Bathurst Winner takes top spot at CTS Auctions inaugural event.

December 5th saw CTS Auctions make its debut as the newcomer on the Australian auction scene with a stunning line up of cars and a good sized crowd in their Sydney Harbour Bridge showrooms.

The auction itself started in a promising manner with the Automobillia lots selling well and a restored Messerschmitt KR200, selling for a strong price of $34,100 including buyers’ premium (IBP) after some determined bidding within the room.

Unfortunately this early success did not carry through to the rest of the lots as many of the higher value cars – that comprised the bulk of the line up at this first event – failed to find new homes in what is still an uncertain local market as we emerge from the economic difficulties of the last couple of years.

The rather difficult sale was further compounded by the current strength of the Australian Dollar which made it unattractive for many overseas bidders to justify the premium required to purchase a car compared to the required price for similar cars in Europe and the US.

Says Head of Department Robert Glover, “We had significant international interest in a number of the cars leading up to the event, particularly the Vauxhall 30-98, the LHD Porsche 911 2.7 RS Touring and a number of the highly eligible race cars – however in all instances the currency worked against us as we struggled to justify the circa 30% price differential in currency compared to where we were a year ago.”

There were however some notable standouts not least of which was the 1997 Bathurst Winning Holden Commodore that whilst not quite meeting reserve on the night, was sold post sale for $ 285,000 (IBP).

Other stand out performers were the beautiful Aston Martin DB4 Series III that sold for $275,000 (inc premium) and the 1998 Jordan Formula 1 display car (ex engine) that sold for $51,700 (inc premium).

Overall though, the results were below expectations, not doing justice to the enormous amount of hard work put in by the CTS team over the last year.

Reflecting on the weekend CTS Auctions Managing Director Rory Johnston states, “Of course we would have liked a stronger result at our first event, however the reality is that the market is still uncertain for buyers of higher value vehicles and with the strength of the dollar removing a whole swathe of overseas bidders we simply did not have the buyers in the room on the night to generate the momentum needed to achieve the prices vendors were seeking.”

He went on to say, “However, the fact remains that special cars at the right price are still finding new homes and as we look towards our next event in the Autumn in Melbourne, we are likely to have a tighter focus on cars that will appeal and sell well in the domestic market until such time as currencies allow cars that appeal to a global audience to reflect a fair global value.”

In the most part, both vendor and buyer feedback from this inaugural event has been positive but Robert Glover states. ‘Whilst we were complimented on many facets of the auction, there is certainly room for improvement going forward. If we are to remain a welcome addition to the Australian auction scene there are a number of key areas we have identified post auction that will need to be addressed for our next sale. These changes will undoubtedly improve our service and as such we are already consigning some superb cars for our next auction. Indeed we look forward to showing more of our potential in next year’s first CTS event.’

CTS Auctions next event is scheduled to take place in March 2010 in Melbourne.