How much are classic cars worth in these troubled times? The answer, as ever, is what people are prepared to pay for them, and there is no better way to find that out than at a no-reserve, everything-must-go, auction. There’s just been one of those, with 100 or so very tasty machines from the Petitjean Collection crossing the (online) block, and the results make interesting reading. Sportscar sale of the year? Could be. Look away now… or be ready to kick yourself.
Some beautiful classic cars just sold for a lot less than you’d expect
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For example, what about a 1963 Series I 3.8 fixed-head Jaguar E-type for €67,000 (about £60,000)? At other times it could have sold for between €80-110,000. Staying British, a Jensen Healey sold for €8,000, a Lotus Elan Plus 2S 130 for €11,500, a Mini Marcos MkIV for €4,750.
Italian bargains? They began with a pretty little Bertone-designed Fiat 850 Spider which went for €7,300, and progressed through a 1966 Lancia Fulvia coupe (€8,750), and a ’73 Alfa Spider (€15,500), both Alfa and Lancia making around half their guide prices.
Some lucky buyers also grabbed a Maserati Merak SS (€30,000), a Lamborghini Uracco (€53,000) and a Lambo Jalpa for €60,000 – all potentially irresistible at those prices. There might also be an argument to say the 1968 Lamborghini Miura P400 was a bit of a bargain too: it sold for €650,000 when it could have been expected to make 800k.
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Of the cars that made their guide prices one that did so in spectacular style was another Lamborghini, a 1979 Countach LP400 S. The winning bid on this was €410,000 when its guide price was €250-300,000. Another in-demand car at the other end of the scale was a 1996 Renault Sport Spider which sold for €35,000 against a guide of €20-30k.
It’s possible the buyers of the online auction’s top lots, a Porsche 904 and a Mercedes 300 SL roadster, are also telling themselves how lucky they have been: the Porsche sold for €630,000 and the SL for €690,000. Different time and different place and both could have been a lot more.
Prices shown are all the winning bids and need the 10 per cent buyer’s fee added. The other thing to say is that while the cars are all original, unrestored and have been dry stored, they have not been driven for a while so need recommissioning, with some needing more work than others.
The Petitjean Collection was assembled over 50 years by French ex race driver Marcel Petitjean. The sale, by RM Sotheby’s, promised something for everyone and so it proved, with all the cars at no reserve. The sale closed on Wednesday 10th June.
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In our Petitjean Collection preview we looked at some other cars in the sale, here’s what they went for:
- 1991 Ginetta G33, the first G33 built; sold for €22,000 (guide: €15-20,000)
- 1972 Alfa Romeo Giulia GT1300 Junior Zagato, one of only 1,117 ever made; sold for
- €21,000 (guide €20-30,000)
- 1971 Citroën SM, five-speed manual in blue; sold for €23,000 (guide: €25-35,000)
- 1967 Fiat Dino Coupe, Ferrari 2.4-litre V6 powered rarity; sold for €36,000 (guide: €40-60,000)
- 1971 Alpine-Renault A110 1600S, roadgoing version of great rally winner; sold for €95,000 (guide: €100-120,000)
- 1962 Maserati 3500 GT, classic ‘60s Italian gran turismo; sold for €115,000 (guide: €130-150,000)
- 1971 de Tomaso Mangusta, traffic-stopping Italian beauty; sold for €170,000 (guide: €200-250,000.
Images courtesy of RM Sotheby’s.
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