This Week on Hagerty Marketplace: Low-mile Lexus, Plucky Plymouth, Cool Cadillac
Welcome to This Week on Hagerty Marketplace, a recurring recap of the previous week’s most noteworthy cars and significant sales from the Hagerty Marketplace online auctions.
We have a trio of rides—a killer 1960s-era cruiser, and a pair of low-mileage luxury cars. Let’s start with one of those.
1997 Lexus LS 400
Sold for $35,310
Few of us were expecting a lot when the Lexus LS 400 debuted as a 1990 model; Japan had tried to sell luxurious cars in the U.S. before, such as the fourth-generation Toyota Crown, which was marketed for a couple of years in the early 1970s. But it just didn’t fit with the American concept of luxury. When Toyota tried again, it was a laser-focused effort that benchmarked cars that U.S. customers definitely considered luxurious, such as Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Cadillac sedans.
While the LS 400 was a near-immediate hit, Lexus continued to refine the car, and for 1995, the company introduced the second-generation LS 400. Though it looked quite a bit like the original—why mess with success—90 percent of the parts were new or upgraded. This 1997 model is a suitable example of the Lexus flagship, with just 21,217 miles at the time of listing. Equipped with the optional moonroof and Lexus/Nakamichi sound system, this Lexus was clearly loved by the original owner from 1997 to 2019. There should be a lot of miles left in the car.
1966 Plymouth Sport Fury
Sold for $18,725
We can only imagine the pride the first owners of this Plymouth Sport Fury felt when their car was delivered to the Cooper Motor Company in Hayward, California in August of 1966: With a muscular 383-cubic-inch V-8 under the hood, mated to the durable Torqueflite transmission, with bucket seats inside and a black vinyl roof outside, it represented the epitome of Detroit performance and flair. This car spent its life in California, and came with a substantial file of paperwork, dating back to the original sale. A bold mix of the original and the updated, this Sport Fury is an appealing recollection of 1960s style in very nice condition at a very reasonable price.
1979 Cadillac Seville
Sold for $50,825
Who would have thought that a 45-year-old Cadillac Seville would have gotten this much attention? Apparently the nearly 168,000 people who viewed its online auction. With just 1927 miles on the odometer at the time of sale, this Seville was loaded with features, including wire wheels with time-capsule whitewall tires. It’s powered by a fuel-injected 5.7-liter V-8, mated to a three-speed Turbo-Hydramatic transmission. (Suitably) sold new in Boca Raton, Florida, this car, aside from some surface rust on the undercarriage, was in near-showroom condition. Priced originally at $12,479 (equivalent to $68,000 today), the Seville was the most expensive Cadillac you could buy in 1979.
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To paraphrase Crazy Eddie: “These prices are INSANE!”
I actually thought that the Fury was pretty reasonable, for a big-block 1960’s car in good condition.
I ike the later models car
I like the LS 400 and the Fury. Not really into the Caddy this time.
I love those first generation Sevilles. If I remember correctly, they have some kind of feeble version of the Turbo 350 that usually was replaced by a Turbo 350. The gas ones had a fuel injected version of the Olds 350. The diesels were another story.
I just read that they had the Turbo 375, supposedly a smaller version of the Turbo 400. I have a 375B in my 1975 Olds, and it has not been the car’s strongest trait over the decades.
I had a 97 LS. Best ever.
These are all nice. My pick would be the Seville; I always liked the “broad at the shoulder, narrow at the hip” look of these – which also looked a little like the profile of a period Rolls-Royce model.