Classic Car Auction Report – 13 July 2018

2018 marked the sixth year in which we have run our annual classic car auction. Our first, in 2013 was a huge success and since then the crowds have got bigger and bigger and the interest even greater — so much so that even our CEO had his new camera on the rostrum!

You can see several photos from the day on our dedicated Facebook Page.

To make a good auction you need a good catalogue of entries, and ‘oh boy’ we produced one this year and a huge enthusiastic crowd created an exciting buzz on auction day. We estimate that around 800 to 1,000 people attended on the day.

Finding entries is a real challenge but one I absolutely relish. Meeting fellow enthusiast owners and their cars in the months leading up to the auction is very important in understanding the history of their prized cars and also advising on the prices they will achieve. I am very lucky to thoroughly enjoy my job and talk to nice people about a shared passion.

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Auction Highlights

Below are some highlights and insights into this years entry list.

1935 Lagonda M45 Pillarless saloon

Where do I start with this car, entered by the widow and sons of its local proud owner who purchased it in 1952.  This was a truly magnificent find that any auction house in the world would be proud of, and one that I will certainly talk about for years to come.  As Classic Cars Magazine put it in their feature of the car coming to Hobbs Parker Classic Auctions “With genuine 90mph performance these were some of the fastest closed cars of their day and to find such an original, few owners example is highly unusual”.

The car had been hidden away from the world, barn stored since at least the 1970’s, the car first came to my attention in the summer of 2012 on a walk back from the railway station with the owner’s son after that year’s Olympic Games.  It was on my radar and last October the phone call came, ‘would you like to come and see the Lagonda’. It was a beautiful, unmolested barn find in the true sense of the words, it needed a lot of work, the true extent of body restoration costs not known until stripped down, the 4467cc Meadows engine needing a full rebuild. By February of this year, it was a confirmed classic car auction entry and national marketing followed shortly. There was huge interest in the Lagonda, an appealing guide price whetting many an appetite.  Bidding was keen and the Lagonda achieved £41,000 + Buyers premium.

1962 – Porsche 356 B

Another local car, from Hythe, this one very much a cherished and useable classic, the Porsche had started life in Bologna, Italy, then spending a great deal of its life in America, the current owner imported it in 2013 and fulfilled a dream of one day owning a 356.  I was lucky enough to drive the car to the auction and then sell it on auction day for £49,000 + Buyers Premium.

1955 – Land Rover Series 1 88″

Arguably Britain’s most iconic car here was an example of one, the original Land Rover. The owners had used it as their wedding car and were emotionally attached to it. Creating much attention the old Landie made £20,000 + Buyers Premium.  This was one of several Land Rovers sold on the day including two one local-owner Series 2 Land Rovers

There really was something for everyone, 1980’s cars have been hot classic car property for a very long time now and we didn’t disappoint bidders on the lookout for a slice of 80’s nostalgia – a clean 1987 Ford Escort RS Turbo sold for £9,400 + Buyers Premium, along with a rare Manual 1987 Mercedes 190E with a touch over 70,000 miles in reassuringly austere contemporary base trim for £4,000 + Buyers Premium.  A useable but scruffy 1986 Ford Capri 2.8 made £3,600 + Buyers premium as it made its way into its enthusiast owners custodianship.

In the  2017 Classic auction I sold a Rolls Royce Silver Shadow for a local customer, at the back of the same Barn as the Rolls was a 1950 Daimler DB 18 Drophead – unused for twenty years and now in need of restoration, at the time the elderly owner hadn’t made up his mind to sell.  This year he decided to enter it and this handsome 1940’s convertible made £7,200 + Buyers Premium.

In the year they won the Football World Cup, there was a healthy selection of France most iconic cars and Vans.  A 1978 Citroen AK 400 van ( that’s a 2CV van) that had spent most of its life in the dry Spanish climate made £5,600 + Buyers Premium,  a 1977 locally supplied one owner Renault 4 garage find restoration project made £800 + Buyers Premium.  To compliment them was a beautiful 1988 Citroen 2CV Dolly, the car had been driven by the previous owner from Limoges and went on to make £5,600 + Premium under the hammer as well as another Renault 4 and Renault 4 van.

It’s funny how each year produces a lot of one particular car or a shortage of another, this year we had a shortage of Mini’s, most years we’re teeming with them, a couple of years ago I couldn’t find any MGB’s this year we had a good selection including a 1964 MG V8 Roadster and a rare MG RV8.

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Auction Results

Note: All prices include the buyer’s premium.

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Wondering what your car or van might be worth or how to sell your vehicle?

Take a quick look at these pages:

• How do I sell my car?
• What is my car worth?

Or give me a call on 01233 506266

I love chatting about classic cars!