The last time we all gathered in Monterey in 2019, Bonhams crammed over 200 cars into its space at Quail Lodge. Usually, there are a little more than half that many. That strategy of more, cheaper cars resulted in $33M total sales and a decent 76-percent sell-through rate over a two-day auction, but Bonhams nevertheless returned to Quail Lodge in 2021 with a more traditional 139-car, one-day sale.
Among the highlights was a wonderful 1928 Mercedes-Benz Type S Sports Tourer out of nearly 60 years of single family ownership that at $5.4M beat its high estimate by over $1M. The ex-Autodelta Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 TT 12 also brought $1,677,000 and the customized 1980 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ40 sold by actor Tom Hanks brought $123,000 (his Airstream trailer brought $235,200). Aside from those, Bonhams brought out its typical mix of interesting prewar cars as well as several coachbuilt Rolls-Royces and a group of Maseratis and Lamborghinis that, to put it delicately, needed some attention.
We were on the ground and looking at cars up close at Quail Lodge this year, and some of the more interesting cars are outlined in detail below with market insights and commentary.