Here are the big sellers from the Goodwood Festival of Speed

By Greg MacLeman
Auctions
 | 5 Jul 2017

The Goodwood Festival of Speed plays host to some of the world’s most incredible classic cars, but not all of them go charging up the hill. For years, the Bonhams auction has featured a mouthwatering array of classics, and this year was no different with more than £10m of collector cars getting away during the event. Here is a roundup of the biggest hitters. 

1973 Porsche 911RS Lightweight Carrera – £830,300

Undeniably the highlight of the sale, the car is one of just 17 right-hand-drive examples to make their way to the UK in the early 1970s. It was delivered new to Isaac Agnew, the official Porsche dealer in Belfast, and was entered into a number of competitions by David Agnew, including the Donegal International Rally in 1973. The Porsche was fully restored to its original specification in the 1990s, and had its engine completely rebuilt by marque specialist Porsche Wilmslow in 2007. 

 

1962 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster – £897,500
 

Built very late in 1962, the 300SL roadster was shipped to the USA in January 1963 and sold that month to a New York doctor as a '63 model. He kept the Mercedes for three years before selling it to Robert E English of Colorado. Three generations of the English family enjoyed the 300SL over the next 22 years, during which time the car was maintained by ex-factory mechanic, Heinz Nichol.

 

1911 Mercedes Simplex 28/50hp ‘Roi des Belges’ – £359,900
 

Reputedly, the Mercedes was first owned by an English family who bought it in Paris in 1912. The current vendor's father acquired the car in 1957, and a note on file states that a previous owner informed him that it had been in their family for many years. Dated July 1957, a letter on file from that previous owner's son states: 'I do not yet know what year my father bought the chassis, but we were always told that this particular model was drilled to carry a light gun in the first war. The bus body was built by S&A Fuller of Bath...'

 

1914 Rolls-Royce 40/50hp Silver Ghost Open Tourer – £550,300

This Derby-built Silver Ghost, chassis number ‘64AB’, was ordered in 1913 by His Highness the Maharana Sir Fateh Singh Bahadur of Udaipur and built on the high ground clearance ‘Colonial’ chassis. It was completed with torpedo coachwork by Hooper & Co, and remained with the Maharana until he was deposed by the British for refusing to receive the Prince of Wales. The car became well travelled, making its way to the UK via owners in Pakistan, South Africa and Scotland before undergoing a nut and bolt rebuilt to its original specification that was completed in 2012. 

 

1957 Aston Martin DB MkIII prototype – £337,500
 

Painted Moonbeam Grey, with green leather interior, DP193 wasn't officially road-registered, as 63 KMY, until the 11th of March 1957, during the same month that DB Mark III production began. A few days later DP193 would be on hand as the Mk III demonstrator for the model's public launch at the Geneva Motor Show; records state it had also acted as a demonstrator at the Brussels' Motor Show in January, although this was two months before the Geneva launch. 

 

1974 Ferrari Dino 246GT Spyder – £253,500
 

This 246GT Spyder was built to European specification and sold new via the official Ferrari dealer Motor S.a.s di carla Allegretti of Rome, Italy. The car was delivered finished in Rosso Dino with Nero interior, and was sold to its first owner (in Italy) in September 1973. It passed through three further owners before undergoing recommissioning in 2016, which included a bare metal repaint, an interior retrim and a set of replacement wheels.

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Greg MacLeman

Greg MacLeman is a contributor to and former Features Editor of Classic & Sports Car, and drives a restored and uprated 1974 Triumph 2500TC