The top five sellers from the Louis Coetzer barn-find auction

The Louis Coetzer collection comprising more than 150 cars auctioned in March drew international interest.

A total of 2,958 bids were placed during the 10-day online auction, according to Creative Rides, the Johannesburg-based auction house tasked with managing the sale. The barn-find cars were mostly project or unfinished state cars, and an assortment of spares.

“We were astounded by the response from the international market. We knew local buyers would be immensely attracted to these lost barn finds from such an iconic collector, but the level of global interest exceeded our expectations,” said Kevin Derrick, CEO of Creative Rides.

The late Coetzer was a well-known collector of classic cars and a Mercedes-Benz connoisseur. His collection included Basotho King Moshoeshoe II’s 600 Grosser limousine, and it’s believed the antiquarian from Barkly East in the Eastern Cape had amassed a collection in excess of 600 cars, with more than 100 of them bearing the three-pointed star brand. 

Joseph Mast, lead auctioneer of American auction giants Barrett-Jackson, in March said: “Louis Coetzer’s treasure trove of about 150 collector cars, discovered in a barn in a remote corner of the Eastern Cape, is a rare find — on a scale that even we don’t come across in the US.” 

The vehicle that achieved the highest price in the March 2024 auction was a 1960s Mercedes-Benz 220SE Fintail which sold for R101,000. The W111 “Heckflosse” or “Fintail” was launched in 1959 as a replacement of the “Ponton” range.

The other top five high earners were American classics: a 1960s Chevrolet Impala 327 V8 (R85,750); a 1960s GMC 4000 Flatbed truck (R81,750); a 1970s Chevrolet Nova Convertible (R61,750) and a 1970s Chevrolet Nova four-door sedan (R54,500)

“These were all project cars that hadn’t been moved in decades and bidding on all of them was exceptionally competitive,” said Derrick. “Collectors also showed keen interest in Oom Louis Coetzer’s Mercedes collection — even those without engines.”

Creative Rides heralds the successful sale as just the start for classic car auctions. The online car-buying market size is projected to reach R13.3-trillion by 2030, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 12%, and collector cars are often the high-value end of this market.

“It’s therefore necessary for us to get SA classic cars onto the international stage, and the way to do that is through technology,” said Derrick.