Monterey Car Week returns to the California coast with a 10-day automotive spectacle that culminates this Sunday with the Pebble Beach Concours. The event corridor on the Monterey Peninsula hosts a lineup of car shows, driving tours, a racing reunion, OEM reveals and more, appealing to fans of pre-war classics as well as Italian supercars and Detroit muscle.
Five major auctions surface during the week: Mecum opens the action on Wednesday with a daytime sale, followed by evening auctions from Broad Arrow, RM Sotheby’s, Bonhams, and Christie’s (Gooding is also hosting sales in the mix). As the week unfolds, 44 Corvettes are on the block across these houses, representing all eight generations. Mecum leads with the largest Corvette docket, while Bonhams, Broad Arrow, RM Sotheby’s and Christie’s/Gooding together fill out the week with a mix of era-defining classics and modern performance.
Generation-by-generation, early Corvettes dominate the catalog, with roughly four-fifths of the available cars coming from the first three generations. Mecum offers a broader spread across the first six generations thanks to its larger docket, while Bonhams features four generations. The houses handling later-era Corvettes—C7 and C8—are Broad Arrow, Bonhams and Gooding/Christie’s, which means if you’re chasing a post-2014 model, that trio is your best bet.
Here’s how the Corvette lineup breaks down by auction house and sale location this week:
Mecum
– Features some of the most coveted Corvettes on the block. Highlights include a red 1967 L88, a pair of 1971 LS6s in Brands Hatch Green (coupe or convertible), a couple of C1s in Aztec Copper (1956 and 1957), and a well-optioned 1967 convertible. Also notable are restomod examples, including a 1958 build by Kindig-it Design.
Broad Arrow
– Showcases both ends of the Corvette spectrum: a white-on-red 1957 fuel-injected model representing peak performance of its era, and a 2,500-mile 2015 Z06 convertible illustrating today’s high-tech capabilities.
RM Sotheby’s
– A strong red-on-red theme with a 1958 convertible featuring the 250hp fuel-injected variant, complemented by a red-on-red 1967 coupe with an L68 400hp engine, air conditioning and an automatic transmission.
Bonhams
– Combines provenance-rich early cars with modern performance, including two 1963 split-window coupes—one a Z06 from the Vic Edelbrock Collection previously owned by Bob Bondurant. Late-model offerings include three C8 Z06s plus an 8-mile C7.R convertible in yellow.
Christie’s (Gooding)
– Adds a standout contemporary model: a 2019 ZR1 convertible finished in black over black with just 1,817 miles.
Why Monterey Car Week matters for Corvette collectors
Monterey Car Week remains a bucket-list event for car enthusiasts, and this year’s Corvette turnout underscores the model’s enduring appeal across age, provenance and technology. The mix of ultra-rare early Corvettes, significant provenance, and modern high-performance iterations creates a dynamic market for buyers and a feast for spectators. Notable provenance connections—such as cars connected to the Vic Edelbrock Collection or Bob Bondurant—add to the collectability and storytelling around these lots.
What to watch for
– Moments of provenance: Edelbrock and Bondurant-linked cars often draw intense collector interest.
– Early-generation demand: The large presence of C1s through C3s signals strong appetite for iconic styling and historic performance.
– Modern milestones: Post-2014 Corvettes (C7/C8) offered by Broad Arrow, Bonhams and Christie’s/Gooding highlight the ongoing evolution of the Corvette platform.
A note for attendees and fans
Whether you’re there in person or watching live streams, Monterey Car Week offers a rare convergence of design history, racing heritage and cutting-edge engineering. It’s a showcase where the Corvette photographer’s dream lineup sits alongside timeless classics and next-generation performance machines.
Summary
This year’s Monterey Car Week centers a robust Corvette narrative across five major auction houses, balancing timeless C1–C3 heritage with high-performance modern generations. The mix of rare provenance, restomods, and limited-mile modern examples makes it a pivotal moment for Corvette collectors and enthusiasts alike, wrapped in the broader celebration of automotive culture on the Monterey Peninsula.
Optional hopeful angle
The sustained interest and strong auction presence suggest a healthy, enduring market for Corvettes across generations, reinforcing the model’s role as a living legend in American automotive history.
If you’d like, I can add a concise expert-at-a-glance buyers’ guide or pull out a short gallery-ready list of the standout Corvettes to watch as the auctions unfold.