The second-gen Lightning is a special version of the Ford F-150 truck that is designed for performance. It has a powerful engine and is more sporty than regular F-150s.
The C5 Z06 Corvette is a special version of the Corvette sports car made by Chevrolet. It's known for being faster and better at handling than regular Corvettes from that time.
Carbon ceramic brakes are special brakes that are lighter and can handle heat better than regular brakes. They help cars stop more quickly and are often used in high-performance vehicles.
The LS7 is a powerful engine made by GM that doesn't use any extra devices to boost its power. It gets its strength from being a big, naturally aspirated V8 engine.
Car
MazdaSpeed Protégé
The MazdaSpeed Protégé is a sportier version of the regular Mazda Protégé, made to be faster and more fun to drive. It has a turbocharged engine that gives it extra power.
Car
No Reserve: Original-Owner 2003 Mazda Mazdaspeed Protegé
Featured on Bring a Trailer: No Reserve: Original-Owner 2003 Mazda Mazdaspeed Protegé
Car
Mazda Protégé 5
The Mazda Protégé 5 is a hatchback version of the Mazda Protégé, which means it has a rear door that opens upwards, making it easier to load things in the back.
A Garrett Turbo is a type of turbocharger that helps engines produce more power by pushing extra air into them. This makes cars faster and more powerful.
Car
Mazda MP3
The Mazda MP3 is a sportier version of the Mazda Protegé, but it doesn't have a turbocharger, which means it has less power than some other sporty cars.
The MazdaSpeed Miata is a version of the Miata that has a turbocharger, which gives it more power. It's part of the NB generation of Miatas, known for their fun driving experience.
The Porsche Boxster is a small sports car that you can drive with the top down. It's known for being fun to drive and has a good reputation for performance.
The Bugatti Veyron is a very fast and expensive sports car. It was made to be one of the fastest cars in the world and is famous for its luxury features.
Car
Series 2A Land Rover
The Series 2A Land Rover is an older model of a tough off-road vehicle that was made to handle rough terrains. It's well-liked for its durability and ability to go almost anywhere.
Car
Lot #10,000: 1956 Porsche 356A Carrera GS Coupe
Featured on Bring a Trailer: Lot #10,000: 1956 Porsche 356A Carrera GS Coupe
The Porsche 911 is a famous sports car that looks really cool and is known for being fast and fun to drive. It's been around for a long time and is loved by many car enthusiasts.
The Porsche 911 GT3 is a super-fast version of the 911 that is built for racing but can also be driven on the road. It's known for its amazing handling and powerful engine.
The Dodge Viper is a powerful sports car made by Dodge. It was first introduced in 1992 and is known for its unique look and strong engine, making it popular with car fans.
Car
Porsche 962
The Porsche 962 is a famous race car from the 1980s that competed in long-distance races. It's known for being very fast and successful in competitions.
Hemi is a type of engine that has a special shape inside that helps it run better and faster. It's known for being powerful and is often used in sports cars.
A Schroeder steering box is a special part that helps drivers steer their cars more easily and accurately, especially in racing. It's designed to fit well in the car and give good feedback to the driver.
The Ferrari F355 GTS is a fast and stylish sports car that has a removable roof, so you can enjoy driving with the top down. It's known for its performance and beautiful design.
Car
1998 Ferrari F355 GTS
Featured on Bring a Trailer: Ex–Cormac McCarthy 1998 Ferrari F355 GTS
Car
No Reserve: Neon Porcelain Dairy Queen Sign
Featured on Bring a Trailer: No Reserve: Neon Porcelain Dairy Queen Sign
The Porsche 918 is a very fast car that uses both gas and electricity to run. It's known for being one of the best supercars made by Porsche.
Car
Singer DLS
The Singer DLS is a special version of the Porsche 911 that has been upgraded to be lighter and faster. It's very unique and made for people who love cars.
The Bugatti Chiron is a very expensive and super-fast car that can go faster than most cars on the road. It's built for people who want the best of the best.
Car
Alfa Romeo 2Z3
The Alfa Romeo 2Z3 is a sporty car from Alfa Romeo that many people admire for its looks and speed. It's considered one of the top cars in its class.
Car
2010 Alfa Romeo TZ3 Stradale Zagato
Featured on Bring a Trailer: 2010 Alfa Romeo TZ3 Stradale Zagato
The LaFerrari is a very fast and powerful car made by Ferrari. It's special because it uses both a gas engine and an electric motor to go really fast and be more efficient.
Car
Blu Elettrico 2014 Ferrari LaFerrari
Featured on Bring a Trailer: Blu Elettrico 2014 Ferrari LaFerrari
Car
17k-Kilometer 1998 Porsche 911 Carrera S Cabriolet
Featured on Bring a Trailer: 17k-Kilometer 1998 Porsche 911 Carrera S Cabriolet 6-Speed
Car
Bentley Cullinan
The Bentley Cullinan is a very fancy SUV that is known for being luxurious and powerful. It's designed for people who want a comfortable and stylish ride.
Car
Widebody 2021 Rolls-Royce Cullinan Black Badge Neon Nights Edition
Featured on Bring a Trailer: Widebody 2021 Rolls-Royce Cullinan Black Badge Neon Nights Edition
The Rolls-Royce Cullinan is a super-luxurious SUV that is very fancy and expensive. It's designed for people who want the best of everything in a vehicle.
A warranty is a promise from the car maker that they will fix certain problems for free for a set time. If the warranty is voided, it means that promise no longer counts, usually because of changes made to the car.
The Ferrari F430 is a high-performance sports car that is really fun to drive. It's known for being fast and has a sleek design that many people admire.
Car
1995 BMW M3 AC Schnitzer ACS3 CLS
Featured on Bring a Trailer: 1995 BMW M3 AC Schnitzer ACS3 CLS
The BMW M3 is a fast and sporty version of the regular BMW 3 Series. It's popular because it can be driven every day but also performs really well on the racetrack.
The BMW 3 Series is a popular car that is known for being comfortable and fun to drive. It's a good choice for people who want a nice car for everyday use.
Car
1918 Henderson Four Model H
Featured on Bring a Trailer: 1918 Henderson Four Model H
The Chevrolet Silverado is a big truck that can carry heavy loads and tow trailers. It's popular for people who need a strong vehicle for work or play.
Car
10k-Mile 2006 Subaru Baja Turbo
Featured on Bring a Trailer: 10k-Mile 2006 Subaru Baja Turbo
The Porsche Cayenne is a fancy SUV that is designed to be both comfortable and fast. It's a good option for people who want a stylish vehicle that can handle different types of driving.
The Toyota GR Corolla is a sportier version of the regular Corolla, made for people who enjoy driving fast and having fun on the road. It has a powerful engine and handles really well.
Car
1964 Bill Thomas Cheetah Cro-Sal Special Roadster
Featured on Bring a Trailer: 1964 Bill Thomas Cheetah Cro-Sal Special Roadster
The Shelby Cobra is a classic sports car from the 1960s that is famous for being really fast and light. It's a favorite among collectors and car lovers.
The Toyota Tercel is a small car that is known for being very reliable and good on gas. It's a great choice for people looking for an affordable way to get around.
