No First Gen NSXs at any of the Scottsdale auctions?

Joined
30 September 2005
Messages
844
Location
Carmel, IN
I've been checking out some of the lots at various 2016 Scottsdale auctions and haven't seen any first gen NSXs.
The car market has been very good for the last few years and I would think with the new NSX releasing soon and 001 selling at B-J, the first gen cars would be getting a lot of attention and possibly bringing some good numbers this weekend. I'm surprised there aren't any to be auctioned or have I missed them?
 
I personally dont think Barrett-Jackson is the correct place for the NSX. They just seem to have a different breed of vehicle. if the NSX was american and from the 50/60s yes. but none of the exotics really seem to do 'well' in my opinion. Except one that had history at the BJ Florida auction. The buyers in scottsdale arent hoping to get there and see three NSX's to have the pic of.

either way I dont think BJ is the right auction place for the NSX. But thats just my opinion.
 
Four NSX's went through Mecum in Kissimmee this year compared to one last year:

https://www.mecum.com/lot-detail/FL0116-230430/0/1991-Acura-NSX/5-Speed/ ($39.5)
https://www.mecum.com/lot-detail/FL0116-230741/0/1995-Acura-NSX-T/5-Speed/ (no sale @$40k)
https://www.mecum.com/lot-detail/FL0116-231790/0/1993-Acura-NSX/5-Speed/ ($40.5)
https://www.mecum.com/lot-detail/FL0116-232095/0/1991-Acura-NSX/Automatic/ ($37k)

Strong money for all of them in my opinion. You also have to factor in the 10% buyers fee in the price (and 10% fee for the seller).
 
I personally dont think Barrett-Jackson is the correct place for the NSX. They just seem to have a different breed of vehicle. if the NSX was american and from the 50/60s yes. but none of the exotics really seem to do 'well' in my opinion. Except one that had history at the BJ Florida auction. The buyers in scottsdale arent hoping to get there and see three NSX's to have the pic of.

either way I dont think BJ is the right auction place for the NSX. But thats just my opinion.

Well, I can see your point, but I think an NSX would do better at BJ than it would at Mecum. Particularly this year with the sale of 001. Also, some of the British cars do very well there. The Austin-Healeys always bring top dollar and I noticed they have an OBL E-Type Jag which to me would seem to be better suited at RM. So, although I think they are primarily associated with american cars they seem to do pretty well with everything. I guess what I'm saying is it's obviously subjective and you never know what will happen at any of them. However, I can't think of any other venue that would do any better. Additionally, this is one of the biggest auction weekends and RM and Russo Steele also have none to be auctioned. It just seems strange to me, but perhaps 1st gens haven't completely turned the corner into the collector car market.

Out of curiosity If you were to auction your car what venue would you choose and why? Ebay not included. :smile:

- - - Updated - - -

Four NSX's went through Mecum in Kissimmee this year compared to one last year:

https://www.mecum.com/lot-detail/FL0116-230430/0/1991-Acura-NSX/5-Speed/ ($39.5)
https://www.mecum.com/lot-detail/FL0116-230741/0/1995-Acura-NSX-T/5-Speed/ (no sale @$40k)
https://www.mecum.com/lot-detail/FL0116-231790/0/1993-Acura-NSX/5-Speed/ ($40.5)
https://www.mecum.com/lot-detail/FL0116-232095/0/1991-Acura-NSX/Automatic/ ($37k)

Strong money for all of them in my opinion. You also have to factor in the 10% buyers fee in the price (and 10% fee for the seller).

Hmm. I did not see those. They do look like pretty strong money. However, does Kissimmee really attract the buying power and craziness that Scottsdale and Monterrey do?
If I were to auction mine I think I'd try to get it in one the Monterrey auctions.
 
I bought both of my NSXs through Prime. So I would sell them through Prime. More knowledgeable buyers here. My guess is that 75% of NSX sales are done privately rather than through dealers or auction houses. In fact, that may be true of most foreign makes. I also think it matters where the auction is held. Some areas of the country will draw more domestic muscle car buyers and places like Monterrey and West Palm Beach will cater to high end exotics, foreign sports cars and the concours classics buyers. Though, I think more NSXs will start appearing in auctions over the next few years as the collectors are starting to recognize the collectability of the NSX. But, which group of buyers does it appeal to most? Good discussion.
 
