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John Kraman knows the car auction business as well as a broadcaster. He’s the senior member of the Mecum Auctions team and the only announcer who’s been on all 16 years of the country’s largest automobile auctions broadcast. He’s our guest this week on The Weekly Driver Podcast.
With broadcast colleagues and varied responsibility crew, co-hosts Bruce Aldrich and James Raia discuss with Kraman the auction’s participation Aug. 17-19 in Monterey Auto Week. Mecum is the only daytime auction during what is now nearly a two-week celebration on the Monterey Peninsula of all things automotive.
The Monterey stop on the Mecum Auctions nearly yearlong circuit is the company’s smallest in volume. About 600 vehicles are sold in three days. But the Monterey Auction, held at the Hyatt Regency and the adjoining Old Del Monte Golf Course, has the auction’s highest average amount per individual sale.
Kraman, a repeat guest who’s also a vintage car collector, details how the auction works live and with remote bidding.
A mechanic and pilot, Kraman joins his colleagues with a fast-paced presentation. He knows the pedigrees of all of the vehicles and details each one like it’s his favorite.
As always, rarities will be highlighted during the Mecum Auctions. But attainable vehicles are the norm. As in past years, vehicles are auctioned every few minutes. It’s the only auction televised live during Monterey Auto Week.
Here are three unique vehicles ready for auction during Mecum Auction’s gathering in Monterey:
- 1948 Packard Super 8 Convertible Victoria. Currently owned and for the past decade by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, six-time NBA Champion, and the league’s only six-time MVP. The Packard was one of 4,750 built for 1948;
- 1963 Shelby 289 Cobra Roadster. Thought to be the 100th production car, per serial number, following the initial prototype car. Billed to Shelby American on March 13, 1963;
- 1966 Chevrolet Corvette Race Car. The only 1966 Corvette campaigned by Alan Green Chevrolet and raced by Gary Gove in SCCA AP Class competition.
For more information on Mecum Auctions Monterey 2023 and all other Mecum auctions, visit Mecum.com. Mecum’s website is updated daily with the latest consignments and includes detailed descriptions and photographs of the vehicles to be offered. For schedule information, to consign a vehicle or to register as a bidder for this and all Mecum events, visit Mecum.com, or call (262) 275-5050 for more information.
Auction Schedule: The Daytime Auction: Mecum Monterey 2023, Aug. 17-19, 2023
Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel and Spa – Del Monte Golf Course
1 Old Golf Course Rd.
Monterey, CA 93940
Bidder Registration: Options for in-person, telephone and internet bidding start at $100
Admission: $20 in advance online, and $30 at the door and online after Aug. 16—per person, per day; children 12 and younger receive complimentary admission
Preview: Gates open daily at 8 a.m.
Auction: Vehicles begin at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 17, and at 9 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 18 and Saturday, Aug. 19
TV: Friday, Aug. 18 from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. (Live) on MotorTrendTV and MotorTrend+ and from 2-6 p.m. (Re-Air) on MotorTrendTV; Saturday, Aug. 19 from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. (Live) on MotorTrendTV and MotorTrend+, from 10 a.m.-noon (Live) on Discovery and from 2-6 p.m. (Re-Air) on MotorTrendTV. (All timed PDT)
MECUM AUCTIONS PREVIOUSLY ON THE WEEKLY DRIVER PODCAST
#188 Broadcaster John Kraman Talks Mecum Auctions
#95 Mecum Auctions Defines Fun in Monterey
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Hosted by James Raia and Bruce Aldrich, The Weekly Driver Podcast dives deep into the highways and byways of the automotive world. Each week, we put you in the driver’s seat, exploring unique, unusual, and often untold stories from across the industry’s spectrum.
Article Last Updated: August 16, 2023.
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A sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver since 2004.
In addition to founding this site in 2004, James writes a Sunday automotive column for The San Jose Mercury and East Bay Times in Walnut Creek, Calif., and monthly auto review and wellness columns for Gulfshore Business, a magazine in Southwest Florida.
An author and contributor to many newspapers, magazines and online publications, co-hosted The Weekly Driver Podcast from 2017 to 2024.