Car
No Reserve: 1983 Toyota Tercel SR5 4WD
Featured on Bring a Trailer: No Reserve: 1983 Toyota Tercel SR5 4WD 6-Speed
The Acura NSX is a super-fast sports car that is both fancy and high-tech. It's known for being really fun to drive and has a mix of a regular engine and electric power.
The Toyota Supra is a sporty car that many people love for its speed and how well it drives. It's been around for a long time and is popular among car fans.
The Nissan Skyline is a cool sports car that many people admire for how fast it can go and how well it can be modified. It's famous in car racing and has a lot of fans.
The Honda S2000 is a small sports car that is really fun to drive because it can go fast and handle well. It's a two-seater, perfect for those who love open-top driving.
Car
Michael Richards' 2004 Mercedes-Benz S500
Featured on Bring a Trailer: Michael Richards' 2004 Mercedes-Benz S500
LIVE
I had totally forgot that Paul Walker shot vehicle was a second-gen lightening.
That was an amazing observation.
You kind of like those.
I do.
Are you still pondering?
You also, one time on this podcast, mentioned a pretty serious interest in C5Z06 Corvettes.
Is that still rattling around in that Howard Hall of yours?
Howard's a Corvette guy, deep down inside.
You're the only one of us that's owned a Corvette.
Oh, yes, in the early days.
My purchase down in the South Bay of a car for 6K that I couldn't get out of for five
for a long time.
Oh, that was your LT1 C4 that you've talked about before?
Yeah, 94 or 96, I forget.
I think that was on our affordable sports car pod.
I think, yeah, Black Black C5Z06 is right up there.
I kind of would like one as a track day car, Zach.
You and I talked about that.
I've been pondering it a lot.
Yeah.
Howard's been talking CR1, C6s recently, too.
C6, CR1, which is the supercharged car.
Is that right?
Yeah.
Okay.
638.
Oh, yeah.
Oh, 9, 10, 11.
Yeah, I love them.
I love the wheels on them and I think they're awesome.
They make a, this is like too much money for a track car that I would want to beat on,
but they make a C6Z06 late in the run.
You guys would know more about this than me that has all the CR1 parts on it.
So it has like the CR1 wheels and the big carbon ceramic brakes, but it's just the normal
LS7 NA motor.
I can't remember what they're called.
They're in that like...
Is that what it's called?
A lot of them are in that like electric blue color.
It's like a deep blue.
Anyway, I really like those a lot.
Yeah, those are cool.
There's a tie into the AR-15 here somewhere, but we're not going to cover that.
No, we're not going to cover our first gun auction.
What I did love recently, just before we move on, it's nothing to do with Corvettes.
We had that Mazda, MazdaSpeed protégé orange car.
Oh, I missed that.
Oh, you got to pull it up, man.
When I was a kid, I really liked these.
There was the MP3.
There was the protégé 5.
Hi, MazdaSpeed protégé, the Garrett Turbo.
Maybe I'm just weird, and I really was taken with that, but talking about something you
never, ever see in the wild.
When I was 17, I went to a dealer law on Fulton Avenue with my friend Nick Taylor to go check
one of those out.
That was going to be his first car.
Oh, look at this, original owner, too.
And instead, he bought a IS 300 with a 5-speed.
Oh, yeah, nice.
Okay.
Oh, that's a good car.
That's a good alternative.
Man, I really like these.
There was one called an MP3 that I think was a non-turbo, isn't that right, Zach?
The MP3, isn't that the predecessor of the protégé?
I think that's right.
It's sporty, but I think it doesn't have a turbo.
And then there's the MazdaSpeed Miata, which has a turbo, which is weird, which is an NB,
and has these similar wheels on it, as I recall.
Racing heart, that's right.
It's all coming back to me.
I like these.
These were very well regarded by magazines when they were new.
It's like, oh, this handles as well as a 996.
And then you turn the pages, it's just all Mazda ads.
Zoom, zoom.
Valentine one and Mazda ads.
Absolutely.
Mike Valentine.
All right.
Oh, did he pass?
I think he passed this year, unfortunately.
I love seeing his smiling face.
It was the same photo of him for 25 years.
Yeah, the crazy thing is he looked like he was in his 70s in 1988, and then they just
rolled with that photo up until this year.
But he also looked like office space.
He had the tie on no jacket button-up shirt.
I loved that.
Office space, perfect reference.
My Valentine one broke after many years, and it was, as promised, a lifetime warranty.
They sent me a brand new one after many years.
Are those still relevant, just given whatever police are working with these days?
I assume not.
Have any of you guys been pullover for speeding in the last 10 years?
This is city privilege, though.
Yeah, maybe.
The cops in our area have better things to deal with, but I think if you're in small
towns, remote areas, yeah, it's probably helpful.
Yeah.
When I drove that Boxster back from New York, it had a built-in passport, 9,500, and that
actually was super helpful.
There were probably three or four speed traps between New York, especially getting in New
York, but then even outside of New York, across PA all the way to Chicago, that I was glad
I had it.
But you had no plates.
I think it's just smoking there.
You're just trying to outrun them at that point.
The smokies?
Through you.
I remember just silencing my Valentine one a lot and having to reach up and quiet it
down.
Okay, Van.
Yeah, so that's a good entree into what I wanted to ask you.
Do we all get to do a jolly hello, everybody, or are we moving on?
We should, and we should also, Howard's so rare on the podcast, nobody knows who he is,
so he should intro himself, but also this is going to be New Year's.
This is going to drop New Year's Day, so we should wish everyone a happy New Year's.
And Merry Christmas.
And Merry Christmas.
Okay, Howard.
It's fine with me.
Okay.
Happy Hanukkah, too.
Yeah, yep.
It's just since we have the two of you, I thought it would be really nice, and we're here at
the end of the year, to ask the two most senior employees at the company and the two people
who oversee curation about how the year has gone, about what you guys have seen, what's
been interesting, other than Mazda speed protégés and favorite listings.
And people are always asking us, what are the trends?
What's hot?
What's not hot?
And I know all of us and Randy, too, are uncomfortable with that question, but we could
talk a little bit about that maybe.
Yeah, no, I mean, overall amazing year.
I'm super proud of everything we did.
We were just chatting before we started recording.
We're just a hair under 50,000 lots for the year.
That's super impressive.
I forget what we were doing a few years back, but that's solid growth over last year.
And just selling 50,000 of anything is an accomplishment.
I looked up lot 50,000.
Do you guys remember that?
What that was?
50,000.
Tank?
It was Wabs Veyron that did not sell.
We marked it.
We still put it in the headline.
That was lot 50,000.
That was June or July of 21.
So it took seven years to go from lot one to lot 50,000.
And now we've done it in one calendar year.
My history's all turned around.
I think what 10,000 was Randy's Series 2A Land Rover?
10,000 was the 4KAM also at NoSelf.
Oh, man.
See?
My history is all rewritten in my brain.
Yeah.
Randy sold that gray 9-11 as one of the early 2000 or 3000, and then, yes, that Land Rover.
There's the two that I remember from early on.
You know, 2000, your first day.
Yeah.
No, that was 1,400, something like that.
Oh, really?
That wasn't even a big lot number.
I know.
Well, your brain is fried, man.
You've been doing this.
What do I know anymore?
Nothing.
Well, the one thing I think I know, Howard, can strike all this down, but the thing that
stood out to me most this year market dynamic-wise is Q1, Jan Feb, March.
