Indian

The sale of the core exhibits of the National Motorcycle Museum was a chance to pick up a bargain, with many historically important bikes going cheap. Warning: if you appreciate historical gravitas, this overview may be deeply distressing.

The Monterey car auctions will see more than a third of a billion dollars spent in three days this year, but the volume of well-heeled individuals in town ensures that among the cars are a smattering of bikes vendors hope will appeal to the hyper-monied audience.

Each January the Las Vegas motorcycle auctions set the tone for the entire auction year. This year there was only one – Mecum – but it will be the biggest and most important motorcycle auction of 2022, with the most evident trends. Here's what we learned.

Three of the most expensive motorcycles in history sell during Monterey Car Week 2019.

Monterey Car Week is where the world's most monied automotive enthusiasts congregate once a year, and as usual, there are quite a few elite motorcycles on offer. We count 15, maybe 16 motorcycles that are expected to fetch six figures, headed by two Crockers likely to fetch $500,000 each.

Blacksmith Electric is tooling up to give riders a very grand, very Indian take on electric motorcycling. The Blacksmith B2, currently in its third generation of prototyping, offers up to 240 km (150 mi) of range, with swappable battery packs for quick top-ups.

BMW Motorrad showed a "Concept R18" motorcycle at Concorso d'Elegenza Villa d'Este that appears to be the first shot in an offensive on Harley-Davidson and Indian territory. It is the first glimpse of many new bikes expected to be based around the 1800cc twin-cylinder engine.

The 2019 Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance continued to grow in stature this year, but it was the symbiotic cluster of elite auctions that threw up the most interesting results. The collector car market is undergoing generational change, attracting a younger clientele driving prices below $500,000.

Bonhams' Stafford Motorcycle auctions are held each spring and autumn at the Staffordshire County Showgrounds in the United Kingdom, and these auctions invariably throw up some fascinating motorcycles.

The motorcycle auction marketplace evolved rapidly at the year-defining Las Vegas auctions this year, both on a macro and micro level. Mecum's five day sale was the largest motorcycle auction ever held, while Bonhams set a new world record by fetching $979,000 for a 1951 Vincent Black Lightning.

Indian's Scout FTR750 has been a huge hit with flat-track racers, and now it seems the company's gauging interest in a street-legal production version. Gauge no more, Indian, we want this, badly. The FTR1200 Custom might be the best looking motorcycle I've ever seen.

Monterey Car Week is all about cars but the auctions have always tended to include an array of the best motorcycles. This year with the car market well down and many motorcycles sold with no reserve, bargains were plentiful.