Gooding & Company rewrote the record books in Florida this weekend, achieving more than $60 million at the company’s annual Amelia Island auction.
The packed room saw 79 blue-chip automobiles cross the block, setting nine new auction records along the way to a final total of $60,162,150. Notable highlights included a selection of cars from the collection of comedian Jerry Seinfeld, which together topped $22 million, and a rare Ferrari which brought the highest price in Amelia Island history.
"We are delighted with our auction results and are proud of the new auction records we have set, which demonstrates that there is a strong demand for high quality cars," stated David Gooding, President of Gooding & Company. "The room was electric from the beginning and the crowd’s intensity only grew when Mr. Seinfeld joined Charlie and me on stage to present his stunning offerings."
Leading the sale was a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider, one of the world’s most sought-after cars, which fetched a final price of $17,160,000 – setting a record for any Amelia Island sale, and making it the most expensive car ever auctioned by Gooding & Company.
It wasn’t the only Ferrari to fetch an impressive price, with a 1995 Ferrari F50 selling for $2,310,000 and a 1960 Ferrari 250 GT Series II Cabriolet fetching $1,512,500.
Topping the Seinfeld Collection was a remarkably original 1955 Porsche 550 Spyder, which the comedian had described as the automotive equivalent of "a sonnet by Shakespeare or a symphony by Beethoven". Following a lengthy and spirited bidding war ensued, the car finally sold for $5,335,000.
Further standout lots from the collection included a 1959 Porsche 718 RSK which sold for $2,860,000; a 1974 Porsche 911 Carrera 3.0 IROC RSR which sold for $2,310,000; a 1990 Porsche 962C which realized $1,650,000; and a 1960 Volkswagen Beetle which fetched a world record $121,000.
Elsewhere there were good results for a 1966 Ford GT40 Mk I Road Coupe which sold for $3,300,000, and a 1931 Duesenberg Model J Murphy Convertible Coupe which sold for $2,640,000. The sale concluded with a sell-through rate of 87%, and a strong average price-per-vehicle of $871,915.
