6 auctioneers give us their personal highlights from 2014

From the viewpoint of an auction block, the classic car world must seem more prosperous than ever. We asked six prominent auction house figures for their personal highlights of 2014...

James Knight, auctioneer at Bonhams

“Apart from handling the Maranello Rosso Collection of Ferraris and Abarths, I would say selling EPE 97, the Lagonda Fox & Nicholl Team Car, for a world-record-setting £1,569,500. This is a car that I have handled a number of times, pretty much spanning my entire career which began some 30 years ago, in 1984.

“In 1987 I took a call from a charming Irish gentleman, David Dunn. He owned EPE 97 and, in those days - and the days before Google - I knew very little about such a car. However, a couple of hours in the reference library soon told me how important it was. We sold the car for David at Earl’s Court to Terry Cohn, who cherished it for many years. When Terry passed away in the early 1990s, the car was acquired privately from his estate by another good client of ours.

“After a few years he decided to part with the car, and so approached me again. We sold the car at our Quail Lodge auction in 2008. That buyer, another good client of ours, approached us earlier this year about selling the car, which we duly did at the Goodwood Revival. Each time this car has sold publicly, it has created a new auction record for the marque. It’s a fantastic car to which I've felt very attached throughout my career.”

Max Girardo, auctioneer at RM Auctions

“For me, it has to be the atmosphere in the room at our Monaco sale. It's really hard to put my finger on why the vibe was so strong that day but I guess it's a combination of factors. Sure, we had a great catalogue of cars on offer, but the weather was beautiful and the venue was incredible. When the roof of the Sporting Club slid back and the noise of the historic racing cars reverberated around the room from the nearby circuit, it just perfectly set up what was to be a great auction conducted in an electric atmosphere. Everything just clicked into place that evening.”

Pierre Novikoff, motoring specialist at Artcurial

“As you might have guessed, my highlight was discovering the Baillon ‘barn-find’ collection. It’s probably the last time anyone will ever come across such a gathering of cars, many of which were special-bodied and untouched for many years. It was quite surreal to see all the cars covered with spiders' webs, yet with their keys still on the dashboard. It’s like you’ve arrived in the 1950s or 60s. We spent a month living with the Baillon family, cataloguing each car and assisting with the transportation arrangements. It was always one of my dreams to discover a collection like this, and I’m sure it will be well-sold at Rétromobile.”

Nick Whale, auctioneer at Silverstone Auctions

“What sticks very clearly in the mind was the privilege and the opportunity to offer and sell two significant Ferraris at our inaugural Salon Privé sale in September. The first was a 250 Series Lussorealising close to £2m, and the second a rare 1971 Daytona Spider which achieved more than £2.25m. Prancing Horses aside, the car I’m most proud to have handled and sold was the beautiful and proven 1954 Bentley R-Type Continental which rightly sold for more than £1 million. A staggering sum, but a flawless car. It pleases me to see that quality is always recognised.”

Chris Routledge, auctioneer at Coys

“The undoubted highlight of our 2014 auction season was being chosen by British television network Channel 4 to produce and feature in a live auction event held at our Spring Classics auctionin London in March. Appearing on the rostrum was certainly a highlight of my auctioneering career to date, and it is very satisfying to know that a Coys auction was being viewed by over 2 million people in Britain on that Sunday evening, which simply has to be a record, as it has never been done before. The six cars we sold all went for well over their estimates, three of them setting new world records. Certainly a highlight, and fantastic news for the historic car market and movement in general.”

David Gooding, president of Gooding & Company

“Overall, Ferraris did extremely well for us in 2014 and one of the more memorable highlights of the auction year was hammering a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider for a world record of $15,180,000 at Pebble Beach. This sale and the historic 1955 Aston Martin DB3S and 1956 Maserati 250F selling for new benchmark prices made these auctions a must-see event. You could feel the excitement build in the room as the drop-dead gorgeous Cal' Spider arrived on stage with impeccable pedigree and poise.” 

Photos: Bonhams, RM Auctions, Artcurial, Silverstone Auctions, Coys, Gooding & Co.

