HOT ROD editor-in-chief John McGann and NHRA's Brian Lohnes dive into the ins and outs of the car auction world with Matt Avery
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00:00Hey everybody, welcome to another episode of the Hot Rod Pod, Where It All Began, presented
00:11by Mecham Auctions.
00:12Brian Lone's joined here by not only the editor of Hot Rod Magazine, John McGann, but also
00:16Matt Avery, executive producer for Mecham Auctions.
00:20We're here to talk about a bunch of different auction-related topics today, but first off,
00:24have you seen anything cool at PRI so far?
00:26So much cool stuff, Brian, and I think one of the coolest things I've seen is this race
00:29car that's hanging over the entrance, kind of letting people know this is another level
00:34show.
00:35This isn't your average trade show.
00:36John, how about you?
00:37You been scoping everything out in there or what?
00:39Yeah, scoping everything out and, you know, lots of transitions in the industry right
00:47now, but, you know, we're still here.
00:49There's a lot of good hardcore race car parts still happening.
00:52Yes, exactly.
00:53You can almost cut the horsepower with a knife, Brian.
00:56I think that's how I would say walking around the halls here.
01:00It's leaking out of the walls.
01:01It's permeating the carpets.
01:03It's everywhere.
01:04It really is.
01:05It really is.
01:06So we're going to talk auctions, and we're going to talk Mecham.
01:08You have a huge Kissimmee auction that's coming up, but I think one of the things I'm really
01:11interested in and I think maybe the audience is curious about, I want to dispel some rumors.
01:15I want to go a little bit down the rabbit hole of the auction rumors, the auction myths
01:20that we can kind of dispel, and you certainly have heard probably all of them so far.
01:24That's a great place to start because there really is a lot out there that people don't
01:28know about Mecham auctions.
01:29I think a great place to start, Brian, is the fact that you don't have to be a bidder
01:33to come to an auction.
01:36And certainly that's a lot of the people that are coming are people that are bidding or
01:40in selling cars, but we have Spectator Day Passes.
01:43It really makes a great, wonderful outing with friends or family to come.
01:47Again, you don't have to bid.
01:49You don't have to worry about raising your hand at the wrong time.
01:51You can come and take in, I think, one of the best car shows on the planet.
01:54My first Mecham experience was actually here in Indianapolis in 2020, so I'd never been
01:59to a Mecham auction before.
02:01When the NHRA season started back up, we raced almost exclusively at Lucas Oil Indianapolis
02:06Raceway Park.
02:07Well, we had an off couple of days between events, and you guys were having your big
02:11auction here.
02:12And I went with Tony Pedregon, and as many of these as I've watched on television, it
02:16was freaking awesome.
02:17It was legitimately awesome.
02:19We were there early in the week, which I think is like myth number one.
02:21We were there on one of the days where these were exceptionally reasonable cars that were
02:26being sold.
02:28I mean, there was actually a Willys Jeep that I threw another guy, that was his buddy with
02:33a bitter pass.
02:34I'm like, I want the Jeep.
02:35Now, I never bid at an auction.
02:36I'm like, this is awesome.
02:37And then I lost the Jeep because I was not fast enough on my feet.
02:40But let's talk about that.
02:41Let's talk about kind of the arc of a normal Mecham auction and the fact that there is
02:45tons of reasonable buys and deals available.
02:48Yeah, I think it's safe to say that that's probably myth number two, that everything
02:52that crosses the auction block is unattainable, right?
02:55Where obviously, those are the cars and vehicles that make headlines, you know, seven-figure
03:00sales, et cetera.
03:01Of course, that gets people excited.
03:02It's the stuff John bids on.
03:03It's the stuff that John bids.
03:05Exactly, right.
03:07But for those who are not John, but I will say that there's a lot of people that if you
03:11are looking for a collector car, an auction can be a great place to find, like you identified,
03:16a deal where not everything is a high seller.
03:19And I know a lot of people might, you know, kind of question, well, then how does an auction
03:23work?
03:24I think it's one of those where it's like, there's room for everything.
03:25Yes.
03:26Everything will cross the block.
03:27Again, there's a lot of high sellers.
03:28But if you do come out on some of the early days, or even on some of the other days, there's
03:32a little bit more attention, you can still find deals.
03:34You can still find affordable vehicles.
03:37And that's a great place for those who want to get into the hobby and find their first
03:40collector car.
03:41And I think the larger point on that, John, too, is like, you can actually look at these
03:45things, touch them and climb around them and climb under them and see what's going on.
03:48So as many times as people buy cars on the internet, sight unseen, this is not that experience.
03:53Not that experience.
03:54Yeah.
03:55I did some checking on your website, too.
03:56You can fully inspect all the cars ahead of time.
03:59They're all there for people, prospective buyers to look at and look over.
04:04So that's a huge plus because then you know what you're getting.
