The Matamata Panelworks team which built the Ford Mustang Venom for Igor Sutich. Photo / Supplied
The Matamata Panelworks team which built the Ford Mustang Venom for Igor Sutich. Photo / Supplied
“Flattish” is how Aucklander Igor Sutich feels after seeing his sleek New Zealand-handbuilt, customised 1965 Ford Mustang “Venom” sell in Arizona at the weekend for US$250,000 - less than it cost him to build.
That said, Sutich is delighted it was bought by a woman who intends to “give ita thrashing” which was exactly what he wanted for the meticulously finished vehicle.
Given the flooding crisis at home in Auckland, he said he had nothing to complain about.
“Someone I know has lost their house. The world hasn’t ended just because I didn’t get what I wanted.”
The sale price of US250,000 is around NZ$385,000 - less than he poured into the build over five years by Matamata Panelworks. But it’s more than the car would have fetched in New Zealand, Sutich said.
“The woman who bought it is from Utah. She wants to drive the car and give it good old thrashing. She’s exactly who I wanted to buy the car,” he said.
Igor Sutich with his custom 1965 Ford Mustang Venom. Photo / Supplied
“She has a stable of around 10 muscle cars. She’s a pilot, a bodybuilder and owns her own drinks company. She said the first time she walked past the car she had to have it. She fell in love with it. It’s a perfect match.”
Sutich won’t say how much Venom cost to build from the original $25,000 car he bought, but it is understood to be north of $500,000.
“I’m not disappointed but I’m not jumping up and down. I feel a little bit flattish but not unhappy. It would have been nice to make some money but I didn’t build it to sell it. I did it for the love of what it is.”
Sutich took the “calculated risk” of shipping his American muscle car, which had just 500 miles (804km) on the clock, back to where it came from without a reserve price because he didn’t want to devalue it by “thrashing” it in New Zealand.
And because it would have been unlikely to fetch its value here.
Prices were generally subdued at the eight-day auction, a favourite of classic car collectors.
Sutich said he met a veteran Scottsdale seller who had 67 vehicles on offer and reported his cost price was down this year.
“He seemed to think there were more cars than normal and they tended to be rushing them through. They seemed to be dropping the hammer quickly and not giving full descriptions of the car to start with. No-one was sure what that was about.”
The Ford Mustang Venom in an earlier life. Photo / Supplied
Prices were subdued for everything except Chevy Blazers or Ford Broncos. Sutich said they were on trend this year and prices were “over the top expensive”.
Auction organiser Barrett-Jackson Auction Company has been approached for comment.
While Venom, possibly the first New Zealand-built car to be offered at the auction, was nominated in the top 50 cars for the Barrett-Jackson Cup, its New Zealand provenance didn’t get a mention in publicity or during the auction.
That may have been disappointing for Matamata Panelworks, but owner Malcolm Sankey was philosophical.
“It wasn’t about exposure. It was about supporting Igor and our team. The car was sensational. It was a stunning car.”
Sankey said Venom wasn’t his most expensive build, but with Sutich’s design requirements calling on all Panelworks’ engineering, mechanical and technical skills and reputation for meticulous attention to detail, it was a “fantastic” experience for his “one-shop” service team, these days nudging 30 specialised staff.
