May 2019 - UK auction highlights
10 June, 2019
A DB5 blitzed its £620,000 – 680,000 estimate at Bonhams’ Aston Martin sale on 19 May, changing hands for £860,600. Chassis 1436/R was presented in Silver Birch over black hide having emerged from a two-year £200,000 restoration in 2018, overseen by marque-specialists Pugsley & Lewis.
Bonhams’ 1963 DB4 Series V Convertible also turned in a strong result, fetching £810,200 against a pre-sale estimate of £680,000 – 750,000.
A 1979 V8 – one of 293 Oscar Indias built from October 1978 until 1986 – was another star performer achieving £132,250 (estimate £70,000 – 90,000). The car was believed to have been supplied new to the Sultan of Oman and had been extensively overhauled and refurbed by The Aston Workshop.
Silverstone Auctions held two sales on 11 May at Heythrop Park, with a brace of Jaguar XJ220s topping the results. The 700-mile 1995 right-hand drive example finished in Le Mans Blue made £337,500 (estimate £325,000 – 375,000), while the 1997 left-hooker showing 20,800km from new drew £303,750 (estimate £300,000 – 350,000).
A 1935 Bentley Special that began life as a two-door, Close-Coupled Coupe by Gurney Nutting took a mid-estimate £106,875. The ‘Special’ was built during the late 1980s by the Bentley/Rolls-Royce expert Alan Padgett – a further evolution arriving in 1999 with the installation of 7.4 Litre V12 from a Phantom III – and had been regularly campaigned at VSCC events, notably achieving 1st-in-class at the VSCC's 2003 Harewood Hillclimb.
Highlights also included a time-warp 1962 Jaguar Mk II 3.8 with just 8,725 miles recorded which went for £69,750 (estimate £45,000 – 55,000); a one-of-two 1989 Railton F29 Claremont, based on the running gear of a Jaguar XJS V12, realised £67,500 (estimate £60,000 – 70,000); and a recently-recommissioned three-owner 9,000-mile 1975 Jensen Interceptor III brought a mid-estimate £65,250.
[ Full auction results here - British Marques ]
[ Full auction results here - Classic Car Sale ]
Brightwells’ 1962 AC Greyhound stole the headlines at their 15 May sale, making £82,500 – over double its lower estimate.
Significant results also included a restored 1954 Swallow Doretti at a mid-estimate £60,500; a 1938 Lagonda Rapier comfortably exceeded the £48,500 – 53,000 guide, selling for £59,400; and a 1966 Sunbeam Tiger hit its upper estimate of £55,000.
Historics’ 1968 Aston Martin DB6 Volante didn’t disappoint on the day, bringing £619,400 at their 18 May sale held at Mercedes-Benz World (estimate £590,000 – 670,000), while a 1960 Aston Martin DB4 raised a mid-estimate £397,600.
The restoration projects all found new homes at above-estimate prices; a 1972 Ferrari Dino 246 GT which was dismantled in the 1970s sold for £212,800 (estimate £135,000 – 165,000); the ex-Dickie Stoop 1959 Lotus Elite garnered £56,000 (estimate £45,000 – 55,000); and a barn find 1966 Austin Mini Cooper S fetched £19,040 (estimate £14,000 – 18,000).
Classic Car Auctions’ 25 May event generated £1.5 million in total sales, with a 74% sell-through rate from the 151 lots on offer, headed by a 70,000-mile 1988 Porsche 911 Turbo at £51,060 (estimate £55,000 – 65,000).
The top five was rounded off with a three-owner 1969 Jaguar E-Type Series II 4.2 Coupe with less than 30,000 miles going for a mid-estimate £45,510; a 1994 Porsche 911 C2 RS Clubsport Replica at £39,960 (estimate £40,000 – 45,000); a 38,000-mile 1974 Jensen Interceptor blitzed its £18,000 – 22,000 estimate, recording a sale at £39,405; and a 1964 Mercedes-Benz 230 SL in single-family ownership for 43 years also made £39,405 (estimate £38,000 – 44,000).
Classic car auction results and prices for: Aston Martin | Jaguar | Bentley | Railton | Jensen | AC | Swallow | Lagonda | Sunbeam | Ferrari | Lotus | Austin | Mini | Porsche | Mercedes-Benz
From leading auction houses: Bonhams | Silverstone Auctions | Brightwells | Historics | Classic Car Auctions
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