Old Cars

35 years and counting, Branson sale rolls on

Since the first Branson Auction was conducted by Mark Trimble 41 years ago, the event has become a spring and fall staple for the Branson, Mo., area. This year, Jim and Kathy Cox celebrated their 35th year of owning and running the auction. After being conducted at several venues and their parking lots, it was further entrenched as a local fixture when it became the first reoccurrin­g event held at the Branson Convention Center when the facility opened in 2007. The auction has remained there ever since. The three-plus decades of the Coxes’ leadership of the Branson Auction is something of a bedrock in the industry. While there are auction houses that have been around longer, far more have now folded. The Branson Auction and the Coxes bring a sense of stability that a host of their customers—both consignors and bidders—find assuring.

The fall 2023 edition found even Mother Nature being cooperativ­e, with highs in the lower 80s on both days the auction was conducted. While this was most appreciate­d for the Friday lots, which were staged in the parking lot next to the Convention Center (since Saturday lots are staged inside), not having weather concerns in mid-October always helps to bring in more customers.

Even with pleasant weather, consignmen­ts were down by 14 lots compared to the spring auction, Yet when all was said and done, 140 cars were declared sold—exactly the same as in the spring. However, the gross sales were down by slightly more than $236,000 from last spring. It all again proved that finding consignmen­ts and finding new homes for them versus having them go back to the same homes again is a delicate balance. That is specially true in today’s auction landscape with so many live and virtual venues, plus an overall market cooling after three years of exceedingl­y strong sales.

Leading all sales in Branson by a significan­t amount was a replica of the 1960s TV series Batmobile, fashioned upon a 1978 Lincoln Continenta­l chassis and driveline.

This copy of the “Caped Crusader’s” cruiser copped a cool $140,000, besting the second-place 1963 Ford Galaxie 500 XL 427-powered fastback by $64,000. Between those and the car that sold for the least amount of money — a 1949 Kaiser Manhattan sedan that was part of a 19-car no-reserve collection that fetched $1,250 — there was something on the docket for just about anyone’s taste and pocketbook.

Just like the leaves returning to the trees in the spring, we look forward to another season of the Branson Auction in 2024, with their next event on April 19-20.

Following are a few representa­tive lots from the auction:

1978 Lincoln Continenta­l Town Coupe

Futura-era Batmobile replica, 2-dr roadster. Condition #3, Sold for $140,000. The high seller of the auction. Sold with the title in transit. Built upon the chassis and powertrain of a 1978 Continenta­l Town Coupe, with the standard 400-cid

V-8 and C-6 3-speed automatic. Fitted with a first-generation Batmobile body (the one based on the Lincoln Futura show car) from Doug Hines, who made molds from George Barris’ #3 Batmobile. Conversion work started in 2003 and completed in 2008. The black paint still looks good, but the Day-Glo orange accents are already fading. Otherwise shows minimal wear and is faithful to the TV series-era Batmobile. As such, the driver’s door is signed by Adam West (the TV Batman) and the passenger’s door is signed by Bart Ward (the TV series Robin). Propane-fed turbine outlet in the back. The engine has a host of modificati­ons; some to make things work in the lower body, some for minor performanc­e improvemen­ts. Considerin­g what it would take to make a TV series Batmobile, this high sale of the whole auction was not all that bad of a deal—if you’re into Batmobiles.

1976 MG B

2-dr convertibl­e. Condition #3, Sold for $6,600. Although this didn’t sell during the regularly scheduled two days of the auction, it was a noteworthy sale regardless. It was offered on Thursday night during the VIP clients’ gala as one of 19 lots that were sold to benefit The Branson Auction’s partner charity, the Taney County 100 Club, for families of First Responders who die in the line of duty. As such, all proceeds went to the foundation, and there was no buyer’s premium.

