What's all this about?
Bonhams has reported that its Spa Classic sale on 24th May saw the most valuable lot ever sold to an online bidder. The ex-Jürgen Oppermann/Otto Altenbach/Loris Kessel Obermaier Racing 1990-93 Porsche Type 962 C Endurance Racing Competition Coupe, sold for £1,056,965 (€1,495,000). Overall the auction achieved sales totalling £3,903,602; a record result and almost double last year's figure.
Commenting on the auction results Philip Kantor, Bonhams European Head of Motoring, said: "The internet continues to grow as a trusted method with which clients can bid, a fact proven today by the most valuable lot ever sold at a Bonhams auction to an online bidder, after the 1990-93 Porsche Type 962 C Endurance Racing Competition Coupe was sold for €1,495,000. Sold directly from the factory, the Porsche 962 had been carefully maintained by the same private owner for the past 25 years, so it was unsurprising it achieved such interest."
Any other interesting lots?
It wasn't just racing cars and online bidders; a 1988 Porsche 959 Coupé sold for £494,900 to a telephone bidder from the UK, while a 1992 Porsche 911 Carrera RS Type 964 Coupé went to a bidder in the room for £158,544. Representing front-engined Porsches, the hammer fell at £56,913 for a 1980 Porsche 924 Carrera GT Coupé.
Classic Ferraris included a 1976 308 GTB 'Vetroresina' (which sounds a lot more glamourous than 'fibreglass'). Production of the 308 series spanned ten years but only the 712 cars built before June 1977 featured glass fibre bodywork; someone was prepared to pay £178,871 for the example sold by Bonhams. Also in the sale was a 1970 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 'Daytona' - an early car with burgundy bodywork - that achieved £471,569.
What about British classics?
British cars included a 1958 Aston Martin DB Mark III (£174,805) and three Jaguar E-type roadsters. All three E-types were 'Series 1' models with the highest price of £121,957 paid for a 1962, 3.8-litre model with three owners from new.
John Lambert - 27 May 2015