Here's an example of just how hot the collector car market has become this year. U.S. auction house Gooding & Co. has completed its 2012 auction season and reported sales of $189.6 million, an average of $640,635 for each of the 296 cars sold.
The total is 44 per cent higher than last year's results, which also included 296 cars.
The auction house said the increase demonstrates the rising demand for collector cars as well as the selection of coveted vehicles compiled by Gooding this year. The company expects collectors in 2013 will show more interest in historic prewar cars and post-Second World War European sports cars.
The auction house's top two sales this year were a 1936 Mercedes-Benz 540 K Special Roadster that sold for $11.8 million, a record for a prewar car at auction, and a 1960 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider that sold for $11.3 million, a record for a Ferrari California Spider at auction.
