Sports Car Market and Keith Martin should be ashamed of reporting such nonsense as they did in their January 2007 edition. IS THIS COINCIDENCE OR COLLUSION? MULTI-PAGE ADS FROM RUSSO AND STEELE APPEARED in SPORTS CAR MARKET MAGAZINE AFTER THE ARTICLE BELOW RAN.
In REALITY only half of the cars found new owners and the sales numbers may have been overstated by more than twice the amount. The only thing resounding is the collusion in this fairy tale between the people making money and an unsuspecting public.
From the Sports Car Market January 2007 issue.............
Russo and Steele's "Sports and Muscle in Monterey collector automobile auction has announced the resounding figure of $13 million dollars in final sales that roared across the auction block for their sixth annual, 100% No Reserve, Monterey auction that took place August 18-19, 2006. Amongst their success on the auction block Russo & Steele had great success during their Thursday, August 17th 2006, charity preview event that benefited a local Monterey, CA non-profit organization called "My Museum."
Three different television programs captured the action and excitement at Russo & Steele Monterey. Voom's Treasure HD, the high-definition program on collecting (found on dish network channel 9473), covered both nights of the entire auction live. Voom also aired two 1-hour preview shows that had interviews with Drew Alcazar, president of Russo & Steele, and John Bemiss, Consignment Director. Additionally, The Learning Channel filmed a segment of their "Rags to Riches" show that featured the Mercury Cougar prepared by Barry's Speed Shop. Finally, The Discovery Channel filmed a segment featuring the 1953 Studebaker.
Among the spotlighted cars found at the auction were the only yellow 2005 Porsche Carrera GT (at this time) with a final bid of $375,000, a very rare and historic 1922 Duesenberg "A Model" race car with a final bid of $96,000, a 1938 Lencki Blue Crown Special Indy racer with a final bid of $240,000, a 1966 Shelby 427 full competition Cobra with a final bid of $585,000, a 1961 Lotus 20/22 Formula Junior with a final bid of $55,000, a 1959 Stanguellini FJ Monoposto with a final bid $121,000, and a 1989 Walkey LSR Streamliner with a final bid $35,000.
Details on all final bids on Russo and Steele cars can be found at www.russoandsteele.com.
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Recent Comment
This recent comment was made in response to the last post.
Anonymous said...
Sorry dude, there was a lot of disappointed sellers and lots of funny business. There were 38 cars that were recorded as sold in that Monterey Auction which showed up in the Scottsdale 07 inventory. It is rumored that the partners of Russo and Steele owned 21 of the cars. How can this be legal?
January 13, 2007 8:25 PM
Anonymous said...
Sorry dude, there was a lot of disappointed sellers and lots of funny business. There were 38 cars that were recorded as sold in that Monterey Auction which showed up in the Scottsdale 07 inventory. It is rumored that the partners of Russo and Steele owned 21 of the cars. How can this be legal?
January 13, 2007 8:25 PM
Saturday, January 13, 2007
I bought back my own car
I consigned a car in the Monterey 06 auction. There were no real bidders and my car did not sell, I had to buy it back. That was costly but not as costly as selling my car at half price. That sale was miserable and yet they posted every car as sold. I am still fumming.
Bargain Basement Shopping
As a seller, this would be just where I wouldn't want to take my car....in Drew's own words a Quote from RacerChicks.com...
"This was the bargain shop for diehard, muscle car fans and a deal maker's paradise. Owner Drew Alcazar says".
Drew followed this comment with "It is difficult to have any car, no matter how nice, rise above a sea of more than 800 cars. From a buyer's perspective, getting asked to move as someone takes a picture to hang on their wall, or be run over by a baby stroller when one is inspecting a potential purchase, compromises the integrity of the auction." I might add, However, the discotheque, casino atmosphere that Russo and Steel has created makes it the perfect place to enjoy the free cocktails and purchase a car at bargain basement prices.
"This was the bargain shop for diehard, muscle car fans and a deal maker's paradise. Owner Drew Alcazar says".