04:07Yeah.
04:08And I think that's another great myth to dispel is the fact that, you know, that you only
04:11see the car when it crosses the block.
04:13And of course, that's not the case, you know, for a lot of the collector vehicles, a lot
04:17of the interested parties have been looking at these websites or excuse me, at these vehicles
04:22for in some cases, weeks and even months as they're up on our website planning for
04:26the vehicle.
04:27They're finding out more about it.
04:28We try to present all the information that we have about the consignments.
04:30And then certainly when the vehicles are on site, we encourage people come early, go out
04:34through the lots.
04:36I say bring a flashlight depending on how serious you are in the vehicle as you pop
04:40the hood.
04:41Again, we try to present the cars in the best possible way for people to get a full inspection
04:45of the cars.
04:47You know, they're all usually unlocked or if they're not, you can work with one of our
04:50lot managers just because we do try to keep a hand on that, but you don't want everybody.
04:55But I will say, you know, if you are interested and you are serious, we will allow you to
05:00take a close look at what you want so that you know when the car crosses the block.
05:04And I have heard that before, you know, a lot of people are surprised or like, I'm really
05:08surprised that people that excited to bid on a car they've only seen as it crosses the
05:10block.
05:11I'm like, oh, no, no, no, no, no, no.
05:12They've been watching this for a while.
05:14And, you know, something else, guys, that is important to know is that when you do come
05:17out and if you don't register as a bidder, let's just say you want to bring the family,
05:21come on some friends.
05:22When you're on site, you can we have an office on site to help people upgrade your ticket
05:27from a day pass to become a bidder.
05:30Just we can get those balls in motion.
05:31So if you do come and you're saying, hey, I'm not going to buy anything, but you're
05:34there, you fall in love with something and right on site, we can help get you getting
05:38a bidder's pass.
05:39Yeah, I was I was legitimately blown away by the number of driver quality cars that
05:43were going for ten thousand bucks or less.
05:45And it was like, damn.
05:47I figured it happened, but I never really witnessed it in person.
05:50And it was fun because there was a lot of excitement around those cars, too.
05:53I mean, there was clearly people that showed up to bid on whatever C-10 that was rolling
05:57across or whatever, like fairly well, I guess we would consider it almost a mundane vehicle.
06:02But they were there to buy that thing and they were not going to leave without it.
06:05And you get swept up in the you get swept up in the whole thing.
06:08And even though we were early in the week, it still does have a great energy.
06:11It really does.
06:12And, you know, a lot of the vehicles that we sell are collector grade.
06:15Now, obviously, that's what drives a lot of the of the hobby.
06:18But that being said, we still see a lot of customers bringing vehicles to us that I think
06:22would fall into that entry level category, that driver category.
06:26You know, I think one of the other myths, guys, that people have is the definition of
06:31collector car.
06:32You know, a lot of people think chromes, chrome fins, white walls, all that is true.
06:40However, you got to realize that collector car is up to the individual and what they
06:44have an emotional connection with and what we're seeing from our space is that category
06:50is widening, particularly as younger collectors coming into a hobby are wanting to chase down
06:56the cars of their youth.
06:58So we're starting to see that definition of what a collector car is continue to expand.
07:02And it certainly is the 50s fins and chrome, the 60s muscle.
07:08But we're also seeing European exotics.
07:10We're seeing just all kinds of stuff.
07:12So, yeah, and I think, John, we almost see a reflection of that.
07:15We see the reflection of that trend in shows like PRI and SEMA to a degree, like when we
07:19were walking around doing our after hour stuff at SEMA, Matt, you were there, too, like the
07:23explosion of Grand Nationals this year.
07:25It's like and not those cars haven't always been cool.
07:27But now all of a sudden, those cars have become like in the wheelhouse.
07:30And if people are building them that way, then they're also looking to collect them.
07:34Absolutely.
07:35And, you know, I was looking over the consignments.
07:37You mentioned that our largest auction is coming up, Mekim Kasemi, in January.
07:43We're approaching, guys, almost 5,000 vehicles crossing the block.
07:46But I will say we've got so many great collections coming.
07:50And one in particular, I think, represents this trend where it's mostly Foxbody and SN95
07:58and then also some of the SHO Tauruses from that era.
08:01And so, you know, so for us to see a collection like that put together means it's been years
08:07in the making.
08:08So the reason I bring that up is, again, that's an indicator of the trends shifting where
08:13collectors have been amassing these for years.
08:15And now they're starting to bring the market, just showing how we're seeing new entries
08:20into what people think is cool.
08:21We talked about that a little bit at the SEMA show, too, about the Grand Nationals and the
08:24G bodies.
08:26And I remember hearing something recently about a Volkswagen Scirocco at an auction
08:30site that was like, you know, sold for a lot of money.
