Cool car stuff

It takes teams of experienced auctioneers to make a collector car auction run smoothly. Here is great shot of what is referred to as the 'auction block'.

Are you looking to buy or sell that special car?

Steve has been involved in the collector car business for nearly thirty years now. His experience as an auctioneer has brought him to major collector car events in Seattle; Phoenix; Las Vegas; Reno; Auburn; Vancouver, British Columbia and Calgary, Alberta. The team at srdorsey auctioneers has the resources to help you find the car of your dreams, or to market and sell your vehicle at the price that you want. Our combined years of experience in auctioneering provides the platform on which to sell your vehicle quickly and successfully.

Back to where I started, working with Silver Auctions at their thirty second Sun Valley Auction. The new Corvette sold for $127,000.

Garage find Corvette!

My first 911, I paid $4500 for the car in 1990. Today it would be worth $40,000.

I managed to save most of the models I made when I was a kid.

Nice old vintage sign still hanging.

This is what my weekly wholesale car auctions look like. On a typical Wednesday, I see over a hundred cars come across my block. Nearly a thousand cars travel through the building via eight lanes in an approximate three-hour period. It's a huge production, but you wouldn't know it by its smooth operation.

Here's a photo of a nice 1965 Mustang on the turntable. Every car got two spins before it was driven off the platform into the hands of its happy, new owner.

Auctioning Ford automobiles at the Ford factory auction block, with the young Henry Ford III standing to my far left.

My first Volvo restoration was this 1964 P1800. The next one I restored was a 1972 1800E.

This was my first Porsche 911T. It was a 1973, the last year of the Classic Porsche build. Twenty years ago, you could buy one for less than $10,000. Today, you would pay over $30,000 for one needing a full restoration! Then spend another $70,000 to bring it back to its original glory.

This is a bullet-nosed grill on the front of a 1949 Ford. On a regular basis, I had noticed it parked along the highway to Napa and decided to pull over one day to have a closer look. It's become one of my favorite photos that I've taken recently.

To the untrained eye, this might just look like an old beater of a car. In actuality, it's really quite rare and valuable. A car in this condition is referred to as a 'barn find' nowadays. What you are really looking at here is a car that has never been restored. This 1949 Mercury is all original and unmodified.

A sweet Nova that I had on the auction block at Hot August Nights ended up going for just shy of $40,000. A Charger at the same auction went for nearly half the price of the Nova at $25,000.

This was the first Ferrari that I had ever sold.

Working at CART a few decades ago. What a hoot!

Selling a brand new Lotus under the tent.

This is how collector car auctions looked in the 1980s before they became popular enough to be broadcast on television networks to the general public.

You can find some cool vintage cars and trucks on Alberta Street here in NE Portland. Here's a good, old Chevy pick-up.

Here's a slick 1949 Pontiac that I came across on one of my walks through the neighborhood. She's a real beaut.

I get out for a walk nearly every day that I'm in town. It's amazing, both how great the fresh air feels and what sights and sounds you come across in the old neighborhood. Here's an old Volkswagen Beetle that we came across last Easter weekend. Then there's this Mercury Monterey that I stumbled upon this past Thanksgiving.

Vintage is a way of life in PDX; whether it be cars or clothing or cuisine. Old school is the new cool! More neighborhood gems for your viewing pleasure...

My coffee, car, and bike buddy's three oldies but goodies parked out front of his house. He collects vintage shoes too.

We set a couple of records at the Indiana edition of the Worldwide Auctioneers' sale a few years back; even making it into the next day's newspaper! It was a great event to be a part of and I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Mercedes... This beautifully restored Mercedes Gullwing is 1 of only 1,400 ever produced. Though it was a no-sale at this particular auction, it later sold in a private transaction for more than $1,000,000.

This Convertible Mini Cooper that showed up at the Portland Wholesale auction was a one-of-a-kind with its fully customized interior and exterior. The original owner even had Lambo-styled doors installed on it!

During Monterey Car Week, our team worked the first ever JR Auctions' Cannery Row Car and Yacht Auction. It took place August 12 to 15, 2015 at the Monterey Plaza Hotel and Spa. I had the opportunity to be the auctioneer of this rare 2015 Porsche 918 Spyder. This hybrid Porsche is one of the fastest cars ever produced, with a top speed of over 200 mph.

Pictured below is a custom car whose details were all finished by hand, that had originally started out as a 1948 Buick. There were initially no takers for this magnificent beast when it went on the block, but ended up selling for around the $200K mark shortly thereafter.

I was at the Vancouver, Canada BMW Store new Service Center opening where they unveiled the all new BMW 7 Series. Here I am standing next to the latest BMW i8 model.

MGB then and now: With my buddy in my candy apple red one back in the day and a mustard yellow classic in pretty good condition that I spotted amongst the falling leaves at Stanley Park this autumn.

My Grandpa as a child with his family in Nebraska, above. My Great-Grandpa and Great-Grandma, pictured below.

Great-Aunt Ruby driving in a Ford Speedster.

Grandpa standing next to his Chevrolet.

We were out at the Expo Center for this year's 60th Annual Portland Roadster Show. The entire floor space was covered with perfect, shining, painted metal. The skill and effort that went into the construction and rebuilding of these beautiful, timeless roadsters was unbelievable. Each car was built and buffed to show-worthy perfection.

It was extra special to see my dear, departed friend Bob Tindle's Orange Crate restored to its former glory.

This is what you might see on an especially good day at the Highline Auction in California...

Seriously. So many cars. So little time.

In Vancouver, just out front of my favorite hotel with a vintage Jaguar XJS in fire engine red.

This Ratty Porsche sold for $22,000.

Lamborghini crossing the block at the Highline auction.

I do the monthly BMW/Rolls Royce in Las Vegas.

The weekly wholesale auction I work.

This 1985 Porsche 944 drew a lot of attention. With the rising prices on aircooled cars forcing Porsche fans out of that market, these water pumper models are starting to catch the eyes of many Porsche buyers.