A Centauro on Bring a Trailer

[sdcr]

Lannis,

We might both be surprised if the hammer drops at over five figures.

Don’t underestimate the bidders on Bring A Trailer. Recently, someone paid over $300,000 for a Datsun 240Z on that auction site.

Well, then, in a few days ONE of us is going to get a surprise!

I love surprises, don't care whose they are .....   

Lannis

[Groover]

Following

[Tusayan]

Lannis,

We might both be surprised if the hammer drops at over five figures.

Bring a Trailer is hard to predict, the buyers seem to be compulsive and buying without market knowledge, in relation to other places where motorcycles are sold. From memory Honda 70s for $6K, R100GSs for $18K etc, followed by another similar example that sells for half as much.  I would never sell a bike without reserve on BaT specifically, and my reserve for this Centauro on BaT would be $6500.

[Chuck in Indiana]

Tusayan.. I'm with you on the 6500, and that is if I *wanted* to sell it. They aren't making any more of them, they are getting rarer by the day, and it's new for all practical purposes.

[Joliet Jim]

I'll just mention there's a yellow one in the swap meet section for I think 5500 with a lot of options.

[Lannis]

There's also a whole lot of them sold for $3000 - $3500.

Or we THINK they're sold.   As I've mentioned many a time before, when I was putting in a lot of effort tracking auctioned BSA twins, I would very often find one "sold" at some galactic price, and then a week later the same seller has it back up on the auction site again, once the "buyer's remorse" cramp hit while trying to write a stupid-sized check.

Can't just take the first "sale's" word for it ....

Lannis

[sdcr]

I cannot disagree with your logic here, but there is a difference on BaT.

 The one thing that sets a BaT auction apart, is that if a “ buyer “ fails to follow through on a successful auction purchase, they forfeit the 5% BaT fee, and are subsequently banned from the site.

 Not a bomb proof system, but it can deter  bidders that have “ remorse”.

...Or we THINK they're sold.   As I've mentioned many a time before, when I was putting in a lot of effort tracking auctioned BSA twins, I would very often find one "sold" at some galactic price, and then a week later the same seller has it back up on the auction site again, once the "buyer's remorse" cramp hit while trying to write a stupid-sized check.

Can't just take the first "sale's" word for it ....

Lannis

[Lannis]

I cannot disagree with your logic here, but there is a difference on BaT.

 The one thing that sets a BaT auction apart, is that if a “ buyer “ fails to follow through on a successful auction purchase, they forfeit the 5% BaT fee, and are subsequently banned from the site.

 Not a bomb proof system, but it can deter  bidders that have “ remorse”.

Thanks for that ... I've never been a member of BaT, so don't know the rules.   If it's pretty well protected, sales there are a better indicator than sales on other big sites ....

Lannis

[Irn]

Lannis, really good article a while back in the NYT about BAT.  It was started by one guy in a garage/office live work space in the Mission neighborhood of San Francisco, he's still there.  They are really taking a bite out of the high-end car auction sites, lower seller costs.  Hope the NYT article is not behind a paywall.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/05/business/bring-a-trailer-classic-car-auctions.html

[Lannis]

Lannis, really good article a while back in the NYT about BAT.  It was started by one guy in a garage/office live work space in the Mission neighborhood of San Francisco, he's still there.  They are really taking a bite out of the high-end car auction sites, lower seller costs.  Hope the NYT article is not behind a paywall.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/05/business/bring-a-trailer-classic-car-auctions.html

Thanks!   I've seen lots of references to it, seen a few listings, never have used it.   

I've got a few vehicles that I'll be prepping to sell in the interest of "Downsizing" and "Between Here and the Afterlife, There's Not Enough Time" that would probably qualify, but first I'll do my usual thing of just posting them on sites where I know people and they know me, and get a worry-free, hassle-free price that might not be the absolute top I could get, but will make me and someone else happy .... !!

Lannis

[Tom]

Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t a Strada 1000, essentially a Mille, sheeps clothing?

The Strada became the plain street model after the factory ran out of fairings.  Mille was the model before. 

[Chuck in Indiana]

Has the *great* medium valve engine..

[JJ]

The poor, lonely, Centauro only up to $2500...with 4 days to go...Will it hit $5,000?

By the way, I really like this yellow Norton Commando also!

[Lannis]

The poor, lonely, Centauro only up to $2500...with 4 days to go...Will it hit $5,000?

B

It could jump $10,000 in two seconds, you just never know .... Things happen fast in these here computers ... !

Lannis

[JJ]

It could jump $10,000 in two seconds, you just never know .... Things happen fast in these here computers ... !

Lannis

Yes, you are correct...and especially if two buyers toward the end want it badly...

[JJ]

C'mon now...current bid @ $3100 - 3 days to go!! 
*** NO RESERVE!! ***

[JJ]

Creeped right on UP to $3500 now!!!   Here we GO!!

[Lannis]

Creeped right on UP to $3500 now!!!   Here we GO!!

The seller gave a nice shout-out for Mark at MGC today, so that makes him OK in my book.

The good thing about this is when folks say "I think it will go for THIS" and someone else says "Sez you!  I think it will go for THAT!", it's not like arguing free will vs predestination, or whether man's nature is one of fallen depravity or innate goodness, or whether capitalism or communism will win out this century ...

