Vintage car vibe shift

Hey, it's Hannah, talking Monterey autos and aristocratic decadence [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( Hi, [Hannah Elliott]( again, coming off five days of covering all the cars you could ever hope to see in one place, also known as [Monterey Car Week](. I’ve been trying to remember how many years I’ve attended the annual orgy of auto auctions, shows, rallies, parades, races and debuts centered around Carmel, California, and leading up to the [Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance]( held on the third Sunday of August. I know it’s been at least since 2009, the earliest I could find photos from covering it when I worked at Forbes. That’s 14 years, minus the one we canceled in 2020 on account of Covid-19. A 1967 Porsche 906E Weinsberg Coupe, nicknamed “El Tigre,” [restored by Road Scholars]( and displayed during the 2023 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg This is the first year the [Quail Motorsports Gathering]( eclipsed the Pebble Beach concours as the place everyone wanted to be. It’s not only because it has [become a defacto auto show](, as I reported in 2018; this year it felt like the halo event, period, of Monterey Car Week. Admittedly, this is an unquantifiable statement, as VIP tickets to both events were sold-out and absolutely heaving with revelers this year. The Quail was limited to 6,000 guests, with ticket prices between $950 and $1,500. At Pebble, VIP tickets ranged from $1,000 to $4,100 (not to mention additional one-off special packages). Pebble estimated total attendance on Sunday at 18,000—and throughout the week at 45,000 from Thursday through Sunday. Both shows were fabulous displays of automotive design and some questionable sartorial choices on the part of attendees. (Leave the flip-flops at home next year, please!) [We saw everything](from electric Lamborghini concepts to classics like the old Porsche racer aptly nicknamed “El Tigre.” Mate Rimac, chief executive officer of Bugatti Rimac, next to a one-off Bugatti Chiron Super Sport during the Quail, a Motorsports Gathering. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg The Quail was traditionally a peripheral event held the Friday before Pebble; it showcased cool old cars that didn’t necessarily qualify for entry among Pebble’s blue-blooded pedigreed machines. But times have changed. This year the Quail played host to [more than 20 new-car launches](, plus the world’s top automotive executives and a large chunk of car influencers, car paparazzi and TikTok stars. It was quite the scene. The Pininfarina B95, a $4.8 million electric open-top car, one of the most exciting debuts during Monterey Car Week. Source: Pininfarina According to dozens of people I spoke with over the course of the week, the 2023 Quail was the most difficult ticket to get, and the most desired. Over dinner at Enzo’s, an Italian kitchen favorite in Carmel, one man told me this was the first year he had seen people in a parking lot offering more than $4,000 trying to buy a couple of tickets. Others told me they were leaving Monterey early Sunday morning, skipping Pebble altogether having already got their fill of cars, Champagne and small-talk. With exciting new concepts, diverting people-watching and a glorious setting in sunny Monterey, the Quail really did deliver a raging good time. Judges view a 1924 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost Barker Tourer during the 2023 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg None of this is bad for Pebble, actually. The shift is an opportunity for the heralded concours that [began in 1950]( to shine as authentically itself—a stately garden party celebrating the oldest, rarest and most expensive vehicles in the world. It doesn’t need to compete with the hype of the Quail, which, let’s be honest, gets a little sloppy in the afternoon after people have spent hours drinking under the late-summer sun. Instead Pebble, which boasts no new car debuts with their press presentations and executive posturing, gets to focus on executing pure class. Between the two events, it’s the best of both worlds. I’m here for all of it. Connect with Hannah on [Instagram]( and [X]( (formerly Twitter) Catch up on the auto action [Lamborghini, Ferrari, Rolls-Royce: The Best Debuts at Monterey Car Week]( From electric hypercars to hydrogen SUVs, there's something for everyone at America's most glamorous car event.  [Rolls-Royce Debuts Droptail Roadster, Priced at Over $30 Million]( Only four of the ultra-customized two-seater will be made. [Mercedes-Benz Unveils the New Generation of Its Brawny AMG GT Sports Car]( After years of waiting, the update is finally here—and it is powerful.  [Ford Swings at Supercars With New $300,000 Mustang GTD]( With an exterior made almost entirely of carbon fiber, it features a supercharged V-8 engine and is the highest-horsepower street-legal Mustang ever developed by Ford. [Testing Out Bentley’s $2.1 Million Batur, a Car for Daily Driving]( Bentley made only 18 of this ultraluxury vehicle, and that exclusivity comes at a price. Cooling collector market finally hits Monterey The auctions at Monterey Car Week are in a league of their own, acting as a bellwether for market values nationwide. Across five auction houses—Bonhams, Broad Arrow, Gooding & Co., Mecum and RM Sotheby’s—they [raked in more than $400 million]( in used car sales last week. One top-note: Vintage Porsches remain strong compared to other brands in the market, according to McKeel Hagerty, the CEO of [Hagerty, which owns Broad Arrow auction house](. It has a lot to do with how the company promotes its heritage, he said during a roundtable discussion Aug. 18 in Monterey. Click to read more on how Hagerty, a midwestern insurance salesman, cornered the classic car market. Photographer: Sergio Fernandez for Bloomberg Businessweek “They’re really cool, they’re high performance, and they’re good enough to stick around for a long time,” Hagerty said. “And with the combination of motor sports wins and then periodically they throw out a [Porsche] 959, which just lights the world on fire, it’s really good brand management and embracing the enthusiasts and the clubs.” A derelict 1954 Ferrari 500 Mondial Spider Series 1 from the 'Lost & Found Collection' during the RM Sotheby's auction. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg But despite some high-flying Porsche sales—and great results from RM Sotheby’s [20 barn-find Ferraris](—this year’s overall auction tally was down from $473 million in 2022. It is an indicator that pent-up demand held over from the coronavirus pandemic has dissipated. These days, collectors and enthusiasts are less likely to throw money at something unless they care very deeply about the car, and/or it’s perfect. Anything less isn’t worth the output. Attendees preview luxury vehicles during the Gooding & Co. auctions during Monterey Car Week. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg I also think Bring a Trailer has [cut into auction sales]( more than the guys banging the wooden gavel like to admit. The online car platform that did [$1.3 billion in sales last year]( has trained car nuts that they can expect to find any car they want, in any variant, at pretty much any time. BAT has decimated whatever reluctance people had for [buying a car sight-unseen](, let alone un-driven, from a stranger on the Internet. Now classic car buying is like a game, and it’s tough for auction houses with their set annual schedules, to compete with that fun. The urge to update and refresh the page of a car you’re watching is like what I imagine the rush is for people who love playing the slots in Vegas. Just one more pull to see what pops up! Here’s more on the car collecting tip. [A Bumpy Ride at Monterey Car Auctions, Despite Million-Dollar Ferraris]( [These 20 Derelict Ferraris Could Top Nearly $20 Million at Auction]( [RM Sotheby’s New Miami Car Show Challenges Amelia Island Concours]( [Vintage Ford, Chevy Pickups Top $100,000 in Latest Collectible Craze]( [The Wolf of Wall Street Lamborghini Countach Is Up for Auction]( [A Hollywood Actor’s 20-Year Love Affair With a 1963 Mercedes-Benz]( VIP access If you’re a fan of whiskey, wine, beer and spirits, Bloomberg Pursuits has a club just for you. We’re sharing exclusive spirits news, building a tasting community and offering access to special cocktail events and bottle releases. Subscribe to the [Top Shelf newsletter](, for free, [here](. And if you love luxury timepieces, [Watch Club]( and its free [monthly newsletter]( might be for you, too. What else is on my mind READING: Lately, I’ve been thinking about Luisa Adele Rosa Maria Casati, née Amman. You might know her as Marchesa Casati; the Italians called her La Casati. She’s the Belle Époque heiress who lived a dark and extravagant life, stalking Venice at midnight with her pet cheetahs, renovating myriad decrepit European palaces, and commissioning everyone from Augustus John to Man Ray to make her portrait. She died penniless in London in 1957. I was first reminded of La Casati