Pretty slow start to the year, like a lot of turmoil, I think, around tariffs and market
and what's happening, and the difference in values for like-kind cars at the end of the
year.
It's crazy how much more SLSs, GT3s, GT3 RSs are in October, November, December compared
to Q1 of this year.
Even right now.
Oh, right now?
Yeah.
I mean, as of today, current market data.
It's pretty wild.
I also remember being a little nervous at the start of the year, and now looking back,
it's funny to shrug that off and go, all right, the turbo just hasn't spooled yet.
Just wait a month or two, and then we'll see how we all feel again.
I feel like we repeat this pattern every year.
But it's so true.
Three RSs and Turing's pricing has been seemingly through the roof.
Yeah.
No limit.
You're so right.
No limit.
SLSs, I mean, it's every next one we list sells higher than the last for, well, 10,
11 on a row almost.
The dream is dying, Zach.
I know.
I just want to scrape those doors and the curb so bad around city streets.
I'm glad and proud that we're still casting a wide net.
We sold today, and so maybe a week by the time this comes out, a sheer on for $4 million,
but then we also had, I don't know if it was a World Record result, but we sold a really
beautiful 53 Corvette for 370 grand.
Yeah.
That was amazing.
That was like the 60th Corvette or something like that.
It was a very early, not early production, but like a very low number in terms of total
Corvettes.
That was an amazing result.
But yeah, 53 Vets, 92 Vipers, a few other first year examples that command huge dollars,
but that jumped off the page to me at that Corvette.
Yeah.
It seems like Porsches have had super solid year kind of in general, and a lot of folks
are talking about that.
That's maybe a little bit surprising, but also maybe not too surprising.
What else, Zach?
What else is interesting to you this year?
Man, I'm just going through some of my favorite results of the year.
It's pretty wild.
How many successful, I mean, we sold the 962.
We sold that 90 Toyota AR Eagle.
Do you remember this for 1-4?
I mean, stuff to your point about lot numbers and celebrations and milestones moves so fast
it's easy to forget that all that was this year.
I was going back through my watch list and I was like, God, when am I going to see the
Ferrari that I bought?
Because that was like in the middle of the year that that car was listed and I was way
back.
There was incredible heat this year.
Oh, the XJ220N was a highlight for me, the twin engine, car and driver, CRX, one of my
favorite listings we've had.
Paul Walker's 4GT, just to bring it back.
Heck yes.
Red, like the lightning in the movie.
No stripe, which looks so good.
You asked me, Zach, what my favorite listing was.
That's why I was going back through my watch list.
And my favorite is still, you guys aren't going to care about this that much, but the
five-window Model A hot rod that we had with the huge Hemi and eight carburetors on it,
like I still really regret.
You've been talking about Hemi's in the 324.
I know.
I know.
That one was so good.
I had the Schroeder steering box where the steering arm comes to the side of the cowl,
the steering box is up above your feet down in the footwell.
Anyway, I loved that car.
We can link to that again.
I've certainly talked about that on the podcast enough to not forget.
A few other highlights for me were Cormac McCarthy's F355 GTS, which is a hilarious celebrity
author pairing.
Superb comment section of that one.
The Dairy Queen sign, honestly, of all of our parts in Automobilia, which has been many
this year, that stands out to me as just cool, well-interesting, ton of engagement.
That had a huge result, didn't it?
21 grand.
Yeah, that's what I thought.
I mean, it's crazy that we're chatting and not even in the top five is we sold a couple
of 918s.
We sold multiple Singer DLSs.
We sold a really sick Porsche 904.
The Chiron we sold today, it wasn't even the first Chiron we've sold this year, so not
to focus only on the super, super high end, but-
That's 600k viper.
I mean, that Alfa Romeo, 2Z3.
Oh, yeah, that's-
2Z3 was very good.
That'd be a top three for me this year, maybe a vault time.
That was right before some event, maybe it was before Monterey, and one of my buddies
saw it like a day after it sold on BHG, or like two days, the guy picked it up immediately
and took it somewhere.
It's a fudge.
Oh, was it?
Was it Chifudge that bought it?
Yep.
Yeah, I saw it.
Was it in Monterey, or where was it?
Yes.
He saw it.
Yeah, okay.
We sold a blue LaFerrari this year.
No one's even mentioned that.
Second highest result of all time.
So, yeah, it's nuts.
It is nuts.
We actually have some really amazing stuff live right now, including Zach.
Did you catch the C2S993 Cabriolet, which was a car I didn't- it's harder and harder
to find something I've never heard of before.
Did you see that?
The Porsche Classic restoration one?
I did.
Yeah, that was on my watch list.
It was super interesting.
Yeah.
Well done, except it's funny the seats look like they were some local upholstery shop.
Oh, wait, you're thinking of the blue one?
Yes.
No, live right now, there is a wide-body Cabriolet.
993, not 964.
993 career, like your old silver car, but a Cabriolet.
Apparently, Beverly Hills Porsche commissioned a couple to be converted into Cabriolets,
but this one was actually built by Porsche.
Awesome.
I miss this.
Yeah.
It has very low miles.
I believe it's our buddy Tim, that Silver Arrow, who's listing it.
It's our wide-body Cullinans no one's talking about, telling us those under our belt.
Howard's always good to bring in a Bentley, some kind of big Lugzo cruiser, Cullinans.
We sell those.
Yeah, we sure do.
Did you catch that blacked out race earlier today?
Yes.
Yes, I did.
And we're going to start the long, painful process of discovering the real resale value
of 2026 ZR1s.
We had a couple results, but a couple more no sales, and we'll see how that goes, you
guys.
They were like at the very beginning, 100k plus over stick or something like that.
Yeah, at the very beginning, which was like two months ago.
I know, dude, every single one.
And then we have this complicated dance we have to do where the warranty is voided.
The owners don't really want to talk about it, but we've got to put it on the scene.
Everyone we're selling has avoided warranty.
Gosh, now you put me on the spot.
I will avoid the warranty.
I wish one of my production guys was on here to explain it, but I think it's if you're
at a private party and you buy it, then it's void.
Anyway, it's General Motors attempt to not have people list them and they don't seem
to give a crap.
It's so cold-blooded for GM to do that, though.
I kind of love it, but it's pretty brutal.
It's brutal.
And maybe that's what's affecting what people are willing to pay for, but it's not quite
like Porsche people who are going to lose their allocation.
I feel Tesla Cybertrucks had like a similar, even more punitive like on paper, the felony
that you're committing if you do, then nothing happens.
Nobody cares.
And then everyone's sold.
Nobody cares.
No one can give away.
No.
That's right.
That's right.
Blue check marks were lost.
Totally.
My five-year-old sees somebody goes, there's a Cybertruck.
That's ugly.
It's tough.
It's tough.
The first car you can identify is because it's hideous.
A couple of other notable things, the big ad campaign we did for the Formula One race,
the 911 that we sold as part of that, which was Diane from 1600 Veloce's car, and that's
like my perfect G-body.
That was such a good car.
I call those G-bodies now.
Why was it your perfect one?
Weird color, still a 915, sports seats, low miles.
I just thought it was fantastic.
Black interior would have made it for me.
I loved the brown, but I know that's not your jam.
