CUMBERLAND FURNACE, Tenn. Classic car collectors came from thousands of miles away to bid on a non-running car that’s almost 60 years old and literally in pieces.
The car, an Aston Martin DB III coupe, went on the auction block this past Saturday in a barn in Cumberland Furnace, about 30 miles south of Clarksville.
The auction attracted many other bidders for items ranging from a crate of old vinyl records to automotive tools, lifts, engines, parts, and piles of scrap.
The big bidders who came from Michigan, New York, and Texas had a single purpose: making the winning bid to own the rare Aston Martin.
The auction had a bit of a festival atmosphere for the hundred or so that attended. Burgers cooked on an outside grill and collectors milled about the antique cars and trucks up for auction and gathered around a sleek black Aston Martin owned by one of the bidders on the ’58.
Auctioneers Jeff Fletcher of Auction World Gallery of Clarksville started the bidding at $25,000, which to a casual observer likely seemed very high. Even Tammie Maxwell, the car’s owner, described it as a scrap car.
To those in the know, the car, even in its current state was a rare find with the potential to fetch a half a million dollars once restored.
Bidding quickly jumped to $30,000, $40,000 and $50,000 with two on-site bidders and others upping the price by phone to Lisa Nicholson who signaled bid amounts to Fletcher as he rattled off the bidding in rapid fire auction-speak.
“Hundred and thirty five thousand how about one forty?”
A man who jumped in to bid at $130,000 made a cutting mark with his finger across his neck, indicating he’d reached his limit.
“Hundred and thirty five thousand how about one forty?”
“You won’t see another one today”
“Hundred and thirty five thousand how about one forty?”
“Sold! One hundred and thirty five thousand”
Winning bidder, Peter Kumar of Astoria New York holds up a card showing his bidder number and smiles, shaking his head in disbelief.
Kumar, owner of Gullwing Motor Cars is a classic car collector who said he plans to have the car restored.
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