Arizona Storm Damage at Barrett Jackson

The storm that brought heavy wind and rain in Southern California late last week made its way across the state border where it took its toll on a number of collectible cars waiting to be auctioned off at the famous Barrett-Jackson auto auction in Scottsdale, AZ.

The Russo and Steele auction house tent collapsed and was only one of hundreds of casualties that would make themselves known before the winds calmed down enough to allow owners and photographers into the staging area which housed hundreds of beautifully maintained cars. One section of the tent itself blew onto the nearby 101 freeway. If the rest of the tent had done the same, the cars being housed underneath would have fared much better. Unfortunately the giant metal poles that held up the tents, the size of telephone poles and still attached to the whipping canvas, battered cars with their unforgiving strength.

Only photographs can tell the story from here on out. One Trans Am in particular appears as though it was driven through a war zone. There will be many busy high-end restoration shops and insurance adjusters in the near future. These images are not for the faint of heart.

Damage photos-
https://sites.google.com/a/allclassicsllc.com/www/home/2010-russo-and-steele-damages

Auction catalog-
http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/4d0560a2#/4d0560a2/1

Can't keep watching. Makes me sick....

Oh my. I heard there was a storm during the auction but no idea it was that bad. So sad.

The damage wasn't at Barrett-Jackson. Russo and Steele is a different competitor, and they have an event in Scottsdale at the same time.

I can't believe how many cars were damaged!

start searching about how badly things were handled by R/S,. owners pleaded for their cars to be moved out of the tents,. and they were not allowed,. they asked for their cars to be released to them and under terms of contract were not allowed,.
Cars that have been damaged are now never going to be worth what they are now,. case in point the hemi convertible,. theses cars may not get issued salvage titles because of their initial worth,. but its hard to hide the fact that a priceless auto was smashed at the auction it was to be sold at,. it would now have exposure to the car world that would be impossible to hide from,..fixed perfectly or not,..


nick
hoping for a good deal on a hemi cuda,.. mebbe 100,000 instead of 1,000,000

Every time I watch a R/S auction on TV, they strike me as really second rate. I guess I am just used to the spectacle that B-jackson provides. R/S cars are usually reserve, and more often than not, the cars do not meet the reserve. This means that R/S does not bring out the money (more than one buyer). You can see what I mean - look at all the cars that have the "still for sale" sticker on the windshield.

Some of those are beyond saving. Especially the cars with destroyed roofs. Sure they can be fixed with money but I wouldn't want them.

I had never heard any other Auction names until this,but I have an Arizona friend who has always said there are more than BJ,and that they are equally as good though not commercialized.

Like you said Nick,how the situation was handled says all I need to hear about them. Common sense is so under rated sometimes.

I guess the only real consolation is they were being sold,so the owner is all about money at this point,and may still come out ahead in some cases.

Could be worse,I could have just bought one of them,

I have to tread lightly here... But, looking at all 215 pics, some cars have fared better than others. Some just need to replace a panel and repaint, while others (trans Am) are nothing but 3500 pounds of scrap metal.

While I will never own a vehicle of that caliber, I feel for those that have committed COUNTLESS hours and poured their heart, soul and yes, even blood into their car. I feel less for those that just wrote a check....... Still a great loss, but without the emotional connection.

A while back my dad went to the St. Ignas car show in the UP of Michigan. Someone backed into a beautiful 40's lead sled and tore up the rear quarter. My dad woke the owner up to look at the damage. He (owner) just sat on the curb and cried.

For those that aren't "car guys", those pics are just "bad". To us, it's painful.

^^^^ Thats what I love (Clinton Homo) about you Robert. You have an opinion and express it.

First of all,I truly do hope you and anyone else here who loves cars,are able to have a car of that calliber,unless you are saying you would never spend the money. Dream big,things happen in life,never say never etc.

Second,I am one of those cheque writers and no,I am not offended,so tread heavy,it's fine.

As I said already,anyone who has a car up for auction,doesn't have the passion anymore,or is searchiing for the big $.

Having said that,lets use me and my true friend Pat as examples. He has what you call,sweat and blood in his car as witnessed all last winter here. Now he wants to sell it after all that labor. Can he? time will tell.Is it worth what he feels his anatomy so deserves?dunno,but for some reason most builders sell,and start another.

Then there is me. Paid for everything done to mine.It has to be appraised every 2 years,and as most are aware it is now over 30 if it was totalled.

Do I think thats insane?yup,but here is the kicker,it will never be for sale. So I tend to think we are the true passionate owners. However if at wagonfest a tree falls,I am covered and would gladly accept that amount of money.