after re-reading [Judith Thurman’s excellent New Yorker article]( chronicling her life; then I dove into [Infinite Variety: The Life and Legend of the Marchesa Casati]( by Scot D. Ryersson and Michael Orlando Yaccarino. A singular personality and animal lover, she treated people—friends, employees, family, lovers, her daughter—terribly, and, possibly related, had a nasty affinity for belladonna and opium. But her ability to turn herself into her own best work of art during a time when women were otherwise relegated to making babies fascinated and influenced everyone from Jack Kerouac and Jean Cocteau to John Galliano and Karl Lagerfeld. And me. Her life is both inspirational and a big fat warning about the emptiness of decadence and inescapable ravages of time. If you haven’t read much about her, dig in. WRITING: I’ve mentioned him before, but I have to credit/blame [David Coggins and his substack]( for convincing me recently to buy a pocket planner from [Smythson](, the 136-year-old London brand known for luxury stationery and leather goods. The thinking is that it’s nice, even beneficial, to write on soft blue paper in an agenda rather than just input info onto yet another screen; I also like the cachet of having a little black book, so to speak, at my disposal. I ordered mine in 2023-to-2024 midyear format, in scarlet, with my initials embossed in gold at the bottom. It cost about $120. How do I like it? Let me put it this way: After less than a week, I’ve already ordered additional ones, in other colors, as gifts. So, you had some car questions... Whatever the topic, keep them coming for next week via our [Bloomberg Pursuits Instagram]( and [e-mail](mailto:askpursuits@bloomberg.net). How can I get one of those new $30 million Rolls-Royces? You must mean the new Droptail, a one-of-four roadster that debuted at a private event Aug. 19 in Carmel. That one, [called “La Rose Noire,”]( is going to one lucky couple who spent more than four years working with Rolls-Royce designers to make the car reflect their tastes, down to the Champagne chest housing their favorite label and the unique watch embedded in the dashboard developed by Audemars Piguet. The second in the the series, “Amethyst” Droptail, debuted Aug. 24 in Switzerland. It was commissioned by a patron whose family business has grown from a gemstone boutique to a multinational corporation with diversified interests. Coachbuilt cars like the “Amethyst” help Rolls-Royce balance rising sales volumes while protecting its most important asset—the appearance of extreme exclusivity. Source: Rolls-Royce The “Amethyst” also includes haute horology, here a commission from Vacheron Constantin known as ‘Les Cabinotiers Armillary Tourbillon.’ Featuring an intricate hand-wound movement, it’s housed in a specially designed holder, enabling it to be removed and stored separately from the car. Source: Rolls-Royce The company remains opaque about how, exactly, you get on the list to be part of its coachbuilt series, which started with Sweptail in 2017 and Boat Tail in 2021. It’s not just about being able to write a $30 million check. Since the car takes years to develop under close collaboration, it’s someone who company brass feel could be a “friend,” CEO Torsten Müller-Ötvös said during the press preview of “La Rose Noire.” And it’s someone who has exciting new ideas for the car they would want to make. The new owners “are long, long-standing clients of ours,” he said of that first car. “It’s never about money or how many Rolls-Royce you own. It’s about your relationship to the brand. It’s about the dream, the vision.” If that’s you… good luck! What’s up with the $300,000 Ford Mustang? It’s gonna be popular! That’s my prediction, at least. [I spoke with Ford CEO Jim Farley]( about the car the day after its debut. He told me that he has long followed Porsche’s racing strategy and is now using it as a blueprint for how he wants his Mustang program to work. Even though the 800-hp, supercharged V-8 engine isn’t brand-new (it’s shared with GT500 and F-150 Raptor R but with several significant upgrades), this new road-legal, limited-production Ford Mustang GTD is a big step forward for the plan. Deliveries of the 2025 Ford Mustang GTD will commence late next year. Source: Ford Motor Company New for subscribers: Free article gifting. Bloomberg.com subscribers can now gift up to five free articles a month to anyone you want. Just look for the "Gift this article" button on stories. (Not a subscriber? 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