5 Bonhams|Cars we’d most like to drive home from 81MM | GRR
The car park at the 81st Members' Meeting presented by Audrain Motorsport this weekend will likely be a show of its own, with a mixture of modern supercars, classics, and pre-war veterans expected. But what if you've not got suitable wheels to go in? Bonhams|Cars could come to the rescue for next year's event. These are the cars up for grabs at the 81MM Bonhams|Cars auction that we'd most like to drive to next year’s Members' Meeting.
1954 Bentley R-Type 4.9-Litre Continental Fastback Sports Saloon, £450,000 – £550,000
Or be driven in… An R-Type Bentley with coachwork by HJ Mulliner is one of the auction's highlights and the kind of car perfect for chauffeuring you to Goodwood's gates. With a lightweight aluminium body and an enlarged 4.9-litre engine, the Bentley is good for a top speed of 120mph.
Just one of 208 made; this particular example looks resplendent in its original paint. It was subject to a mechanical refurbishment in 2014 with a £19,000 bill covering the overhaul of the suspension, brakes and exhaust and a repair to the cylinder block.
1936 Lagonda LG45 Rapide Tourer, £450,000 – £600,000
This Lagonda LG45 Rapide Tourer is a car you could see competing at the event. One of the most successful race cars of the 1930s, it was capable of 100mph in the right conditions. Meanwhile, as a road car, Autocar declared, "The 4½-Litre has always given a fine performance; in its latest form, it provides all the performance that anyone can reasonably require." How times change…
This beautifully presented car has been owned by the same family for 65 years and is just one of 25 built. It has been confirmed as a genuine Rapide Tourer by marque specialist Lagonda Club's Arnold Davey.
1936 Frazer Nash TT Replica Roadster, £150,000-£200,000
This Frazer Nash TT Replica Roadster is another car that would look as at home in the car park as it would be out on track at this year's Members' Meet. The car's chain drive and resulting propensity to oversteer mean it was said in the period that 'Frazer Nashes never go round corners; they merely change direction.'
This car's Gough engine was swapped for a BMW six-cylinder in 1939, and it comes with documentation dating back to that year. Its restoration was completed in 2015 and it has barely been used since.
1973 BMW 3.0 CSL Coupé £65,000 – £80,000
The 3.0 CSL is another car that looks as at home on track as it does on the road. Famously built to beat the Ford Capris in European Touring cars, the CSL was homologated for Group 2 racing and featured thinner steel, aluminium doors and Plexiglass windows, meaning it weighed 136kg less than the CS it was based on. Power came from a 3.0-litre straight-six that was bored to 3.2 litres in 1973. In Batmobile form, complete with a ground-scraping chin spoiler and a rear spoiler that was labelled too obstructive road use by German authorities, the CSL won the European Touring Car Championship in 1973 and would go on to take five consecutive titles from 1975.
This example does without the batmobile body kit but gets a striking Taiga Green paint job that ought to take your mind off that. Its history goes back to its production year and includes mechanical work carried out by M car specialists Munich Legends.
1967 Ford Mustang GT390 Fastback Coupé, £65,000 – £90,000
Our last car, a Ford Mustang GT390, is the kind of specimen you can expect to see at the Ken Miles Cup, making it ideal transport to and from the event. Its original owner – Master Dave Smith – was still attending middle school when his parents realised his supposed shopping car had a Big Block motor snuggled under its Candy Apple Red bonnet. It was immediately confiscated and remained in a barn until it was discovered in 2010 and shipped to the UK.
Since landing here, the car has been subject to a £123,000 restoration, with bills that prove it and 1,600 man-hours plunged into the project. It now also features a 7.4-litre displacement (up from the original 6.4) and comes with an uprated crankshaft, valves, camshaft, exhaust and manifold.
Saturday tickets, weekend tickets and grandstand passes have now sold out for the 81st Members’ Meeting presented by Audrain Motorsport. Sunday tickets are limited so book now to join us for the 2024 motorsport season opener. You don’t want to miss it.