Classic Cars H&H Buxton Auction - Government Auction

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Classic Cars H&H Buxton Auction Classic car auction held at the Pavilion Gardens, Buxton, Derbyshire on 12th April 2000. The Auction is run by H&H
Classic Cars H&H Buxton Auction Classic car auction held at the Pavilion Gardens, Buxton, Derbyshire on 12th April 2000. The Auction is run by H&H Classic Auctions Ltd of Whitegate Farm, Hatton Lane, Hatton, Cheshire. Tel. 01925 730630; Fax 01925 730830; www.classic-auctions.co.uk And now for something completely different... well it certainly was for me! Several times in the last series of the BBC's Top Gear programme (more like Second Gear since the departure of that true one-off Jeremy Clarkson), young Quentin Wilson has sung the praises of just how cheaply you can buy some decent classic cars. Bearing in mind that anything on four wheels registered before the end of 1972 gets ZERO road tax and that classic car insurance (for relatively limited mileage) is low, you know it makes sense to consider running a classic for recreational use - now there's a loaded Americanism! It seemed like a good idea to check out the nearest decent Classic Car auction and so Derbyshire beckoned. I'm guessing that if you didn't like auctions you wouldn't be reading GAN, so while the "buying from a dealer" route is always open to you, auctions are always my preferred option: if you read on and see some of the typical mark-ups that dealers will put on cars from this very auction, I think you will be persuaded of the case for buying direct. A very good reason to consider H&H in Derbyshire is their new ultra-realistic commission rate scale. Reading between the lines they would appear to consider (no... make that read "they are certain") that the big auction boys down South are being greedy with their high commission rates and believe they can attract quality cars and good buyers by cutting rates. To quote them: "It's time that people woke up to the fact that with modern-day communications it doesn't matter where the actual auction is held, and they must realise that exorbitant commission fees will cripple the market. H&H are taking the initiative to correct this situation with this new policy." The buyer's premium on cars is just a tiny 5% but subject to a minimum of £150. The buyer's premium on automobilia is 10% but with no minimum charge. To attract the vendors of the very top stuff such as D-type Jaguars, classic racing cars and so on, the vendor's commission on cars selling for over £100,000 is ZERO. Vendor's commission on cars selling for between £50,000 and £99,999 is only 2.5%. On cars under £50,000 the rate is 5%.

It certainly seems to show signs of working as the April sale had cars sent over from Germany to be auctioned and there were plenty of both private and trade buyers. In fact, it was packed. After a quick trip up the M6 we turned off through Congleton, up and over the bleak hills (it was bucketing down) and rapidly dropped down into the Spa town of Buxton. A touch of deja-vu set in here as back in the 70s and early 80s I used to drive in the Edinburgh Trial (confusingly now held solely in Derbyshire) and the finish was at the Pavilion Gardens, Buxton. Automatic pilot took over and we drove into the Pavilion car park and switched off in the same parking spot that I had last occupied with my Allard in 1983. The Pavilion has been mightily spruced-up since then and is now a strange pink colour inside, maybe authentic but it looks a bit yucky. Anyway, on to the auction. We had missed the first of the automobilia as we had underestimated the travelling time in foul weather, and we only just managed to grab a seat. The place was still filling up, and it was soon standing room only. "Lot 22, a large Mobil Oil sign." At a realistic estimate of £50-£80 ... and how rare to be able to string the words realistic and estimate together ... it petered out at just £35, but I was too slow to get my bidding hand in the air. Blast! Could this be a profitable day as well as a learning day? Lot 25 was a collection of motoring books, mainly about rallying and estimated at £60-£80. No bids at all ... not even at £10. Lot 29 large poster for the 1979 Monaco Grand Prix, estimate £70-£90. Sold for £120. "That's more like it," said a relieved auctioneer. Lot 33 large, framed poster for the 1980 Monaco Grand Prix, estimate £65-£85. Sold for £110. At this point I got sidetracked as I was people-watching. There, lurking behind a pillar, was Salman Rushdie. No, it can't be. But surely it is? Well, if he wasn't there then he has a perfect double whose life must still be considered at risk even in genteel Buxton! "1920s Apollo car horn ... £15? ... sold ... thank you, bidder 172." BLAST again, I've missed a gem as that horn had a realistic estimate of £60-£80 on it. CONCENTRATE. The auctioneer was cracking on despite some low prices for the automobilia - see listings at the end. The car auction started at 1pm and the auctioneer repeated a warning that he had given earlier. In the public car park there were several cars with private "For Sale" notices in their screens, taking hoped-for advantage of the hundreds of attending punters. "At the last auction here, two of the car park sellers turned out to be selling stolen cars - so please do be very careful." Sour grapes or a genuine warning? I wonder. The very first

