Historics Opens the Auction Year at a Gallop
£3.9m sale and 72% sale rate at Ascot Racecourse on 7th March
Ascot Racecourse was the spectacular scene-setter for Historics’ 2026 live auction opener on Saturday 7th March. The many thousands of attendees and online followers witnessed day-long bidding tussles - in-hall, online and by phone – over a mammoth 202 lot entry, the sale closing on a sturdy £3.9 million sale and resounding 72% sale rate.
A serene 2001 Rolls-Royce Corniche V - one of just 38 in right-hand drive - set the tone magnificently, its desirable Fountain Blue coachwork and Cotswold Beige leather delivering magnificent presence that helped it on its way to a new custodian at the very top of its estimate, a shade under £140,000.
A charismatic and highly-specified 1961 Bentley S2 Continental was an outstanding example of quintessential British grand touring, sporting the flowing bodywork of Henry Jervis Mulliner. Presented in utterly original Mist Green with a green leather interior as it was created sixty five years ago, it sold for £85,800.
Similarly ebullient in the collector category and very much a modern classic was a 563bhp powerhouse in the shape of a 2011 Mercedes-Benz SLS 63 AMG Roadster – the spiritual successor to the iconic 300SL ‘Gullwing’. It settled again in top estimate territory at some £134,000.
Overall it was a grand day for Historics with the ever-popular classic Mercedes-Benz offering, some 75% of the 23 hugely varied examples passing to new owners. Of particular note was an elegant 1966 Mercedes-Benz 220 SE Fintail that attracted a frenzy of bidding and settled at a price approaching double its mid-estimate, at nigh on £21,000.
The same was true of a 1974 Jensen Interceptor Series III, estimated at £25,000-£30,000, the hammer finally coming down at an impressive £45,760.
It was a fine day too for the classic Jaguar marque. 20 Browns Lane classics spanning 1953 to 2010 hit the spot amongst British classics enthusiasts with 16 finding new custodians. For many, a magnificent one-off, three-year labour-of-love 1959 Jaguar ‘Special’ was the pinnacle. Based on an XK150, it featured a hand-beaten flowing aluminium body in the style of a 1930’s competition car with beautifully crafted and occasionally whimsical interior features.
In the BMW camp it was all about the Bavarian marque’s classic sense of style, two 1970s BMW 3.0CSL homologation specials showing why this has become one of THE classics of all time. Meanwhile, moving along two decades, the rarity of a right-hand drive BMW 850 CSi snared plenty of attention. With only 31 such models currently registered in the UK the new owner’s £40,000 purchase was well spent.
Maranello’s finest joined the high-performance party too, sold entries being led by a charismatic 1983 Ferrari 308GTBi, plus a spectacular example of the veritable Ferrari poster car - a very original right-hand drive 1973 Ferrari Dino 246 GTS - and a fast-appreciating 1999 Ferrari F355 Spider F1.
Meanwhile, a spirited cocktail of Italian flair and American muscle characterises the De Tomaso Pantera and the 1972 example here, also passing to a new owner, looking very much the part in its bright yellow coachwork with, beneath, the soul-stirring Ford 5.3 litre V8 and classical Ghia interior.
A clean sweep sale of three lovely Austin-Healeys of 1950s and early 60s vintage underlined their enduring popularity, two plucked from a private collection having enjoyed an immaculate restoration. Justifiably the vendor was rewarded with sale prices of some £46,000 and £55,000.
The ubiquitous classic Mini added perennial charm to the sale, seven of the eight offered delighting their new owners, joined by a 2012 Mini Cooper S Roadster showing that the BMW Mini rendition can rightly join the modern classics gathering.
A roadside hedge was the resting place of a 1973 Bond Bug ES for many years yet it’s immaculate Tangerine Orange presentation at the sale give only an inkling of the exceptional nut and bolt restoration of this three-wheel classic designed by Tom Karen of Ogle Design. Having not turned a wheel on the road since being completed, it promises a bonding treat at the wheel for its new owner at a sturdy £20,000.
No Historics sale is complete without a hefty dose of oddity appeal. Fitting well into this category was a circa 1935 Fiat/Alfa Romeo/Delage bodyshell crafted over an ash wooden frame. Devoid of all internals it sold for just £1,600, promising an inspiring – albeit head-scratching - project for its owner to bring it to life with a suitable chassis, interior and mechanical specification.
Joining it was an example of probably the largest pick-up in the world - a 20-year old extended cab, 7.6 litre straight-six 2005 International Navistar CXT, reckoned to be the only one in the UK. Gargantuan in all respects, approximately 21 feet long, 8 feet wide, and 9 feet tall and weighing in at a mighty 26,000 pounds (that’s approaching 12 tons), it’s presence on the road is never likely to go unnoticed!
For details of all entries and full results, see HERE
Historics is now inviting entries to its next sale, at Farnborough International, on Saturday, 16th May.
Entry registration details at www.historics.co.uk
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