BEE GEES 450SEL

HERE’S A CAR with real celebrity provenance – the 1977 Mercedes-Benz 450 SEL once belonging to Bee Gee, Sir Barry Gibb, is being auctioned by Classic Car Auctions in the UK as we go to press.

It was imported to the UK in early 1978 with Gibb owning the glacier white MercedesBenz 450 SEL for over 31 years. In that time it has travelled a mere 98,000kms.

The flagship 450SEL features hydraulic self- levelling rear suspension, a very expensive option to be fitted at the time.

It has been with its second owner for just over a year and serviced by the book. Most of the service and registration invoices on file, that come with the car, are made out personally to Gibb.

The blue velour trim with matching blue carpet is said to be in pristine order for a car just over 40 years old and the exterior is equally clean, having been repainted in the past ten years.

While living in Redcliffe just north of Brisbane in the early 1960s, Gibb and his brothers Maurice and Robin were hired by promoter and driver Bill Goode, to entertain the crowd at the local speedway. The crowd would throw money onto the track for the boys, who generally performed between races and during other intervals (usually on the back of a truck that drove around the track). Any money they collected from the crowd was theirs to keep.

Perhaps the speedway connection started Gibb’s love affair with cars.

For a car with such an illustrious owner, that includes a strong service record and books, the estimate of $30,000 seems like a bargain. There was no mention of what might have been left playing in the cassette deck...