Fast Auto Exit vs. Gooding & Company

Gooding & Company is a curated boutique auction house, smaller than RM Sotheby's by volume but with similarly elite catalog standards. Their signature sales at Pebble Beach (August) and Amelia Island (March) are the focal points for sellers of significant cars. This page compares Gooding's auction model with our private match-making service.

What Gooding is

Gooding & Company runs roughly 3 to 4 major auctions per year. Their hallmark is selectivity: a Gooding catalog typically contains 100 to 150 cars vs. RM's 200 to 300 per event. Seller's commission is negotiable, typically 0 to 10 percent. Buyer's premium is approximately 12 percent. Consignment-to-sale is 6 to 10 weeks. Cars are professionally photographed, cataloged, and presented at a live event.

The format excels at the very top tier (Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz Gullwing, pre-war classics, race cars with provenance). The Pebble Beach Concours timing co-locates the buyer audience with peak collector activity for the year.

Side-by-side economics

	Gooding & Company	Fast Auto Exit
Format	Curated live auction at Pebble Beach, Amelia, Geared Online	Private NDA introduction, no auction event
Audience	International high-end collector and dealer base	Curated private buyer network
Seller's commission	Negotiable, typically 0 to 10 percent	Disclosed match-making commission, both sides
Buyer's premium	Approximately 12 percent	Buyer pays match-making commission separately
Cataloging cost	Absorbed by Gooding for accepted consignments	Seller photos shared privately, no cataloging cost
Timing	6 to 10 weeks consignment-to-sale window	Typical buyer match under 7 days
Reserve risk	Auction may not hit reserve	No reserve risk
Privacy	Hammer price becomes public record	No public price record

When Gooding wins

• Significant pre-war classics and competition cars where Pebble Beach audience proximity drives bidding
• Cars where catalog presentation, scholarship, and provenance documentation drive the price (and Gooding's catalog team is among the best in the industry)
• Sellers comfortable with the multi-month consignment window who want a marquee event placement
• Cars priced 750K and above where the auction event audience is genuinely concentrated

When Fast Auto Exit wins

• Modern exotics and supercars under 1 million where Gooding's commission load eats more than a private match would cost
• Sellers in time pressure (estate, divorce, business need)
• Sellers who do not want a public price record on their car
• Off-Pebble-Beach-cycle sellers (post-August or post-March) who would otherwise wait 6 months for the next major event
• Cars with quirks (incomplete history, repaint, modifications) that fit a non-concours buyer better

Worked example: 2008 Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Roadster

A 2008 SLR McLaren Roadster, 9,000 miles, full Mercedes service history. Retail comparable: 600,000 dollars.

Path A: Gooding consignment, Amelia Island sale

• Hammer price (expected range): 560,000 to 650,000
• Median outcome: 605,000
• Seller's commission (negotiated 5 percent): minus 30,250
• Insurance, transport to Amelia, pre-event prep: minus 3,500
• Net to seller: 571,250
• Timeline: 7 to 10 weeks consignment-to-wire

Path B: Fast Auto Exit match

• Negotiated direct price (expected range): 560,000 to 600,000
• Median outcome: 580,000
• Match-making commission (seller side, disclosed pre-introduction): per disclosure
• Transport: 0 (buyer arranges and pays)
• Net to seller: 580,000 minus disclosed commission
• Timeline: 2 to 4 weeks from submission to wire

What we tell sellers honestly

For Ferrari 250 SWB, pre-war Bugatti, race-history Maserati, museum-quality restorations: Gooding is the answer. The catalog team will produce a presentation that pulls value out of the car you literally cannot replicate privately.

For modern exotic cars (post-2005) without unusual provenance, the private match is structurally faster and often nets comparable money. The decision is less about which channel produces a higher number and more about whether you can wait 8 weeks and absorb the auction-day risk for the upside.