And then we could probably have a whole separate pod dedicated to all the cool, Automobilia,
and at Cetterini, non-vehicle we've sold, Sega F-355.
Oh, yes.
The course.
The first player game.
Car so crazy.
You guys catch the F-40 cart?
F-40 cart was great.
Out of the UK?
Yes.
F-40 cart was great.
Did you catch that it was a ex-French amusement park transporter?
No.
Oh, the video on this was so good.
That was super cool.
And yeah, the F-35 challenge that just sold today.
Any number of racing sims, not that super interesting, but the number of like $50,000
plus simulators we've sold kind of blows my mind.
Those are like the full virtue over the Sega thing is like a video game, but the rigs
you're talking about are like for guys who are serious like racing gamers.
Yes.
Yeah.
Yes.
Here we are.
Oh my God.
That's really cool.
That looks like it belongs at Le Mans.
Oh, I'm listening to that.
That's amazing.
I know I'm all about this.
Oh, man.
Random motor.
You guys are on the off.
Totally.
Let's have a few beers and I'll sit in the front.
You can drive me around.
Powered or race on the MotoCompo.
Totally.
But the Sega thing, that's with the gated six-speed in it, right?
Isn't it?
Some do.
Some don't.
Someone like Sarah has at his spot.
A few were there.
We played it.
It was kind of interesting.
Yeah, I like traced it.
You did Long Beach Grand Prix, right?
That's right.
I think I was terrible at it, as I recall.
I can't remember.
Yeah, it's hard.
Video games have evolved slightly since that era.
But that was the same era.
Do you remember the Area 51 shooter game?
Like straight out of like the bowling alley arcade, like the key game.
Is that the one where you like you'd have to reload by ducking or shooting off screen
or something?
I love that game.
Man, I loved that one.
If someone submitted one of those, I would take that.
If it was operational, even if it wasn't.
Great.
We'll edit that out.
Come on.
That was such an iconic, I mean.
This is cut to last week where the entire curation call.
I was like, quality guys, quality.
This is the wall of shame.
Let's not repeat this heading into 26.
That's all right.
Cam appears on this podcast, but he doesn't listen to it.
So you're probably safe.
No, I got in trouble on the weekly curation call because Zach identified a few things
to the group that we probably ought to have stayed away from and turns out I accepted
most of them.
Yeah, yeah.
He probably didn't mention that.
But maybe he did.
I was diplomatic, I think.
You were.
You were.
Come on.
Cool Spitfire projects.
The one I took was maybe a little far gone.
I think it sold for $100.
That F-430 chassis on the side of East Oakland International Boulevard.
That actually sounds like that one's cheap.
F-430 chassis for like two cats.
That's the problem.
What are you going to do with that?
I don't know.
Build a salvo F-430 rod?
Source every single part that you need, including a metal roof.
Oh my God.
Amazing.
Yeah, that was tough.
That was firmly in the dismantler category.
Awesome.
Any other cars, Zach, that you can think of that have kind of taken off or been really
hot this year?
I probably can, but I also wanted to remind myself to talk about, did you guys see the
AC schnitzer M3?
The gray.
Got to drive around.
There's another.
The gray E36 thing?
You drove that?
Yeah.
Highlight this year for me.
BAT events were killer.
The bridge was fantastic.
And then Anthony 1600 Veloce was kind enough to give us some cars that weekend.
So I drove that thing around and did you catch the rear seat set up in that?
The whole thing was crazy.
That's not a period color.
Wait, this was the car you drove on the bridge?
That is.
Yeah.
Oh, interesting.
That's a BMW individual color.
Interesting.
I know because it's one of the most played out colors that you see.
Right.
Very shark, NATO gray, Audi, this and that.
It's super not 90s looking.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I know.
No, I did not see the rear seat.
Same with those wheels.
It has crazy like Kevlar buckets, right?
As I recall.
Did you see the rear seat?
No, huh?
The rear seat is a center bucket seat with no seat on either side.
So the guy who had it built, his only child could sit in the back while they mobbed it
around.
So when you're driving it in your rear mirror, all you see is this one single bucket in your
rear mirror just centered.
It's hilarious.
Oh my God.
This is really weird.
Oh, and it's another, it's like a matching seat.
Yeah.
It's like the same.
All buckets.
Wow.
Weirdo car.
Was it interesting to drive?
It drives like you think it would.
Yeah.
Okay.
It's got big fender flares on it and it's a remarkably, I mean, it's like a perfect car
in terms of condition.
It was very nice.
The Euro S50 is cool.
It would be great on track.
I think I'm just an E30 guy for my personal preference.
Yeah, that makes sense.
A couple of cool bikes this year.
Alex, I'd say my favorite was that really cool 18 Henderson 4.
Oh, yes.
We had a couple of good...
We had an Ace also, which I don't know if we sold that or not.
Both four cylinders, both big, straight fours, kind of predecessors to the Indian 4.
They both look really cool.
Those are really good callouts, Howard.
I really enjoyed both of those.
Up this year, Mercy Elegos, I feel like really popped this year.
E-Gear.
Six speeds were already expensive.
Yeah, I was going to ask you, the automatics too.
Yeah, E-Gear cars are kind of good.
It was about time.
You could buy those for what, $80, $35 at one point and then they're not coming back.
You could not buy them for $80, $35.
Sorry, sorry.
You could buy them for $180, $35.
Okay, Gallardo E-Gear, you could buy them for $80, $35.
Yeah, you still can.
Might still be able to do that.
Mercy E-Gear, gears are now what?
I mean, good LP cars, they're going three, four plus.
Jeez, yeah.
Yeah, it was about time.
It's so interesting that people are willing to pay that much for these single clutch cars.
Or they're going to convert them, right?
Is that what everyone's going to do?
I don't, the conversion on that car is like $90,000.
So I don't think people buy them to drive them very often, but seeing one of those in person, they've aged so...
Oh, no, they're...
It's like we're talking about, they're so good looking.
Yeah, Gallardo's and Mercy's are like the best looking modern Lamborghinis to me.
Everything gets a little uglier after that.
And Aventadors are still single clutch.
Wait, are Aventadors not dual clutch?
They're not.
Oh, interesting.
I know.
Oh, man, that sucks.
They built those forever too.
Honestly, the Alpha Numeric word soup of Lambos going back 20 years, I'm still learning every day.
Yeah, I don't know them at all.
I would like a Gallardo.
I would really like a six speed, but you can't get a six speed rear wheel drive, right?
Is that true?
Okay, but does that the most desirable one?
They're pretty expensive.
We sold an orange one this year in Southern California for $230.
Oh, yeah, that's a lot.
I would just take a sleepy all wheel drive, but with a six speed.
Although I don't know, I drove one a long time ago with a single clutch paddle shifter,
and it was pretty tight even without a clutch pedal.
So I'm not sure how that works.
I know there's no pedal box in them.
Yeah.
So, yeah, you're probably resting your foot on the clutch at all times.
Yep.
And Mercy Coupe six speeds now are like in the stratosphere.
Yeah, didn't we just say 500 plus, 600 plus?
What are the yellow ones over there?
They wrecked 600, right?
It's up there.
Yeah, that four GTs keep on climbing.
Yeah, they do.
This is great consumer advice.
Well, it's some extra money, and you want to park in a car just to look at Mercy,
four GTs, consider it counter-programming or at least parallel programming to the
Hagerty bull market thing, which just came out where it's like, oh, you're predicting
that I think four GT is on that list.
