Submitted by Russ Muller Photography
Hopefully you had a chance to read about my first visit to Mecum Auctions as they kicked off their 2024 Kissimmee auction on January 2nd at Osceola Heritage Park. (If you missed it, you can find it here: https://flacarshows.com/2024/01/04/mecum-kissimmee-2024-week-1-visit/). The reason for that visit was to look 
at some of the lower-cost offerings available to someone with a $20k budget. For week 2, I decided to visit on Thursday, January 11th to see what a $50- $75k budget could buy. That seemed like a realistic budget to find a nice collector car, but still at a price point that is reachable for many. The big dollar “dream” cars (prices well over $100k) cross the block on the second Friday and Saturday.
One of the very first things I noticed when I arrived at Osceola Heritage Park was how much more crowded it was compared to my first visit. The front parking lot was nearly full by the time I arrived (just after 10AM), but there were shuttle trams available for those who didn’t want to walk to the entrance from the back of the lot. Several days of rain left some of the
fields a little muddy, but the Mecum folks did a great job of moving the consignment cars to dry ground for all the potential buyers to look at them.
As I made my way to the auction block, the questions I kept asking myself were: Are there any good deals available this close to the end of the auction? Could I find a cool collectible for under $50k? What would $50-$75k buy? Good news, just like in week 1, there are deals to be found during week 2, even with a room that had a lot more active bidders than there were on my prior visit. Here’s a few examples. Please note that the sale price includes the buyer premium that is paid:
1958 Chevy Apache pickup, older restoration: $31,000
1957 Ford Thunderbird, 312 V-8: $37,000
1969 Dodge Coronet R/T, numbers-matching 440: $47,000
1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass S W-31, one of 1,029 produced: $72,000
1966 Chevrolet Corvette, L72 427/425 Horsepower, rotisserie restoration: $78,000
After watching cars go across the block for a while, I took a walk through some of the same buildings and tents that I visited last week. The crowds were thick around the black 1948 Tucker that was on display prior to its Saturday trip across the block. It turns out that this was the first Tucker to be sold at a Mecum auction. (Spoiler alert: It sold for $1.7 million)
Mecum has done a great job of making this auction interesting and entertaining. It was fun to walk outside and come across a marching band playing music for the crowds. Another visit to The Room to look at the multi-million-dollar Ferraris was also a treat. I capped off this visit with a walk through some of the Road Art and neon signs that were also going across the block.
Two visits, at two different times, with two different “budgets” to shop with. Maybe next year I’ll set a higher budget for my visit and look at some of the dream cars, like the Mopar wing cars, or the Hemi ‘Cuda convertibles, or…