Drew followed this comment with "It is difficult to have any car, no matter how nice, rise above a sea of more than 800 cars. From a buyer's perspective, getting asked to move as someone takes a picture to hang on their wall, or be run over by a baby stroller when one is inspecting a potential purchase, compromises the integrity of the auction." I might add, However, the discotheque, casino atmosphere that Russo and Steel has created makes it the perfect place to enjoy the free cocktails and purchase a car at bargain basement prices.
Have your cake and eat it Drew
Quote from Drew Alcazar in October 17, 2005 MONEY Magazine
------Drew Alcazar, president of Russo & Steele auctions in Scottsdale, defines the muscle car as "a grossly overpowered American automobile, too big for its own good, that doesn't handle or stop worth a damn." I might add "But it sure has made me money"
http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2005/10/17/8358046/index.htm
YES IT HAS.......
http://www.azcentral.com/home/home2/articles/0802coolhome02.html
------Drew Alcazar, president of Russo & Steele auctions in Scottsdale, defines the muscle car as "a grossly overpowered American automobile, too big for its own good, that doesn't handle or stop worth a damn." I might add "But it sure has made me money"
http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2005/10/17/8358046/index.htm
YES IT HAS.......
http://www.azcentral.com/home/home2/articles/0802coolhome02.html
Friday, January 12, 2007
I challenge Russo and Steele to deny this has happened - Ways to manipulate an auction
Only the very astute can pick up on fake or shill bidders. The action of a live auction can be quick and in the excitement of the moment there are many things that can go undetected. An observer can miss a lot of tell tail signs and a bidder will miss the obvious.
Signs to Watch For:
Watch who a bidder talks to, what they do and determine if they are really part of the landscape
Watch for quick increasing bid increments. If you cannot identify a person with those run- ups there is likely no real bidding . The auctioneer is moving things along to get the car to the price they need. The real person will be caught as the winning bidder when the targeted price is finally reached.
If an auctioneer losses their place or backs up on a bid, then they lost a real bidder and got caught with a shill bid and need to re-establish a live real bidder.
Watch for the same person bidding all night long, Very few people bid on more than a couple of cars in one evening.
The bidder or winning bidder will follow the car out or change character unless the person bidding is a dealer buying several cars,. They won't act like nothing happened.
Watch for that person who is the under bidder or the bidder that starts the bidding on multiple cars, again few people participate in multiple bidding if they are really buying
Watch for the ring man or auctioneer looking into an area where no particular person can be identified. That spot is usually over the crowd or towards the back. It won't be right down in front unless they are using a plant.
Ask questions, look around the room
If you bid always look at the person you think you are bidding against, never bid if you don't know you are bidding against because you will be bidding against yourself
These practices by unscrupulous auctions, manipulate the process, cost real bidders thousands of dollars and artificially inflate the prices. An auction item should bring the most money a real person is prepared to pay by bidding. At Russo and Steele the final price can be the price the auctioneers decide to run the bidding price up to. They are trying to get a real person to jump in and if that doesn't happen the consigner thinks the job almost got done, or in the case of a no reserve auction the seller gets to buy their own car back, that is unless the partners of Russo and Steal have decided to buy the car for themselves and resell it later. Don't fall into this trap.
The purpose of this blog was to educate potential victims before they get taken at auction, it's just too bad the education has to come from those who had to pay a price to learn.
The focus is not an entire industry, that would take more time to expose and many more innocent people would continue to get hurt by the worst of the worst.
The worst of the worst is the Russo and Steele auction company owned by Drew and Josephine Alcazar. These people smile in the face of victims. They have spent a lifetime honing their skills. To call yourself a hobbyist and represent yourself as catering to the enthusiast is a crime. Why not at least tell the truth and say your real goal is to make as much money as possible in the shortest amount of time. When corporate sponsors climb on board, when magazines take advertising dollars and write articles ignoring what is said behind doors it is time for the individuals to speak up.
