Inaugural Kruse Hawaii
An interesting selection of 142 vehicles were assembled for the sale by local promoter Robert Smith, with several vehicles never seen at auctions on the mainland held the weekend of Feb. 9-10.
The first-ever collector car auction staged in the 50th state, Hawaii, was conducted by Kruse International over the weekend of Feb. 9-10 at the Hawaii Convention Center in the Ala Moana District of Honolulu.
An interesting selection of 142 vehicles were assembled for the sale by local promoter Robert Smith, with several vehicles never seen at auctions on the mainland. Of these, 52 were declared sold, representing a 36.6 percent sell-through rating. Total sales came to $1,070,000 on the hammer, which was ahead of the auction company’s original projections.
“I think this has the potential of growing into a major annual event,” Dean Kruse told Olds Cars Weekly. “We have already signed for a sale in 2009, and plan to promote mainland bidders to take a vacation to the islands, then come and buy some great cars.”
An interesting aspect was the transportation of cars to and from the Islands. The cost of transporting these vehicles from San Diego, Calif., to Honolulu was less that the cost of enclosed transportation from Dallas to San Diego, and round trips are done on a weekly basis.
Taking the high bid at this premiere event was a 1941 Willys Americar street rod, hammered sold at $70,000, followed by the sale of a Ford Mustang Boss 302 selling at $65,000.
Overall, it was a lot of fun and with plenty to do.
