While criticising RM's attempts at video advertising (see previous blog) I should be fair and point out that the company has totally redesigned its Web site with a fresh, clean, easy-to-navigate look. At the same time, it is justifiably boasting of the success of the London auction in Battersea, where top price was earned by a McLaren F1 supercar for £2,530,000. Dont ask what that means in dollars because these days the rates are changing by the second but when I last looked a conversion site quoted $4,141,860. One of the world's fastest road cars, with just one owner since new, it brought more than double the pre-sale estimate. The 1965 Ferrari 250 LM Berlinetta and the 1959 Ferrari 250 GT Tour de France mentioned in that earlier blog each fetched £2,255,000. These prices seem to suggest that buyers may be moving their money out of the stock market and putting it into collector cars. No surprise as it's often been said that great cars are a safe investment in troubled times.
PS: After posting this blog I received Classic Driver’s newsletter, in which managing editor Steve Wakefield made this comment: “The sale room was clearly a tougher environment than 6 or 12 months ago, with fewer ‘investors’ and many now much harder-nosed collectors saying no to all but the best – at the right price. The next few months are likely to be interesting ones.” Well, Steve was there and I wasn’t, so obviously I was wrong. Sorry, folks.