You cannot fake bids, buy and sell cars at your own auction, fabricate sales numbers, manipulate a market and create a place where knowledgeable people prey on decent hobbyists. The big companies don't want to have a cloud over their core business so they try and look the other way. The advertisers are short sighted and sponsors go where they can and try anything sometimes. So once again the little guy has to work to expose those that manipulate and exploit others of more honest nature.
Signs to Watch For:
Watch who a bidder talks to, what they do and determine if they are really part of the landscape
Watch for quick increasing bid increments. If you cannot identify a person with those run- ups there is likely no real bidding . The auctioneer is moving things along to get the car to the price they need. The real person will be caught as the winning bidder when the targeted price is finally reached.
If an auctioneer losses their place or backs up on a bid, then they lost a real bidder and got caught with a shill bid and need to re-establish a live real bidder.
Watch for the same person bidding all night long, Very few people bid on more than a couple of cars in one evening.
The bidder or winning bidder will follow the car out or change character unless the person bidding is a dealer buying several cars,. They won't act like nothing happened.
Watch for that person who is the under bidder or the bidder that starts the bidding on multiple cars, again few people participate in multiple bidding if they are really buying
Watch for the ring man or auctioneer looking into an area where no particular person can be identified. That spot is usually over the crowd or towards the back. It won't be right down in front unless they are using a plant.
Ask questions, look around the room
If you bid always look at the person you think you are bidding against, never bid if you don't know you are bidding against because you will be bidding against yourself
These practices by unscrupulous auctions, manipulate the process, cost real bidders thousands of dollars and artificially inflate the prices. An auction item should bring the most money a real person is prepared to pay by bidding. At Russo and Steele the final price can be the price the auctioneers decide to run the bidding price up to. They are trying to get a real person to jump in and if that doesn't happen the consigner thinks the job almost got done, or in the case of a no reserve auction the seller gets to buy their own car back, that is unless the partners of Russo and Steal have decided to buy the car for themselves and resell it later. Don't fall into this trap.
The purpose of this blog was to educate potential victims before they get taken at auction, it's just too bad the education has to come from those who had to pay a price to learn.
The focus is not an entire industry, that would take more time to expose and many more innocent people would continue to get hurt by the worst of the worst.
The worst of the worst is the Russo and Steele auction company owned by Drew and Josephine Alcazar. These people smile in the face of victims. They have spent a lifetime honing their skills. To call yourself a hobbyist and represent yourself as catering to the enthusiast is a crime. Why not at least tell the truth and say your real goal is to make as much money as possible in the shortest amount of time. When corporate sponsors climb on board, when magazines take advertising dollars and write articles ignoring what is said behind doors it is time for the individuals to speak up.
You cannot fake bids, buy and sell cars at your own auction, fabricate sales numbers, manipulate a market and create a place where knowledgeable people prey on decent hobbyists. The big companies don't want to have a cloud over their core business so they try and look the other way. The advertisers are short sighted and sponsors go where they can and try anything sometimes. So once again the little guy has to work to expose those that manipulate and exploit others of more honest nature.
I LOST $18,900
I can top the $16,000 loss! I sold a car and bought a car at Russo and Steele in 2006 at the January 2006 Auction in Scottsdale, Arizona. A total of $18,900 was in effect stolen from me by withholding money from my settlement check. They had my car, my title, and my money. I hope Russo and Steele lose customers and sponsors. Shame on Drew and Josephine Russo Steele.
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Observations
I take a week off work every January to spend as much time as I can at the Scottsdale collector car auctions. By sitting and observing you can learn. Russo and Steele does appear to have some transaction which are done by the rules. But they do have more ridiculas things taking place than any of the other auctions including Kruse and the Silver auction at the Casino. I think people are catching on to how and spot phoney bidding and bidders.
