Historics’ seven-year barometer
The auction price of a 1966 Aston Martin DB6 MkI has nearly tripled and a Jaguar XK150 drophead has nearly doubled during the seven years that Historics has held auctions at Brooklands. During the same period, a Jaguar E-type Series 1 3.8 roadster in much the same restored condition has appreciated by 48 per cent, while an unrestored original was taken on for £79,000 more than a previously restored one would have cost in 2010.
In Historics’ first sale, prices paid for 1959/60 Mercedes 190 SLs ranged from £23,000-67,050, whereas seven years later, a 1962 minter fetched £116,480 and a 1961 car £89,600. That other benchmark asset, the BMW 3.0 CSL, could have been bought in the form of a tidy 65,000-mile 1973 example for £12,733 at the Historics sale in June 2010 and, by contrast, £53,760 (or 76 per cent more) was required to secure a complete car of the same age for restoration, earlier this year.
Historics results also chart a £9884 hike from the £12,516 auction cost of a 1989 Bentley Turbo R in June 2010 to the £22,400 result of a low-mileage example in July this year.
A two-owner 1959 Isetta in apparently excellent condition changed hands for £8064 in the September 2012 sale, but an Isetta of the same vintage in need of full restoration realised nearly the same money when hammered away for £7778 in May.
When businessman and DB5owning collector, Mark Perkins, founded Historics at Brooklands with Auction Director, Edward Bridger-Stille, there were four people in the office, up to 15 in the team and 64 cars in its first catalogue. Seven years later, the number of sales has increased from four to five and the office staff doubled, with of up to 30 at the 2017 sale venues, at which the auction house aims to limit the size of the entry to 150 cars.
Currently 50-60 cars are turned away because their’ reserves are deemed to be unachievable.
Happy birthday Historics – you’ve shown us just how much the market has changed.
‘An excellent Isetta made £8k in 2012 – much the same as a resto car in 2017’