set of results at the annual Beaulieu Autojumble sale.

The most successful auction ever to be held at the Autojumble marked the tenth year that the Bonhams’ team has held sales at Beaulieu. The sale realised £1.6-million with an impressive 93% sold by value. The top two cars, both archetypal VSCC examples, sold for double the pre-sale estimates, with many other lots – motorcycles and automobilia included - also exceeding top estimates.

The 1926 Sunbeam 3-Litre Super Sports 4-Seater Tourer achieved the top price of £141,200, after interest in this pre-war open sports car saw bids soar above the estimate of £75,000 – 90,000. The car – originally the Sunbeam factory demonstrator - sold to a UK private collector.

The 1921 Vauxhall 30/98 E-Type Velox Tourer, from the Jeddere Fisher Collection, also attracted competitive bidding from UK and Continental collectors. This wonderful example of what is considered by many to be the finest British sporting car of the early vintage period sold for £128,000 (estimate £60,000 – 90,000). The successful purchaser was thrilled – he had been the underbidder on the Vauxhall 30/98 that sold for a world auction record on 1 July 2007 in the Bonhams and Goodman sale in Melbourne.

The results for these two lots confirm an invigorated interest in pre-war motor cars, with many new collectors moving into this field.

Other cars that sold well included:
1904 Autocar 12hp Twin Cylinder Model VIII Rear Entrance Tonneau – sold £78,500 (estimate £45,000 – 55,000)
barn discovery 1935 Riley 9hp Imp Roadster – sold £34,500
part-restored restoration project 1952 Aston Martin DB2 Saloon – sold £34,500 (estimate £15,000 – 20,000)
Motorcycles in the sale also saw some fantastic results, with only two out of 27 failing to find new owners. A 1914 BSA 557cc Model K Motorcycle Combination with BSA No.2 Sidecar, estimated at £6,500 – 8,500 sold for £17,825, and the following lot, a 1914 Indian 8hp TT Model fetched £27,600 (estimate £20,000 – 25,000).

The range and quality of the automobilia lots in the sale also attracted serious international interest with 90% sold by value. Property from the collection of the late Mike Smith – the Chiltern Museum of Motoring – attracted enormous interest with many of the illuminated signs and globes selling for four times the pre-sale estimates. Lot 10, an illuminated Shell ‘Pump’ sign and globe, estimated at £400 – 500, made top price in this section of the sale, realising £2,990.
In addition to this collection, the sale included mascots, models, tools, books, luggage and motoring art, and highlights included a large ‘Spirit of Ecstasy’ statue which sold for £2,645 (almost double estimate) and a large-scale instructional model of a Chevrolet car which fetched four times its estimate (£2,070).

Tim Schofield, Head of the UK Motor Car Department said:

“This has been Bonhams’ best ever Beaulieu Autojumble sale. Following on from our best ever Goodwood Festival sale and best ever Aston Martin sale, the results we have achieved this year show a real breadth of bidding across all areas of the market. We have demonstrated that we not only sell cars, but sell them well.”
Note for editors: In the last eight days, Bonhams UK Motor Car Department has conducted two sales (Goodwood Revival and Beaulieu Autojumble) and has offered 129 cars and 747 lots of automobilia for a total of £4,286,920. This illustrates the capacity to handle the sheer logistical challenge and also demonstrates how Bonhams provides a complete service for all tastes and budgets.

Posted: 10|5|07 at 7:17 am. Filed under: Press Release.