As the major sponsors of this year’s London to Brighton Veteran Car Run, RM Sotheby’s London auction is now a key part of this action-packed weekend. Taking place on the eve of the Run at The Peninsula – also where this year’s International Historic Motoring Awards are set to take place – the Canadian auction house managed to raise total sales of £18,293,215, making it the highest grossing UK sale of the year. Thanks to a healthy number of no reserve cars, the sale carried a 93% sell-through rate.
Starting the evening with a small line-up of pre-war cars in-keeping with the event, the top selling car of the auction was actually a 1989 Ferrari F40 – in desirable non-cat/non-adjust specification – which sold for £1,973,750. Next up was a 1965 Ferrari 275 GTB, originally sold to New York City via Luigi Chinetti Motors, which made a £1,748,750 when it crossed the block.
Something of a highlight was a 1954 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing, which was displayed by Mercedes-Benz at the 1954 Earls Court Motor Show, and even more impressively has remained in the vendor’s family for the past 70 years. It sold for £1,445,000.
The top-billed car of the sale was a particularly interesting Jaguar XKSS, converted from a D-type early on by the factory. Although estimated at £9-11m, bidding hit a wall at the £8m mark, not quite enough to get it over the line.
Another noteworthy lot was the historic, competition-rich 1936 Delahaye 135 S Works. Offered directly from the Walker family, who had owned it since 1970, this icon of motor racing and the silver screen reached £1,096,250.
Sholto Gilbertson, Director of Sales, UK, said: ‘Coming to this incredible venue has been a wonderful evolution for the London sale, and we believe it has created the best possible auction experience for our clients. Having a sell-through of 93% for all lots is a remarkable achievement and we are thoroughly delighted. And once again, the weekend was rounded off with another fantastic RM Sotheby’s London to Brighton Veteran Car Run.’
Top 10 lots – London 2024
| 1989 Ferrari F40 | £1,973,750 |
| 1965 Ferrari 275 GTB by Scaglietti | £1,748,750 |
| 1954 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing | £1,445,000 |
| 1964 Ferrari 250 GT/L Berlinetta Lusso by Scaglietti | £1,146,875 |
| 1936 Delahaye 135 S Works | £1,096,250 |
| 1993 Porsche 911 Turbo S Lightweight | £770,000 |
| 1958 Bentley S1 Continental Drophead Coupé by Park Ward | £736,250 |
| 2006 Mercedes-Benz SLR ‘McLaren Edition’ | £623,750 |
| 1964 Aston Martin DB5 | £567,500 |
| 1934 MG K3 Magnette Two-Seater | £522,500 |