08:32And you wouldn't think I remember those things driving around.
08:35You know, in hindsight, they're cool cars that like, you know, I got to, you know, two
08:39sons in their late teens.
08:40Right. And my my oldest boy is his daily driver.
08:42So it's a 98 Mercedes E320 that, you know, I fixed up and the things that we lowered.
08:46It's a cruiser. And then my youngest son just bought a just bought a 0-3 Mercury Marauder.
08:52And so, you know, but those these are kind of hot rodding cars to my youngest to my
08:57youngest son. That Marauder is like the last of the muscle car.
09:00It's a full frame rear wheel drive V8 car.
09:02And for him, that's going to stick with him.
09:04Like we talk about how the generation stick.
09:06He's going to be in love with those forever.
09:08So 20 years from now, and he's sold long sold is and wants one back.
09:11He's the guy that will be at the auction.
09:12Absolutely. Well, and I'm waiting for the day, guys.
09:14We're going to start seeing numbers matching Civic SIs.
09:18Oh, my God. You're right.
09:19Crazy, right?
09:19We really are. And I'm not saying that in Jess.
09:22I'm just saying that that indicates how wide we again, this definition of collector car
09:28is expanding.
09:29And it's just one of those where, again, muscle cars and will always be a perennial
09:33favorite. I think what I refer to them as they will always be considered blue chip
09:36collectibles, right?
09:38Boss 428s, you know, your your Copo Camaros, all that stuff.
09:42I don't think it will ever fall out of fashion with collectors, even younger collectors
09:46that don't have that firsthand experience with that vehicle when it was new on the
09:50streets, which I'm convinced drives the majority of collecting.
09:53Right. Just like your son.
09:54I mean, I'm guessing he wanted that Marauder probably because he remembers seeing the
09:58aggressive marketing that oh, yeah, that they had for just how it was presented as a
10:01bad boy car, which was awesome.
10:03And it stuck with it. Yeah.
10:04So I think that that's what we're going to see.
10:06And even for people that, again, weren't there in the 1960s or 70s or 80s to see some
10:10of these legendary muscle cars prowling the streets, they're always going to be
10:14collectible. They're also going to want other cars.
10:16And that's exciting for me.
10:18So in those terms, how does Mika maintain a presence with with everybody to a degree?
10:24Right. Because you don't want to pigeonhole yourself as we're just the guys that sell
10:27the muscle cars. We're just the guys that sell the rest of us.
10:30You want to be a company that that the younger collector, the younger buyer wants to find
10:35that that matching number civic.
10:36So I guess that's the job of Mika to maintain their wide net.
10:40That's a great, great point and great question, Brian.
10:43And Mika, you know, we always try to stay ahead of the curve and see where the space
10:48is going. And we also you're going to see a lot more in 2025 as we're going to be out
10:52and about at even more events, nice reaching out and connecting with enthusiasts.
10:57I would even say non-traditional events just to broadcast what Mika has to offer.
11:02And I think something else that's important to note is that Mika auctions, yeah, auctions
11:05is in our title, of course.
11:07But when you come out to one of our events, there's a whole lot more than just the
11:11auction process to see and do.
11:14And then likewise, from a presentation standpoint, we offer a lot more than just the
11:20buying and selling of the car.
11:21We have a whole finance team, Mika Financial Services, so that we can provide, as we
11:26like to say, we can add some horsepower to the bidding of people when they come out on
11:30site. And we also offer Mika Transport.
11:33So again, I mean, it's just we try to offer a one stop shop to help enthusiasts acquire
11:37that car of their dreams so that, you know, if they say, hey, I bought this car, but I
11:40don't know how to get it home. They can stop by, talk to some of our transport logistics
11:44experts and get it on a truck and get it sent to them.
11:47And all these services are great to help keep the hobby going.
11:51I saw on your website you offer financing up to three million dollars, if I remember
11:54that correctly. So I knew John was a seven figure bidder.
11:58I told you this is the guy.
12:00You got me in a lot of trouble.
12:01This is the guy.
12:01You could buy a lot of Marauders.
12:04You could buy the whole national supply of them for that much money.
12:07I wouldn't mind that, though.
12:10But then also, too, I think also even some of the way that, again, when a car gets
12:15consigned and when you start to work with a consignment agent as a customer, we also
12:19offer a whole suite of presentation services from photography to helping create the
12:25listings to make sure it's accurate, that it reflects the vehicle and any provenance to
12:30it. You know, we really want to do our best to help connect buyers and sellers and
12:33always possible.
12:34Yeah, it's very interesting to me just because everybody that everybody looks at cars
12:39in a slightly different way.
12:40They're the people that look at them and they want the most pristine example of a 57
12:44Chevy that exists on the planet down to the correct hose clamps and everything else.
12:48And there's there are people that want the opposite end of that.
