Well, I have waited for someone else to broach the subject, but what do we all think of the Barrett-Jackson auction?  I know many old car fans are watching and in my area Barrett-Jackson is far more famous to the casual viewer than the Hershey Swap Meet, which I guess says something about the state of the hobby today and the marketing of the auction.  But I digress.........

Can anyone who saw tell us why a 1916 GMC truck and trailer were worth over $100,000?  Or a 1951 military Jeep?  Or a green 1956 Thunderbird with (apparently) no special engine or heritage?  All were very nice vehicles, of course, but $100,000K for a truck that cannot exceed 20mph or an olive drab Jeep?  Or double the money for a green TBird?  Any thoughts? 

Hello John, thanks for the response, I still can't believe no one else had anything to say on this. 

I smiled at your Aging Billionaire Collector reference, that certainly seems accurate.  I always wonder why I never meet these free spending types when I am trying to sell something.......

To their credit, I will be the first to admit the Barrett-Jackson people are marketing geniuses.  They took their auction and in the public mind have taken old cars from muddy swap meets and junkyards to bright lights, bling and trophy wives.  Of course there have always been moneyed collectors; if you have been involved for 35 years you know this better than I; but would you agree the image and mindset are different now, more about money than cars?  Or is it really not that much different and I am just overly sensitive?

Well, I certainly do support the idea of the museums and cars on display.  Actually, that is a welcome throwback to the early days when pioneer collectors like Bill Harrah and Henry Austin Clark and many regional collectors were around and put their collections on display, big and small.  More power to them on that, especially if they can continue making their cars available for viewing knowing that their admission fees will not make this extremely lucrative or anything.  I would love to have more such museums available in my travels.

That's right Otis, and maybe that can become a follow up question for me.  Barrett-Jackson surprised me by proclaiming themselves the "World's Greatest Collector Car Event", which I think is open to opinion.  I have already observed that in the midwest Barrett-Jackson is now far more famous than Hershey, which has always been the ground zero of the old car hobby in my (outdated?) mind.  

Now when I became a driving age teenager the idea of buying a restored car was out of the question for me.  But the idea of buying a $1000 car to restore was possible, and I was motivated by the idea of learning to do the work and see the gleaming car emerge from the rust.  Even then veteran collectors said it was probably cheaper to just buy one, but I had to work with what I had.  Plus, going to Hershey and other meets looking for parts, studying restored cars at the show, and buying books, manuals, and catalogs to read and study were all part of the experience and education.

So here is the question.  If a teenager today likes old cars and watches Barrett-Jackson, with the ABC types and their money, is he motivated to take the next step into the hobby?  Does he consider learning to work on cars?  Or does he see the lights and suits, the old guys with egos and money and think "why do I want to get involved with them?  I am not old, nor rich, I cannot outbid them so I must not be able to participate.  I will watch the money for a while then go back to another channel." 

As a kid, before I got into old cars, I built plastic model car kits.  As an adult I notice that they have become uncommon compared to just buying a finished die cast car with no assembly required.  Nothing is gained in learning the parts of a car, or skills of painting or assembly, no craftsmanship or (especially) patience.  Just find the one you like and if you have enough money you can take it home and look at it and dust it until you are bored with it.  I wonder if there is a parallel here?  Readers?