WORLD FIRST: HARLEY STREET BY RAJPUTANA CUSTOMS

Outside the States, the new Street is widely regarded as the most important motorcycle in Harley-Davidson’s line-up. So the bike we’re looking at here is something of An Event: it’s the first officially sanctioned Street custom from an independent builder.

That builder is Rajputana Customs of Jaipur City. They’re some 300 kilometers south of Harley’s Haryana factory—where the Street is built—and they’ve done a remarkable job.

This Street 750 was put together in just four weeks, but you’d never guess. “Given the liquid-cooled engine and snug-fitting chassis, we felt a butch-looking racer was the way to go,” says Rajputana boss Vijay Singh.

The first upgrade was the front end, which now sports Suzuki GSX-R forks with 25% stiffer springs. There’s more suspension travel than stock, helped by the removal of the plastic grill surrounding the front-mounted radiator.

To flatten the lines of the bike, the standard tank was lifted slightly at the rear and the gas cap moved to the left side.

On the right is the speedo, mounted on to the tank itself. A stripe of grey paint cleverly aligns with the fins of the rear cylinder.

The standard dual shocks have gone, replaced by a monoshock mounted to the right-hand side of the swingarm. (“It works like a gem,” says Vijay.) The monoshock also carries the compact battery and part of the wiring loom.

The belt drive system of the factory bike is gone, replaced by a chain. Rajputana have custom-machined a front sprocket, and hooked it up to a Drag Race rear sprocket in tough 7075-T6 aluminum from Zipper’s Performance.

There’s a sleek new subframe and a low profile cowl behind a quilted black leather seat. Coker tires are mounted on 16-inch Harley 48 rims and hubs, and the swingarm was modified to accommodate the larger rubber.

Custom-fabricated clip-on bars complete the look, topped off with Arlen Ness grips.

It’s a quite remarkable transformation—and it’s bound to make a lot of people see the Harley-Davidson Street in a new light.

Top marks to Vijay and Rajputana Customs for an exceptionally clever build. A fine bike to round off 2014.

Rajputana Custom Motorcycles website | Facebook | Instagram | Harley-Davidson India

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The 10 most expensive cars auctioned in 2014 totalled $141m

Looking at the 10 most expensive cars sold at auction in 2014, two things are clear. First, Ferrari remains the most valuable marque in the classic market and, secondly, Monterey week is where the highest value transactions are recorded…

Number 10: 1964 Ford GT40 for $7m

The only non-Ferrari on our leaderboard, and one of only two cars not sold by RM Auctions or Bonhams, this Ford GT40 fetched $7m. The US auction house Mecum was responsible for the sale of this, the fourth GT40 prototype and the second-oldest GT40 in existence. 

Number 9: 1953 Ferrari 250 Mille Miglia for $7.26m

This beautiful Ferrari 250 MM Berlinetta came from the famed Maranello Rosso Collection, going under the gavel in mid-August at Bonhams’ Quail Lodge sale. It brought an under-estimate $7.26m. 

Number 8: 1966 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 Competizione for $7.8m

The top seller of RM’s highly successful Monaco sale in May was this Ferrari 275 GTB/C. One of just 12 built, it made €5.7 million, the equivalent of $7,871,707. 

Number 7: 1958 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider for $8.8m

Fetching $8,800,000, this long-wheelbase Ferrari 250 California Spider topped the entire Arizona auction week early in 2014. Though impressive, the sum was nothing compared to what would follow during the course of the year.

Number 6: 1967 Ferrari 275 GTB/4 for $10.2m

The lure of Steve McQueen was no less frenzied this year, helping to explain why this ex-McQueen Ferrari 275 GTB/4 recorded a staggering $10,175,000. 

Number 5: 1964 Ferrari 250 LM for $11.5m

During Monterey week in August, RM Auctions sold this Ferrari 250 LM for $11.5m, some way off the $14.3m paid for a 250 LM at its New York sale last year, held in conjunction with Sotheby’s. As they say, provenance is everything. 

Number 4: 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider for $15.2m

Gooding & Company’s Pebble Beach sale was topped by this beautiful short-wheelbase California Spider, which fetched a princely $15,180,000.

Number 3: 1954 Ferrari 375 Plus Spider for $18.3m

One of only five Ferrari 375 Plus models built, with both Mille Miglia and Le Mans history, it was sold at Bonhams’ Goodwood Festival of Speed sale in June for the sum of $18,315,361. 

