Photo: Mecum
Playing the game in the collector’s market is both fun and risky business. Fun because where else do you get the thrills of auctioning (for) cars that will always mean something for the industry, and risky because not always things play out as planned.
Last week, Indianapolis was the site of a massive Mecum car auction. For collectors, it was a week filled with emotion, and for the majority of them, lots of money as well. Some, on the other hand, got to leave with far less than they were expecting.
That was the case with the seller of this 1970 Ford Mustang Boss 302. It’s not just any Boss 302, but reportedly the only one of its kind to have been owned and driven by one of America’s most proficient racing drivers ever, Parnelli Jones.
The car, wrapped in School Bus Yellow 1970 SCCA Trans Am livery, was the recipient of restoration work that ended in 2006 to Jones's personal specifications. Since then, it was driven for just 2,000 miles (3,200 km), so the 302ci (5.0-liter) engine, the 330 hp (40 more than the stock variant) that it cranks out, and the 4-speed manual transmission are as fit as they’ll ever be.
Despite all of the above and several other extras, such as Koni shocks, 620-pound 1-inch (51-mm) lowering springs, or Shelby front suspension drop, the car failed miserably in bringing its now-former owner the money they were hoping for.
Based on all the things it brings and its famous past ownership, the initial estimates for the car placed it at anywhere between $175,000 and $185,000. When the hammer fell though, after a fight that was not as fierce as expected, the car ended up being sold for just… $95,700.
Maybe next time it shows up on the auction block—and make no mistake about it, it probably will, and soon—things will be different.
That was the case with the seller of this 1970 Ford Mustang Boss 302. It’s not just any Boss 302, but reportedly the only one of its kind to have been owned and driven by one of America’s most proficient racing drivers ever, Parnelli Jones.
The car, wrapped in School Bus Yellow 1970 SCCA Trans Am livery, was the recipient of restoration work that ended in 2006 to Jones's personal specifications. Since then, it was driven for just 2,000 miles (3,200 km), so the 302ci (5.0-liter) engine, the 330 hp (40 more than the stock variant) that it cranks out, and the 4-speed manual transmission are as fit as they’ll ever be.
Despite all of the above and several other extras, such as Koni shocks, 620-pound 1-inch (51-mm) lowering springs, or Shelby front suspension drop, the car failed miserably in bringing its now-former owner the money they were hoping for.
Based on all the things it brings and its famous past ownership, the initial estimates for the car placed it at anywhere between $175,000 and $185,000. When the hammer fell though, after a fight that was not as fierce as expected, the car ended up being sold for just… $95,700.
Maybe next time it shows up on the auction block—and make no mistake about it, it probably will, and soon—things will be different.
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