Pure online auctions, i.e. without an auctioneer and live hammering, are also becoming increasingly popular in the classic car sector. Gooding & Co has created its own format for this with "Geared Online" and, as part of the "European Sporting & Historic Collection" auction, offered nine special automobiles over nine days from January 28 to February 5, 2021, which were expected to achieve an average of EUR 1.12 million or CHF 1.21 million.
This goal was almost achieved, all nine cars were sold and an average of EUR 1.069 million or CHF 1.154 million was realized per car. What was interesting about the online auction was that all nine cars had already exceeded their reserve price many hours before the bidding deadline.
British classics in particular
Three Bentleys, two Rolls-Royces and two Aston Martins dominated the bidding, which was supplemented by a Ferrari and a Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster. On average, the cars were 73 years old, which was mainly due to the Bentley and Rolls-Royce vehicles, which were predominantly from the pre-war period (or at least looked like it).
However, the more expensive lots all had a post-war vintage, they were all from the sixties.
Valuable Aston Martin DB4 GT with Swiss history
The Aston Martin DB4 GT on offer with chassis number DB4GT/0144/L from 1961 was one of only 30 LHD examples built and sold new in Switzerland via the importer at the time, Garage Hubert Patthey, to a Mr. Abreu. Apparently, this man from Geneva sent the car to Carrozzeria Frua in Italy in the late 1960s to modernize it with a rear end in the style of the current DB6 and a revised front end. The gearbox was also replaced. Maintenance work was then carried out in Newport Pagnell at the end of the 1960s and the car was completely restored for the first time in the 1990s, returning the bodywork to its original condition. Around 2018, the car was restored from the ground up a second time, resulting in bills of almost £400,000.
At the online auction, the car, which was located in the UK, was expected to find a new owner for £ 2 to 2.5 million.
One day before the end of the auction, the Aston was already at £ 1.7 million, but when there were only minutes left until the end of the auction, a real bidding war started again, which after many increases of £ 20,000 each finally ended with the highest bid of exactly £ 2.5 million, nota bene 11% above the median estimate. The car was therefore sold for £ 2.75 million (EUR 3.135 million, CHF 3.383 million), making it one of the most expensive DB4 GTs ever traded.
The second Aston Martin, a 1953 DB5 Convertible, was also haggled over right to the end. The highest bid of £ 760,000 was enough to win the auction, which meant a sale price of EUR 940,500 or CHF 1,014,750.
Successful Ferrari 275 GTB/4 from the motor show
From January 16 to 27, 1967, the Ferrari 275 GTB/4, built in 1967 and chassis number 09389, was painted red on the stand of Ferrari importer Garage Francorchamps at the Brussels Motor Show. Since then, the coupé, which was repainted black in the 1970s, has only had a handful of different owners and naturally has the Ferrari Classiche certificate as well as extensive documentation by Marcel Massini.
Despite its age of 54 years, the car has never been completely restored according to Gooding & Co, but has been completely overhauled mechanically.
Estimated at £1.75 to 2 million, the bid was £1.7 million. The new owner paid EUR 2.132 million or CHF 2.3 million including commission/surcharge.
The Bentley with the special tail
While the two Rolls-Royce vehicles did not fare so well with maximum bids at 47 to 51 percent of the median estimate, a Bentley 8 Litre from 1931 shone. Chassis YR 5092 was offered without a reserve price and was estimated at £ 400,000 to £ 600,000.
The bidders apparently saw the car at the upper end of this value range and so the highest bid was £ 570,000, meaning that the Bentley with the special rear end ended up in a new garage for EUR 714,780 or CHF 771,210.
On average, the nine vehicles achieved almost exactly 80% of the median estimate and all were sold, although the prices for the two Rolls-Royces in particular were somewhat disappointing.
The Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster from 1963 achieved a price at the lower end of expectations, while the other Bentley examples not mentioned here performed even less well. Overall, however, the auction was a success for Gooding & Co and proved that even the most expensive classic cars can be auctioned purely online.
Offered and Sold Vehicles
The following table lists all offered and sold vehicles with estimated prices, highest bids, and sale prices. The price conversion was made at the exchange rate valid on the auction day. All information is provided without guarantee.
| Lot | Car | Year | £ Est from | £ Est to | £ HP | £ SP | CHF SP | EUR SP | % Est | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster | 1963 | 900'000 | 1'200'000 | 850'000 | 935'000 | 1'150'050 | 1'065'900 | -10.95%
|
V |
| 2 | Bentley B Special Speed 8 | 1950 | 225'000 | 300'000 | 195'000 | 214'500 | 263'835 | 244'529 | -18.29%
|
V |
| 3 | Aston Martin DB5 Convertible | 1963 | 750'000 | 1'000'000 | 760'000 | 825'000 | 1'014'750 | 940'499 | -5.71%
|
V |
| 4 | Rolls-Royce Phantom II Continental Drophead Coupe | 1930 | 450'000 | 650'000 | 260'000 | 286'000 | 351'780 | 326'040 | -48%
|
V |
| 5 | Bentley 4 1/2 Litre Sports Tourer | 1930 | 650'000 | 900'000 | 490'000 | 539'000 | 662'970 | 614'460 | -30.45%
|
V |
| 6 | Aston Martin DB4 GT | 1961 | 2'000'000 | 2'500'000 | 2'500'000 | 2'750'000 | 3'382'500 | 3'134'999 | +22.22%
|
V |
| 7 | Ferrari 275 GTB/4 | 1967 | 1'750'000 | 2'000'000 | 1'700'000 | 1'870'000 | 2'300'100 | 2'131'800 | -0.27%
|
V |
All information is provided without guarantee.
Legend: Column S = Status (V = Sold, N = Not sold, Z = Withdrawn, U = Under reserve)
Est = Estimate, HP = Hammer Price, SP = Sale Price
