Rally-spec Porsche 911 fetches £200k: July 2022 auction results

1976 Porsche 911 Carrera rally car

Sold by Bonhams, £207,000

Low mileage; never raced or rallied? Not this 911, which boasts the distinction of having covered more race miles than any other Porsche. It began clocking up its thrice-around-the-world total in the 1977 London-Sydney Marathon crewed by Poles Sobieslaw Zasada and Wojciech Schramm. Its most notable outing as a historic was in the 2005 East African Classic Safari when it was crewed by then-owner David Cavanagh and Björn Waldegârd (who won the event for contemporary cars four times). In 2015, it was driven to Poland for an emotional reunion with its first pilot Schramm.

1961 Mercedes-Benz 190 SL

Sold by H&H, £38,250

This rusted wreck attracted bids from Texas and India before being hammered down to a brave British buyer. As well as being heavily corroded, it also lacked an engine and gearbox.

2011 Force India-Mercedes VJM04

Sold by Bonhams, £86,250

It’s more than a decade since the distinctive livery of this Force India F1 car was seen on track. It was among assets bought  by a consortium led by Lawrence Stroll after the team went under in 2018.

2022 Lamborghini Aventador & NFT

Sold by RM Sotheby’s, £1.3m

This Ultimae was the last Aventador, bringing an end to Lamborghini’s line of mid-engined V12s. It was sold with its own NFT which gives access to utilities including virtual previews of future models.

1948 Velocette KTT 350

Sold by Bonhams, £57,500

British racer Les Graham was on contract with MV Agusta for the 1951 season but since the Italian factory wasn’t contesting the 350 class, he competed on this Velocette. Despite the bike being three years out of date, Graham rode it to victory in the Swiss Grand Prix and to second in Spain. It’s said to have won him £5000, the equivalent today of more than £150,000.

Mike Hailwood’s 1966 Cromwell helmet

Sold by Bonhams, £956

Health and safety? Things were different in the í60s when ‘Mike the Bike’ was at his best — as evinced by this pudding-basin lid sold from the collection of race team owner and memorabilia fan Phil Morris.

2001 Subaru Impreza P1

Sold by H&H, £49,500

The Ferrari 250 GTO might be ultra rare with just 36 made — but I bet there aren’t 36 Impreza P1s like this. The Prodrive-tweaked special was in single ownership for 20 years and never modified.

1974 MV Agusta 750 GT

Sold by RM Sotheby’s, £48,000

RM Sotheby’s donated this 750 GT with ‘sport’ conversion to the charity auction held at the Salon Privé to raise money for Ukraine. It was once owned by MV works rider Gianfranco Bonera.

Forthcoming car sale highlights

Bonhams
Goodwood, June 24

Besides the Simon Templar Marcos mentioned elsewhere, this sale will also include four pre-war cars from the estate of the racing driver and Sotheby’s motoring department specialist Peter Blond who died in 2021. The collection comprises three Rolls-Royces and a Bentley with Vanden Plas bodywork that was the 1936 Olympia show car.

Mecum Auctions
Tulsa, Oklahoma, June 9-11

Mighty Mecum is back with a post-Covid vengeance. After offering a staggering 3000 cars at its nine-day spring sale in Indianapolis, it will hammer-down a further 1000 at this Tulsa auction where one of the stand-out lots includes a 1965 Mercury Comet lightweight, one of just eight built by official factory tuner Bill Stroppe.

Bonhams
Gstaad, Switzerland, July 3

Mountains beyond the turreted Gstaad Palace hotel will provide the backdrop to this summer sale of high-end cars. The jewel in the crown looks set to be a 1991 Ferrari F40 Berlinetta – in red, of course – with its books and tools, which was delivered new to Switzerland and is tipped
to fetch up to £1.4m.

H&H
Solihull, July 20

H&H is establishing a reputation for the quality of its motorcycle sales, and this one, at the National Motorcycle Museum, should be no exception. An inventory of more than 200 machines is expected, ranging from British ‘pioneer’ models to modern classics. A restored 1923 Lea-Francis 600cc Sports will be one of the auction stars.