Opinions welcome. Lorne.

you're a car whore like the rest of us buddy,. you'd give it up for the right price,..
every thing is for sale,...everything has its price,....


Nick

I had a Conversion van like yours Nick. it was the hardest vehicle I sold as it was a part of the family for those great vacations.

This wagon is like that, the kids hated it. and they still do. I would go to car shows,get all depressed bacause I had a wagon when no one wanted one,and had to drive it at work to boot. Now I can't part with it.


Sell Mikes????You bet,and it should be worth more in my opinion.

Robert:

Stereotyping "checkbook" collectors as being devoid of passion for the hobby is patently unfair. Yes there are those that are only in it for the money, but as was pointed out on the Hagerty commercials during the B-J auction this weekend, 85% of car collectors own only one collector car. Auctioning that car off does not mean he or she is any less passionate about the cars but it may mean he/she needs to sell one to get another or has found another car that they can get passionate about.

Just because one lacks the ability or the inclination to re-store or create a piece of rolling art, does not mean they are any less of a car guy. How many art collectors do you know with any true artistic ability? Does that mean they don't appreciate art, or are they only in it for the money? Many are passionate about music but few can actually play it and even fewer can actually create it.

We all have our own areas of expertise and reasons for being involved in the car hobby and regardless of whether we can repair, customize, modify, restore or simply collect, we all share a common appreciation for the good, a distain for the bad and a desire to to own something unigue. How we acquire and attain that little piece of uniqueness has little bearing on what constitutes a true enthusiast.

Bill

Cars are like women,. you see one you like , you want it!! you get it drive it hard for a while, live with it,. then you see something else,. next thing you know, first one is up for sale to get the next piece of infatuation,..

Nick
"If i could have what i want, i wouldn't want what i have"

Nick,

You need to get the Book,Purpose driven Life. We all have an emptyness that was put there intentionally. No sermon honest,but you know who belongs there by now.

The comparison is a wheel,held together with the spokes (Family,careers,friends ....) You will lose a few spokes and still get thru life,but you screw with that hub and everything comes to a halt.

Roll baby Roll,we will all seize up one day, but not on our terms.


And in my case,Marge hunted me down.

OK, it seems that the intent that I heard in my head did not convey onto the screen. The following is the modified post from above:



While I will never be able to own a vehicle of that caliber due to having neither the money nor talent, I
feel for those that have committed COUNTLESS hours and poured their
heart, soul and yes, even blood into their car. I feel less for those
that just wrote a check for the sole purpose of having it restored, then flip for profit ....... Still a great loss, but without the
emotional connection.

We have all been around for a while, most of have "known" each other for years.

No offense wsa intended

Krzdimond wrote:

OK, it seems that the intent that I heard in my head did not convey onto the screen. The following is the modified post from above:



While I will never be able to own a vehicle of that caliber due to having neither the money nor talent, I
feel for those that have committed COUNTLESS hours and poured their
heart, soul and yes, even blood into their car. I feel less for those
that just wrote a check for the sole purpose of having it restored, then flip for profit ....... Still a great loss, but without the
emotional connection.

We have all been around for a while, most of have "known" each other for years.

No offense wsa intended

We all know you have talent Rob,. we've seen pictures of your dance outfits,..

nick

After all is said and done, it truly does hurt me to see all those beautiful cars damaged. I was always under the impression that cars of that caliber would have been protected better. Each year we would say the same while watching " What would happen if a storm happened by" Well now we know!!

phantom 309 wrote:

Krzdimond wrote:

OK, it seems that the intent that I heard in my head did not convey onto the screen. The following is the modified post from above:



While I will never be able to own a vehicle of that caliber due to having neither the money nor talent, I
feel for those that have committed COUNTLESS hours and poured their
heart, soul and yes, even blood into their car. I feel less for those
that just wrote a check for the sole purpose of having it restored, then flip for profit ....... Still a great loss, but without the
emotional connection.

We have all been around for a while, most of have "known" each other for years.

No offense wsa intended

We all know you have talent Rob,. we've seen pictures of your dance outfits,..

nick

Yeah something about dancing like an egyptian in the 80's.....

It WAS the 80's and they were the best 2 years of my life! Ah yes, the "chemical dependency" years, I kinda remember them well ..... I'm thinking I'm going to tell her to remove that pic...... nah, I did it, I admit. Hell Y'all have seen the pics

Anyone notice all the hair I had back then??

That is enough to make a grown man cry.
Ed

The Black Pearl wrote:

That is enough to make a grown man cry.
Ed

Robs dancing?? yeah so true,..

Nick