Joined
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3,320 Posts
Finally back in the saddle at the office, so now I have time to do some posting (haha) here..
First, Thanks to everyone for all the well-wishes and the Kudos and congratulations here. I am really flattered and I'm really excited to see the GT-E and the Cougar in general get some well-earned recognition. It was fun and felt very rewarding to be able to experience that scene at Barrett Jackson and to represent the Cougar Community in such a spotlight.
I am very glad to have done this, first and foremost. I'd pictured myself crying after the sale (literally, especially because the car is gone and I love this car!) but I am not left with any feeling of regret WHATSOEVER. I guess a large part of that is because of the existance of Blackie
But the reward for loss of Gunner is so huge that it is actually very satisfying-
We now have a bit of a publicly-established benchmark. That is huge. And it happened in front of the Car World in the midst of a really soft market amongst the Chevys and the Mopars and even, to a large extent, the Shelby Mustangs and other Mustangs. I guess I hadn't really realized just how little knowlege there is about Cougars out there in the Classic-Car community. There were a MILLION lookie-loos at the pavillion where we were set up for the week, and there were a lot of eyebrows raised, let me tell you. I have to admit, I found it kind of iteresting (and predictable) how few of the Heavy-Hitter Mustang Guys that were there also selling (or shopping or hob-nobbing) managed to come up and introduce themselves and to ask about Gunner or give any comments. Every single Cougar-Guy within 20 miles certainly did. I know these guys are busy..but C'mon. So apparently there is an element of of competetiveness/judgement/jealousy and denial that the GT-E or the Cougar in general "belongs" with these other cars that get all the hoopla. I'd be lying if I said that I didn't get a hell of a lot of satisfaction with the sale price and to feel some serious validation there. Not for me personally, but for all of us in the Cougar Community!
The Comments here about the Speed Channel coverage were very mixed, and I agree with all of them. They certainly could have made the car a Fantasy-bid car, but let's remember that they are catering to the masses..they have commercials to sell. The Cougar is in fact SO different than what most think is a Muscle car or a collectible Pony Car, and I guess some auction results will have to be beat over their heads for years while the Mustangs and the Camaros and Corvettes and Cudas all get beat back to reality, value wise..
The TV coverage was actually just timed unfortunately, but the comments that the broadcasters made were very flattering. They also seemed to have been caught "off guard" and had little time to make comments. I had to laugh when they said that the Cougars "didn't really offer much for performance items"..did they not know that any Ford engine/suspension/handling package could be ordered and were sold on a Cougar repeatedly? They talked a lot about the rarity of the engine, but it could have been noted stronger that it never actually even came in a Mustang or a Shelby. Mabye they did..they seemed to speak of the buyer as though he had to explain to his wife why he'd pay so much for a Cougar. Again, respect will come..
I was a bit suprised at the lack of time the auctioneer spent on the car, and perhaps they could have broken down the bidding into 2K increments, but as Don mentioned, they found the level VERY quickly because there was very spirited bidding going on, and once they knew that other bidders were crying Uncle..It was Hammer Down. They moved a lot of cars quickly through the sale every day. The SPEED TV timing with the stupid Fantasy-bid cars was just unfortunate. It still was kind of cool how Gunner snuck up on them and suprised them with the speed of the bidding and being the highest selling car of the day was pretty neat. I heard a lot of cheers in the audience and everybody up on the stage was congradulating Cindy and I after the sale. It was also nice how one announcer said "for my money, this is one of the most special Muscle cars here". I was upset with myself for not having the hideaways adjusted a bit more. If only I'd had the time to get a dayum 5/16ths socket to just screw the damned stop down a little more!
I met a few High-End collectors and a lot of semi-collectors. When a guy fell in love, it was just plain obvious. They tended to be very down-to-earh fellows, and they had a tough time justifying (or having the actual funds ready) to spend over 150K, but there were a SLUG of guys there ready to pay 150 plus commission, it seemed.