car lot was an incredibly rough-looking 1937 Fiat Topolino. The owner had apparently spent £575 on the mechanics and £1,800 on bodywork in the 70s and then after a "restorer" had gone bust, the car was stored in a dusty shed somewhere. And it looked it. Rusty, battered and complete with a coating of bird droppings. Registered 206 JGX (which might just have a value if you managed to put the car back on the road), it was on offer with no reserve and was knocked down for £300. The big screen on stage translated that paltry sum into the following:- 504 dollars, 1014 German marks, 54,225 yen, 501 euros. Sounds best in yen. From that heap we moved on to a tidy, but not perfect, 1980 Mercedes Benz 450 SLC coupé, estimated at £1,000-£2,000. Sold for £1,500 and very fair at that price. With just 104,000 miles on the clock it had a lot of life left in it. I'm not at all sure what the next lot was doing in a classic car auction, a 1993 Nissan Figaro Coupé. Plug-ugly Japanese Retro styling, modern, and of precious little merit. No wonder the vendor could only bear to drive it a total of 7,880 miles. I would lay odds that he got fed up with being laughed at every time he parked it. Truly, totally, ghastly. (Can we take it that PM didn't like it, then? - Ed.) Sold to the man with no taste for £8,150. Numerous MG Bs, pre-war MGs , some unloved Austins, the odd Ferrari and Maserati ... even an Italian rarity, an Iso Lele. Check out the prices that follow. Certainly some bargains, with at least 15 cars selling to dealers and on those I can tell you the mark-up will be a minimum 20%. I will have to watch the classic car magazines over the next month or two to give you some accurate figures. Further auctions this year:- 26th July, 4th October, 6th December. Some estimates are given in brackets after the hammer price. 1969 BRSCC Brands Hatch poster £15 1991 Mansell print £40 Leather bound History of Monaco GP £230 1958 Monaco photo of Salvadori (signed) £80 1955 Monaco photo of Paul Frere £65 1955 Monaco photo of Maurice Trintignant £75 1934 AA badge and roadside box key £25 1965 Jim Clark photo £65 "Trofarth" 30s road sign £15 (£40-£60) Jaguar Mk2 tool kit £20 Daimler Sovereign tool kit £45 Petrol-fuelled railway lamp £20 70s VW pedal car £80 (£60-£100) Microlight wooden propellor £50 Bentley starting handle £5 (£80-£120!!) Pr. Brass Pyrene extinguishers £15 Duckhams adv. sign with thermometer £60 (£80-£120) Dunlop stockist sign £55 (£60-£80) BP Energol sign £20 (£40-£60)

Shell "Cars for Hire" double-sided sign £75 (£80-£120) Supermarine S6 mascot £150 (£200-£300) "Pterodactyl" mascot £65 (£350-£400!!) Cars:1937 Fiat Topolino £300 1980 Mercedes Benz 450 £1,500 1993 Nissan Figaro £8,150 1970 MG B GT £2,250 1978 Lancia Monte Carlo Spider £3,000 Prov. 1964 MG B Roadster £1,500 1964 Daimler 2.5 V8 £3,400 1963 TR4 £4,000 1974 Iso Lele £4,200 1972 BMW 3.0CSL Coupé £5,700 Prov. 1988 Ferrari 412 Coupé £11,750 1948 Bristol 400 Coupé £13,500 1975 Fiat 124 Spyder £4,000 1968 Aston Martin DB6 for resto. £8,200 1980 Rolls Royce Silver Spirit £6,000 bid. No sale 1978 MG B Roadster £2,200 1973 Lancia Flavia 2000 Coupé £2,800 bid. No sale 1970 Jaguar E-type 2+2 4.2 FHC £10,000 (£10,000-£12,000) 1970 MG B Roadster £5,300 (£4,800-£5,200) 1976 Triumph Dolomite Sprint £900 (£1,000-£1,500) 1925 Franklin Airman Saloon £7,200 (£8,000-£10,000) 1970 Mercedes Benz 280 SL £16,500 (£14,000-£16,000) 1984 Bentley Mulsanne Turbo £9,000 (£10,000-£12,000) 1963 Daimler SP250 £7,500 (£8,000-£9,000) 1948 Rolls Royce Silver Wraith £6,500 bid. No sale 1977 Jaguar XJC Coupé 4.2 £3,500 (£3,700-£4,200) 1974 MG B Roadster £7,000 (£7,000-£8,000) 1954 Bentley R-type £9,500 (£9,500-£1,100) 1960 TR3A £11,000 (£10,000-£12,000) 1963 Austin Westminster £3,200 (reg. no. 7834 R) 1985 Mercedes Benz 380 SL £11,250 (£10,000-£12,000) 1934 Austin Kempton £4,000. No sale 1965 Bristol 409 Coupé £4,700 1987 Rolls Royce Silver Spirit. 27,000 miles. £18,000 1979 Ferrari 400 Coupé £8,250 1985 Mercedes Benz 230 CE Coupé £6,000 1935 Austin Hertford £3,500. No sale 1960 Ferrari 250 GT £35,000 1931 MG M type £7,500. No sale 1935 MG K3 Replica £43,000 (£48,000-£55,000) 1956 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud 1 £15,000 1960 Jaguar XK150S FHC £29,000 1977 MG B Roadster £3,400 1956 Austin Healey 100/4 £12,000 1937 MG VA Special £3,600 1974 Jaguar E V12 Roadster £17,500 1985 Mercedes Benz 230 CE Coupé £2,200 (£2,300-£2,800) 1978 Maserati Merak £9,250. No sale 1974 TR6 766 Miles from new £16,500 (£18,000-£22,000)

1972 Bristol 411 Coupé £11,000. No sale 1964 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud Coupé £18,250 1962 Jaguar E type 3.8 Roadster £30,000 (£28,000-£34,000) 1949 RMA Riley £5,300 (£4,000-£5,000) 1973 MG B Roadster £5,000 (£4,000-£4,800) 1982 Rolls Royce Silver Spur £9,000 1934 MG PA Sports £12,600. No sale 1959 Aston Martin DB4 Series 1 £23,000. No sale (£30,000-£35,000) 1959 Jaguar XK150 Roadster £30,000 1939 MG SA Tourer £12,000 (£15,000-£18,000) 1970 Jensen FF Coupé £16,500 (Editor's note – How nice to see prices which accord with presale estimates!) Peter Moncrieff