Cars & Bids Now Auctioning Cool Cars From The Not-So-Modern Era

If one thing’s certain, it’s change. From skyrocketing values for 2000s enthusiast cars to the expected deflation of post-war cars not relatable to a younger audience, the collector car world is always moving, and a big player just announced another big move. Car auction site Cars & Bids is venturing outside its initial mission by now accepting cars made before 1981 on the platform.

Since The Chernin Group acquired a majority stake in Cars & Bids back in 2023, it’s been trying to boost profits and cut expenses, with rounds of layoffs over the past two years and higher buyer’s fees. Now, another measure to expand has been introduced. Yesterday, an email went out to all Cars & Bids registered users stating the following:

We’ve always built Cars & Bids for the modern enthusiast — someone who loves interesting cars, appreciates great design, and enjoys the thrill of a well-run auction.

But being a modern enthusiast doesn’t mean only liking modern cars.

So, starting today, we’re expanding what you’ll see on Cars & Bids: we’re now accepting and auctioning great cars from before 1981.

It’s something many of you have been asking for — and frankly, something we’ve wanted too. Pre-1981 classics are a huge part of car culture, and we’re excited to bring the same great experience (fast turnaround, exceptional support, curated auctions, and a passionate community) to a wider mix of cool cars.

Huh. Alright, while that wasn’t the original mission of the site, accepting cars built before 1981 is a way to potentially broaden horizons and pump volume. While Cars & Bids has been clocking around 32 cars per day this week, that’s a relatively modest increase from what we saw in 2022 and a fairly small number compared to Bring A Trailer auctioning off more than 100 lots yesterday.

Adjusting vehicle age ranges is also probably something that should’ve happened a while ago, because thematically, some great cars of the ’80s started production in the 1970s. Vehicles like the Porsche 928 made famous by “Risky Business”, the Ferrari 308 everyone saw in “Magnum P.I.”, and the Lamborghini Countach. Accepting a 1982 Ferrari 308 GTSi but not, say, a 1979 Ferrari 308 GTB seems a little weird given both models had similar cultural impact on the yuppie decade.

Here’s the thing: Besides the celebrity factor, two distinguishing features that set Cars & Bids apart from Bring A Trailer were lower buyer’s fees and a more modern selection of cars. Now that buyer’s fees have been raised to match what Bring A Trailer is asking and vehicle criteria have expanded to cover cars prior to 1981, the waters are murkier than ever.

This is one of the weird problems with being a smaller player without an exclusive product. If you prove there’s money in a niche underserved by larger competitors, those competitors can just move into that niche. It sure seems that Bring A Trailer expanded its intake after being acquired by Hearst, and with vehicles like mid-aughts Lexus SUVs and fairly normal 2000s Mercedes-Benzes crossing the block, Bring A Trailer looks as if it’s picking up some vehicles that previously would’ve been obvious Cars & Bids material.

So, how does Cars & Bids move forward here? Well, one potential path is focusing more on daily driver-condition or number four condition classic cars. Cars with higher mileage and a few imperfections that might need a little work upon delivery, but can be picked up for a solid deal. There’s still a huge market for fun cars that aren’t perfect, fun cars for the rest of us. Right now, that doesn’t seem to be the case with most of the first hand-picked pre-1981 cars, but we’ll keep our eyes open to see if the auction site pursues that affordable classics avenue. More machines like this dentside Ford (above) and fewer high-dollar restomods, please.

Top graphic credit: Cars & Bids

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