Classic Cars September 2022

September 2022 Issue 590 The generational effect on which cars we perceive as classic compared to those merely secondhand is something I’ve talked about before. Probably more than once in over two decades on Classic Cars, so forgive me if I appear to be repeating myself, but celebrating the 996 generation of Porsche 911 as it reaches a quarter of a century makes me feel classic myself. I remember testing a 996 Carrera 4S when it was new, and joining the long queue of journalists to simultaneously praise its huge ability while bemoaning the passage of the air-cooled flat-six engine, compact dimensions and other 911-defining characteristics. As we saw them. Would the new water-cooled wonder ever be revered by enthusiasts not just when new, but at every step of its…

Aston Martin DB4 ‘It’s just stunning. So elegant and complete. It looks so right and, dare I say it, British’ No matter how many times you visit purveyor of all things Aston Martin, Surrey-based RS Williams, the same thought always comes to mind, ‘Surely, this is the wrong address?’ That’s the very inclination being conveyed to me by reader Mark Palmer, as I join him in the company’s small but perfectly formed showroom and we savour a select band of the marque’s big hitters – DB5, V8 Volante, DB7 Zagato and his holy grail, the DB4GT Zagato. ‘A bright and breezy street in leafy Cobham seemed a somewhat incongruous spot,’ he ventures. ‘Then I heard the distinctive timbre of a V8 firing up, in what seemed to be the direction…

Quentin Willson’s hot tips Keen readers will know that I’m an early E-type obsessive. I’ve rebuilt two – a’61 FHC and an outside-bonnet-lock roadster, so I know how much they cost to buy and restore, not to mention the time and costs of finding and reinstating all the defining pre-production parts and metalwork details. Only around 500 outside bonnet-lock-cars were made before the factory switched to the internal bonnet release in August ’61 and these OBLs are referred to as the Holy Grail of E-types. They’re the rarest and most coveted E-types of all. If you’re lucky, a tired project car is £80k, a professional complete rebuild £150k to £200k and reckon on another £25k for rare parts. I’ve paid £2500 for a set of date-stamped but knackered carbs and…

Russ Smith’s market analysis Bonhams’ Festival of Speed sale used to be a season highlight. You’d see headline lots like multi-million-pound Merc racers or John Lennon’s Ferrari 330. That feels like a different world now, and this year’s FoS sale was perhaps understandably a more low-key affair, despite a couple of recent Daniel Craig-era 007 cars. Only seven-figure lot offered was Riccardo Patrese’s 1993 Benetton-Ford, with a podium finish to its credit and estimated at £1.1-£1.6m. But old F1 cars are always hard to rehome and it proved once again to be the case here. In the end the top seller was an old friend – the ’37 Frazer Nash-BMW 328 whose 4000-hour restoration by Thornley Kelham featured in our October 2017 issue. It’s not been used since but been…

THE RETURN OF JD CLASSICS JD Classics returned to the 2022 Mille Miglia with owners Woodham Mortimer relaunching the brand. Once one of the biggest names in the industry, JD was placed into administration in 2018 following a series of court cases against it and former owner, Derek Hood. Nevertheless, spokesperson Nico Consari explained the reasoning, ‘Enthusiasts the world over are aware of the history of JD Classics and its amazingly rich pedigree… We are totally committed to building on this heritage.’ CAPRI SHINES AT CCA SALE Classic Car Auctions held its summer sale at the Warwickshire Event Centre on 18th June. The undoubted sale highlight was a one-owner Ford Capri RS3100 prototype that sold for a record £74,250. A surprisingly large 25% of the 190 lots were offered at…

John Mayhead’s market news At the Bonhams Goodwood Festival of Speed sale, a 2019 Aston Martin DBS Superleggera coupé used in No Time to Die sold mid-estimate for £414,000 including costs, and a Spectre Land Rover Defender SVX for £155,250. For those with deeper pockets, Broad Arrow is offering Sir Sean Connery’s own Aston Martin DB5 at its Monterey auction in August, with an estimate of $1.4M to $1.8M. Last year, Hagerty tracked the values of cars used in the Bond films and found that the movie’s provenance added an average of around 1000% to the value of a car compared to a standard equivalent. These sales aren’t quite in that area, although both the DBS and DB5 are both roughly twice what a ‘non-Bond’ car would sell for.…