November 2018 - UK auction highlights
13 December, 2018
A 1903 Darracq 24hp Model JJ claimed the honours for the UK’s highest auction price achieved in November at Bonhams’ London to Brighton Run Sale, fetching a mid-estimate £599,640.
The oldest car in the auction, an 1894-5 Peugeot 2½hp Twin-cylinder Two-seater, also achieved its mid-estimate, selling for £356,500, while a 1901 Schaudel 10hp changed hands at £120,750 (estimate £120,000 – 160,000) – its new owners looking forward to taking up the car’s entry in the Run two days later. Bonhams sold 12 of the 13 cars on offer, giving a sale total of £1.75 million.
Anglia Car Auctions sold 74% of the lots on offer at their 3 November sale, including a left-hand drive 1964 Jaguar E-Type Series I 3.8 Roadster which smashed its £68,000 – 78,000 pre-sale estimate, going for £92,220; a four-owner 1964 Alfa Romeo Giulia GT Sprint – modified as a GTAm Tribute – made £65,720 (estimate £58,000 – 68,000); and a 2000 Bentley Azure showing some 20,000 miles took £61,480 (estimate £50,000 – 60,000).
A 1966 Aston Martin DB6 topped the results at Silverstone Auctions’ two-day Classic Motor Show sale, bringing a mid-estimate £214,313. The car had been the subject of a £30,000 mechanical overhaul by marque specialist Nicholas Mee & Co, and more recently the consignor commissioned a repaint in its original shade of California Sage Green.
Strong demand on the day for Frank Sinatra’s 1984 Rolls-Royce Corniche Convertible saw the car comfortably exceed its £105,000 – 125,000 estimate, commanding a winning bid of £140,625. The ex- Steve McQueen 1945 Willys MB Jeep also found keen interest in the room and with phone bidders, recording a sale at £84,375 (estimate £80,000 – 100,000).
Highlights among the seven cars entered from Jay Kay’s collection were the 18,000-mile 1989 BMW M3 Cecotto (estimate £70,000 – 85,000), and a 1996 BMW 850 CSi (estimate £80,000 – 100,000) with a manual gearbox and just 12,777 miles from new, both making £85,500 apiece.
A 1985 Porsche 911 Turbo SE Flat Nose that started its life as a Porsche GB press car – initially carrying the revered registration ‘911 HUL’ – drew a mid-estimate £166,500. The 1st of only 50 right-hand drive cars produced, it featured the full 330hp engine upgrade, special-order Recaro Ideal ‘C’ seats finished in red Can-Can leather and had covered just 34,241 miles from new.
Silverstone Auctions’ 126-lot sale generated £4.2 million, with a sell-through rate of 64%.
Historics at Brooklands held its November sale at the impressive Mercedes Benz World, where a 1974 Lamborghini Espada Series III attracted plenty of attention – as much for its Black Cherry finish and matching velvet/leather interior as its time-warp 26,000-mile condition. The car, which had resided in Colorado with its original owner from new until June 2018, recently underwent engine and transmission works at a cost of some £5,500, and was well sold at £89,600 (estimate £78,000 – 90,000).
Significant sales also included a 45,600-mile 1987 Porsche 911 Turbo at £95,200 (estimate £89,000 – 105,000); a left-hand drive 1959 Mercedes-Benz 190 SL – renovated in 2015 – which just pipped its £78,000 – 90,000 estimate, bringing £91,692; and a one-of-44 UK supplied 1994 Porsche 928 GTS with an indicated 119,000 miles garnered £51,520 (estimate £37,000 – 43,000).
Morris Leslie’s 24 November sale featured a restored 1950 Alvis TB14, complete with a drinks cabinet set into the driver’s door containing decanter, shaker and glasses, which sold for £43,050 (estimate £45,000 – 50,000) and a 35,129-mile 1999 Aston Martin DB7 realised £24,645 (estimate £20,000 – 25,000).
Both left-hand drive Ferraris on offer at Brightwells found new homes, a two-owner 47,500-mile 1998 F355 Spider was the top seller at £50,600 (estimate £50,000 – 55,000), and a recently restored 191,000-km 1993 456 GT went for £36,850 (estimate £35,000 – 40,000). Elsewhere, a 1968 MGC that was rebuilt into a GTS Sebring Homage, with bills totalling some £75,000, raised £30,800 (estimate £28,000 – 35,000), and a 1935 Lagonda Rapier Abbott Coupe – one of only 396 produced – sailed past its £25,000 – 30,000 estimate, selling for £36,300.
Brightwells reported a sell-through rate of 75% from the 139 vehicles on offer for a total of £970,500.
A 1966 Jaguar E-Type Series I 4.2 Roadster was the undoubted star at DVCA’s 29 November sale, taking £93,500 (estimate £95,000 – 110,000). Success among the pre-war machinery included a 1933 Rolls-Royce 20/25 Four Light Limousine by Park Ward at £37,400 (estimate £30,000 – 35,000), while a 1934 MG PA Midget which had been campaigned by the consignor in M.C.C. trials cleared its lower estimate, selling for £26,400.
Classic car auction results and prices for: Darracq | Peugeot | Schaudel | Jaguar | Alfa Romeo | Bentley | Aston Martin | Rolls-Royce | Willys | BMW | Porsche | Lamborghini | Mercedes-Benz | Alvis | Ferrari | MG | Lagonda
From leading auction houses: Bonhams | Anglia Car Auctions | Silverstone Auctions | Historics at Brooklands | Morris Leslie | Brightwells | DVCA
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