It's like, yeah, no shit, Sherlock.
Well, yeah, you go back and it's funny.
The ones that are obvious in both directions.
We don't need to tariff on it too bad.
Those guys got to pick 10 cars every year.
I'm sure there's no stress and be just wet on their forehead.
Let me let me float one past you.
They put the 454 SS Silverado.
I saw there.
Okay.
I have always liked those.
I don't know how bullish the market's going to be on those, but it'll be interesting to watch.
But yeah, broadly speaking, it seems like good stuff is in an upswing.
I don't know what 2026 has to offer.
But like, man, did you see that 06 Subaru Baja Turbo with 10,000 miles that did 55 grand?
Like that's crazy.
That's V60R six-beats.
Have you guys seen it?
Oh, dude, one with high miles sold for a fortune because it was in that green like tan combo
or like that interior that's like almost an orange.
Even ones with 200,000 miles, they seem to all have.
I think this one had like 170,000 miles.
Yeah, sold memory, Alex.
It was red with the cinnamon looking interior with 144,000 miles, sold for 48 grand.
Yeah, that's crazy.
It's like not even a very good car, but they're cool.
They're cool.
The engine's interesting.
The gauges are neat.
The space ball shifter.
Yeah, I think I totally get it too.
You were talking about another car that's not exactly the same as that, Zach,
but that has similar characteristics.
The, not the GTS, but the Cayenne V6 with a six-speed, which I think is another car
where we've seen some kind of wild results on those.
And that's just like, I think all of these things are, they don't make cars like that anymore.
If you're a manual wagon guy, what else do you have left?
Totally.
I was just talking, I think it was to Ryan Zaman the other day about how many cars are
manual only left.
And I think it's only the Type R and SI Civic.
That is it because even he said the GR Corolla now has an automatic in it.
It goes with the only car, new cars you can buy that are a manual transmission only.
And you have no other options.
Yeah.
I believe that is it.
I may be wrong, but isn't that interesting?
Like almost nothing left.
Just dead air, well, I think.
Yeah.
But yeah, if you guys couldn't get anything else.
Yeah.
Anyway.
Oh, did you consider the singer?
If you paid those dudes enough, they would 100% put a tiptronic on one of those.
Off menu option.
Totally.
Of course they would.
I'm sure.
Of course they would.
I agree.
Four GTs seem to keep going up.
Four GT race cars, the Mark II and others seem to be pretty sale proof.
So that's, I mean, not that surprising, but interesting to compare the two.
Well, people want a fortune for those, right?
Talking about race cars.
I mean, I don't love Cheetahs, but this was very, this was a 64 Bill Thomas Cheetah
special roadster, which just looked so badass.
I do.
400 grand.
You don't like Cheetahs?
I'm surprised by that.
I don't dislike them, but.
Didn't we see that in Wisconsin?
I feel like we did right after it sold.
But I mean, come on with the, I know with the Cobras.
Sick.
Yeah, very sick.
Are you pro Cheetah?
Do you like Cheetahs?
They're frumpy looking.
They're like, what?
I perceive an Allard driver lust after if they want something a little more modern
for the track.
It's like, it's like the step up from an Allard.
Totally.
I like Allard's too.
I appreciate what they are, but that's funny.
They attract weird owners.
This was a recent one.
This was maybe one of the world's best 83 Tercel Toyota Tercel four-wheel drive
six speed.
That's not a typo.
We six, not five.
We sold one of those, I think in 2015 in the office.
And that was one of the first big moment cars for us on BAT.
Come on.
That's like Toyota's Pasha.
I mean, that's pretty sick.
Those seats are kind of sporty.
It's pretty sick.
Man, good one.
Howard, pulling some good stuff out.
We'll have some good links for this.
Our Tercel model page is a little sparsely populated.
10 results.
This was a big year for NSXs.
They ripped pretty hard, especially the fixed headlight cars.
They started to really go up.
Good year for me to sell all yours.
Yeah.
That was a good listing.
How's the 308 market this year, Alex?
Probably not a great time.
How's Vest and 308 service costs?
Not probably not going down.
I'll tell you soon.
It's not going to be pleasant.
I don't think when I get that bill.
But what a delightful car, Zach.
I can't wait for you to drive it.
If I can ever stop the oil leaks and figure everything else out.
We can't send you back your biography on that one, unfortunately.
No, that's all right.
It's a beautiful car.
So I'm excited for you guys to drive it.
One of the snaps.
I have a destruction in there.
Yeah, hell yes.
It's got a CD player in it.
So I'm considering a period appropriate, either cassette player or something else.
Speaking of new cars, Zach, you want to talk a little bit about your thing and out in front.
That's a good segue.
I would like to talk about is the drive to get that car.
Yeah.
Okay.
Please you hinted that something interesting has done.
You know how I describe my life as going from one first world problem to the next.
It is kind of your life.
Yeah.
Well, this really epitomized that.
So as opposed to Howard, who has a first world life, but doesn't have problems with it.
A first world success to be the first world.
We all aspire to be spilling your Mitsuriyaki Bowl today was a big one.
That's right.
We'll talk about BRZ floor mat replacement costs later.
Okay.
So I was supposed to drive the E30M3 to LA because there's a shop that I want to work on it down there.
And then I had this other car in LA that I wanted to pick up.
So I thought, perfect.
Thursday, we'll take our management team call.
I'll jet down there, swap cars, stay the weekend, see some friends, have a nice time.
So I wrap up our management team call.
I get on the road probably on 1, 130, driving the E30M3 down I5, not the most optimal I5 car.
Buzzy, a little loud.
It's fine.
I'm talking at sunsetting, not the best headlights.
And like a couple hours in the drive, I was like, man, I'm just feeling kind of off, exhausted.
Maybe it's just been a long week for me.
And then I'm about halfway and it becomes increasingly apparent that I have norovirus.
Oh, I didn't hear this.
And I am now strategizing whether I should just wait and then pull over on the side of I5
and evacuate what's in my stomach orally or if I should find a road shop.
And I'm getting increasingly like dizzy and sweaty in the M3,
not knowing what to do.
The sun is setting.
I'm just like, gotta shut it down, gotta pull off.
But then I'm like, oh, but then I'm out of commission.
I don't think I told them podcasts, but I already had a moment on the side of I5
when the tire blew on the NSX.
And of course, I didn't have my spare on me.
And I was, I was this cute little kid holding a MacBook on the side of I5,
looking like the most robable guy in Kern County or wherever I am.
So I pull off about two hours from LA.
That's like as far as I can make it.
Right before the grapevine.
I'm like 45 to an hour from the grapevine.
And just immediate yak city when you pull it off.
I made it into the Easy Stop IHOP.
I had some time in there.
It was incredibly unpleasant.
Also trying to scheme to what do I'm like.
Now I'm like a solid four hours from home.
It's dark.
I'm in the E30 with no lights.
It's buzzy.
It's not a comfortable car to be having this experience in.
AC doesn't work.
And so what I decide to do is finish the drive to LA,
grab the other car, and then just turn right back around and drive.
Same night.
Same night.
What?
So I met Robbie in LA and I was like, dude, keep your distance from me.
Just slide over the keys.
We can leave the M3 in the parking lot.