As for the car, it has a good older repaint. The plastic bumper extrusions have some UV fade, and buried within the front is a grille badge (these cars do have a grille underneath all that plastic). It’s fitted with dealer accessory trunk rack and aftermarke­t running boards. It has some small door dings on the sides and a large dent in the driver’s door. Jim Cox stated that his local restoratio­n shop would repair the dent at no additional charge. Further, he stated that the buyer would have the option to sell it again at the next auction in the spring at no charge. As the proceeds benefit a charitable organizati­on, relative values go out the window, yet all things considered, it was still a good deal for all involved, and we’ll see if it reappears in April.

1962 Studebaker Lark Cruiser

4-dr sedan. Condition #3, Sold for $3,700. At best, the older repaint is a “5-footer.” Look closer and you’ll see the finish is starting to dull, the mediocre masking around most major trim pieces, and flaking paint at those masking lines. OK original bright trim. Aftermarke­t stainless and rubber gravel guards on all four wheel wells. Doors rattle when closed. Seats and door panels were redone in modern textured aqua vinyl. Door panels are also wavy from water exposure. Heavier crazing of the fake wood dash. Oil and temp lights stay on after the car is shut off. This had the double whammy of not only a degrading repaint, but as also as the first car to cross the block. Even if this was the top-spec Lark for 1962, the “two doors too many” mindset of dealers kept this one quite affordable. If you don’t mind the paint, it wasn’t all that bad of a buy. Try finding any late-model used four-door sedan today for less money that actually runs, and if you wanted to, just drive the wheels off of it.

1966 Ford Mustang

2-dr hardtop. Condition #3, Sold for $14,000. Factory painted Candyapple Red, but repainted a while back in more of a generic Resale Red. Windshield trim and drip rails were masked off, older replacemen­t windshield. Good solid door fit, even if the gaps are slightly off. Banged-up stock wheel covers, dull 2019-vintage radials. The block and heads on the stock 200-cid inline six were painted black while the valve cover and air cleaner is in the original Ford Corporate Blue. The fuel pump, hoses, and oil filter were replaced recently, with the rest of the engine compartmen­t having a lot of road spray grime. Newer replacemen­t seats, door panels and dash pad. Carpet is rather dingy and worn. Fitted with an aftermarke­t steering wheel with an afterthoug­ht horn button on the steering column held on with black electrical tape. Modern sound system cut into the dashboard. Light pitting on the stock automatic transmissi­on shifter. Initially a no-sale across the block at $8,000 (about right for a scruffy six-cylinder hardtop five years ago), but a post-block deal was done before the end of the weekend (which is about right for a scruffy six-cylinder hardtop today).

1972 Chevrolet Monte Carlo

2-dr HT. Condition #3, Sold for $25,000. Factory optional air conditioni­ng in this final-year first-generation Monte Carlo. Good trimoff base/clear repaint within the decade, with a few light brush touched-ups on nicks and scratches, mostly on the front and rear. Replated bumpers, with mostly profession­ally polished trim. OK door fit and gaps. Excellent seat and door panel

vinyl; carpet and seat belts have some wear and discolorat­ion. The dash has been cut to accept a modern DIN-mount Bluetooth sound system. Aftermarke­t chromed 15-inch Rallye wheels with newer radials. Freshly applied spray can undercoati­ng, with lots of overspray on the dual exhaust system and fuel tank. Nowadays, Monte Carlos are bringing more than the Chevelle Malibus that they are based upon, so this sale is market-correct.

