Competition cars still commanding big sums
…especially if the provenance is particularly tasty
How has the market been since the start of the year? Any changes?
It has been good. People are quite rightly picky about what they are buying, but if a car is good and sensibly priced, then there is certainly going to be a strong demand. Is it positive? Yes, I think a healthy sign that buyers are educated and want to buy the best they can find signals long-term stability, which must be good for all.
Where are you receiving most enquiries from?
The majority of enquiries this year have come from what I would call the traditional markets – the UK, continental Europe and North America. Most of the cars I have sold this year have stayed in the UK.
Which cars you have sold were especially impressive, and why? It would have to be the 1958 Monaco Grand Prix-winning Cooper-Climax Type 45, which I sold earlier this year. It had everything you would want from a competition car – an illustrious first owner (Rob Walker), an ultrasuccessful racing career and famous drivers behind the wheel, including Stirling Moss and Maurice Trintignant.
What are you offering at the moment?
Plenty of variety. A 1950s Goodwood race-winning sports racer, the Playford MG, a 1930 Talbot AM90 with lovely vintage styling, a very late MX Derby Bentley Saloon and a Vanden Plasbodied Talbot AV105.
Is it hard to find the right cars? Having recently sold three cars, I am on the case at the moment with sourcing some more stock, so maybe ask me this question again in a couple of weeks! I am talking to plenty of people with cars of real quality that they are thinking of selling, and I think people will always want to pass their cars on to new custodians from time to time for a whole variety of reasons.
Do people come to see the cars you are offering, or do they buy from talking to you and viewing the website?
I am always very keen for people to see the cars they are interested in. It is in everyone’s best interest for them to be as educated as possible as to the exact nature of what they are buying; websites make it easier to buy a car remotely, but there is no substitute for seeing it in person looking its very best in our showroom. As such, most of the cars we have sold have been to people who have seen them in person, but inevitably – and particularly with overseas buyers – this is not always possible.
‘It had everything you’d want from a competition car, with famous past drivers including Sir Stirling Moss and Maurice Trintignant’