WHENEVER YOU CHAT to anyone, they all have tales of cars “I wish I still had now.”
Of course, if we all kept all the cars we’d ever owned, we’d all need airport hangars to store them in. And a lot of them would be as unreliable, uncomfortable and generally unpleasant as they were then (and which we have conveniently erased from our memories).
No doubt the chorus will start again with the outcome of Shannons latest auction.
Headline car was the 1972 LJ Torana GTR XU-1, sold with no reserve at the auction on April 29 and bringing in a jaw-dropping $183,000 (admittedly, it did have a period race history and had been stored for 24 years).
Overall, the auction grossed $3.3 million in sales, with 90 percent of lots sold on the hammer.
Other notable results included the 1969 Holden HT Monaro (far from standard with a 383ci V8 engine and various mechanical and cosmetic upgrades) that sold for $107,000, proving the old adage that a well-maintained, unmessed-with original will often outdo a more usable but unoriginal model. Making that very point was the very original two-tone 1960 Holden FB Special that sold for $26,000, and at the other end of the scale, a very presentable 1976 Holden LX Torana SS Hatchback fitted with a non-original 355ci V8 that failed to sell.
Old Porsches continue to stand as gold-plated investment value, with a special order Baltic Blue Metallic 1989 930 Turbo selling for $160,000 and a Sydney-delivered Pewter Metallic 1983 911SC Cabriolet selling for $75,000.
Celebrity ownership still increases value, as proven by a fully restored 1971 Citroen DS21 Pallas, once owned by Seekers leader singer Judith Durham and sold for $40,000. Mind you, that price probably wouldn’t have covered purchase and restoration costs, so the new owner has done well.
Harder to understand was the $30,000 selling price for the short-lived TD 2000 Roadster (this one built in 1989) that, if you squint, looks like a ‘50s MG TD. For around the same kind of money, you could have a very nice example of the real thing.
Two relative bargains were the 1998 Jaguar XJ8 3.2 V8 saloon that sold for a paltry $8,500 and a 1994 Mercedes-Benz SL600 hardtop convertible that only managed $20,000 (the new price was more than $350,000 plus on roads). Both cars sold for well below their current book price.
Meanwhile, the incomprehensible lust for numeric number plates (and the prices paid for them) continues unabated. Victoria “59” sold for a ludicrous $535,000. Victoria “822” sold for $175,000. Others also sold for substantial sums, including Victoria 3-456 reaching $100,000 (perhaps sold to someone with difficulty remembering what his state-issued registration number is?)
The next Shannons classic auction will be held in Sydneyon 20 May 2019 at 7.00pm.