12:50They want a custom built car that that is affected with every modern kind of, you know,
12:56stylistic and technological touch.
12:58And the fact that that you've been able to appeal to all of those people goes back to
13:04what you just talked about, meaning that if the idea was just to make this presentation
13:08of a bone stock 57 Chevy the same as a fully customized 57 Chevy, that doesn't work.
13:14So you guys actually tailor it to the customer.
13:16Yeah, and I will say, I mean, that's not to be confused with overselling.
13:20I mean, I think it's just one of those of working with the the the owner to say, hey,
13:24what are the what are the attributes of your vehicle that would matter to a prospective
13:28new owner? You know, again, it's not overhyped, but it's just saying like, hey, has
13:32the car won any awards?
13:33Has it been featured in any publications, that type of stuff?
13:36Or again, if it's pulled out of a barn and or, you know, and just, you know, if it was
13:41saved, yeah, if it was saved, just saying, hey, you know, can we help you look to see if
13:45maybe it is a unique color combination, just things that matter to collectors.
13:49And again, just just in the way of trying to provide all the information that we have
13:52about those vehicles so that buyers can make a smart, educated purchase.
13:56I think one of the things that comes through when you check out the listings and I was
13:58looking through the stuff just the other day is the way that the cars are described and
14:04the way they're written up is it speaks to an enthusiast.
14:07It has a genuine nature to it.
14:08It's not some like AI bot just spitting stuff out.
14:11And I think that's important because what your your business and reputation is based
14:15on on being authentic and honest with the buyer.
14:17Right. And so if I'm somebody who clearly has a taste for something I'm going to look
14:21for and you you describe it to me in a way that that speaks to me, I'm way more likely
14:25to go there and invest my time and money potentially in the car.
14:29Absolutely. Yeah, that's a great point.
14:30I mean, we have a fantastic team both in-house and then we also work with some of the top
14:34riders around the country that have specialties with some of the with with certain
14:39niches within the automotive space that do help create those catalog stories or
14:44spotlights or or even going through the bullets and making sure you get the bullets.
14:48When you look at the consignment page, those are the ones that obviously come up on top,
14:51kind of the main elements to make sure that they're accurate.
14:54I mean, we are constantly reviewing those.
14:56We're also making sure that consignors don't don't maybe over exaggerate or help to
15:01just bring it down to what really reflects that vehicle and what would matter to a new
15:05owner. You've got your your Kissimmee auctions starting in the second week of January.
15:11So I'd imagine there's a whole lot of work ahead of time.
15:15So like from the process of starting, where does that process start?
15:21Like do people approach you? How do you decide which cars go to which auctions?
15:26Do people specifically say, I would like mine to be sold at Kissimmee or Indianapolis or
15:31how's that begin? And then like how far ahead?
15:33Like you're probably way into the process of planning this auction, right?
15:36No, we start next week, John.
15:39No, I believe it.
15:42Yeah. So it's like, no, no, no.
15:44Great. All all great questions.
15:47And I really so I'll start from from an internal team perspective, you know, with Kissimmee
15:54being our flagship event, but with us also having a robust calendar of events around the
16:00country and around the year, I will say.
16:02So we're always working on those events, but particularly with Kissimmee because of the
16:05size, the scope and the scale, we're kind of never we never have a break.
16:11We're always thinking about either the one coming up or if we just come out of it.
16:14There's even still some dialogue and conversation, even in the weeks and months after
16:18January when we hold it, even as we're doing other top tier events, we're still in the back
16:23of my mind saying, hey, what can we do to make next year better, bigger, more more
16:27attractive to prospective customers?
16:29So particularly, I would say we obviously hit high gear probably summer for the upcoming
16:34Kissimmee event.
16:35Wow. Just to start getting things in motion, it does help that events like Kissimmee have
16:40been in play for so many years.
16:43I believe last year, I think, was our 20th anniversary of Kissimmee or recently it was.
16:47So I would never use the word turnkey that makes it that makes it sound a little too
16:53like, oh, it just happens.
16:54It's never turnkey, but it certainly helps that it's a ball that's already in motion.
16:59So that, you know, again, the bulk of what we do there, but I've been in talks even with
17:03some of our team in the last week or two about how we're doing some things different with
17:07the layout or how we're going to move some things over here.
17:09I mean, we're always constantly revaluing, but it does help that we're not trying to
17:13launch that type of event from scratch again, but never turnkey.
17:18Now, from a consignment standpoint, we certainly encourage prospective customers that if
17:25they are going to sell with us, the earlier that they alert us, the better it works for
17:30everyone. It's usually a couple of months before the auction is when we will start
17:34putting the word out for consignments and actively starting to seek those out.
17:37But the reason I bring that up, John, is for a couple of reasons.
17:40We will accept cars consignments up until the day of or when the gates are open.
17:46Wow. We will accept cars.