And I, I grabbed the new GT3 with the dumb sport buckets.
It's, it's around 8 p.m. then.
And then I just drive right back home.
Wow.
That's interesting.
And your plan was to what?
Spend the weekend in LA?
Yeah.
I had my hotel booked and everything.
I was like, I don't want to just recover in some random place and grab the car in
Van Nuys, check into my hotel on the other side of town, deal with all that.
Feel terrible.
I can't believe you had the energy to do it.
I was pretty psyched out.
I was like, this is going to be tough.
And then luckily I had this perfect moment of just hyper focus and experience the arrow
on that car.
I haven't driven a street car for that period of time that you really feel the downforce
from all the arrow, which was super satisfying.
Where are you feeling the downforce?
Past 100 miles an hour.
Allegedly.
So I made it home in like four hours.
Wow.
I flew back then was basically.
It's, I'm surprised you had the energy to like go quick.
And that also is probably not the most comfortable car in the world.
Those buckets in particular.
The seats.
After like two or three hours, they're not my favorite for sure.
So I know it's like, I can't believe grabbing a new GT3 is one of the worst days of my life.
So I asked him, I saw the car, I pulled up in it today, Howard.
And I said, this is sick.
Like, did you drive it back from LA?
And he's like, Oh, I have a story about that.
I was not expecting that story.
It was so unpleasant.
I was like, I can't believe this.
So you've did that and then drove it here today.
Is that your entire experience with that car?
Yeah.
That's all I've done in it.
Wow.
That is horrible.
You'll always have that IHOP experience though.
I know.
Easy go.
I mean, you'll never forget about that.
Have you ever been violently ill on like a road trip or anything like that?
I had horrific strep throat driving a 49 Hudson Commodore.
That was maybe sort of comparable to Zach in terms of this general.
How was the arrow on that car?
Were you feeling the arrow above 100 on that?
Yeah, above 50.
But your E30 M3 did get smogged, correct?
Or is that something we can't discuss on this?
No, it got smogged.
Yeah.
I've got plates on it.
Nice.
It's made in voyage with license.
Maybe I shouldn't be talking about all this.
Yeah.
Well, that's impressive.
It is.
It's a bummer, Zach.
You sounded excited about the car.
So I don't think you've soured on the car as a result of it.
Given the choice, it was the right order to go M3, buzzy, loud,
no AC, doesn't cruise that well past 80, feeling bad,
then fully dead of night, blast back and something modern.
Emptied out.
You've emptied your body out.
Yeah, it was better that way.
So it was nice.
I mean, I've never had a car this new that just feels like a nice.
Plus, you love night driving.
I don't.
But you like a night blast at 100 miles an hour.
Exactly the speed limit, defying the laws of physics, getting on it.
Correct.
Feeling the arrow at 65 miles an hour.
I also, I share this with you.
I like the drive down the five.
Like, not if I have to do it all the time, but an occasional.
I don't mind it at all.
I've had some nice drives with you down that road.
Same.
I was thinking about tandem NSXs.
Tandem NSXs.
And there was another time.
We've done it quite a few times together.
We did it when I first bought the NSX.
You still had your black GT3 back in that period.
I think we've done it some other times, too.
But anyway, well, I'm sorry to hear that, bud.
Hopefully you get a more enjoyable experience with it soon.
Yeah, we'll see how it goes.
So sorry.
You have a GT3, a Supra, and an E30M3, and for the top.
I know.
It's like the great quote everybody keeps saying,
I'm so sorry about your Ferrari.
I'm so sorry about your Ferrari.
Just no irony at all.
People can sound honest and earnest about that,
even if they don't really mean it.
That's just one of my favorite moments of life,
hearing that line.
My life's hard, guys.
It is.
I feel really bad for you.
Howard, what car activities, if any, do you have scheduled
for your time back here in California?
Well, he jump-started the BRZ.
I have done.
I guess we have maybe some Q1 events in LA.
I guess Zach's E30 is going to be a little car for us
that we can mob around down there.
Are you going to leave it down there for that long?
Is it at Robby's?
Robby is using it as a commuter right now
until he's ready to not commute anymore,
and then he's going to give it to the shop.
Okay, great.
He's getting norovirus from it right now.
I gave it three days, so I was like,
how are you feeling?
He's like, I think I'm okay.
Okay, thank God.
That's rad that he's driving that car around a little bit.
I don't know what our events are going to be in January.
Fingers crossed, this is not locked in,
but Palm Springs in February.
Oh, I hope so.
Scottsdale and Jan.
Scottsdale and Jan will all be there,
but we're not going to take your M3,
or that you are, you're going to drive your M3.
That's what you were thinking of taking there?
I wanted to drive a Skyline.
I don't think I'm going to have a license plate for it by then.
Arizona, dude, the one state that literally does not matter
what your registration is.
Skyline, no plates is my limit, I think.
That's getting into Crusher car territory.
Yeah, we had, you said you did listen to the Fast and Furious pod,
Howard.
We had a whole discussion about the R33 and that,
but quite possibly that car was actually crushed,
which I believed to be a myth, like crushed Skylines,
but apparently it's not.
Yeah, so I might try the Supra.
I might drive something out to Arizona, which would be nice.
It would be fun.
Road trip.
If it has a back seat, maybe we can use it to go to Vegas.
Yeah, looking ahead to 26.
I'm pretty optimistic for what that holds for us.
I think BAT is in a good place heading into it.
I think it's to come back to what you opened with 2025,
was maybe the first year where there was some real competitors
that popped up that actually had viable businesses.
And I was proud to see us forge ahead and we were talking
about 50,000 lots sold 10, 12 years ago, right?
We were the only, the only car driving around out on the track.
And now, you know, we've kind of paved the way and shown people
what you can do and there's been some interesting other businesses
that have popped up.
So 26, I think, will be more of that as others compete
for people's attention and marketplace to sell people's cars.
But I like how we've positioned ourselves and I think it's going
to be a good year.
I agree.
Maybe we'll run into a chief growth officer or two when we're
down in Arizona and we can talk shop.
Who's the chief growth officer here?
Is it you, Zach?
I think it's Zach.
Zach's the strategy guy.
Yeah, he's the chief.
He's the CGO.
Ugh, I've been sick again, guys.
Totally.
The second round of Norovirus.
I'm glad you brought that up, Howard.
I was actually going to try to find a clever way to ask about
how you feel that we sit in the competitive landscape.
I mean, you never want to be too, like overly confident,
but I feel like we're in a pretty good spot.
What are you looking forward to, 26 Alex?
Well, I mean, this is cliche to say and you guys have heard me
say it a million times, but I'm so proud of our staff and how
well they've done.
I mean, we spent years, as you guys know, really slogging it
out and figuring out how to run a business and like not have
30 day wait times for people.
And so we really have that all ironed out through incredible
hard work and leadership of a couple of folks that you guys
know well.
And so I look forward to like an even more kind of efficient
and smoothly running company in 2026.
I mean, we're in like a very different place where it's like
bring them on, like bring on the cars.
We can list them.
We can get listings live really fast and do a really
nice job with it and provide them with all kinds of wonderful
customer service and all that stuff sounds stupid, but that
was hard to build.
I mean, we all had to figure that out.
That I'm looking forward to just kind of a settled stable
staff that knows how to do this.
