Auction report from Goodwood's famous ciruit
One never knows if the periodic noise of race engines adds to the occasion or distracts from the job in hand but it is always a delight to see the ongoing success of the Goodwood story.
And the architect of that success, Lord March, made a very pleasant if understated welcome to Bonhams and their customers – noting the renewal of the auction contract with Bonhams and, tellingly, welcoming their new team! I know that one of our continental clients was critical of the changes in personnel at the Paris Auctions in February and there remains an odd sense when you see familiar faces in different company catalogues.
But there was a typically large inventory to get through and Richard Stafford led off at the rostrum with a number of “No Reserve” lots that gave the sale a good start but when we have an inventory that large, the rostrum time taken for £1,000 increments on a Porsche 911SC may have delivered a positive result, but it was too influenced by slow internet activity.
And funnily enough, it was interesting to see the number of lots that found new homes in the sales room. Live auctions need the immediacy of bidding to maintain momentum and interest and the growth of online auctions set with leisurely timetables, has impacted the business.
Our interest was piqued early with an Aston Martin DB6 Mark 2 Saloon – described as a fuel injected automatic upgraded to Vantage with Webers opened at a positive £100,000 and, even with a very reasonable estimate was expected to go well. But from the wobbly Webasto to the saggy driver’s seat, she could have been better described as scruffy and stalled at £135,000 (£155,250 with premium).
But a constant rhythm of selling was maintained until lot 116, a Ford Thunderbird Convertible with good motorsport provenance pushing its estimate and the hammer of £35,000 was £10,000 short of bottom estimate. But a few lots later, a spectacular eyeful of a car, a Lamborghini Revuelto lit the place up with a sale at £290,000 (£333,500 with premium.
That sale was a metaphorical fanfare for a change of auctioneer – if this presenter is who Lord March viewed when welcoming the new team, he spotted a star! Briony Harford was a breath of fresh air – too long, we have seen a cloning of male auctioneers – familiar phrases “Good to see you” and toneless bidding. We appreciate that Briony comes from a Fine Art background but she also has TV experience with “The Travelling Auctioneers” and it showed in projection of voice and personality.
Sadly, for us, her first lot was an Aston Martin DB2/4 with a cracking motorsport pedigree and in spite of really “selling” the car and opening at £80,000 the car remained unsold with a top bid of £95,000
There was better luck with the next Aston, a 2004 Vanquish – it was bid to £43,000 (£49,450 with premium) and sold! And we must remember that the stable includes Lagonda and although it predates the marque acquisition by David Brown, a 1932 3 litre Tourer made a creditable £77,000 on the hammer (£88,550 with premium).
The Aston Martin sales continued with a V8 Vantage Volante, resplendent in Red that was bid to £185,000 (£212,750 with premium) but a less attractive Aston came up a few lots later a V8 Series II Automatic stalled at just £28,000 (£32,200 with premium). Byron’s database had revealed some less flattering images from as far back as 2008 and we weren’t shocked by the price achieved.
During the sale, as well as the scale of bidders in the room, it was good to see a gentle market upturn – the overall sales rate at 72.6% with a large inventory was good news and if you took out the collection of Rolls Royce and Bentley from a single collection – that rate goes up.
Ferraris went well – it is a mystery why they put a low estimate and no reserve on a 1986 Testarossa which beat its top estimate by £40,000 at a hammer of £130,000 (£149,500 with premium). And in general terms there was an enthusiasm for affordable and potentially enjoyable classics.
Aston’s last hurrah was a 1996 V8 Coupe which found a new home at £40,000 on the hammer (£46,000 with premium.
The positives are gentle – only a very few cars made well in excess of estimate but the results showed a realistic approach by buyers and sellers and perhaps the signs of market stability which is what we all could do with.
Finally, congratulations to Bonhams for bringing a breath of fresh air to the rostrum.
© Byron International
For full results follow the link:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1AbKBJhaSfT-PTkCBUrY0f7Gvy0odwi8G/view?usp=sharing
