Knoxville Corvette Expo
Held twice yearly, Corvette Expo hosts auctions run by the Powell Auction Company of Knoxville, Tennessee, in the spring and fall of each year. The '07 spring event was held in March of this year, and the upcoming fall auction will be held on October 19-20, so there's still time to get in on that one. The only sale restriction on this auction is that all cars consigned must be 1981 or older, so if you're looking for a vintage Corvette, then this is right up your alley.
Kruse International
A high-profile auction organization that gets it fair share of cable TV coverage, as well as deep-pocketed bidders, Kruse holds its annual event in Auburn, Indiana, in the spring of each year. Touting itself as the "world's largest collector car sales organization," Kruse International Auburn Spring Collector Car Auction typically attracts 1,000-plus cars to come under the gavel. In the company of Cords, Hispano-Suizas, Packards, and other world-class marques, you'll find Corvettes well represented at this event held at the 480-acre Kruse Auction Park.
LiveCorvetteAuction.com
An internet-based auction site that calls itself "the most fun buying and selling on the web." (We'll let you be the judge of that, however.) While we didn't spend a lot of time on the site, there were several interesting cars available from ProTeam on it, so this may be a stop during your Corvette web surfing that you should check out.
RM Auctions
Another high-profile auction firm that presents world-class cars for sale at multiple venues yearly. Corvettes comprise 6 to 8 percent of RM's total auction sales annually. In keeping with its corporate success philosophy, RM makes a concerted effort not to flood the market with too many of one particular make; the company maintains that while at first blush 6-8 percent may not seem to be a significant amount, in real terms this amounts to many tens of millions of dollars in actual Corvettes sold at their auctions. According to RM, Corvettes are consistently strong sellers regardless of the venue they are offered at, and they have a universal appeal so there is never a shortage of bidders when they are offered.
RM holds its widely-publicized auction events in Monterey, California; Phoenix, Arizona; Amelia Island, Florida; and in Europe (with a recent sale at the Ferrari factory in Maranello, Italy).
Ebay Motors
Yes, we know this is not in alphabetical order, but was a last-minute thought to head-off reader mail saying, "why didn't you include eBay Motors in your article?" Like the Al Yankovic parody song says, "I got it on eBay," you can find lots of things Corvette, including actual Corvettes, on "the world-wide garage sale." But just remember the caveats about buying a Corvette from a distance, and be sure to do your homework first.
That wraps it up for the Top Corvette Auctions. Regardless of what your dream Corvette may be, it's out there somewhere, and you're sure to find it if you look long and hard enough for it.