GAA Classic Cars held the first of three yearly sales this past weekend.
Few auctions run as consistently as GAA Classic Cars, with three per year in February, July and November, plus an occasional collection large enough to merit a sale all by its lonesome. And none of the other non-traveling sales feature the volume going through Greensboro.
As I scrolled through the results, a 1957 Chrysler 300C convertible caught my eye at a deal of $86,000, which takes it to $92,880 based on 8% onsite buyer’s commission. Contrast that with the ACC Pocket Price Guide median of $113,500.
The 300C is presented as “restored” in the auction listing, with a list of parts, facts and features. By no means does it appear perfect, as the back of the front seats appear a bit loose and I know a lot of folks would complain about an Interstate battery under the hood. At least it has a black top. But all of the major pieces are without quibble. Profile shots of the car show very consistent panel gaps and no wavy body panels.
It seems like someone drove away from the Automobile Palace with a steal of a deal.
Two Letter Series cars proceeded the 300C in the auction run order, a 300D and 300E, both hard tops and both hammered at $55,000. That’s $59,400 with the juice.
The 300D hard top is easily the weakest looking of the bunch. And that’s primarily due to a comparison of the profile photos of each car. The D doesn’t have the same door-gap congruency as the other two. That didn’t seem to make a difference when it came to the price, as it hammered the same as the E one lot later. The price was considerably above the market median of $36,000. Maybe a few folks just really loved that coral-and-tan combo.
The 300E was in the same white-over-tan color combination as the C. “Nut and bolt restoration” is listed in the description along with some more general facts about the model. The photos show a great-looking car that sold very close to the ACC market median of $55,000.
Presumably, given the run order, these are from the same collection (or dealer), but that went unstated.
These cars at these prices, even with the 300D well over its market median, represent both some of the deals and quality that one can experience when buying in Greensboro. At least that’s what I’ve seen editing market reports from their auctions for several years now.
You can read the complete market report from GAA Classic Car’s February 2020 sale, including the three Letter Series Chryslers I just mentioned, in the upcoming May-June issue of American Car Collector.