The Daily Vroom

Good morning Vroomers!

Another wild day on the auction block. Prices flew, bids stacked, and just when you thought you’d seen it all... a 12-mile 1993 Mustang SVT Cobra sold for $204,000. That’s Fox-body money edging into Ferrari territory. Finished in Teal Metallic and untouched since new, this time capsule spent decades in storage before resurfacing to spark a bidding war. Original window sticker, Marti report, still on its first tank of gas — the kind of museum-grade find that barely feels real.

But still — with all that — that price…

MARKET LEADERBOARD

💰 The figures shared below don’t count any other sales such as car seats, memorabilia etc… All online auction sites are analyzed to put this leaderboard together.

I only include websites that have sold 5+ vehicles in the chart below.

YESTERDAY’S TOP 5 SALES

Want to dive deeper into any of these listings? Just click on the car to take you directly to the listing.

Sale of the Day

A 1952 Volkswagen Beetle. Just 24 horsepower. Cable brakes. No synchros. No sun visor. And yet, it just hammered on Bring a Trailer for $95,959.

Let that sink in.

This wasn’t a Deluxe or a coachbuilt Hebmüller. It was a Standard — the purist’s purist. Barebones. Correct. And yes, exceptional. But the real story here isn’t just about the car. It’s about what BaT has become.

BaT as the Global Stage

Five years ago, a Beetle like this might’ve lingered on niche forums or classic car classifieds. A few photos. A few hundred eyeballs. A private deal, maybe. But not this.

Instead, this auction drew over 15,000 views from historians, collectors, restorers, and VW nerds alike. Some swapped facts on semaphore turn signals. Others shared firsthand memories of 1950s road trips and double-clutching crash boxes. It felt less like a sale, more like a museum gallery come alive.

That’s the BaT effect.

From $1,952 to $95,959

Bidding opened at $1,952 — a nod to the model year — and escalated rapidly. With two main contenders slugging it out in the final minutes, bids landed in satisfying palindromes: $77,777… $88,888… $95,959. BaT’s trademark psychological theatre was in full effect.

Sure, it helps that the car came from the Ronald Lauder collection, adding a touch of high-society provenance. But what pushed this Beetle into Porsche-money territory was the platform. The crowd. The energy. The visibility. This wasn’t just a transaction. It was an event.

The Big Picture

This sale might not reset the VW Beetle market, but it does reinforce something bigger: online auctions aren’t secondary anymore. They’re the main stage. A sub-25hp car just pulled nearly $100K, not at Pebble Beach, but from someone’s phone.

And in a world where garage-built dream cars go viral before they’re even registered, BaT continues to be the auction house that democratized desire. It made room for cars like this one to shine.

Even with 24 horsepower.

From Freightliner to Flower Power

This isn’t a Sprinter with cedar panels. It’s a blacked-out, ex-fire rescue Freightliner with air brakes, dual rear wheels, a retractable shower, and a queen bed. Built by someone who actually uses their rig — not someone designing for a brochure.

Everything here solves a problem.

• Fold-up shower = smart layout.

• Train horn = campsite authority.

• Dual gray tanks, real water system, full kitchen = no fluff.

In my opnion, this is what most van builds should aim for. It’s not trying to be cute or trendy. It’s solving for space, comfort, and utility — and doing it with zero pretense. I’ve seen plenty of camper conversions that look the part but fall apart under real use. This one looks ready for anything.

Bid at time of writing is at $29K and it ends today.
It’s weird. It’s overbuilt.
And it deserves the attention it’s getting.

If the Freightliner M2 was built to own the campsite, this Sprinter’s more about slipping in quietly, flexing smart design, and waking up with an unobstructed mountain view.

Converted by Colorado Custom Campers, this one nails the balance—off-road capable, full-time livable, and spec’d with just enough overlanding gear to look serious without turning into a TikTok parody. Agile Offroad suspension, 17" Methods on Falkens, Flarespace pop-out flares, and a RoamBuilt rack that could support solar but hasn’t yet—because not everyone needs to play Mad Max on the weekends.

Inside, it’s utilitarian in the best way: no overbuilt cabinets or fake wood trim, just two legit sleeping surfaces, a diesel heater, fridge, water, and a Victron inverter. No toilet. No shower. Just enough to stay out longer than you planned.

This is what the camper scene looks like when it’s built by someone who actually camps. Not a showpiece, not a toy—this is the refined counterpoint to the all-out Freightliner. Less command post, more basecamp.

It’s not technically a camper. But let’s be honest — the line blurs once you throw curtains on a 15-window Bus with twin roof racks and a sunroof big enough to sleep under.

This 1974 VW Type 2 Kombi started life in Brazil, got restored in Italy, and now lives in Belgium with a freshened interior, bright two-tone paint, and just enough upgrades to make it usable. The aftermarket wheels and retro stereo hint at road trip intentions, even if the factory spec didn’t include a bed, sink, or stove.

Still, it’s easy to picture what this could be. Pull the bench seats, toss in a minimalist cabinet setup, and you’ve got the bones for a Euro-cool micro-camper that turns heads from Lisbon to Lake Como. It’s not trying to compete with a modern Sprinter — and that’s the charm.

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