SA Gr8 – Iconic plate fetches $2.3 million at record-breaking auction

17 September 2024

Local auction records have been smashed with the iconic plate 8 selling for more than $2.3 million dollars in a thrilling bidding war overnight.

Plate 8, among the first numeric plates issued in South Australia in 1906, went up for auction in late August sparking a two-week bidding frenzy and last night sold for a record $2,300,100.

Bidding started at $600,000 and took just days for the bids from passionate car enthusiasts and number plate collectors to skyrocket and set a new auction record for South Australia.

The previous record was set in 2020 when the bespoke ‘1’ plate commemorating the Adelaide Grand Prix nabbed $593,000 at auction.

Plate ‘8’ is the first single digit numeric plate to be sold by the State Government since plates 3,6 and 9 were sold at the 1985 Great Plate Auction. Back then they sold for $11,000, $6,500 and $7,000 respectively.

Number eight is considered the luckiest number in Chinese culture, while in some numerology schools it represents strength, prosperity and victory.

Experts say having an ‘8’ within a plate sequence has become the digit of choice among number plate collectors, both for its luck and symmetrical format.

Bidders were also keen to snap up a number of other genuine numeric plates that were at auction alongside the ‘8’, with plate 55 selling for a whopping $625,100 and plate 873 going for $165,100.

A total of 28 plates were up for grabs including numbers 46000, 111444, 5566 and 249, with the total of $4,014,073 raised showcasing the high demand and interest South Australians have in genuine numeric plates.

Each plate comes with ‘Class Specific Rights’ which entitle the new owners to long-term rights to their plate. This means the plate can be transferred to vehicles registered in the same name and sold to a third party.

The plates can only be affixed to a vehicle that is registered in South Australia.

Revenue raised from the auction will be returned to the Department for Infrastructure and Transport to fund services for South Australians.