By the time you read this, I will have spent a week at Barrett-Jackson 2025 Scottsdale Auction. However, it’s not the only game in town—AutoHunter has its daily dose of cars to bid on. Considering AutoHunter does not have 2,000-plus cars to choose from like at Barrett-Jackson, this makes curating my AutoHunter Picks easier. Lucky me!
But it’s never easy to choose four. Oh, no, another Chevy! Or the photographer leaves something to be desired. Or . . . it runs the gamut. Nonetheless, here are four that I feel should have broad appeal to most collectors. Which would be your pick?
1965 Buick Skylark
The Skylark has sportiness and style in spade, sitting at the top of the A-body series, above Special and Special Deluxe. When spec’ing out a Skylark, you’d receive generous use of brightwork and full-width taillights. The Gran Sport package also was new, but most folks opted for the 300ci Wildcat 310, which had 210 horsepower.
This one features optional bucket seat, Super Turbine automatic, wheel covers with spinners, and CD player in glove box so you can cruise to the Castaways when headed to the shore.
1970 Mercury Cougar XR-7
As the second year of the second-generation Cougar, the ’70 used to be less desirable to me than the ’69, but I have flipped in recent years. I like the return of the electric shaver grille, there were more bright colors available, and houndstooth interior and roof options can be quite stunning.
This XR-7 has all the good stuff that came with the model (like leather and vinyl interior) plus it has an Eliminator hood added. Power comes from a 351 two-barrel, so might as well pony up for a Marti Report to see if it’s a Cleveland or Windsor.
1955 Ford Customline
Sure, a Crown Victoria Skyliner would be sweet, but there’s also something to be said for the more austere models like this mid-series Customline Tudor Sedan. Ford styling was strong for the era, perhaps only paling in comparison to what Chevrolet was offering.
A 223 inline-six is paired to a three-speed automatic, a combo that would be comfortable as a daily driver. Just ditch the fuzzy dice and you’ll be all set.
2009 Mercedes-Benz SL 550
With 383 horsepower from 5.5 liters, the hallowed V8-powered SL is a luxury grand tourer with substantial history behind it, even though its original ancestor was much more of a sports car than GT.
As you can imagine, this vehicle comes with just about every tech-y feature known to Man, so you’re not left wanting unless you need Apple CarPlay, but that’s what cell phones are for, right? If Hunter Thompson needed to go to Vegas today, I wouldn’t be surprised if this SL would be his pick.