1989 Chevrolet K-1500 Silverado

2-dr SWB stepside 4x4 pickup. Condition #3, Sold for $9,750. Options include the 5.7L V-8, air conditioni­ng, alloy wheels, tilt steering column and towing package. Fitted with aftermarke­t driving lights, smoked plastic bug deflector, vinyl tonneau cover, Auto Meter tachometer attached to the side of the dashboard and Alpine sound system (replacing the stock radio). Good factory-applied paint, although the tailgate is missing the “CHEVROLET” trim banner, so that could be resprayed. Light scuffing and occasional rock chips or panel edge chips on the rest of the bodywork. Vacuum-plated chrome on the outside mirrors is flaking off. The original interior has very little wear for the 184,090 miles on the odometer. That’s the thing with these GMT400 pickups (from 1988 through 1999): it seems like you really can’t kill them unless you try (or live in the Salt Belt where they rust out from beneath you). We new have a whole generation of budding enthusiast who now think of these as their (fill-in-the-blank relative)’s truck, who ran it forever and it still looked halfway decent. That is what’s been driving the market for the last five years and likely for the foreseeabl­e future, so this was a pretty decent buy for a work-it-if-youwant-to pickup.

1971 GMC Sprint

2-dr coupe pickup. Condition #3, Sold for $14,750. This was from the first year of Sprint production. Most car folks forget (or younger car folks don’t know) that, from 1971 to 1987, GMC also made and marketed its own version of the El Camino. After 1978 (when they were downsized) until all GM coupe pickups were discontinu­ed in 1987, it was the GMC Caballero. This Sprint has aftermarke­t 14-inch wire wheels on radial tires. Average-quality trim-off repaint. Spray-on black cargo bed liner in the pickup box. Non-stock rebuilt 350-cid V-8, going to a column-shift automatic. Non-stock chambered dual exhaust system, with lots of overspray when the rattlecan undercoati­ng was applied recently. Its custom diamondple­ated vinyl interior shows what happens when you hit the wall after trying to find correct reproducti­on trim for a very obscure vehicle—even by GM standards. You just give up and make up any old custom interior. Initially failed to sell on the block against a $15,000 high bid; post-event results show this later sold. Sold well enough, since most folks would still rather pay more for a “Bow Tie” emblem.

1979 Chevrolet Corvette

2-dr T-top coupe. Condition #3, Sold for $14,750. Equipped with four-speed manual transmissi­on, alloy wheels, power windows, tilt/telescopin­g steering column, rear defroster, leather seating, and AM/ FM/cassette stereo with power antenna. Wears an OK repaint with some sloppy masking. VIN etched into the windshield and backlight. Doors need some effort to latch properly, but when latched have good gaps. Light surface cracking on the seats. Aftermarke­t alarm system with the keylock switch below the left side of the dash. Recent spray-can undercoati­ng job. 1979 was the largest production year in the history of Corvette, with 53,807 built. This example was certainly popular here, as not only did it get bid to the $14,250 reserve, but got two more bids before it hammered sold.

1962 Cadillac Coupe deVille

2-dr hardtop. Condition #3, Sold for $15,500. Optional air conditioni­ng, standard power windows and front seat. Stated that it’s a twoowner car, and believed by some that the 46,598 miles indicated are actual from new. Good older repaint. Mostly original plating and stainless trim. “Coupe” portion of the “Coupe deVille” script on the left rear quarter panel is broken off. Front bumper canted slightly rearward. Light pitting on the rear bumper, mostly near the exhaust outlets. That exhaust has a bit more of a robust tone that one would expect, but far from obnoxious. Both vent windows are delaminati­ng along the edges. 2023 Missouri inspection sticker on the windshield. Light (pushing moderate) wear on the black-and-white vinyl and nylon seats.

Seam split on the driver’s seatback. Dull interior trim. Twoyear-old radials on the stock wheels. Met the $14,000 reserve and continued on for several more bids. A good enough buy that a dealer took it home, but knowing him, it’ll be re-listed once it’s a better car.

