Market indicators

The market can still surprise with big scores but continues to fall out of love with Fifties classics

1990 BMW M3 Sport Evolution £155,675 RM Sotheby’s, Arizona, 25 January This was undoubtedly a very nice E30 M3, one of 600 Sport Evos. Well kept, it had lived in Germany and the UK before heading for America in 2015 after a ‘cosmetic refresh’. But the price paid for this 129,000km (79,000-mile) car is from another planet. In dollars it was $212,800 against a $125-150k estimate. This is either a sea-change in the M3 market or one of those crazy auction one-offs. Eyes will be on the next sales. 1956 Mercedes-benz 300Sc Rdstr £509,325 Bonhams, Arizona, 21 January The ultimate in luxury back in the day, with just 53 built, they were more expensive than the Gullwing they shared running gear with. But the market is falling out with these Fifties dinosaurs – an even nicer one was sold the same week by RM for £567,750, which happened to also be the low estimate for this car. The colour change from white to black shouldn’t have hurt it, so this is just the new price point. 1971 Alfa Romeo GT Junior £50,000 Car & Classic, online, 6 January A stunning result for this newcomer to online auctions. But then this was a stunning Alfa, restored at great expense by Alfaholics using a rust-free car sourced in Australia. It also gave it the common upgrade to a 1750cc engine along with uprated suspension and brakes. The sheer quality of this car meant it was always going to top our £27k guide price, but the 261 bids received took it to another level.

1953 Jaguar XK120 SE Roadster £69,750 RM Sotheby’s, Arizona, 25 January We’ve written much recently about the falling values of XKS, but this looked like the steal of RM’S sale. The subject of a bare-metal restoration, all you could fault it on – but only a little – was imperfect door fit. But that was often the case in the Fifties too. Pre-sale, the £117-£146k estimate had looked a little strong but it still would have looked good value at £85-90k. The buyer should be pleased.

1955 Arnolt-bristol Bolide £163,450 Bonhams, Arizona, 21 January This was the fifth of 130 Arnolt-bristols built, and was believed, like most, to have been raced in period. It certainly was in historics in the Eighties, then was restored and looked after by the same owner for the next 30 years. Offered here with what seemed a correct £205-235k estimate it vastly underperformed but the owner still let it go in a weakening market. A nice car bagged for ‘usable’ money.