Stradales lead the way at RM Sotheby’s first German Auction
Holding its first ever German auction at this year’s Techno Classica Essen, RM Sotheby’s achieved sales of €18.7million and 86%, with the remaining 85 cars from the Youngtimer collection gaining significant traction. The 1937 Mercedes-Benz 540K Cabriolet A (previewed in Drive-My) took the top spot at a market-correct €2,255,000. A small but beautifully preserved selection of Lancia’s rallying greats attracted considerable attention. A 1975 Stratos HF Stradale sold for €545,000, but a 1982 Lancia 037 Rally Stradale at €770,000 and 1985 Lancia Delta S4 Stradale at €1,040,000 both represented significant world record auction prices.
Over in the USA, Bonhams sold the extensive collection of inventor Frank Spain at his Tupelo Automotive Museum. Although a substantial part of the collection was made up of pre-war classics – which continued to perform well – the top seller was a 1948 Tucker 48 at $1,985,000. Spain died in 2006, and proceeds from this auction will go to charity. There was also a strong appetite for the similarly vast collection of St Louis-based enthusiast Fred Guyton. RM Sotheby’s raised a healthy $11,680,537 from the sale of 600 lots over 4-5May. Top seller was the award-winning 1909 Rolls-Royce 40/50 HP Silver Ghost Roi des Belges at $1,325,000.
At Shannons’Melbourne Autumn Classic Auction on 29 April the sale of a very early, and very pink, ’1972 Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 for AUS$183,000 signalled continued strong local demand for high quality classic Australian muscle cars.
Bonhams’ Spring Stafford motorcycle sale on 27 April was a hive of activity, managing total sales of £3,892,397 at a rate of 92%. An ex-Bud Ekins 1962 Triumph 649cc TR6SS Trophy (below) was most significant, selling for a record £97,750. Ekins was a friend of Steve McQueen, racer and occasional stunt rider, who famously performed the jump at the end of The Great Escape. At the same time as he was filming, Ekins used this highly original TR6SS to compete in the 1962 International Six Days’ Trial, in which he took the gold medal.
