Year in Review: The 10 most expensive auction sales of 2021

[Hagerty]

Considering that 2021 began with bidders' faces pressed against computer screens, it was a decent year for collector car auction sales-certainly a strong second half. Each of the top 10 sales was at least $6 million, and the top two reached eight figures.
https://www.hagerty.com/media/auctions/year-in-review-the-10-most-expensive-auction-sales-of-2021/

[sclin10]

Sorry, I don't get it. I may be condemned by others, but IMHO some people have more money than brains.

[Javman]

WAY more money than brains.

[majorbob]

I agree with you my friend. I don’t see anything worth the money.
Give me a all American primo muscle car anytime, preferably one with an Oldsmobile brand.

[Rpierce45]

'72 Cutlass Hurst W30 would be my first choice.

[corv3tte]

Agreed......like the 1967 black over Sgnet GTO I owned ,or the 1967 442 black over Aspen green that I always like the looks of.....sigh.

[NoahFence]

And they wont even be driven, but I heard Bezos bought the McLaren to use as an anchor for his yacht.

[Tim2]

I don't think brains is an issue. Some people literally have to much money and have to find something to spend it on.

[gfviperman]

I wish they were my friends ... I like them and their great taste!!!

[SLAVENDER]

And several of them now have several million les, so that should increase the brain to money ratio a bit.

[eighthtry]

I agree with that. But who needs brains with money?

[OHCOddball]

No more-door '63 Ramblers?

[Gary_Bechtold]

Not surprised at the cars on the list. The dollar amounts spent are truly crazy.

[waynebrooks4]

Just a place for the wealthy to park some cash for a few years to beat inflation. These folks who buy these cars really do not have interest in them.

[gtabert]

Prices like these just make it harder for guys like us to ever being able to own one. Oh well, maybe when the economy tanks we can swoop in and get one at a bargain!

[KwikDraw]

I would never be able to afford the "bargain" price.

[buellerdan]

And for the rest of us peasants with budgets that require the decimal point to move a few more places to the left.....????

[Cat310]

Greed is good!
"The only thing money can't buy is happiness, but it will let you buy a big enough yacht to pull right up along side it." David Lee Roth

[gtokdx1]

The Aston is so cool and I'm getting a bit tired of the Ferrari craze. That being said, it's unfortunate that as already stated, investors are running these prices up and keeping them out of reach of the "car guys" that would actually enjoy them. I'm guessing that 80-90% of Haggerty's customers are normal car guys and these comments will ultimately reflect that. (That David Lee Roth comment is pretty funny though!!!)

[Hudson]

Didn't crave a single one!

[Inline8OD]

Dear Hagerty, instead of your daily homages to money -- paying no attention to the oft noxious manner it acquired -- you might consider the above posters. Leave the Walter Mitty super car du jour fawning to the Motor Trends and Car and Drivels, focus on 120 years of neglected autodom.

[Blade123]

The only one worth driving is the 1995 McLaren F1 Coupe. At least it's on the newer side. Concors cars are for the ultra rich, that just put them in their stable. No one sees them & no one really cares. They resell when the next guy with more money to waste who comes along & thinks there Cool 😎

[PurelyPMD]

I don't fault anyone for making money & enjoying it but they are traded like pieces of art (which they are) but not as they were originally intended. Let them stick to Degas, Gauguin & Cezanne and leave the driving experience to the rest of us.

[Inline8OD]

And let's leave the Top 10 lists to the much-missed Dave Letterman.

Compiling such arbitrary lists is insult to thousands of equally novel barouches.

Reducing automobilia to a handful of best; using the easy come/easy go inflated coin of the must-have- latest-thing arbitragers, investment bankers, real estate developers, offshore labor flag wavers, trust fund babies as yardstick betrays a comprehension of automotive history, let alone scope, class, charm.

The idea of a "top slot" is laughable, only shows  intellectual laziness,  the CliffsNotes of posers.

[68tempest]

These are all really interesting cars, but get real, most of us want a reasonable price collector car we can use anytime we want to

[corv3tte]

Well....one thing has held true over the years....I couldn't afford 'em then and I can't afford 'em now.

[TG]

is it just me, or are Italian cars with faces trending?

[Jeliz]

Wow, reading these comments made me laugh. Quite a few of you guys have some serious jealousy issues you might want to look into. If these people made the money, let them spend it how ever they see fit. Do any of you like people telling you how to spend the money you earned? So these guys that can afford these cars have more money then brains, so these posters have more brains than money? You would think that the brains you have would equal more money in your bank account. Did any of these people that are buying these cars steal the money from you cry babies?

[Inline8OD]

You read most of the above posts narrowly, miss their greater points. You also assume most of the posters decrying the above mindset are paupers or have no wealthy autoholic friends.
Meanwhile, why are you so quick to defend the mega-rich? Do you imagine taking up e-cudgels on their oh so beleaguered behalf makes you one of them?

[68tempest]

Lot’s of interesting, over priced cars. Most of use want an affordable old car, hot rod to use in our spare time.

[SJ]

These people also buy mansions, vacation homes, yachts etc etc. these cars are just another bauble for them. Forget the money for a minute and appreciate the beautiful cars if you can.

[Carguy01]

I agree. Here is another way to look at the prices of these cars. As much as I really appreciate these beautiful cars they fall into the same category as other investments today, they are bought with inflated dollars. Just like the home that has gone way up in price from a few years ago. The house didn’t become bigger or grow an extra bedroom and bath, the value of the money went down. Inflation drives the prices. For me I would be nervous putting so many eggs in that basket. But they got the money and the cars so they must know more than me.