Hmm. I did not see those. They do look like pretty strong money. However, does Kissimmee really attract the buying power and craziness that Scottsdale and Monterrey do?

There is plenty of money at the Kissimmee auction, but the interest is mostly in classic and muscle cars - generally domestic vehicles. There were plenty of 6 figure muscle cars running through the auction. There were also big numbers for some rarer domestic cars like 2.7 million paid for a Plymouth Hemi Baracuda. So the money is there, but probably not for exotic cars. They ran a bunch of high end Ferraris through and none of them sold, so I was actually a little surprised that the NSXs did as well as they did. As I was checking out the black NSX, a few guys asked me a bunch of questions - they clearly didn't know much about the car.
 
Last edited:
Too bad there weren't any that did go across the block at BJ last weekend, as I think it would have drawn a fair amount of attention to the Gen 1s. Honestly, I'm actually shocked prices aren't increasing a great deal more.
IMHO, Gen 1s are still a great value for the ease of ownership, reliability, fun, and rarity factors.
 
Too bad there weren't any that did go across the block at BJ last weekend, as I think it would have drawn a fair amount of attention to the Gen 1s. Honestly, I'm actually shocked prices aren't increasing a great deal more.
IMHO, Gen 1s are still a great value for the ease of ownership, reliability, fun, and rarity factors.

Agreed.
The window is still open for a good car, but that may quickly change.
 
So whom do you think shows up as bidders: people looking for a specific vehicle having perused the lot list, or people going to see what strikes their fancy?
 
So whom do you think shows up as bidders: people looking for a specific vehicle having perused the lot list, or people going to see what strikes their fancy?

I think in the big picture, if one went across the block, it would have generated interest. Maybe not in the room, but the TV audience would have their eyes opened to the model. And that is where the value increase would come from.
 
So whom do you think shows up as bidders: people looking for a specific vehicle having perused the lot list, or people going to see what strikes their fancy?

I think it depends on what level of cars are being shown on a particular day. For example, the first couple days of the auctions we usually see the less expensive driver cars on the block. It appears that many of the bidders have one or a few cars that they are interested in with the hope of winning one of them. Then when the high dollar collectables come out, it appears the bidders have specific cars that they are interested in with the hope of getting them all. Then there are the Rick Hendricks of the auction that like every car in the auction and if he isn't there he has a representative buying for him. He seems to bid on 001 vin# or very limited production high performance cars and cars with a racing history. I doubt very many people go there just looking for what strikes their fancy. Most know what they are going to bid on well before the auction.
 
So whom do you think shows up as bidders: people looking for a specific vehicle having perused the lot list, or people going to see what strikes their fancy?

I'd say both.

The Scottsdale auctions strike me as a place where enthusiasts go to pick up a new toy without a specific vehicle in mind , particularly at BJ. When I went it felt like the auctions were a destination to have a good time, check out a lot of great cars, and pick one up if so desired. This is why I thought BJ could have been a great venue this year for a Gen 1.

Monterrey seemed similar except the other events were the destination and the auctions just happened to have the best of the best and the bidders were the wealthiest of the wealthy. It also seemed that there were more international bidders onsite in Monterrey than other auctions I've attended. Hopefully, in August there will be a collector quality Gen 1 to set a precedent for the collectibility of the Gen 1 NSX. Every three days there seems to be a an article somewhere saying it's going to be collectible, but I'm impatient and want to see it happen.

It amazes me that air cooled Porsches have been going up at crazy levels and the NSX hasn't experienced that. All of the auctions had multiple Porsches and not one NSX. Also, there seem to be a ton of 911s to choose from and a limited number of NSXs. I'm still a huge air cooled 911 fan, but within 1 minute of driving an NSX I thought it was vastly superior to a similar year porsche. Perhaps Gen 1 NSXs will be like long hood 911s in 20 years?
 
Back
Top