17:48And I mean, we still have a check in process and again, but some people do that.
17:52There's different reasons, maybe last minute decision.
17:55What I recommend to people is you can do that, no problem, but it also works better to give
18:01us more heads up so that you get maximum exposure and you take advantage of our fantastic
18:07website and the presentation, all that stuff, because we have customers and eager
18:12participants and the automotive, I think to a certain extent, the news community is
18:15looking at upcoming consignments to say, oh, hey, did you know Mecham had this crazy car
18:19consigned? So I will say the earlier that a customer can alert our consignment team, it
18:24works out better. Again, we will accept up until the day of or even weeks of the exact
18:29date. I don't know offhand, but I would say a couple of months before each auction is
18:34when it's a good time to have a conversation.
18:37Following up on another question you asked about how do consignments go or recommend it
18:42to different locations?
18:44A lot of that, of course, is driven by the location of the consigner.
18:48Certainly, you know, again, looking at markets that they're in and do we have an auction
18:52for that? Beyond that, sometimes it comes down to suggesting other markets based on
18:58trends that we're seeing.
19:00So I think one of the most obvious would be is if you're bringing a top tier truck, it's
19:06hard to beat the Texas market.
19:07Sure. Again, that's kind of an obvious one, guys.
19:10Now, I'm not saying that trucks don't sell well at any of our other auctions.
19:14They certainly do. But it's kind of looking at items like that.
19:18Some of it's where the vehicle is just because the consignors in one of our markets, a
19:22lot of times the vehicles are maybe at a shop or another facility.
19:25So kind of looking at the transportation side of it, but then also saying just again, and
19:28that's what our consignment team does is provide some of that insight saying, hey, you
19:32know, even though you're in this market, you know, we would suggest going over here.
19:36We think we'll do a little bit better. We will obviously always defer to what the
19:39customer wants. But again, we'll try to provide some insight and help just for them to
19:43get maximum exposure.
19:45What defines the difference in the buying habits between like, let's say, a blip in a
19:50trend, meaning like, you know, is there is it is it a year's worth of data that you look
19:56at? You go, OK, well, this is a trend.
19:57Is it two years worth? Meaning like, you know, if some car just jumps out and grabs a
20:01big chunk of money beyond what anybody expected, how many I guess analytically do you
20:06guys go, OK, is this is this something emerging as something we're going to see more of
20:09or what's what's maybe the ability to define that if there is one?
20:13Who, man, that's a that's a very insightful question.
20:17I think what I would what I would say, Brian, is I would indicate what I do is you can
20:22look over past results.
20:23And of course, obviously, that's that's the cold, hard facts.
20:26Right. And what I tell people is all of that data is available for for viewers.
20:31If you go to mecom.com, you create a free account and you can log in and you can see
20:36what cars have sold for at all of our office.
20:39So I will say like for what I look at, Brian, is is I do try to identify certainly
20:45several repeated instances of that just because, you know, we we will have high sellers
20:51of one category of car that we can't explain.
20:54Other than it's the old adage, you get the two right guys in the room, right?
20:57The two exactly the two correct people are in the room for that one car.
21:00Yeah. And, you know, as with any good statistician or journalist, you would never want
21:04to point out one instance of that happening and saying, oh, hey, you know, I'll go
21:09mobiles are going crazy next year.
21:10Yeah. Yeah. Buy buy everyone you got.
21:12Yeah. Yeah. Go go mobiles.
21:13Yeah. Well, you know, or, you know, Mercedes.
21:16That's OK. You know, 320s or through the roof because one sold for thirty five, whatever.
21:21But I would look at repeated instances to start to identify, you know, to plot on a
21:25chart and say, hey, these this type of vehicle are or these this category is trending
21:31upwards or is trending downwards.
21:33And that's really good data. Again, all that is available on mecom.com for people to
21:37check out and kind of do their own research to identify what's kind of hot and maybe
21:40what's cooling off. What is a if not the most common, what is a common question for a
21:45first time consignor?
21:47What is the main like what is the main I've never done this concern for for first time
21:51consignors if there is one?
21:53So someone who is new to the Mecom auction experience and bringing us a vehicle, I
21:59think there's probably several questions that come to mind.
22:01The first one would be is how does this work?
22:04You know, depending. Yeah, I mean, as you know, stepping back process as a process.
22:08Obviously, I think a lot of people are very familiar with our brand just because of the
22:13exposure that we've had with our TV program and just just from from Mecom auctions being
22:17around for as many years as we have.
22:19So I think that there is an intimidation factor because they've watched us on TV for
22:22years and they come out and it can be a little intimidating.
22:25So I think that's kind of the most basic question is how does this work?
22:29You know, I've got a you know, I've got a car.
22:31I'm ready to get rid of it.
22:32I need some space in the garage.
22:34What are next steps?
