Simon de Burton on the danger of comparing likes

GENERALLY SPEAKING, classic cars can be thought of as ‘fungible’. In other words, if one example sells then a mostly identical car should fetch a similar sum. But the current market shows that comparing like with like isn’t necessarily a reliable barometer.

Such a case was at Silverstone Auctions, during November’s NEC Classic Motor Show, where strong demand for 1980s/90s Ferrari Testarossas and 512TRs saw two almost identical examples of the latter cross the block. The first, in Rosso Corsa with 21,656 miles at the hands of five careful owners, soared to an estimatebusting £185,625. The following day, a car that could have been its twin but for a marginally higher mileage and the need to be UK registered was left behind, despite a pre-sale low estimate of £100,000 indicating that it could probably have been bought for a hammer price of around £90,000. This highlights the importance of making one’s own judgement about value rather than simply following precedents.

The sale as a whole was successful and interesting, its £4.4-million total contributed to by the £50,625 paid for a 1966 Lotus Elan S2 that originally belonged to Peter Sellers; £315,000 for a former Brunei Royal Family Jaguar XJ220, and more than £196,000 for a 1956 Porsche 356.

Later that month, Historics at Brooklands achieved £2.5 million from 140 lots of automobilia and 125 cars. A 1929 Alfa Romeo 6C with James Young coachwork was the top performer at £150,000 yet, despite a 19-year restoration, it fell £30,000 short of its low estimate. A sensibly modified (if slightly garish) 1959 Jaguar XK150 drophead from long family ownership followed the Alfa at £85,000, and £84,000 was paid for an undeniably more elegant 1960 Mercedes-Benz Ponton cabriolet.

The sale included a selection of Minis billed as the ‘Wood and Pickett Collection’ but which, in fact, had little to do with Bill Wood and Les Pickett, who founded the celebrated coachbuilding and conversion firm in 1947. These cars were consigned by Mike Standring, current owner of the company, and included a 1990 Mini Cooper S that originally belonged to Nick Mason, and a 1963 Mini van in W&P livery (both sold for £11,200). A neatly executed Austin Cooper S lookalike based on a 1979 Mini 1000, meanwhile, seemed reasonable at £6384.

There were plenty of similarly affordable lots on offer at the December sale of ‘everyman classics’ staged by Warwickshire-based Classic Car Auctions, the sub£50,000 arm of Silverstone Auctions. For buyers not in the six-figure league, such sales lend hope that classic ownership is within reach – and this one threw up several noteworthy offerings, from a heavily pimped Kahn Range Rover Sport originally owned by David Beckham (£31,350) to a nicely restored Renault Caravelle (£12,980) and a 1971 Jaguar E-type 2+2 auto at £46,750.

As this issue of Octane goes to press, news arrives from Bonhams’ 27-car ‘Bond Street Sale’, staged during the first weekend of December. Despite the small number of lots on offer, initial results indicate a 75% sale rate and an impressive near £8-million total.

The undoubted surprise of the sale – and the unexpected ‘top lot’ – was a 1963 Lagonda Rapide that shattered its £400,000 high estimate to reach a record price of £785,500. Mind you, it was probably the best one in existence, having been bought by AML itself at Bonhams’ annual Aston-only sale in 2006 before being subjected to a nut-and-bolt rebuild that included an RS Williams engine upgrade.

Interestingly, Aston Martin also sold the celebrated 1974 London Motor Show Lagonda that it bought back through Bonhams in 2010 for £337,000. This time it fetched £427,100 – so no more than a moderately good investment in current terms. More interesting, however, is the fact that the firm decided to offload the two cars at auction rather than through its Works heritage showroom facility. In any event, the Lagonda name seemed to be flavour of the day at this sale, as a 1937 LG45 Rapide tourer also outstripped expectations by selling for £785,500. One of only 25 made and in single family ownership from new, it offered a mouth-watering combination of superb bodywork and mechanicals and a beautifully patinated, largely original interior.

Perhaps the most eagerly anticipated of all the lots, however, was the great-looking and historically fascinating 1953 Austin-Healey 100 coupé, once the personal ‘ride’ of none other than Donald Healey himself. One of only two built, and the only one to this specification, the car was sold from the collection of Healey enthusiast Arthur Carter for an entirely justifiable £639,900.

A 1959 works 3000 Mk1 rally car from the same source (and driven in period by stars including Jack Sears and Pat Moss) fetched £191,900 – and in a timely twist, Healey’s personal Rolex watch also came up for grabs, having been consigned direct from the Healey family. It, er, clocked a double-estimate £25,300.

‘A 1963 Lagonda Rapide shattered its £400,000 high estimate to reach a record £785,500. Mind you, it was probably the best one in existence’