I am also very glad that this wasn't the top of the line GT-E. It is a good benchmark because it was standard, and low optioned. I think it was pretty important that the engine block was original, but I made it very clear to everyone that the rear end, heads, and exhaust manifolds were not original.
Blackie would absolutely have blown 'em away too, but Gunner really showed well with that nice red paint. And the lack of a vinyl top.. I was very pleased, and especially proud of the engine compartment and the grille assembly and GT-E trim, I wish the announcers had the time to talk about the trim package and grille on a GT-E. Oh well.
It was sooo fun seeing every Cougar Buddy there in Scottsdale and getting to know everyone a bit more. What a great showing, at Bill's and at the auction. It was a big party, although I feel like crap that I was such a social basket case because of my cold, my nevers, and just being worn out and busy and exhausted and sniffling and sneezing all the time. It was great to have guys like Ray and Al there to take care of my Dear Mom. She got some special treatment, as did Mike's Mom ..they both said "my Son's car is over there, I have to get to him! haha.. How cool is that? Thanks Guys.. Mom loved it and she had a great time and was really impressed with this club and the friends we all have here. My kids are really shy, but it was so cool to have Tess (daughter) handing out pictures of Gunner to interested people in the staging area, and for her to be able to mingle with you all too..
Steve's Convertible looked absolutely awesome and I'd hoped he'd done better, but I think his car got him the money he needed/wanted, and I know he had a great time and got a lot out of the whole experience. It was nice hangin' with you when we had the breif chances. I sure look forward to doing Scottsdale/Phoenix again at my leisure and maybe go car-shopping. Less stress will be more fun.
Now let's get back at it, as Stacey David says-you know there's something you shoud be workin' on!
Oh, and by the way..If you have a Cougar for sale and you want to get the best possible money out of it..go ahead and roll the dice at Barrett-Jackson. It really isn't all-that scary, and you will undoubtably have a VERY rare car there. I can personally attest to that, now
Thanks again, All!
First, Thanks to everyone for all the well-wishes and the Kudos and congratulations here. I am really flattered and I'm really excited to see the GT-E and the Cougar in general get some well-earned recognition. It was fun and felt very rewarding to be able to experience that scene at Barrett Jackson and to represent the Cougar Community in such a spotlight.
I am very glad to have done this, first and foremost. I'd pictured myself crying after the sale (literally, especially because the car is gone and I love this car!) but I am not left with any feeling of regret WHATSOEVER. I guess a large part of that is because of the existance of Blackie
But the reward for loss of Gunner is so huge that it is actually very satisfying-We now have a bit of a publicly-established benchmark. That is huge. And it happened in front of the Car World in the midst of a really soft market amongst the Chevys and the Mopars and even, to a large extent, the Shelby Mustangs and other Mustangs. I guess I hadn't really realized just how little knowlege there is about Cougars out there in the Classic-Car community. There were a MILLION lookie-loos at the pavillion where we were set up for the week, and there were a lot of eyebrows raised, let me tell you. I have to admit, I found it kind of iteresting (and predictable) how few of the Heavy-Hitter Mustang Guys that were there also selling (or shopping or hob-nobbing) managed to come up and introduce themselves and to ask about Gunner or give any comments. Every single Cougar-Guy within 20 miles certainly did. I know these guys are busy..but C'mon. So apparently there is an element of of competetiveness/judgement/jealousy and denial that the GT-E or the Cougar in general "belongs" with these other cars that get all the hoopla. I'd be lying if I said that I didn't get a hell of a lot of satisfaction with the sale price and to feel some serious validation there. Not for me personally, but for all of us in the Cougar Community!
The Comments here about the Speed Channel coverage were very mixed, and I agree with all of them. They certainly could have made the car a Fantasy-bid car, but let's remember that they are catering to the masses..they have commercials to sell. The Cougar is in fact SO different than what most think is a Muscle car or a collectible Pony Car, and I guess some auction results will have to be beat over their heads for years while the Mustangs and the Camaros and Corvettes and Cudas all get beat back to reality, value wise..