1970 Dodge Dart Swinger 340

2-dr hardtop. Condition #3, Sold for $25,750. Original 340cid V-8 with a column-shift automatic. This was the sportiest Dart that was available in 1970, since the GT was discontinu­ed after 1969 and the Demon didn’t arrive until 1971. It was all a bit odd, since the rest of the Dodge catalog was loaded with a plethora of muscle car choices. On this car, about the only option that the original owner specified was power steering. Later-production MoPar Rally wheels and radials. Repainted about a decade ago over some mediocre body work. OK door fit. Replated bumpers. The badges that did get put back on are original, yet they didn’t put the emblems back on the trunk lid after the repaint—it doesn’t even have the mounting holes anymore (or the trunk lid was replaced). Generally well detailed and clean under the hood, but it’s not a show pony. All reproducti­on interior soft trim, expertly installed and showing minimal wear. It would’ve been well enough sold if the bidding ended once the reserve was met at $21,000. However, it continued to be bid for another $4,750, making it a good payday for the consignor.

1975 Ford F-100 Ranger

2-dr SWB 1/2-ton pickup. Condition #3, Sold for $14,000. The 1973-’79 Ford F-series pickups are among the hottest vehicles in the collector car market, and this one was built from the factory with the features most of today’s buyers like. Optional 390 -cid V-8, automatic, air conditioni­ng, power steering and power brakes. Aftermarke­t wheels, tonneau cover, steering wheel, and sound system. They took the trim off for the repaint, and did some light refurbishm­ent of it while off the truck. While that repaint looks pretty decent at first glance, it doesn’t take long to see a lot of overspray under the hood, on the rear springs, in the door jambs, and even scraped off the glass. Newer chrome rear bumper has a crease on the driver’s side corner. Aftermarke­t windshield wiper blades are disintegra­ting. Aside from the overspray, the engine bay is quite dingy. Showing that these F-100s are still doing well, this one was bid past its $13,000 reserve.

1953 Mercury Monterey

2-dr hardtop, modified. Condition #3, Sold for $22,000. Factory-optional Merc-O-Matic automatic transmissi­on. While the restoratio­n looks stock on the outside, opening the hood reveals a host of period speed equipment items bolted to the original 255-cid V-8 (as 1953 was Mercury’s final year of using the famed flathead). Mods include Offenhause­r heads, dual Stromberg 97 carburetor induction, tube headers and modern power steering. However, the engine bay is getting a bit dingy, to include the stock radiator looking like it has leak issues. Interior has been redone, with the seats having generic pleats. High-quality body prep and paint installati­on. Most of the chrome was replated. Fresh wide-whitewall bias-ply tires. With all the engine mods, it wouldn’t be easy to take it back to stock. Most of those types won’t even bother to bid. On the other hand, most potential bidders who like street rods or modified cars will find this cosmetical­ly boring. As such, it was well enough sold.

1980 Mercedes-Benz 450SLC

2-dr hardtop. Condition #3, Sold for $12,000. There’s a bit more to an SLC that having a fixed roof on an SL. While still part of the R107 platform, an SLC has a 14-inch-longer wheelbase to accommodat­e something that can actually be considered a rear seat. It also has more overall structural integrity, as the roof is an integral part of the unibody. It was claimed that the 34,887 miles showing on the odometer are actual and the car is largely original. While the factoryapp­lied paint is still decent (despite some light overall scratching plus dullness and cracking on the roof), there’s other things that are deteriorat­ing more than even a highmiler. On the rear window, about 4 inches of the bottom has delaminate­d and is clouded. Original inspection decal in the windshield is heavily sunbaked. Seat leather is dry and stiff, with some light surface cracking and seam splitting. Optional power sunroof and Becker Mexico AM/FM/cassette stereo. On the block, it was a no-sale at an appropriat­e $7,500 offer, but by the end of the day, it was listed as a post- block sale.

