The Daily Vroom

Good Morning Vroomers,

I’ve spent the weekend knee-deep in auctions. Scrolling, watching, taking notes. And here’s the thing, on about 80% of the RNM listings, someone’s in the comments blaming the “soft market.” Every. Single. Time.

It’s become the go-to excuse. Doesn’t matter if the reserve was way too high, the photos looked like they were shot with a potato, the car was on the wrong platform, or the seller completely misread the room, just blame the market.

But there isn’t one market. Never has been. There are thousands of tiny ones - built around color, spec, story, provenance, presentation, timing. Some are hot. Some are cold. Most make perfect sense once you zoom in.

And if you still think no one’s buying, let’s talk about this past week. Because when the second-highest online sale in history happens, you don’t just keep scrolling.

The Blu Elettrico LaFerrari, one of three in the world and the only one in the US hammered at $4,475,000. It had the miles, the provenance, the battery warranty, and the kind of presence that makes people stop mid-scroll. This wasn’t a lucky break; it was the product of a car and a listing that left nothing on the table.

Then came the McLaren P1, not just any P1, but an MSO-built, exposed green carbon example with the kind of spec that sticks in your head. That one changed hands for $1.87M, proving lightning can strike twice in the same week.

And finally, the last piece of Silver Arrow’s Holy Trinity: the 918 Spyder. It climbed to $3,075,000 but fell just short of selling. A bid or two more and they’d have cleared $10M in sales in a single week! Even without it, they still hit $6.7M, in days, not months. (Obviously you don’t see all the hard work that goes on behind the scenes to bring such amazing cars to market.) But still, an incredible week for Silver Arrow Cars.

Outside the hypercar headlines, the lovable green Moke from Mohr Imports’ Monterey Collection, last sold on BaT in 2019 for $23K and just brought $32,888. Proof that even at the fun, approachable end of the spectrum, the right car finds its money.

So yeah, the “soft market” takes will keep coming. But when the right car meets the right buyer in the right moment, the results speak louder than the excuses.

And even though the cars above are just BaT, other platforms also had some fantastic sales like this 2009 BMW 535i xDrive Sports Wagon for $79,999 on Cars & Bids.

And while we’ve been talking about the very top of the market, you know I’m just as interested in the other end of the spectrum, the places where interesting, usable, and sometimes overlooked cars can still be had without wiring in a second mortgage.

Today’s focus is on four no-reserve listings that are all sitting in that more approachable, enthusiast-friendly zone. They’re not headline hypercars, but each one has something going for it that makes me think the eventual buyer will walk away smiling.

No Reserve Auctions To Keep An Eye On This Week

Sometimes the market surprises you and sometimes it serves up a slow pitch right over the plate.

This 2008 Kia Amanti could be one of those pitches. No reserve. One family since new. Arizona-owned its whole life. And the kicker? Just over 6,000 miles. That is not low miles, that is time-capsule territory.

The Amanti was Kia’s old-school luxury play. Big V6 up front. Leather and heated seats inside. The kind of couch-soft ride you used to get from a Lincoln Town Car, only with Korean reliability and running costs. It is the rare “wannabe” Mercedes that has aged into a lovable oddball, especially in this condition.

Yes, it has been sitting more than it has been driven, so a mechanical once-over is smart. But if you want a comfortable daily that turns into a Cars & Coffee conversation starter, this one has potential to surprise.

Right now it is sitting at just over three grand. That is a wild number for what is essentially a brand-new 17-year-old sedan. The only question is whether the bidding will wake up before the hammer falls.

If there’s one E46 M3 on the market right now that tells a story it’s this one. Born as a track day experience car, brought back to life by YouTuber Mat Armstrong, then fine tuned in Richard Hammond’s Smallest Cog workshop - the kind of provenance you don’t get in your average classified. I personally couldn’t care less that it’s owned by a YouTuber I’ve never heard of, but the fact its whole transformation is documented is pretty cool.

Finished in Laguna Seca Blue with a retrimmed leather and Alcantara cabin, this M3 isn’t just for show. Under the bonnet sits the glorious 3.2 litre S54 straight six, pushing 338bhp through a six speed manual. The restoration covered all the right bases from bodywork repairs to boot floor reinforcement, bottom end bearings and VANOS attention so it’s ready for more miles without the big ticket scares.

The spec reads like an enthusiast’s wish list with C63 AMG Brembo brakes, Scorpion exhaust, Bilstein coilovers, short shift kit, rear strut brace, upgraded oil cooler and a JL Audio sub to keep the soundtrack going when you’re not wringing it out to 8000rpm.

At £7,500 with four days left and no reserve this isn’t just a chance to own one of the most iconic M cars ever built. It’s a chance to own one with a documented backstory and the right upgrades to make it shine on road or track.

The final-year Northstar Allanté was Cadillac’s last and best shot at the European roadster crowd. Bodies hand-built by Pininfarina in Italy, flown over on specially modified 747s, and paired with Cadillac’s most advanced V8 of the era. This one has just 18k miles and a GM “Brass Hat” backstory that may have included time on display in the Manhattan GM Building before being driven by a zone manager.

I do not care whether it was parked under spotlights in New York or not. What matters is that it is a last-year Northstar car in Bright Red over Natural Beige leather, freshly serviced, wearing new Michelins, and showing the kind of condition you just do not see on these anymore. Clean, low-mile Allantés are already rare sights at auction and the final-year cars are the ones to have.

Yes, the CD player is holding a disc hostage and it needs an oxygen sensor, but those are footnotes, not dealbreakers. Right now it is in the high $7Ks with no reserve. This is the kind of final-year, low-mile Allanté you barely see anymore, and when they do pop up in this condition they do not hang around. Someone is going to get a great car here and everyone else will be kicking themselves for not jumping in.

The early ’90s Mercury Capri is one of those cars that’s always flown under the radar, part Euro roadster, part budget Miata alternative, with its own quirks baked in. This one’s the rare clean survivor, showing low miles and wearing its original look without being messed with. You can tell it’s been looked after, and for a Capri, that matters more than anything else.

Sure, the Miata stole the spotlight back in the day, but the Capri’s front-drive, 2+2 setup made it a totally different proposition. You got a small convertible that could actually take a couple of friends, and in the real world, that made it more usable. The downside was most were driven hard and left to fade, which is why finding one that still presents this well is getting tricky.

This isn’t the sort of auction that’ll set record books on fire, but that’s exactly why it’s interesting. In a market where so many “cheap” classics have doubled in value, a clean Capri still sits in that sweet spot where the entry price is low, running costs are friendly, and you’ve got something nobody else at the cars and coffee will have.