The TV coverage was actually just timed unfortunately, but the comments that the broadcasters made were very flattering. They also seemed to have been caught "off guard" and had little time to make comments. I had to laugh when they said that the Cougars "didn't really offer much for performance items"..did they not know that any Ford engine/suspension/handling package could be ordered and were sold on a Cougar repeatedly? They talked a lot about the rarity of the engine, but it could have been noted stronger that it never actually even came in a Mustang or a Shelby. Mabye they did..they seemed to speak of the buyer as though he had to explain to his wife why he'd pay so much for a Cougar. Again, respect will come..
I was a bit suprised at the lack of time the auctioneer spent on the car, and perhaps they could have broken down the bidding into 2K increments, but as Don mentioned, they found the level VERY quickly because there was very spirited bidding going on, and once they knew that other bidders were crying Uncle..It was Hammer Down. They moved a lot of cars quickly through the sale every day. The SPEED TV timing with the stupid Fantasy-bid cars was just unfortunate. It still was kind of cool how Gunner snuck up on them and suprised them with the speed of the bidding and being the highest selling car of the day was pretty neat. I heard a lot of cheers in the audience and everybody up on the stage was congradulating Cindy and I after the sale. It was also nice how one announcer said "for my money, this is one of the most special Muscle cars here". I was upset with myself for not having the hideaways adjusted a bit more. If only I'd had the time to get a dayum 5/16ths socket to just screw the damned stop down a little more!
I met a few High-End collectors and a lot of semi-collectors. When a guy fell in love, it was just plain obvious. They tended to be very down-to-earh fellows, and they had a tough time justifying (or having the actual funds ready) to spend over 150K, but there were a SLUG of guys there ready to pay 150 plus commission, it seemed.
I am also very glad that this wasn't the top of the line GT-E. It is a good benchmark because it was standard, and low optioned. I think it was pretty important that the engine block was original, but I made it very clear to everyone that the rear end, heads, and exhaust manifolds were not original.
Blackie would absolutely have blown 'em away too, but Gunner really showed well with that nice red paint. And the lack of a vinyl top.. I was very pleased, and especially proud of the engine compartment and the grille assembly and GT-E trim, I wish the announcers had the time to talk about the trim package and grille on a GT-E. Oh well.
It was sooo fun seeing every Cougar Buddy there in Scottsdale and getting to know everyone a bit more. What a great showing, at Bill's and at the auction. It was a big party, although I feel like crap that I was such a social basket case because of my cold, my nevers, and just being worn out and busy and exhausted and sniffling and sneezing all the time. It was great to have guys like Ray and Al there to take care of my Dear Mom. She got some special treatment, as did Mike's Mom ..they both said "my Son's car is over there, I have to get to him! haha.. How cool is that? Thanks Guys.. Mom loved it and she had a great time and was really impressed with this club and the friends we all have here. My kids are really shy, but it was so cool to have Tess (daughter) handing out pictures of Gunner to interested people in the staging area, and for her to be able to mingle with you all too..
Steve's Convertible looked absolutely awesome and I'd hoped he'd done better, but I think his car got him the money he needed/wanted, and I know he had a great time and got a lot out of the whole experience. It was nice hangin' with you when we had the breif chances. I sure look forward to doing Scottsdale/Phoenix again at my leisure and maybe go car-shopping. Less stress will be more fun.
Now let's get back at it, as Stacey David says-you know there's something you shoud be workin' on!
Oh, and by the way..If you have a Cougar for sale and you want to get the best possible money out of it..go ahead and roll the dice at Barrett-Jackson. It really isn't all-that scary, and you will undoubtably have a VERY rare car there. I can personally attest to that, now
Thanks again, All!
