CARMEL, Calif. — This year’s Monterey Car Week in Pebble Beach ended with a bang.
A stunning 1924 Hispano-Suiza H6C Nieuport-Astra Torpedo won top honors at Sunday’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, arguably the most prestigious classic car show in the world.
The boat-like Hispano-Suiza, which features mahogany body panels held together with aluminum rivets, went through a two-year restoration using period-era wood and features nickel plating on engine parts and other components that are period correct, an RM Sotheby’s spokesperson said.
But this “one-off’ torpedo-shaped car wasn’t the only big news coming out of Monterey.
An auction rebound – with a twist
The biggest auto auctioneers in the world — RM Sotheby’s; Mecum; Bonhams; and the official auctioneer of Pebble Beach, Gooding & Company — were expecting a somewhat downbeat week, but the final tallies in the industry surprised.
Classic car insurer Hagerty (HGTY), which also owns Broad Arrow Auctions, estimated an average of $388 million would come in across all auction houses. However, the final tally came in much higher, with sales totaling $432.8 million across four days, which could also increase as cars that didn’t sell can find buyers in the next day or two.
This year was the second-biggest Monterey show ever, only surpassed by 2022’s $471.2 million total. Hagerty notes that the top sale was a special-edition 2025 Ferrari (RACE) Daytona SP3 at $26 million, which was auctioned off for charity. Without the new Ferrari, the total sales of $397.2 million would have been up only 4% from last year.
“As has been the story over the past couple of years, modern supercars set records while bidders shied away from vintage Ferraris, the Pablo Picassos of the collector car world,” Hagerty said in its report. “Last year’s faltering of the vintage Ferrari market, with a drop from an average of 84% (2021-2023) to 51% in 2024, was soothed by 65% of them selling this year. More buyers and sellers found a meeting point, but the frenzied Italian interest has moved to more modern cars.”
‘Few-offs’ and concepts hit the field
Speaking of modern cars, from the Quail event on Friday to Pebble Beach’s concept lawn on Sunday, automakers showed off their latest creations, with exclusivity being key. Some models would only be sold by the handful, while others not at all.
It didn’t stop high-net-worth car fanatics from inquiring about where to sign on the dotted line.
“We’ve had a number of customers that have already said, ‘Could we buy one of those vehicles today?’” said Rory Harvey, GM (GM) executive vice president and president of global markets, about the company’s two Corvette concepts, the CX and racy CX-R.
Harvey, who essentially leads all GM brands globally, noted that customers were asking to buy a vehicle with no pricing info that wouldn’t even be released.
“Just listening to the customers, the enthusiasts that are on the stage, I mean, the feedback is outstanding,” Harvey said.
The Corvettes featured on the Quail lawn likely strongly hint at the future of Corvette, but it’s something fans and buyers won’t see for years.
While Ferrari sold its one-of-one Daytona SP3 for charity (for an astounding price, as noted above), even its one-time rival Ford (F) got in on the action, revealing the ultimate Ford GT Mk IV, a track-only specification that would be banned at any race due to its all-out specification.
The Mk comes in at a heady $1.7 million, with just 67 units made, the last versions before Ford GT production comes to an end.
Lamborghini’s latest creation — a “few off,” as it calls limited vehicles — is the Fenomeno. A more extreme version of the current Revuelto V-12 powered hybrid, the Fenomeno features a more aggressive aero package and jet fighter-like cockpit.
Only 29 Fenomenos will be built, likely costing around $3.5 million. They’re already sold out, so disappointed shoppers will have to look to the auction market in the coming years if they want to get one.
CEO Stephan Winkelmann told Yahoo Finance that “few-off” creations are not just about expressing the brand’s design ethos, or celebrating certain milestones (in this case, the 20th anniversary of the company’s in-house design division). They make considerable money for the brand.
The last “few off,” the new Countach that debuted back at Monterey in 2022, was priced starting at $3.5 million with 112 units sold. Back-of-the-napkin math shows at least $280 million coming into Lamborghini’s coffers after the production run ended.
Lamborghini’s Volkswagen (VWAGY) stablemate Bentley also showed off a concept, the EXP 15, which made its North America debut at Pebble Beach’s concept lawn.
“Yes it’s always — being open a little bit on the process — you show something where you know we will not sell it,” Bentley CEO Frank Walliser told Yahoo Finance. “And we went with a concept where we said, ‘OK, we show an outlook of how a sedan in the future could look like,’ and we went in as extreme as possible a concept.”
The EXP 15 may be a sedan, but it is a big one, almost hulking. The big grill and brawny front of the car then levels off with a sporty fastback design — hinting at possible sporty SUV leanings.
The concept offers clues about future design, but not much else.
“I know what we will see on the street, and I also know what you will not see, but I cannot tell you the details,” Walliser said with a chuckle. “What you can see [here], there’s a lot of elements that will make its way to our future street cars, for sure, if then applied to an SUV style or to a sports car type of car, it will be completely different.”
For now, Bentley buyers will have to settle for the British brand’s current offerings, which have all been refreshed for the current model year, featuring mostly V8 hybrid powertrains.
Bentley’s all-electric future, seen in visions like the EXP 15, has some years to go. Perhaps Monterey Car Week 2030 would be a good target.
Pras Subramanian is the lead auto reporter for Yahoo Finance. You can follow him on X and on Instagram.
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