus bids. For example, at Amelia Island, consignors convinced their cars were worth even more declined bids totaling some $6.5 million. It also happened in Arizona and elsewhere and shows just how strong the classic car marketplace was this year.
6. The famed Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles sold off several dozen cars at auctions in 2013 (including the Auctions America event at nearby Burbank) and some people were in an uproar because they didn’t understand that museums sell parts of their collections from time to time and that most of what the Petersen sold wasn’t really part of its “collection” but just cars that had been donated to the museum, were taking up space in its parking garage, and in many cases weren’t worth the cost of restoration.
5. The auction year opened in Arizona, where sales exceeded $200 million for the first time where two Ferraris sold for more than $8 million each (at Gooding and RM) and where the original Batmobile brought a lot of excitement and $4.62 million at Barrett-Jackson.
4. Monterey saw Arizona’s $230 million and raised to more than $300 million during its auction week, which included a North American auction-record $27.5 million price for one of the 10 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4*S N.A.R.T. Spyders at RM’s sale.
3. RM and Sotheby’s set out to convince New York City fine art collectors that classic cars were, indeed, fine art. The result: some $63 million in sales during a two-hour auction.
2. This one may surprise you, because we rank the highly publicized and nationally televised VanDerBrink auction out in a farmer’s field in Nebraska of leftovers from the Lambrecht Chevrolet dealership No. 2 on our top-10 list. So what’s No. 1?
1. The Lambrecht sale may have been a big deal with the general public, but within the classic car community, tiny cars were the big thing back in February when the Bruce Weiner Microcar Museum in Georgia sold off its collection at an RM event and proved that big fun does come in small packages.
Barrett-Jackson and the Fox television networks have announced a new contract that expands coverage of the 43rd annual Scottsdale classic and collector car auction in January. Coverage will include not only the various Fox cable channels, but Fox’s primary broadcast channel and the National Geographic channel, a joint venture between Fox and National Geographic Society.
“Again, we’re setting a new and higher bar,” said Craig Jackson, chairman and chief executive of the auction company that bears his family’s name.
“I’ve always had two dreams,” he added. “Broadcast television and world distribution. Those are the pinnacles.”
Jackson said that in addition to the national over-the-air broadcast of the auction on the main Fox Broadcasting Co. channel, the various Fox Sports cable channels, including Speed International, will provide coverage of the auction in Canada and in the Caribbean.
In recent years, Barrett-Jackson auctions have been televised by Speed, an automotive-oriented cable network that was enfolded into Fox Sports in the United States.
“It was bittersweet having Speed go,” Jackson said, “but one opportunity closes and another presents itself.”
A significant opportunity in Jackson’s eyes will be two hours of Barrett-Jackson coverage and commentary Jan. 14-16 and three hours on Jan. 17 on the Fox Business Network.
“The ability to talk to the financial community, and with National Geographic coverage on Saturday, means millions more people will be able to watch Barrett-Jackson,” he said.
Fox Sports 1 and Fox Sports 2 will be part of the daily coverage mix. Fox Broadcast will cover the auction from 1-3 p.m. Eastern time on Saturday, Jan 18, with National Geographic live from 3-10 p.m.
To accommodate all the coverage on Saturday, Barrett-Jackson will split its Salon selection cars into two groups, Jackson said.
“When we’re on Fox Broadcast it is going to be iconic Americana,” Jackson said, adding that the honor guard from U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton will open the show, which will start with a major sale to benefit charity. The two-hour segment will end with the auction of the Snake and Mongoose drag racing funny cars and car haulers.
The National Geographic part of the program will include European sports cars and classics from the Salon grouping as well as other vehicles.
“We’ve supersized Saturday,” Jackson said. “Saturday’s prime time will start earlier and will continue until we end the Salon sales.”
In addition to 36 hours of auction coverage, Fox will show a five-hour Best of Scottsdale 2013 program on Fox Sports 2 from 5-10 p.m. Christmas Day and will air a one-hour Scottsdale 2014 Preview show on Fox Sports 1 from 8-9 Eastern Dec. 19, and from 2-3 p.m. Dec. 26 and on Fox Sports 2 from 10-11 p.m. Dec. 15.
Barrett-Jackson and Fox believe the new schedule will produce the largest television audience in collector car auction history, providing, according to the press release announcing the schedule, “an opportunity to both reach the already dedicated automotive enthusiast and to introduce its high-energy presentation and collector car lifestyle to a broad new audience.”
Great story from Ed Fisher. I just sold my ’55 Crown Victoria and felt the need to own another car. I found a 61 Sunliner and bought it over the phone. I have always thought that they are very under-appreciated cars. Very elegant. Mine doesn’t have the 401, but I just want to cruise, so the 352 is good enough. I will probably sell this one as well and buy another “One I’ve Always Wanted.”
