One week has passed since the opening of the auction in Scottsdale, AZ but I would like to write what I felt of the Air-Cooled 911 market tendency.

The Air-Cooled 911 is very popular in Japan, and the way the brand’s value has fluctuated had people mocking it as the “Air-Cooled bubble”. I felt that maybe by analyzing the movement of the brand, you can tell what the future beholds of the overall collectable market.

I would like to focus on the results of the “Gooding&Company” who has been the market leader of the Air-Cooled 911 and which provided many examples for this auction.

10 Air-cooled 911 was put up for auction: 5 were narrow, 1 was G-series, 2 were 930 Turbo, 1 was 964 and 1 was 993 Turbo. Of those, only the 1967 2.0s (SWB) had a reserve price.

What was shocking was that most of the LOTs fell well short of the estimate price. The only example that met the estimate was the mint-condition 1971 911SC Targa with only 9,600 miles on the odometer (estimate:$90, 000-$120,000, sold for $123,200), and the 1993 964 America Roadster (estimate: $125,000-$150,000, sold for $134,000), the other 7 LOTs sold despite falling way short of the estimate (67 S did not the reach the reserved price and did not sell).

What was most surprising was the hammer price for the Narrow Generations. The beautifully restored 1970 2.2S which had an estimate of $180,000-$200,000 was sold for $148,400, a 1973 2.4T with only 20,000 miles and remained in almost miraculously good condition with an estimate of $180, 000-$200,000, was sold for $151,200. “Great deals” were abound as hammer prices were unbelievably low compared to what it was just a few years back.

Whether you consider this result as pessimistic or optimistic is debatable but if you are in the market for an Air Cooled 911, this trend is good news. But if you were considering of selling, you might be hesitant, but I feel not going against the grain and selling now is the right decision.

A generation change is here for the Air Cooled 911 and although that trend might not be true for 964RS, 993RS and 993GT2 which were not present at this auction, the impression is that the overall market has softened quite a bit.

For those who bought the Air Cooled 911 as investment in the recent years, it might be true that you need to prepare to cut some loss. Among the buyers, there was talk that the movement to sell might gain traction and the value might return to what it was before the bubble. It is essential to decide when the right time is to sell.

BH AUCTION will keep an eye on how this trend might affect the market in Japan.