I'm looking forward to our event season to be totally honest
like hanging out with you guys in Arizona.
That's like very much coming up and I was excited to hear
about that.
I'll totally sit in the back of the Supra, dude.
At least laid out his plan.
Yeah, bring back some high school memories back to the Supra.
If you could just do one night in Vegas that we'd get Zach
on board to drive there and we could all have a little the
hangover road trip all piled in.
Totally.
I'm going to wear the tiger t-shirt or the wolf t-shirt
or whatever.
All right.
We need to have an image post for this totally, but as laid
out currently the event calendar this year seems stacked.
I mean, like a couple of things I don't want to give away too
much.
Well, Chris is going to add this shout out to Chris.
Who's our guy so he can cut out anything he doesn't want
me to tease.
But I think it's fair to at least say a hundredth anniversary
of Route 66 this year.
A lot of cool opportunities to work with the folks organizing
the centenary of that likely to go back to road America,
which was so sick last year and was really fun.
And so hopefully we'll be back there as well.
And then we ended up doing 13 events this year, which is
a record for us.
We did, you know, I think six meetups and alumni gatherings
and then seven smaller things.
And we want to try to do even more this year and be in more
places and particularly collaborate with more local
partners, which is really fun either being at their spots
or having them present at our events, which is really fun.
I mean, I didn't go to the bridge, but you guys did that
in partnership with six and a half of Loche.
So more stuff like that, I think will allow us to meet more
people and spread our wings more.
And I want to try to go to as many as I can want to cruise
around Florida with Howard in March.
It's happening.
Route 66 is locked down or just there's a number of things
happening.
There are a number of opportunities for us.
They're stoked to work with us.
We're stoked to work with them.
What part of the route are we going to focus on kind of wide
open?
I mean, they're doing a lot of events in a lot of interesting
places across the whole route.
I mean, they there's some Route 66.
No, this is a PBS documentary that is being done
about the history of the route and kind of, you know, automobile
culture and westward expansion in America.
And I mean, Zach and I drove part of it in Arizona, which
is sick.
All those cryptic signs.
Yeah, Kingman.
And remember, we went to that like rock coral, like cave
place and ate the, Zach was always desperately worried
that there wasn't going to be salad wherever we were.
But yeah, totally.
But I mean, some of those places are out in the middle
of nowhere, you know, the rock goes through Flagstaff.
It goes through Northern New Mexico.
It goes through Tulsa, Oklahoma, where there's like famous
TPs are like a BAT event.
One of these famous old roadside attraction places would
be pretty sad.
And the farthest point east is what?
I think it starts in Chicago.
Chicago to Santa Monica.
Yeah, most of it is the part out west that we've all driven
on chunks of is mainly Highway 40, which goes through like
Northern Arizona, Northern New Mexico, Panhandle of Texas
goes through Oklahoma.
And there's all kinds of cool stuff out there.
Needles.
Howard, you've had some experiences in needles.
I think it goes close to needles.
Yeah, there's some AMPM experiences in needles.
Don't we're talking about experiences with needles?
Oh, no, that's different.
That's not Howard.
That's not Howard style.
It's a different podcast.
Totally, totally.
Wow.
So you've been sitting on some events.
You're going to tease them, kind of slow roll it.
Well, you know, our dream is, and Randy's dream too,
is to announce everything we can as soon as we can.
But it's actually like, shout out to Danielle.
It's very hard to like deal with events people.
Sometimes they're flaky.
Sometimes they're super responsive.
We're always kind of negotiating a little bit between like,
everyone wants the event to be focused about them.
If you're partnering with somebody, but we want it to be
focused on bring a trailer obviously.
So there's a little bit of negotiation to be done there.
Couple other exciting things that I'll tell you guys about
off-mite because I don't know if they're going to happen or not.
But good.
But it's going to be a good season.
I'm excited about that.
Any European opportunities?
Oh, yeah.
We'll be in Europe for sure.
We'll be in Europe for sure.
Likely the UK, maybe the mainland as well.
I guess we were just there for inter-classic in Brussels.
Yeah, which went really well.
And then we were all there for Retromobile,
which was sick and there's, I won't say anything other than
there is going to be a Retromobile in the United States
this year, which is interesting.
Feels like an eternity ago and that was basically a year.
That was this year, dude.
Ten months.
I keep saying when we went to France last year,
I'm like, no, that was this year.
We are still in that.
Yeah, Retro in New York City.
That's not a secret.
That's November in New York City.
We will be there.
I don't know if we're going to be sponsoring anything,
but we'll definitely be cruising around and we'll see
if they can pull that off.
You heard Howard will definitely be in New York City in
November, 2026.
If you need to find them.
I think, I think Gooding might be hosting an auction.
I think that's right.
So there's going to be all sorts of
That is correct.
Ancillary events and stuff.
That is correct.
What else, boys?
This is going to come out on New Year's Day.
So like you said, Howard, we will be brushing up.
I think we're going to end just under 50,000 auctions
for this year, but that's still pretty amazing.
And it took us seven years to get there.
And hats off to you, Alex.
Consistency on the podcast in 2025 was probably the best ever.
So yeah, we only missed a few.
We had to do a few reruns.
Chris did a nice job with that, but we got pretty much,
I probably did 48 or 50 episodes this year.
I missed doing it with you guys.
It's fun when you're all here.
We don't get to do this very often.
Was the last time we did this last winter?
No, we've, we've, uh, sneaked in a few this year.
How many weeks in total did you spend in on the West Coast
this year, Howard?
This is like an hour bleeding into a tax question.
So we should edit this out and being paraded by my
brother at family event.
Totally.
Howard's got a Montana play on the back of the shirt.
He's a Puerto Rican resident.
It came in islands.
So yeah, to your point, given all the cool events we have,
I felt super connected to you guys.
I feel I've seen more of you this year than I have in years
in the past when I haven't been living outside of California.
So it's been awesome that you came to all the big ones.
And I feel like I hung out with Randy way more outside
of San Francisco than here this year.
You want to do racing this year?
If we go back to road America, will you race again?
What's the probability level that we're going back as a
pretty high?
There's also a very real possibility that we will do the
Rose Cup at PIR viewer driven in Portland.
Is that the July 4th event?
I think that's right.
But 9-11 are very excited to have us there.
So I could just be the first five cylinder GT3 out there.
The Rose Cup is still on the list.
Still being whittled down.
But okay, that's yeah, among other things.
I mean, we, gosh, I'm like, Chris is going to kill me
for giving away too much of this.
I mean, we'd really like to do a BAT track day this year.
So that's like another thing.
No, that's definitely happening.
I think it's safe to tease because I think it is very
likely we don't know where yet, but that would be fun.
I haven't been on track in a million years.
So I'd really like to have either something I can drive
or rent or something.
Zach can go out there and be a moving roadblock for people.
I know.
I feel super rusty.
Well, you'll be fast, man.
I don't think so.
When was the last time you were on track?
My horrible spec me out of day, August 24.
You haven't gone to one open track day since then?
No, I haven't had a car to really do it in.
Oh, when the green car got stove in, that was kind of the end of it.
Right?
Then it was between cars.
They took the 360 a few times, not a great track car.
Oh, yeah.
That 9-11 GTS, I took that a few times.
Yeah.
I need to get back into the swing of it.