Gary Chittenden
Coldwater, Ontario, Canada
Many thanks to Gary for sharing his story. Why not share yours?
Phoenix, Dec. 16, 2013 – ClassicCars.com, the world’s largest online marketplace devoted to classic and collector cars, today announced the launch of its high-profile industry blog. The ClassicCars.com Blog complements the world’s largest selection of classic and collector vehicles with industry news, feature articles, and insightful commentary from respected automotive journalists. The blog represents the company’s first major expansion into the realm of feature content.
Heading up the editorial team is Senior Editor Larry Edsall. Edsall is a veteran author, having written or co-written fifteen books on automobiles and the automotive industry. Edsall is a former Managing Editor of AutoWeek Magazine and is a regular contributor to The Detroit News and The New York Times.
Also on the editorial team is Bob Golfen, a name familiar to fans of SPEED.com, the website for the SPEED motorsports channel. Golfen is the former automotive writer and editor for The Arizona Republic.
“The ClassicCars.com Blog doesn’t just complement our tremendous online catalog of vehicles for sale with news and entertainment,” said Roger FAlcione, President and CEO of ClassicCars.com. “Rather, it’s a powerful expression of our commitment to all aspects of the collector car hobby. I can’t think of a better team than Larry and Bob to foster a real sense of community among our readers.”
By focusing on the human side of the industry, the editorial team fully embraces the blog’s tagline: “Your daily dose of steel, rubber and soul. The blog’s content combines deep insights, long experience, often pointed commentary, and a touch of humor to provide a unique perspective.”
About ClassicCars.com
ClassicCars.com is the world’s largest provider of classic car marketing services bringing buyers and sellers, dealers and owner operators together. Our car community reaches more than 2.3. million car enthusiasts a month and focuses on all of the needs to support their interest in the collector car hobby/industry.
ClassicCars.com is transforming the collector car buying and selling experience through strategic technology development, superior personal customer service and innovative products and services. We are setting the pace for the online marketplace, for connecting people and establishing the largest community of collectors and enthusiasts. At ClassicCars.com you can Drive your dream ® .
Way back in 1961 or 1962 I had a “401” 1961 Starliner, 3-speed with overdrive. I won many Super Stock trophies with it. Had a great time. One fantastic memory was driving it from Akron to Daytona, checking into the motel, putting slicks on it, and drag racing on the back stretch of Daytona Speedway on Saturday night the night before the 500.
I was first loser (to a towed Super Stock). What a memory. That was also the year Curtis Turner was driving a ’61 Starliner. Came from the back of the pack to I believe 5th place and then blew the engine! That was accomplished in just a few laps.
What a car!!!
I had the chance to buy a ’61 Starliner 3 years ago. It has the “401” also. It is aqua and white,very original. So I went to North Carolina and bought it.
I live in Phoenix and take it to various shows here.
Ed Fisher
Akron, Ohio
Many thanks to Ed for sharing his story. Why not share yours?
Will you be in Arizona in January for the classic car auctions? If so, the Phoenix Automotive Press Association hopes to provide you with a way to sort through the half-dozen auctions taking place at locations in three cities in the Valley of the Sun.
For the fifth year in a row, the local auto writers group — PAPA — will stage its Arizona Auction Week Preview event. This year, it begins at 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, January 14 in Singer Hall at the Phoenix Art Museum.
The evening begins with a dessert buffet provided by your favorite website, www.classiccars.com, The program starts at 7 p.m. with brief presentations by each of the auction houses, following by a panel discussion featuring experts in the classic car hobby.
Panelists this year — three are confirmed and another one or two are pending — are:
John Carlson, chief judge for the new Arizona Concours d’Elegance. He also is chief judge of the concours Hilton Head, Cobble Beach, Crescent Beach and Louisville concours, a Master Judge for the Classic Car Club of America, and a Chief Class Judge for the Pebble Beach concours d’elegance.
Corky Coker, president of the family-owned Coker Tire Co., which produces tires for all vintage vehicles. He also is head honcho for The Great Race, proprietor of the Honest Charley Speed Shop & Garage, a car and motorcycle collector, and in February will launch a new television series, “Backroad Gold.”
Keith Martin, founder and publisher of Sports Car Market and American Car Collector magazines and author of the new book, Strange but True Tales of Car Collecting: Drowned Bugattis, Buried Belvederes, Felonious Ferraris and Other Wild Stories of Automotive Misadventures.
Tickets are $20 each. Since PAPA is a non-profit organization, proceeds will go toward scholarship programs for college students studying journalism or classic car restoration. Tickets can be purchased through the www.eventbrite website.
In addition to the program, goodie bags will be distributed and several items — including an autographed copy of Keith Martin’s new book, will be offered as door prizes.
