Friends, Romans, countrymen, welcome back to the Internet’s favorite weekly auction result slideshow. As the weather gets warmer, and the days get longer, everyone begins swapping out their winter beaters for sports cars — and they’re headed to Bring A Trailer to do so. We don’t have a single K5 Blazer this week, but there are three convertibles on the list. The times, they are a-changing.
NADA value: $6,250 in stock form
I’ll admit, I have a soft spot for the fourth-generation Legacy. I actually owned one myself, an ‘05 wagon with the turbo and stick shift just like this one. Unlike mine, however, this Legacy GT has been heavily worked over — the engine, transmission, brakes, suspension, interior, and exterior have all been modified, mostly with Japanese-market parts. It’s the Subaru Legacy of Theseus.
For a Subie geek like me, this build absolutely rules. Its thread on the LegacyGT forums shows incredible attention to detail, but it also shows a fatal flaw — by the time the original builder sold the car, the engine still didn’t run right. A Japanese engine in an American-delivered chassis, mashed together with European interior parts and a custom wiring harness to put them all together, is a recipe for weird gremlins that can never fully be sorted out. Does that sound like a project worth dropping eighteen grand on?
NADA value: There aren’t usually book values for signs
Normally, commenters on Bring A Trailer auctions come to the defense of the site’s extremely reasonable sale prices. The comments on this Porsche dealership sign, however, look a little different: Laughing emojis, astonishment at the price, even bidders on this auction talking about how overpriced it is.
Amusingly, this sign doesn’t even feature its original lights. It was converted to LED lighting, which means it’s functionally indistinguishable from a reproduction sign that gets its lighting from Amazon. But, sure, spend a house down payment on big shiny letters. There’s no way those lose value, ever.
Hagerty value: $17,100 in Concours condition
Generally, if a car is selling for over double its book value, that means it’s a pristine example of the make and model. Perfectly clean, all original, with exceptionally low mileage and no history of damage. This Mk2 Golf GTI bucks that trend, by being absolutely none of those things.
While the history report included on the auction is clean, the ad mentions a staggering number of blips on this car’s record. It’s been hit, vandalized, broken into, broken into again, hit again, and only partially restored. The paint is all new, but it still sports bent factory wheels? There’s more to the story here, and I certainly wouldn’t want to pay forty thousand dollars to learn what’s in those chapters.
Hagerty value: $42,400 in Concours condition
Ah, the Suckers Slideshow classic: A nineties-to-early-2000s diesel pickup truck. This is the part where I look at the values, declare the truck to be too expensive, and then the comments fill with people saying that actually this era was the peak of diesel truck engineering and as such they’re worth literally any amount of money someone could ever spend on one. You can set a clock to it.
Today’s sacrifice is a Ford F-250, and it’s a great example of why Peak Diesel Engineering no longer matters for these cars. I’ll let you in on a secret, dear reader: I agree with you. This era of diesels is the best, and I’d own one if I had the budget and room. But for over fifty thousand dollars, this is no longer a truck you can use, one you can beat on. It’s something that needs to be kept pristine, unscuffed, ready for the next buyer to overpay. The engine could be a hamster wheel, and it would be just as effective in the real world.
Hagerty value: What’s a Charger body worth? The drivetrain is non-factory, so it’s tough to tell what this would be worth in all-original trim
Aesthetically, this Charger is perfect. That green color, draped around those classic body lines, looks absolutely incredible. Sure, the wheels are a bit too modern, but they’re the right color and the design is probably just to make room for those Wilwood brakes. They get a pass.
But, mechanically, there’s no way this provides a $72,000 driving experience. I’m firmly pro-automatic transmissions in sports cars, but this is an ancient three-speed auto. Sure, that could make for a perfectly functional low-speed cruiser, but is that what you want for seventy two grand? A cruiser with ancient suspension and no air conditioning?
Hagerty value: $59,900 in Concours condition
Fun fact! This is the most expensive Lancer Evolution to ever sell on Bring A Trailer. Some would argue it deserves to be, as a pristine, low-mileage example of the “last real Evo” — the last generation to carry the venerable 4G63 engine under its hood. Sure, it’s no Evo MR, but it still has the warning tag on the glove box! It’s an investment!
At least, that’s what the commenters claim. One even says that this absurd pricing is a result of people buying up collectibles and securities, transferring Fiat currency into assets for fear of an economic crash. But when the housing bubble pops, are Mitsubishi Lancers really going to be the asset that saves your portfolio?
We’ve done the “modifying your classic car in Extremely Boomer Style does not add value” thing to death. This C1 Corvette is just the latest example, down to the “champagne gold” exterior preferred by Floridian retirees. You look at those wheels and tell me there’s a god.
The comments on this Corvette bring up some fun facts about its restoration. Depending on your state, an attempt to register this car may end with it being crushed as contraband due to “VIN tampering,” since it lacks its original VIN tag on the steering column. I, for one, think that gambling six figures on a car that will either be “kinda neat to drive” or “immediately crushed into dust” is fun! Surely there is no better use for one hundred and five thousand United States dollars.
Hagerty value: $102,000 in Concours condition
I just feel bad for this Honda S2000 CR, honestly. The Club Racer trim was designed to do just that: Race. Yet, here this one sits, with under three thousand miles after fourteen years. It’s never been club raced. It’s barely even been driven. Imagine training your whole life for a single task, and then never getting to do it.
Commenters on the auction argued back and forth as to whether CR cars with the stereo and AC are more desirable than those without, but it doesn’t matter. No one’s sat in that driver’s seat long enough to notice. It’s unlikely anyone ever will.
Hagerty value: $75,000 in Concours condition
It’s been a while since I saw a Bring A Trailer result earn as many Twitter dunks as this one. This 968 sold a mere two years ago for exactly one hundred thousand dollars less than its BaT sale price, and even that was above market value at the time. Gotta spend money to make money, I guess.
But what have you spent that money on? This is a thirty-year-old Porsche with an inline four-cylinder under its hood. Sure, the color is extremely good, but that alone can’t make this price worthwhile.
Hagerty value: $188,000 in Concours condition
Normally, a Suckers Slide is written a certain way. I look at an auction, try to figure out why the buyer thinks a car is worth what they paid for it, and then work to explain why that reasoning makes no sense. This F430, though, I’ll be honest. I’m lost.
You can trip over F430s with only marginally higher mileage on AutoTrader for under $130,000. This wasn’t just listed for double that, it sold. Did someone make a typo in their bid? Is this a cry for help? I genuinely cannot fathom the thought process that leads to this purchase. Please, give me an explanation in the comments.