Bonhams heads to Arizona

Bonhams has announced it will host its first-ever auction in Scottsdale, Arizona, on January 19, 2012. Savvy gearheads will note this is of course the very same week that Barrett-Jackson, Gooding, RM, Russo and Steele, and Silver host their annual desert auctions, so now’s the time to figure out how to stretch yourself in one more direction.

Last year in early January, the 217-year-old auction company tried its hand in Las Vegas with an all-motorcycle sale. The event went well enough, as 142 bikes sold for $2.5 million, though with a sale now slated for Arizona, it is likely the Vegas sale was a one-time affair.

Which brings us back to Scottsdale, a full house that’s even fuller with this news, but in a good way. While Barrett-Jackson tends to garner attention simply because it is what it is, and Gooding and RM do battle over who sold more of what for how much, Bonhams could quietly do very well among them, just as it does in Monterey. New to Scottsdale? Yes. New to people who bid on cars in Scottsdale? Not really.

Wherever Bonhams goes, it never fails to present a selection of very nice cars, often with great variety. So we should expect nothing less in January. Says Malcolm Barber, Bonhams CEO, “The new Scottsdale sale will be a worthy and welcome addition to our worldwide portfolio of blue ribbon sales and an appropriate addition to our annual offerings.”

Already confirmed are a few pre-war greats, including Marlene Dietrich’s 1929 Rolls-Royce Phantom I Transformable Convertible Sedan. More than just a mouthful, it’s green, gorgeous, and has starlet provenance.

Bonhams is still accepting consignments for the auction, which will take place at the Westin Kierland Resort & Spa.

If you’re planning to be in Scottsdale for the auctions, be sure to add Bonhams to your list. Heck, you might even come away with a car.

Learn more at www.bonhams.com.