Automobilia

Is the hobby of collecting rare or exclusive auto-related things a curse or a blessing? I think the answer lies somewhere in between.

Collecting for the sake of having it displayed in your home or business is a good thing. It allows others to see (and maybe touch) what is often a piece of automotive history.

Automobilia is a conversation starter too when you have guests over for dinner, what a terrific way to introduce them to something that you find interesting. They might learn something too.

But there comes a time when even the most hardy collectors decide to part ways with Automobilia.

Selling Automobilia is definitely a worthy side hustle, but it can also be time-consuming and risky if you don’t know how to sell the things you’ve likely become emotionally attached to over the years.

I have never purchased anything auto-related with the intent of selling it later. Once I decide to move on, I then might look for ways to sell it without giving it away. Then again, some collectors do donate to auto museums and that’s always a great option. Some museums will gladly accept collectibles, and you’ll be able to write it off on your yearly taxes if they are a 501c non-profit.

The one thing I’m most proud of is my Zora Duntov signed poster and photograph, which includes a letter from Chevrolet verifying its authenticity. I met Duntov back in 1991 at the Otis Chandler Museum in Los Angeles, and asked him to sign the poster I had with me, and he graciously did so.

Although OCIR has been shuttered for decades this official Pit Pass in mint condition remains in my collection of automotive history.

A few weeks after meeting him I received a signed color photograph of Duntov from Chevrolet executive Jim Perkins thanking me for attending the event. It went nicely with my framed and numbered Prado artwork of a ‘65 Corvette that Duntov had signed.

As the “father of the Corvette” Duntov is recognized worldwide by auto enthusiasts and anything with his signature is worth money. But that’s not why I originally collected it. I actually wanted his signature to hang on my wall at home. Having the letter from Chevrolet put a nice spin on my small collection of Corvette things. I’m glad I have it. I have other exclusive Corvette pieces of automobilia and together they make a collection. I plan to keep it that way.

Then there’s my collection of Pirelli calendars that were originally distributed to automotive journalists by the tire manufacturer. These were prized gifts because some of the world’s most famous photographers were hired by Pirelli to produce them in limited numbers.

They make wonderful wall art, and I’ve seen these all over eBay and elsewhere and they still tend to attract interest. Again it’s a collection. That’s important, says automobilia’s largest collectors.

I have a collection of pins and badges from different car makers and other motorsports related companies, again, I don’t plan on breaking up a set. Hood ornaments and antique car badges warrant the same care. Auto-related books are a little different in that a buyer of an out-of-print book on the early Mazda RX-7 might not want another book on a Mitsubishi EVO that is no longer in print. So books can be offered for sale individually, instead of in a collection.

A collection is items of automobilia that have a common theme, much like my early Corvette things. What today’s collectors are suggesting is that to make money/profit on an item is best to have it in a collection of other like items. It could take the same amount of effort to sell one item that it goes to sell a collection of items.

Where to Sell

The first place everyone turns to is eBay, and rightfully so. eBay does have a huge audience of lookers waiting to stumble upon the one thing they need to complete their collection.

According to collectors, the problem with eBay are the fees and restrictions. eBay takes a percent of whatever you sell. And, there’s no guarantee that your automobilia will sell, and yet you will still pay the fee for listing it and/or inserting it with upgrades like larger photos, etc. They say so themselves, “We charge two main types of selling fees: an insertion fee when you create a listing, and a final value fee when your item sells.”

During the pandemic though (around 2020) they made a great offer to sellers and waived the insertion fees. Now that comes with limits and that doesn’t mean you won’t pay to sell your automobilia on eBay, you will. If you sign up for a “store” subscription then you reap more savings on your listings. But nothing is free on eBay. Other complaints about eBay, say collectors, is the inability to narrow a search for a particular item. Personally, I haven’t found that a problem, but I suppose it could be for unique items.

eBay isn’t necessarily great for large collections of automobilia. Most sellers are parting out their collections one item at a time. To sell large collections of auto literature/books, for instance, collectors suggest online auction houses like Proxibid.com. Personally, I didn’t like the navigation aspect of it, but it seemed to offer a wide-variety of automobilia, although, you will still have to pay commissions on whatever sells.

Facebook Marketplace is almost a waste of time, so stay away unless you are desperate to sell. Craigslist is not a good place either.

There are automobilia pop-ups that happen across the country though, so check out the online forums. The good thing about live automobilia events is that the general public is often free to enter and you’ll get a chance to really show-off your collection. If they have to pay to enter all the better. That means they are serious buyers.

Every year in Monterey, California there is one of the largest automobilia shows in America at the same time as the Pebble beach Concours/Race Week. It’s a huge event, but vendor spaces aren’t cheap and they only allow particular types of collections.

If your collections are marque specific consider researching clubs in your area that hold regular races or get togethers. They would probably be glad to have you as a vendor at one of their events.

For now get your collections in order, and understand what you have in detail and what you are asking for it. Don’t guess on what each item may be. Be very clear on how the item(s) fits into a collection for the automobilia collector, and you’ll be surprised on the reaction you’ll get. Good luck.