That's kind of on my priority list.
I would really like to do that this year.
I have not been on a track since my son was born.
He just turned 15.
So that's how long it's been.
Wow.
I know.
Crazy.
My last track day was in my S2000 when my wife was pregnant with Felix
and Felix just turned 15.
So we'll pick a month or a day or however you want to do it.
Let's do something together.
I don't have any cars that would even be mildly fun.
I guess I could drive my specific SI, but that's that thing would probably
cause Zach doesn't want to drive the GT3 Cup.
I'm encouraging him.
He thinks it's he thinks.
Oh, you'll let him drive the car.
Oh, you should definitely do that.
I just don't like driving other people's cars because
why it's a clapped out crunchy old cup car.
You're not going to hurt it.
I think I could easily hurt it and I got to live with the good guilt.
That's what Howard wants.
He wants you to have a Tommy Kyra experience in the crowd.
It's because he knows I named him as my Hearst life insurance.
Oh, totally.
And a fishery.
So he's been trying to bait me in all these situations.
Yeah, it's only a 1.5 acts the base salary to pay out.
So booking me on private jets that Howard's also not on.
Well, we'll take a blade from JFK.
It's on me.
No problem.
Alex would hop in and no problem.
You'd have no reservations.
Zero none.
No reservations with general aviation.
I also don't like that.
It's a perfect marker.
You can quite literally measure how much slower I am than you
or at least if I drove something else, it would be a little more vague.
Oh, it's the car.
Yes.
Too much of a comparison.
One to one.
He'll drive it, but only on tracks you've never driven on.
2026 is 12 year anniversary of BAT auctions.
Yes.
Yes, it is pretty wild.
Dozen years in.
That's a lot.
I don't know if that makes you.
You guys are still so much younger than me, but makes me feel old.
Not feeling it these days.
Feeling pretty tired.
Hard Niles.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
If we're laughing, which is good.
I really thought I might need some liquid fuel to get there.
But we're having fun.
Did you guys see a hairline restoration clinic went into business around the
block from the office?
No.
Do you think that's a sign?
It kind of feels like one of those, are we living in the Matrix moments?
SF must be coming back if those types of businesses are open.
That's good.
Well, Alex size hairlines are in the next 12 months.
That's right.
That's right.
It's going to be all fresh for me.
These bodies in for annual service.
Oh my God.
Porsche Classic stop.
I need full belt service.
It's a major.
It's a major.
I got this tartan chest tattoo.
Great stuff.
All right.
What else do we need to say to close out the year?
We'd love to hear your guys' feedback.
The listeners on what you think we ought to do better or more of or less of in
26.
We take that stuff seriously and we listen to all the feedback that comes our
way.
So don't be shy.
Did you guys like F1, the Brad Pitt movie?
I still haven't seen Lather.
Maybe we'll watch it at your house.
Why don't you guys watch it?
Cause I, it just came out on Apple and I watched it for the third.
I saw it in the theater.
It's the only movie I saw in the theater this year.
I loved it.
A lot of our colleagues don't like it cause obviously it's like got really stupid
like formula one strategy in it.
That doesn't make sense cause it's got to be.
Did you watch the formula one season this year?
No.
Well, there's a lot of stupid strategy.
Okay.
That's interesting.
So I actually pair wonderfully.
I mean, like the guy that we like produced it.
Lewis Hamilton was one of the producers on it.
So you liked it?
You sound like you liked it.
I loved it in the theater and then I rented it before you could have watched it on TV.
It's not as awesome on TV as it is like on a big screen, but then I watched it again
the other night cause now it's streaming on Apple and I freaking love it.
And I would actually love to do a podcast on that cause, but I don't know if car people
like it enough.
Like it's too, they get too upset about the unrealism, but like we just did Fast and Furious
and that's super unrealistic.
So I don't know.
I think it would be fun.
What, what's an example of a super unrealistic scene?
I mean, like, I think the main criticism I've seen is like, he's basically running into
other people and deliberately crashing people and blocking to like help his back marker
team do well and everyone's like, he would be kicked out of the series.
Like he would not be allowed to drive if he was that dangerous.
Okay.
But didn't, was it Renault that did crash gate?
I mean, like this is 05 or so.
Uh, Santa, Santa and Proust like crashed each other during their like, I mean, I don't know.
I'm not enough of an expert to say, but like someone needs to fact check me, but I think
it's in the early 2000s.
I think it was Renault may have been a different team, but they ordered their number two driver
just to crash into a wall.
So the race to get red flags.
They're number one.
It's amazing game.
The advantage and it's like that kind of stuff, but he's doing it every race.
It is unrealistic objectively.
He's also like 60 years old, but he looks great and he's doing all the neck exercises.
Like, I don't know.
I really enjoyed it.
Okay.
Sorry.
Just so I'm not repeating bad history.
Yes.
F one.
Oh wait.
Singapore.
Nelson PK was ordered to deliberately crash his car to benefit Fernando Alonso who went
on to win the race under an early pit stop because of the, that's amazing.
PK junior.
Yeah.
PK senior got canceled.
Yeah.
There's, there's problematic family's got some problems.
PK senior would be a colorful VAT podcast.
Some unfortunate Portuguese translation happening retroactive.
We might be able to get it.
Like, he probably wouldn't have done it a couple of years ago, but now you might be
happy to come on here.
Clear his name.
Yeah.
You and him would get along well.
I feel like Howard Michael.
Richard's or come on.
Yeah.
Especially Michael Richard.
Hey, that was a listing in 2025.
Yeah.
Did you see him with kind of his S 500 is.
Yeah.
Oh, we've listed that car that listing was hilarious.
Amazing.
He was in there in the comments as Michael.
He held.
Hell yes.
He was.
I love it when people are like that when the actual owner gets in there and dices it
up with folks.
All right, boys, what a pleasure.
Thank you for doing this.
Thanks for making 2025 such a great year at the company.
It was really fun.
It's always a pleasure to hang out with you guys.
Always is beautiful.
All right.
Hope we get to do more of these in 26 beers.
That too.
Yeah, great.
Now we're going now right now.
Happy New Year's everybody.
Thanks as always for listening and we'll catch you next year.
About this episode
Reflecting on the automotive highlights of 2025, the hosts discuss memorable cars, market trends, and personal stories. They reminisce about unique listings like Paul Walker's Ford GT and the MazdaSpeed Protégé, while also analyzing the year's auction performance, which approached 50,000 lots sold. The conversation touches on the evolving car market, notable sales, and the anticipation for upcoming events in 2026, including a potential BAT track day and celebrations for Route 66's anniversary. The episode is filled with humor, nostalgia, and insights into the automotive world.
Alex is joined by fellow BaT senior luminaries, Howard and Zac, to take a look back at 2025 and ring in the new year. They regale us with some of their favorite or otherwise notable listings from throughout the year, and along the way talk about Howard as a secret Corvette guy; the glory of the Mazdaspeed Protege and its predecessors; the Valentine One (and related bad advice from Howard); and key value differences between the beginning and end of 2025.
Also discussed: a rare glimpse into curation regrets; alphanumeric Lambo soup; going from one first world problem to the next (some of which involve virus-related emergency roadside stops); teasers for upcoming BaT events; a mutual yearning to get back out on track; and resurrecting Crashgate 2008.
