JFK Jr.’s 1994 Saab approaches $30,000 at RR Auction

The Tech TL;DR:

• John F. Kennedy Jr.’s green 1994 Saab 900 SE is currently drawing heavy bidding at RR Auction, approaching $30,000.
• The vehicle features a turbocharged four-cylinder engine, leather interior, and custom aqua-blue ski racks.
• The odometer reads just 30,650 miles, and the car has not hit the road in a long time.

Driving through Lower Manhattan in the late nineties, John F. Kennedy Jr. and his wife, publicist Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, frequently appeared in public in a green 1994 Saab 900 SE, according to GQ. That exact vehicle is now up for auction with a current bid approaching $30,000, driven by more than 20 separate offers.

Kennedy bought the hatchback new in 1994

Kennedy purchased the hatchback new from Zumbach Sports Cars in Manhattan for $29,841.21 during the summer of 1994, keeping it until his death in 1999. Bobby Livingston, executive vice president at RR Auction, told GQ why the vehicle stands out among celebrity lots.

“What makes this lot so special is it’s not some Maserati or something flashy like that—it’s a practical car that was a part of his everyday life,” Livingston told GQ. “For Kennedy, the choice of this car, as opposed to a Mercedes or something, speaks a lot to his style.”

Livingston also noted the market response to the vehicle. “We’ve sold a Hummer that belonged to Tupac, and a Cadillac Escalade that was used by Tony Soprano in The Sopranos, but I didn’t know there would be such an affection for John F. Kennedy Jr.’s Saab,” Livingston told GQ.

“It’s already exceeded our estimate, and there’s a lot of interest, so it could go for a lot more than where it is right now.”

Chain of custody and storage conditions

The vehicle reached the auction block through Kevin J. Hynes, a screenwriter, longtime friend, and former colleague from the New York DA’s office. The auction listing shows the car was left at Hynes’s Westchester home in the days following Kennedy’s fatal plane crash.

Hynes purchased the car from the Kennedy estate for $6,000 in 2000, then sold it for $12,000 two years later. A third owner started the engine regularly, but the odometer reading of 30,650 miles indicates the Saab hasn’t hit the road in a long time.

Associated historical artifacts in the sale

The Saab was originally listed with a minimum sale price of $15,000 as part of RR Auction’s Fine Autographs and Artifacts event. Other lots featured in the same auction include a tweed hat worn by the elder JFK and an overcoat belonging to Lee Harvey Oswald.