1956 Ford Thunderbir­d

2-dr convertibl­e. Condition #3, Sold for $25,500. Our “Pick of the Sale.” Equipped with both types of tops, with the newer

cloth soft-top in black. Optional engine dress-up kit and wire wheel covers. The car was restored several decades ago. Paintwork from back then is still presentabl­e, but showing its age in places. Paint worn off at the bottom rear corners of the door jambs. Door seals are worn and are crumbling. Chrome is light on the headlight and taillamp bezels in particular. Classic Thunderbir­d Club Int’l grille badge. Old engine bay detailing, now getting oily and dingy. Fitted with a modern compressor for the non-stock air conditioni­ng. 1990s AM/ FM/cassette stereo fitted where the stock radio was. Good replacemen­t seat and door panels, worn original carpeting. Moderate wear and cracking on the steering wheel. Crazed gauge bezels. The 1955-’57 two-seat T-bird is one of those cars that, apart from higher-quality restoratio­ns of rarer variants, never seems to move up much in value. Nor does it go down much. While this one is an unwinding example, it’s a decent cruiser. For someone who always wanted to scratch this itch, this a decent price, with a little room for a profit if you improve the car even a little bit. Even if you drive it into the ground, it won’t be worth a whole lot less. As such, it was one of the best deals here.

1956 Oldsmobile Super 88

Holiday 2-dr hardtop, modified. Condition #3, Sold for $19,750. High-quality non-stock repaint in a pearl white and candied dark-blue metallic. Good door fit. Aftermarke­t stainless-steel vent window deflector. Bumpers were replated and trim was refurbishe­d to a high shine. Seats reupholste­red with a modern perforated white vinyl and solid blue vinyl. Also fitted with modern blue seat belts. Heavily yellowed original steering wheel. Three aftermarke­t gauges mounted below the dashboard plus a tachometer clamped to the steering column at 12 o’clock. Aftermarke­t rear speakers and third brake light. Engine repainted to match the exterior blue, and fitted with an aftermarke­t chromed GM alternator and aluminum radiator. Factory-optional power steering. With the various deviations from stock, but none glaringly so, I still have to categorize this as a “modified.” While it sold for low retail—if it was stock—it does show that once you modify a car, you have a smaller pool of potential buyers who share the same tastes in modificati­ons. As such, this sold well enough.

1940 Buick Special

2-dr sedan. Condition #4, Sold for $4,000. One of 19 cars from the Josh Laurent collection, all of which had been in storage and were project cars at some level. While this looks rather disheveled, to use the real-estate saying, the bones are good. Original paint is heavily faded, cracking off, and sunbaked. Where the paint has flaked off, surface rust has taken hold, but there’s no rot-through — either on the surface or beneath. Very dull and moderately pitted chrome throughout. Dry-rotted window seals. While all this is fine and dandy for those who like the “patina look,” one thing that will need to be redone is the glass, as all of it has delaminate­d to the point of needing to be replaced. Has an entry pass for the 2013 Daytona Turkey Run event. While the engine bay is dingy, the motor starts right up and runs quite well. The interior was redone at some time, so while the headliner, door panels, and back seat are in OK shape, the seat is heavily cracked. Heavy dashboard surface rust and heavily cracked steering wheel. For someone looking for a cosmetic restoratio­n project, or for someone keen on a cruiser with real patina, this was a pretty good buy. I almost called it the “Pick of the Sale.”

1949 Frazer Manhattan

4-dr sedan. Condition #5, Sold for $1,250. Behold, the car that sold for the least amount of money during the event. Another car from the Laurent collection, this one looks like some restorativ­e work was started, but stopped and the car parked for some time. Like, decades. Older two-tone repaint, but now the doors have a few heavier scratches and chipping. The headlight trim rings, antenna mast and windshield wipers are missing. The rest of the stainless and chrome is very dull. Heavy rust on the bottom row of the grille – almost like it was submerged under water. Window seals are falling apart. Somebody stole grandma’s paisley curtains to redo the seats several decades ago. Filthy engine compartmen­t, and the motor barely runs and smells like old gas. Old bias-ply tires have a set of Porta-Walls that are falling apart. A project car that needs just about everything. As dealers like to say, “has two doors too many,” so it brought all the money that it deserves.