Cobra's and Barrett Jackson

[Mulv]

Auctions can be good or bad but no matter what - there is no way to know what a car is "worth" until you offer it for sale. Run times have a bit to do with it but I think you will find that if someone wants a car, they will hang around and bid it up regardless of the time of day.

I sold my car (SPF 136) which was a 427 FE with LeMans cam and real Shelby heads and the car was completely updated with the Bilstein thing and the chassis mods and the spring mods . It was 4 years ago and it was $45K which I thought was fair to both the buyer and I. An spf with a number like 2XX is an old car , at least 13 years and unless you documented the updates, it will drive like an old car. You do not say what engine is in it but unless it is a 427 FE or a Roush there is little value there. When my car was made, a Superformance car was $29K plus engine and trans. It came to $105K by the time it was done. I bought it during the last big econo-dump in 2002 for a lot less, like 40% of that. Then I spent about $5K keeping the car current. Yours is 100 cars later? Probably $31K and there is no way that engine cost $35K back then. Mine did.
I think you did ok overall and the other guy with the black car was really lucky. He only had 2400 miles total on his car and had a big block engine and it was , to be fair a more popular color and chrome this and that. Your buyer paid $36K which might be all the money - how many miles are on your car? Every car at the B-J has new paint (almost every car) so that is not a big selling feature nor is a new engine as most cars there are rebuilt or new in that department.
I think you realise that the only cars for sale at auction these days are there for one of two reasons - the person needs the money or they make a lot of money prepping cars for the auctions. I have a friend who made a lot of money on a car he ran through the B-J. He is the second type. If you are neither of the above then you should hang on to your stuff and not complain when you sell your car in a serious economic depression.

No matter how bad you feel , the guy with the ambulance feels a lot worse... he expected $500K +

Resto, it could have been a lot less - I have a friend here in Scottsdale that bought a Mosport Green 66 convertible that only needs the exhaust fixed (wrong hangers) to be a top flight car - he got it about 5 months ago for $40K and it is a major cherry car...