[acooper529]

What I am hearing is... this kind of article is just basically irrelevant to the lives of most Hagerty readers/ customers at large.
Now then... did that sound better?

[Carguy01]

No, I could go to a pebble beach car show and feast my eyes on most every car there knowing I will never own one of them. I have little interest in the price. Does it matter if it’s 1m or 20m? Not to me. But I am grateful someone had the money to own it and display it.

[terra-incognita]

Welcome to the latest instalment of resentful, bitter, geniuses who would never spend such money for a particular car.
There has always been and will always be somebody who can afford to buy things more expensive than you. And these richer than you people will always find something they want to spend their money on. Houses, airplanes, art, furniture, books, shoes, food…on and on.

Do you think buying a modern F1 car or a Le Mans winner is going to be cheap? Are these cars going to appear on Craigslist or eBay?

This site and its articles are for the automotive crowd. Maybe the article’s subject or topic is not of interest to your tastes…fine…move on. But to take the time to bravely swing your sad little swipes at those who can and are willing to purchase cars such as these is simply weak.

I’ll never be able to afford such cars, but I am not going to condemn those who can. I would rather be grateful that these cars still exist instead of being scraped or rusting away in a field.

[DaveA]

Well said. When it comes to big ticket items, cost is relative. To us everyday folks, $20M is a lot of money. To someone who is worth $600M, it’s only 1/30th of his total worth. That’s the equivalent of someone with $30K in savings buying the latest $1K cell phone, which I guarantee happens on a regular basis.

[Edwardsg]

I have to wonder how many with the $1k cell phone have $30k in savings? A car might go up or down in value, while cell phones usually only go down. And part of the cell phone cost can be hidden in a service contract, which many seem to overlook.
I’d just like to afford the buyers premium on the $20m car.

[Inline8OD]

You read most of the above posts narrowly, miss their greater points. You also assume most of the posters decrying the above mindset are paupers or have no wealthy autoholic friends.

Meanwhile, why are you so quick to defend the mega-rich? Do you imagine taking up e-cudgels on their oh so beleaguered behalf makes you one of them?

 I've a longtime friend, a wonderful fellow with ready humor, who does not take himself too seriously, having all the money, on his third Duesenberg.  But i've seen him use a butter knife for a screwdriver and at this late date, could not give you a simple definition of torque or horsepower, nor the respective three components of acceleration and absolute speed.   Another friend can, but is quick to admit his magnificently restored Ferrari Lusso sorely needs an overdrive and that none of Enzo's street cars better rustproofed than a Fiat while sharing many dash switches,

underscoring "il Commendatore's" main interest in his retailed product that it funded his true love, racing.                                    

[terra-incognita]

Sorry I tickled the tinder nerve of disdain for all those real estate developers & trust fund babies who happen to spend large quantities on cars.  I am not defending the “mega-rich” - as if they, whoever they are, needed my assistance.

I was simply questioning why the people buying these cars are constantly being criticized/condemned for spending their own money on such high-end cars.  Judging the cars they choose is one thing, but questioning their intelligence (the omnipresent “more money than brains”) for how much they were willing to spend seems silly.

Meanwhile…how did you come up with the concept that I must somehow be sucking up to these mysterious wealthy people, with the desperate hope that they might invite me into their magical illuminati car club?  Seriously?  Perhaps that model of thinking works in your mind and the world you inhabit.

And congratulations for having such wonderful, car loving friends.  The car community is large and full of fascinating people and characters from across the human spectrum - whether they be rich, poor, or somewhere in-between.

[JohninNC]

A comment below made me think of a fun top 10 list, and I think I've posted this before. Top 10 fun bang for the buck cars. Like under $8,000 FUN cars that won't kill your bank account to own. Older Acura/ Lexus, Miata, Wrangler or Cherokee, various older SUV and truck 4x4's... all sorts of interesting cars out there. I'd love a Foxbody 5.0 Mustang or a wildly painted VW Baja Bug... lots of good options.

[Turbo4Joe]

People bidding on these cars have wayyyyy more egos than brains.....and wayyyyy too much money.
Just roll them off the transport carrier, into the garage and put a car cover on them....

[Inline8OD]

Amen. And the percentage of these mega rich wanting the latest super car du jour must-have who are genuine car buffs is lower than those who must put more study, effort into a purchase.

[plank]

I've never given a whole lot of thought to how much money someone else has or how they spend it. I'm just so damned thankful for what I have. I think that the intent of this article was to inform and I found it interesting. Some nice (rare) cars here but most aren't my style regardless of what someone is willing to pay for them. I'm a hot rod guy and could build one hell of a sweet ride for a million bucks. Have a grateful day everyone!

[Carguy01]

Well, my experience is big $ always seems to infiltrate various hobbies. Someone always willing to take it too far. Cars and racing always come to mind. There is always that guy willing to pump 10 times the money into what started as a hobby and now the price of admission is too high for regular people.However there is periodically the regular guy that prevails out of sheer talent and attention to detail. I love when that happens. I remember taking second to a guy with big bucks at a major indoor car show, Funny part was I past him on the freeway, only his car was inside an enclosed trailer and I was banging gears with my top down. I was thinking poor sapp has double the money in a car he’s only having half the fun with.