FAKE BIDDERS
If an auction bids a car by using fake bidders to bring more money than would otherwise be bid by real bidders and hammers the car sold when it is not sold, then the market is being manipulated and wouldn't that be illegal. Ask yourself why a car that was "sold" in August in Moneterrey at the Russo and Steele no reserve acution is listed for sale at the January Scottsdale Russo and Steel auction. This is either an example of the auction house owning the car and manipulating the market or the buyer at the Moneterrey auction bought back their own car because it did not bring enough money and to appease the seller the Alcasors let them bring the same car to Scottsdale for free. Many of the same cars appear in multiple Russo and Steele auctions.
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
SHARED EXPERIENCES
I've received so many emails since I posted this blog last Saturday with similar experiences. If you would like to add to this blog, send me your email address and I will add your email name as an author. It's pretty easy, you'll receive an email with instructions on how to add your blog.
Saturday, January 6, 2007
READ THIS BEFORE BUYING A CAR AT RUSSO AND STEELE
I attended the Russo and STEAL auction and found out the hard why what "BUYER BEWARE" really means. I also found out I was not an isolated example of an easy mark. The auction that touts itself as a boutique auction for collectors had to find a niche of virgin buyers. I'm focusing on the buyers because there seems to be plenty of sellers available since the reputable auction companies were turning away consignments. Plenty of new consigners were available. The Alcazars decided to prey on the baby boomers with disposable incomes that might be intimidated with the large successful car auctions. Russo and STEAL didn't need to run a reputable auction to make money.
SMOKE AND MIRRORS
A car I purchased was (I later found out) owned by the owner of the auction, Drew Alcazar. It seems he buys a lot of cars at this auction from sellers that got duped. He bought the car at his own auction and turned around and sold it to me at his next auction. Why did the same car suddenly become worth more money and get bid up to the price I paid when at the auction before it sold to Drew for $16,000 less. I've since learned that when cars he owns go through the auction he has his shill bidders bid them up to what ever price he feels he can get away with. And he gets the buy fee on top of that. And oh yes, he got the sell fee from the poor owner on the previous auction that ended up selling the car for a loss when the market was escalating. Printing money couldn't be easier.
I had buyer's remorse after drinking too much; it seems that the free drinks are also part of the elaborate game. When I tried to find the next highest bidder on the car I had won, I learned he wasn't a real bidder. So I had two choice, suck it up and figure things out later or refuse to pay. When I refused to pay, the price was suddenly reduced and that made me even more suspicious. That is when I started talking about my experience with RUSSO and STEAL and I began running into other people that had similar experience. Last year in the Russo and Steele Monterey auction I witnessed such bogus smoke and mirror tactics that I decided to find out just how many people are getting ripped off while the owners Drew and Josefine Alcazar are lining their pockets with other peoples money.
This practice is hurting the collector car hobby.
I started this blog, so I could hear your story. I want everyone to know what's really going out at this auction company.
SMOKE AND MIRRORS
A car I purchased was (I later found out) owned by the owner of the auction, Drew Alcazar. It seems he buys a lot of cars at this auction from sellers that got duped. He bought the car at his own auction and turned around and sold it to me at his next auction. Why did the same car suddenly become worth more money and get bid up to the price I paid when at the auction before it sold to Drew for $16,000 less. I've since learned that when cars he owns go through the auction he has his shill bidders bid them up to what ever price he feels he can get away with. And he gets the buy fee on top of that. And oh yes, he got the sell fee from the poor owner on the previous auction that ended up selling the car for a loss when the market was escalating. Printing money couldn't be easier.
I had buyer's remorse after drinking too much; it seems that the free drinks are also part of the elaborate game. When I tried to find the next highest bidder on the car I had won, I learned he wasn't a real bidder. So I had two choice, suck it up and figure things out later or refuse to pay. When I refused to pay, the price was suddenly reduced and that made me even more suspicious. That is when I started talking about my experience with RUSSO and STEAL and I began running into other people that had similar experience. Last year in the Russo and Steele Monterey auction I witnessed such bogus smoke and mirror tactics that I decided to find out just how many people are getting ripped off while the owners Drew and Josefine Alcazar are lining their pockets with other peoples money.
This practice is hurting the collector car hobby.
I started this blog, so I could hear your story. I want everyone to know what's really going out at this auction company.
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