22:35And I would just say that that's where reaching out, getting in touch with a
22:38consignment agent, they will help answer all the questions they can.
22:42There is no dumb question.
22:43That's what I tell people who ask me this question.
22:44They say, hey, I want to bring a car.
22:45And I say, hey, I'll put you in touch.
22:47It's low pressure.
22:48There's no dumb question, you know, but a lot of it I think revolves around the, you
22:53know, getting the car there, what happens on site, just the logistics of logistics of
22:58it. Yeah. But I mean, a lot of it's very transparent.
23:00A lot of that information, if not all of it, is already up online at Mecham.com.
23:05We have a FAQ kind of section for people to find out more about it.
23:08I was wondering, too, dealing with expectations of customers, do we talk about
23:14this a little bit at the magazine business, how TV auctions seem to have maybe
23:20driven prices of certain cars up maybe more than it would have had they not been
23:26on TV? So all of a sudden, everybody with like a 307 powered 71 Chevelle thinks they
23:32have a $90,000 car, right?
23:36And that's not always the case, is it?
23:37Well, yeah. And I will say, because I see it, too, like when I'm on social media and I
23:41see people screenshot, you know, you know, I know what I got.
23:45I know what I got. Right.
23:46Exactly. It was funny.
23:47I saw some chatter recently just because we were we were just in Kansas City and I was
23:52on some third gen Camaro pages and I saw we had a couple of high sellers and I don't
23:56remember the specifics of the vehicles, but and I saw some chatter people kind of
24:00indicating that about like, hey, our time has come, you know, for the third gen is
24:04exploding. So I had that we were sitting at work one day and the monitors at work were
24:09showing a Mecham auction because of the partnership and a C10 rolled across the
24:13auction block for a lot of money.
24:15And I'm like, oh, my God, my C10 is worth a fortune.
24:17My C10 page with a pseudonym saying, yeah, yeah, yeah.
24:24And of course, that was nothing like mine.
24:26But, you know, but here's the thing that cracks me up, though, guys, is that to me, why
24:31is that why is that an issue?
24:33Like, that's the thing that blows my mind is that when I see chatter within the community
24:37about people and I think it's one of those things, too, guys, because of our exposure
24:42of how large and how successful Mecham auctions has been, because of how large our
24:47television network or broadcast goes, we are going to be the ones that people look to for
24:53setting the tone within the industry.
24:54So that's to be expected, right, guys?
24:56Yeah. The thing that I don't understand, though, is that when I see the the sarcasm
25:02about, well, like, why are those going up to me?
25:04I'm like, if you own one of those, that's worth why are you complaining?
25:07You know, yeah. And there's two sides of it.
25:09The two sides of it are whatever the numbskull with the 307 Chevelle 190 grand is asking
25:14for. It is not what he's going to get for.
25:15No, right. And so you have two sides of that where it's like, yeah, this guy is a schmo
25:19and he's asking way too much money for a car that's ultimately he's going to get what
25:22it's worth anyway. Like like the whole market kind of works on.
25:25But the the mere idea that the auction world itself is driving all of these things to be
25:31more expensive, it isn't.
25:32I think the best I think the best examples of these cars have gotten more expensive as
25:37everything in our lives have gotten more expensive.
25:40I think I think 20 years ago, I don't think people looked at muscle cars in as much of
25:46as an investment property as they do now.
25:48And that's not a bad thing to me.
25:49I mean, if you're going to you're going to invest in something, it's cool to invest in
25:53a car. So I think it's I think it's more of the natural course of business.
25:58But yeah, you're always going to get you're always going to get some some birdbrain guy
26:02out there that that is sitting on something that is just not worth what he thinks.
26:05No, and I think, you know, I understand the sentiment because, again, you know, like if
26:10there's someone who knows about some, you know, I don't know, some car tucked away in
26:14the garage down the street and they're waiting to go in and lowball that owner.
26:18I get it. You know, they're going to be like, well, hey, Mecham is shining too bright a
26:21spotlight on how exciting the collector car market is to me.
26:25I'm just like, I don't know.
26:26You know, like you find another hobby, you know, is right where it's just like to me,
26:30it's like, hey, you know, we try to put on the best auctions and we also try to put on
26:35the best television coverage of that.
26:37And it's just one of those where it's like, you know, and I get it.
26:39We're always going to get comments from folks.
26:42And I tell them, you know, I would say, come on out, see it in person.
26:46And other than that, I mean, just kind of enjoy the ride.
26:48And, you know, John, maybe your C10 will go up in value and you can bring it to auction.
26:53It's three different colors.
26:54It's still long beds, but they're all good colors.
26:58Yeah, there are three.
26:59It's three different colors.
27:01Yeah, I appreciate that.
27:02But I think it's just I think it's just the extreme visibility.