Number 2: 1964 Ferrari 275 GTB/C Speciale for $26.4m

Another star of Monterey week, this fabulous Ferrari 275 GTB/C Speciale was sold by RM Auctions. One of just three built, it fetched an impressive $26,400,000 after much speculation. 

Number 1: 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO for $38.1m

History was made in August at Bonhams’ Quail Lodge sale, when this Ferrari 250 GTO was sold for $38,115,000. Though higher figures had been mooted in anticipation of the headline-grabbing sale, we can’t imagine this record will be broken any time soon. Don't take our word for it, though...

Overall, the 10 cars in our list totalled a combined sale value of $141,459,568. 

Photos: RM Auctions, Bonhams, Gooding & Co., Mecum

For a comprehensive account of all cars sold at auction in 2014, we recommend the Classic Car Auction Yearbook 2013-2014 by Adolfo Orsi and Raffaele Gazzi, available now via Amazon.

DUCATI 900SS BY OLD EMPIRE MOTORCYCLES

The Ducati 900SS is a motorcycle that’s rapidly becoming a bit of a modern classic, custom bike builders have been discovering the raw mechanical beauty that lies just beneath the original fairings but no one has quite showcased the 900SS as well as Old Empire Motorcycles with the example you see pictured here.

The bike started life as a 1995 900SS with its iconic Pantah-based 904cc air-cooled L-twin, each cylinder is fed by two Desmodue valves and the crankcase was a modified version of the one used on the Ducati 851. This engine has long been a favourite amongst the Ducatista and from a purely aesthetic standpoint it looks like it belongs in a modern art museum in between a Series I E-Type Jaguar and a Riva.

Ducati had introduced the 900SS in 1989 and although it was beautiful and highly capable, it frequently suffered from cracked swing-arms – so in 1991 Ducati introduced an upgraded model with a chrome-molybdenum steel trellis frame and bearings rather than bushings where the previously problematic swing-arm attached to the frame.

This new version was a revelation, it offered impressive reliability with tire melting performance and looks that would go on to influence motorcycle designers around the world. By the late ’90s the Ducati Monster had begun to steal some of the limelight from the 900SS due to its lower cost and more beginner-friendly handling, by 1998 a redesigned version was released with somewhat controversial styling – this has led to the popularity now seen around the 900SS from the model years 1991 to 1998.

As you can clearly tell, the Ducati you see here has undergone an intensive custom rebuild and many parts from the original bike are now in the parts bin. Looking at the design closely it gives an impression of what Ducati would have built if they were competing with Indian, Harley-Davidson and Cyclone on the board track circuits of the United States throughout the 1910s and 1920s.

Any regular visitor to Silodrome will be well aware that we have a significant soft spot for anything board track related and I have vague memories of writing an article a few years ago demanding that the frequently lethal sport be brought back with immediate effect. I’m reasonably sure I even offered to bring my own hammer to help build the wooden tracks.

With this in mind you can imagine how interested we were to receive a folder of images from the team at Old Empire Motorcycles containing the Ducati pictured here. The build project took them almost 2 years and unlike the other customs they build, this one wasn’t built for a client. It was a personal project for the team and the freedom afforded them by not having to keep a client happy allowed them to throw out the rule book and fire up the acetylene torch.

Perhaps the most immediately eye-catching element on the build is that Girder fork front end and brass headlight, when combined with the 21″ front wheel and quad leading shoe drum brake you’d never know that the bike was less than 20 years old. A single leading shoe drum is installed inside the 21″ rear wheel and the swing-arm has been entirely removed in favour of a solid rear – far more fitting on a motorcycle designed to race on a circuit made of two-by-fours.

The copper tubing and braided wiring around the engine are tasteful touches, as is the extensive use of brass and leather. The fuel tank is a hand-fabricated twin-tank with copper plugs and the seat is a similarly handmade unit – the guys at Old Empire tell me that the seat is perfect for blasting around British B-roads but is probably not entirely suitable for long distance motorcycle touring.

If you’d like to read more about this Ducati or see some of the other custom motorcycles to roll out of the Old Empire garage you can click here to visit their official website.

Photography by Onno Wieringa.