Richard Hudson-Evans
Even though the cooling attractions of the North Norfolk coastline beckoned, plenty of classic car hungry consumers opted to spend their sweltering Saturday checking out the smoking metal at the latest ACA Drive-Through in King’s Lynn, where 74% of the 258 auction cars sold under the hammer for £1.66m.
Among 190 changes of ownership, a 1973 BMW 3.0CSL, the 160th RHD Coupe produced with 23 service stamps, was hammered away for £115,000, £120,750 with premium, over £40,000 more than the pre-sale estimate. A mainly showroom displayed 1978 Vauxhall Chevette 2300HS with 7900 warranted total mileage raised £29,400, close to top estimate. Equally extraordinary was the £16,800 performance of a running, but not driving 1967 Honda S800 time warp that had last passed an MOT in 2010 and which was nearly ripe for full restoration.
A more than retail £75,600 was forthcoming for an ex-US 1961 Austin-Healey 3000 Mk3 minter with triple-carbs that had cost £48k to rebuild and convert to right-drive. While £63,000 was handed over for a Beacham of New Zealand restored and upgraded 1967 Jaguar Mk2 3.4 that had been in Spanish residency for fourteen years.
Simultaneously, Richard Edmonds successfully shifted 77% of the 99 cars under parched canvas at the Allington Farm Shop just outside Chippenham for £612,443. Among the 76 sellers, a claimed to have been factory-supercharged from new in 1931 Lagonda 2-Litre Low Chassis Tourer sold for £116,050, a Realm D Type Jag Rep realised £55,000 and an only 4750 miles from new in 2009 Nissan GT-R Modern Classic was driven away for £37,125. During a three day gig, the Wiltshire auctioneer sold 65% of 55 classic bikes, 75% of 1030 lots of automobilia and 97% of 391 spares lots in their highest grossing sale yet.