27:05Just because of how large we are, guys, that obviously that's going to command the
27:08conversation. So, sure.
27:09I mean, we're going to get a lot of people who are saying, hey, you know, this is
27:12exciting. And they're going to get the people who said, oh, man, I wish it wouldn't do
27:14that because I want I want to buy this.
27:16I want to lowball the owner of this car that I know about.
27:18And I don't want them to know that they have a good deal.
27:20And it comes down to the auction process.
27:22Like you said, Brian, I mean, all we do is we just present the opportunity for sellers
27:27to connect with buyers. So all we do, you know, we have cars roll across the block and
27:31we put those people together.
27:32We provide the process.
27:33What happens is up to them.
27:35And to a degree, it's a bit of a almost reverse flattery, because when somebody when
27:41somebody makes these comments, they're effectively under their understanding or at
27:44least giving you guys a lot of credit.
27:46Right. It's one thing if they when they say, well, these auctions are driving the
27:50prices of cars up. Well, that means that these auctions are influential, good, giant
27:53events, you know. So in a very in a very kind of backward way, it's almost it's almost a
27:57compliment to what you guys are doing.
27:58Yeah, it is.
27:59And I think going off of your point there, John, I don't think I would say that the
28:03television aspect or the inflates over inflates number that I don't there's no you
28:08know, you could never I don't think anyone can make that claim.
28:10I think it's just one of those that we're an auction company.
28:12We're the largest auction company out there for cars that has a great television
28:16broadcast. And what happens happens.
28:18You know, there's no over inflating or anything.
28:20Now, what Brian said is right.
28:21It's the buyer that people are willing to pay what they're willing to pay.
28:24And the enthusiasm around that sentiment fills up auditoriums like this.
28:29Ultimately, it'd be like if we were doing a if we were doing a podcast on the early
28:34American art and we blamed Antiques Roadshow for driving up the prices of the
28:39paintings. I mean, yeah, yeah, exactly.
28:42So. All right. So we got a few minutes left.
28:44Kissimmee's coming up. I know you got a few really unique cars here.
28:47So talk to us about some of the Highline Kissimmee offerings.
28:50The automotive world is obviously watching with eager expectation for one of the main
28:54attractions, which is the Porsche 917.
28:57So car one of the most iconic race cars of all time.
29:01So purchase new by the legendary Steve McQueen used in the production of his 1971 film
29:07Le Mans. Golf, blue and orange.
29:09I don't I don't know if there's a better.
29:10No, it legitimately one of the coolest cars, no matter who owned it.
29:14I mean, the 917 Porsche is one of the coolest cars ever made.
29:17Yeah. Yeah. We should walk around and do a survey here at a race convention and say
29:21what's the best livery? And I think 9 out of 10 would say golf, blue and orange.
29:24Yeah. So obviously there's a lot of attention on that high profile ownership history.
29:30So a lot of excitement around that car kind of.
29:33But from there, again, there's four thousand nine hundred ninety nine or at least
29:36approaching that we should be near certainly over four thousand.
29:38But there's a lot out there.
29:40Some of the other cars that I'm watching, guys, we do have a lot of highly built
29:44muscle cars coming.
29:45That trend, speaking of trends or blips, is not going away anytime soon.
29:49We're that that custom or restomod phase is not is not going away.
29:53Good. Good.
29:55John says it's good for everybody in this building.
29:57And I don't know.
29:59We might. John's John's hoping for that 307 Chevelle trend to come back.
30:02He wants it bad. He wants to go to barrel.
30:07But I will say, you know, and I like that, guys, because just like you having come off
30:11a SEMA, looking at what shops are doing and seeing it, I think it's exciting.
30:16We're nowhere. We haven't scratched the surface of what these builders can do with
30:21modern tech in classic looks.
30:23Yeah. And to me, that's exciting.
30:25You know, I think the Hellcat conversion trend is not a blip.
30:28We're going to see a lot more of that coming down the pipe.
30:31But outside of that, guys, what I look for at auction of just fun fact, I like the
30:36cars that the owner has done their due diligence in providing the story that goes
30:41with their car, just like you, especially John, in your position as the editor.
30:44That's I think what a lot of what you're looking for is that the story behind the
30:47car. Yeah, it's it's crucial.
30:49It's crucial. And I will say even at auction, guys, we get that.
30:52And I would say that that's that's kind of a I don't know if I'd say a myth, but I
30:55would say a word to the wise is that if you are bringing a car, do your diligence
31:00because that does matter to an owner.
31:01There's stuff that you can do on your own.
31:03The family photo showing that car in the driveway, any kind of paperwork.
31:07And again, a consignment agent would work with with them on that.
31:09But I love walking up and down the aisles of cars and seeing all of the literature,
31:13the provenance. It doesn't matter the caliber of car.
31:16Correct. But when an owner does that, I think it does add some value.
