Our Top 10 Most Popular BaT Auction Picks of 2022 Are Mostly American Made
Surprisingly, the majority of models on our top-10 list are domestics, including a super-clean Caddy station wagon and a '68 Corvette converted into a wagon.
For car nerds like us, perusing auction sites such as Bring a Trailer—which, like Car and Driver, is part of Hearst Autos—is one of our favorite pastimes. It's no secret we spend excessive screen time scrolling through virtual auctions for automobiles we usually never buy. So, more than a year ago, we began individually picking the most interesting ones and sharing them with our readers.
Thanks to an eclectic crew of car-crazy editors, our BaT picks cast a wide net, from one of the most desirable Alfa Romeos ever made to a real Acura endurance racer to Marty McFly's black Toyota truck in Back to the Future. By paying attention to which ones were the most popular, we've compiled a list of our top-10 Bring a Trailer picks from this past year. Surprisingly, the majority of that list consists of models made in America (plus one iconic Japanese sports car fitted with the most American of engines: a Chevy small-block V-8).
Allow us to present our top 10 most popular BaT picks of 2022, as chosen by you, our loyal readers.
1966 Shelby Cobra 427
Spoiler alert! This 1966 Shelby Cobra 427 is no replica; it's the real deal. Perhaps that's the reason it was our 10th-most-popular BaT pick of 2022. Or maybe it's simply because this iconic American roadster is just so damn cool, especially repainted in its original factory green. Its 427-cubic-inch V-8 features dual-four-barrel carburetors and exhaust pipes that exit out the back instead of the popular side-exit setup. The highest bid for this original Cobra was $1,160,000, but the reserve wasn't met.
1995 Ford F-250 XLT Diesel
Who doesn't love a mid-'90s heavy-duty Ford pickup truck? Apparently, our readers are big fans, as this 1995 F-250 XLT cracked our top-10 BaT picks from this past year. Along with a two-tone paint job, this extended-cab variant rolls on aftermarket 16.5-inch rims mounted on oversize tires. It's also powered by Ford's Power Stroke diesel engine, a 7.3-liter rated from the factory at 210 horsepower and 425 pound-feet of torque. Those power figures are puny by today's standards, but this truck's nostalgia is obviously its biggest draw. This '95 F-250 eventually sold for $28K.
1995 Mazda Miata (LS1 Swap)
If we learned anything while compiling this list, it's that most of our most popular BaT picks of 2022 are American made. We also learned that stuffing a Chevy small-block V-8 in Mazda's ultra-popular sports car attracts a lot of eyeballs. In this case, it's a 1995 Miata that's been modified with a 5.7-liter LS1 engine and myriad upgrades. Is 300-plus hp too much for such a lightweight rear-drive car? Maybe, but we doubt it's too much fun. The highest bid for this V-8-swapped Miata was $24K, but the reserve wasn't met.
2012 Cadillac CTS-V Wagon
The Cadillac CTS-V wagon was a unicorn. What else do you call a sharp-looking station wagon with a manual transmission and a 556-hp supercharged V-8? Readers seemed to agree, making this 2012 example our sixth most popular BaT pick of 2022. For the few people who need further proof of the Caddy's performance credentials, we'll remind them that one of these leather-lined family haulers hauled ass to 60 mph in just 4.0 seconds. Like we said: unicorn. This longroof CTS-V eventually sold for $84,501.
1967 Volkswagen Beetle
Not every car that made the top 10 list of our most popular Bring a Trailer picks is U.S. made, rare, or super powerful. This 1967 Volkswagen Beetle is a perfect example of that. Still, the "people's car" clearly continues to resonate with the people. Along with being repainted Savannah Beige, this example is equipped with a roof rack for extra storage. Kin to Herbie, the Love Bug, it also boasts a cute, quaint refurbished interior. This '67 Beetle eventually sold for $17,500.
2007 Mercedes-Benz R63 AMG
Mercedes might not have wanted to call the R-class a minivan, but those of us with two working eyes know what it is. We also know the AMG-tuned R63, with its 503-hp 6.2-liter V-8 and 155-mph top speed, remains the most badass production-built minivan on the planet. Perhaps Mercedes would've approved of that moniker? Either way, this 2007 example was our fifth most popular BaT pick from this past year. It was only sold for a single model year, and it's believed that just 108 made it to America. That puts the R63 in rarefied air, yet this one sold for $44K.
1968 Chevy Corvette SportWagon
Some folks might call this 1968 Chevy Corvette SportWagon a monstrosity; others might call it a cool conversion. We'll leave the door open for debate and simply call the wagon-esque Vette our fourth most popular BaT pick of 2022. Fun fact: Car and Driver reviewed a SportWagon, calling it a "sports car first, and a wagon second." The one on Bring a Trailer featured a 707-hp 572-cubic-inch V-8 paired with a manual transmission. Missing from its equipment list was A/C as well as power-assisted brakes and steering, meaning this monster is the definition of a handful. The highest bid was $25K, but the reserve wasn't met.
1967 Chevy Impala Sport Sedan
Either our readers are big fans of the TV show Supernatural or they love four-door Chevy Impalas from the 1960s. While it might be a little bit of both, we think it's supernatural that this 1967 Impala Sport sedan finished on the podium of our top-10 most popular BaT picks. This big-bodied Chevy hardtop was, in fact, cloned after the titular car on the TV show. Nicknamed Baby, the show car featured a 500-cubic-inch Chevy big-block V-8. Unfortunately, this example has a baby engine by comparison—a V-8 measuring just 283 cubic inches. At least only the driver will notice. This four-door '67 Impala eventually sold for $46,250.
1962 Dodge W200 Power Wagon
This four-door 1962 Dodge W200 Power Wagon will draw a lot more attention than any other massive crew-cab pickup truck currently helping clog American thoroughfares. It also caught the attention of our readers, being so popular that it finished second among our top-10 BaT picks of 2022. We're not that surprised, considering the popularity of pickups and how cool this old-school crew-cab Power Wagon looks. While its 225-cubic-inch slant-six wouldn't even excite Miss Daisy, its green paint and white 19-inch steel rims do enough to excite us. The truck eventually sold for $50k.
1978 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz
The people have spoken and our most popular Bring a Trailer pick of 2022 is . . . a brown 1978 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz? Surely no one saw that coming, yet everyone definitely saw this land yacht coming down the street back in the day. In its current form, this Eldorado Biarritz deserves recognition for its near-mint condition, including showing just under 20,000 miles on its odometer during the auction. The rest of the enormous two-door, whitewall-tired Caddy serves as a sign of the times from back when the peak of personal luxury was a car with a 7.0-liter V-8 making just 180 horsepower, albeit with a substantial 320 pound-feet of torque. This Eldorado eventually sold for $24K.
Eric Stafford’s automobile addiction began before he could walk, and it has fueled his passion to write news, reviews, and more for Car and Driver since 2016. His aspiration growing up was to become a millionaire with a Jay Leno–like car collection. Apparently, getting rich is harder than social-media influencers make it seem, so he avoided financial success entirely to become an automotive journalist and drive new cars for a living. After earning a journalism degree at Central Michigan University and working at a daily newspaper, the years of basically burning money on failed project cars and lemon-flavored jalopies finally paid off when Car and Driver hired him. His garage currently includes a 2010 Acura RDX, a manual '97 Chevy Camaro Z/28, and a '90 Honda CRX Si.
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