... we'll know on Tuesday!   Can't say that about many other things ... 

Lannis

[Irn]

Lannis, 4k, and raising with 3 days left.  The nice thing about BAT is the comment section, some very knowledgeable people giving great insight, worthwhile to read through.  For an item like this or most Guzzis, it is a safe place to sell quickly and get some value out of a bike that has a limited audience.  The same was true for Reverb for selling guitars when they first started.  Now it is overrun by dealers and they seriously jacked up their commissions.  Glad to see you are open-minded to BAT, it fills a need and is a worthwhile tool for the community.

[Lannis]

For an item like this or most Guzzis, it is a safe place to sell quickly and get some value out of a bike that has a limited audience. 

ALL my bikes seem to have a limited audience ... I've never had a Kawasaki Concours or a Suzuki V-strom or DR-650, so the only people who have ever heard of what I have for sale is the folks on the forums I frequent.

And as I've mentioned, this and two other forums are the only places I've bought and sold bikes for 20 years.   But us being notoriously tight with our money, the make-a-nickel-scream factor might get too much for even me and I'll have to resort to something like BaT ...   

Lannis

[sdcr]

Lannis,

  Two additional points regarding the Bring A Trailer site.

  One, the audience of potential bidders reaches far and wide, more or less worldwide. I feel that this is one of the reasons, that we see some extraordinary bidding on some vehicles.

  Secondly, and this may change due to the fact that the site was just sold to the Hearst Newspaper Co. they don’t accept every vehicle. I have only had one auction item accepted, and two other vehicle were declined. The rationale for the declines can be baffling. Often, you will see an identical vehicle auctioned, as the one that they just turned down.

[Irn]

SCDR,

Bummer it was sold to Hearst corp, of course, it will change.  You will see more dealers and higher fees.  The reason even though folks complain I have bought most of my items on Craigslist.  Craig Newmark, who I see on occasion having coffee in my neighborhood, still owns most of the site, and while they now charge for more categories of listings, it is not operated to maximize profits.  Lannis I agree the boards are a great place to find and sell items, but as SCDR points out a very limited audience.

[sdcr]

Irn,

  Yes, Hearst will undoubtedly make systematic, revenue enhancements to BaT. Hopefully, the original concept of welcoming enthusiasts will remain.

   I do want to clarify, that I was not suggesting that this site, wildguzzi.com, is not a viable platform to market Guzzi’s. I only commented that BaT may have a worldwide audience, and some of that audience make large bids on vehicles that they want.

[blackcat]

   I do want to clarify, that I was not suggesting that this site, wildguzzi.com, is not a viable platform to market Guzzi’s. I only commented that BaT may have a worldwide audience, and some of that audience make large bids on vehicles that they want.

Guzzi people are notoriously cheap, so moving your bike onto a platform that could possibly get more money for your property is a reasonable plan.

[Lannis]

Guzzi people are notoriously cheap, so moving your bike onto a platform that could possibly get more money for your property is a reasonable plan.

It is.   But is it worth the potential hassle?

ANY worldwide public platform, no matter how well protected, can have deadbeats, people who aren't honest about descriptions, Dreaded Previous Owners, check kiters, looky-lous, "can you deliver to Deadhorse?", whatever.   

It's worth some money to me to not have to worry about those sorts of things, ever.

Some friends of mine buy, fix up, and rent houses in the city.  They'll buy a run-down house for $25,000, pay some hard-working, fast guys $10,000 to fix it up ready to rent, rent it for $900 a month for three or four years, and sell it for $50,000.   I could do that, no problem, make a lot of money.

They make good money, but Lord what a lot of hassle.   Rent collection, things broken in the middle of the night, eviction notices, tenants beating up the property.   Sure, you can get good ones where that doesn't happen, just like you can find good buyers or sellers of bikes that are honest, but the whole world isn't like that.

Lannis

[JJ]

Now at $5,486.... and still one day to go!!! 

[blackcat]

"Guzzi people are notoriously cheap, so moving your bike onto a platform that could possibly get more money for your property is a reasonable plan.

It is.   But is it worth the potential hassle?

ANY worldwide public platform, no matter how well protected, can have deadbeats, people who aren't honest about descriptions, Dreaded Previous Owners, check kiters, looky-lous, "can you deliver to Deadhorse?", whatever.   

It's worth some money to me to not have to worry about those sorts of things, ever."

I sold some parts to a well known person on this list some years ago and it took me a couple of months to finally get the money out of him. And we aren't talking about a lot of money but it was a complete hassle to finally get all the funds.

[sdcr]

JJ,

At this rate, it is possible that it will get close to $10,000., if not over. Looks like there are enough interested parties.

If we don’t lose our power and internet on Tuesday, (hurricane coming through) I will be watching the never ending last 2 minutes.

Now at $5,486.... and still one day to go!!! 

[JJ]

Now @ $7500...and still one day to go!!!

[sdcr]

JJ,

Yours 98 is a GT version.

 Could you illuminate what the differences between the auction bike, and yours are?

Now @ $7500...and still one day to go!!!