31:21You can't necessarily directly draw that line, but I think it would because a lot of
31:25people wanting to own that car is buying the story, just like the nine seven.
31:28Yeah, it's it's the same.
31:30I mean, it's exponentially larger, but it's the same thing where, you know, if I love
31:34old historical, I collect on old racing stuff and it's like if I buy some gem on eBay
31:38or something and there's one photo of it, I move on because this person hasn't given.
31:42You know, it's the same thing.
31:43It's like, again, in a much larger scale, the more work that the seller puts into
31:48educating the potential buyer on what they're looking at.
31:50I mean, that's the type of thing that takes that takes somebody that goes that may be
31:54mildly interested in the car and puts it over the top.
31:56Or it takes a guy who knows he's interested in it and he's going to bid an extra couple
32:00of ducats on the thing because now he really wants it because he understands the car just
32:04a little bit better. It puts it puts everything over the top.
32:06It does. And I will say there's some very simple steps.
32:08I mean, all you know, I think what will help you stand out as a consign or a seller is
32:13just go to Office Depot, go to any office store, buy, you know, just like your high
32:17school book report or whatever, but buy one of those binders, get some sheets to put
32:22in there and any paperwork related to the car.
32:24I know it sounds obvious, guys, but I can tell you, I see it more often than not.
32:27And when I talk to the owners, a lot of times they're like, oh, I never thought of that.
32:32So I would just say that that's a great way for success at an auction.
32:35So is Kissimmee your favorite auction of the year?
32:38Oh, man, that's a it's it's it's one of my favorites.
32:41OK, they're like children.
32:43They love them all. We love them all.
32:45I will say, I mean, Kissimmee is is one of my favorites, guys.
32:49John, I were talking off air about how starting off in January, it kind of kicks off the year
32:54with a bang. And it's a great place to be, especially for a lot of our Midwest customers
32:58to get out of the of the winter months, come down to Florida, take in some sun, some
33:03tropical vibes and also the world's largest collector car auction.
33:07So that's all. That's great.
33:08I will say one of my other favorites is Glendale.
33:11Yeah, we go out to the State Farm Stadium and I will say that's a neat experience to be
33:14there. But I would recommend for people to check out Meekin.com.
33:18That might be another myth, too, is understanding how far and wide our auctions are held
33:23around the country, because we almost have one about I think one every month of the
33:27year. And then on top of that, we also do the world's largest one of the largest
33:31motorcycle auctions in January or January into February in Las Vegas.
33:35And that's a hoot, too, for people that are into two wheels.
33:37Come out to that and you'll see thousands of motorcycles and talk about trends and
33:41blips. The thing that I'm seeing is a little Honda Monkeys.
33:43Oh, yeah, it's a little pit bikes.
33:45Man, people are going crazy for those.
33:47So it's exciting to say, man, always, always a ride.
33:50The history of your company with Dana Meekin and him, his passion is rooted.
33:55His passion was rooted in auctions, but it's rooted in cars.
33:57Like, I think that's one of the things that people need to understand is Meekin is a
34:00very car first kind of company.
34:02I think that that's one of the things I like about what you guys do is that so much of
34:06the passion is not simply in just the business side of moving these cars across the
34:10block, but it is that ability to showcase these things and put on a show for people
34:14and have them enjoy the cars in that environment.
34:17The Meekin family is still actively involved in the business.
34:20You will see them at most auction.
34:22You know, I'm saying they are around. They're visible.
34:24They're still actively involved in what happens, which is exciting.
34:27But then also, like you identified, the Meekin staff, because of the enthusiasm that
34:33it takes to participate, we draw people that are excited to help, that we love cars.
34:38We love the auction process.
34:40So I will say that's fun, too.
34:41And I think a lot of our people who come out, whether it be long time bidders or
34:45customers or just spectators, are surprised to see how much passion is within the ranks
34:50of the team, the Meekin team that puts on these events.
34:52So that's exciting, man. It's been a pleasure to have you.
34:54It's been a pleasure to kind of walk through what this world is, that it's a world that
34:58a lot of us watch and are enthralled by, but don't necessarily understand.
35:02So I think you took us into a lot of different arenas and places that were definitely
35:05educational to me, hopefully educational to the folks watching at home.
35:08Well, thanks for having me, guys.
35:10It's been fun and I can't wait to see you guys at the next Meekin auction.
35:13It is the Hot Rod Pod, where it all began, presented by Meekin.
35:17These guys will be in Kissimmee, Florida, very soon.
35:19If you're in that area, make sure you get down to the auction.
35:21Otherwise, go to the website and check out what they have going on.
35:24From my own personal experience, having visited their Indianapolis auction a few
35:27years ago, it is a car show on steroids and you will be reaching for your wallet.
35:32I promise. We'll see you next time.
35:38We'll see you next time.