Hot on the auction block recently...
1974 Holden LH Torana SLR 5000
Sold: $115,000
Shannons
When Australian car design guru Paul Beranger was working for the General he ordered this Torana SL/R 5000, the first in Tuxedo black and took delivery days before his wedding. With the nuptials done Mr and Mrs B blasted up to Queensland for their honeymoon and knowing PB, he probably snuck in a visit to a race meeting somewhere along the way. Anyhow, it’s been with the current vendor for 43 years who bought it from Beranger in May 1975. It got a respray 25 years ago and an engine rebuild by Bruce Hindaugh about 45,000km ago, with plenty of L34 bits. With Beranger’s name and one other in the owner’s manual, no surprise it nailed such a good price after being offered unreserved.
1992 Mercedes-Benz 300SE
Sold: $6000
Shannons
Who’d have thought the bargain buy of the auction would wear such a revered badge? The S-Class Benz was the limo of the litter and you can imagine a corprorate highflyer sitting in th back plotting his next takeover.The W140 was considered the last of the ‘over-engineered’ models and featured double glazing, power-assisted door closers and power assisted boot closer (I always thought the hotel concierges did it). Rear parking wands rose from the rear guards like the antenna from the head of Uncle Martin in the TV show My Favourite Martian.
1964 Falcon 260 V8 Futura coupe
Sold: $36,500
Shannons
The Mustang’s launch in 1964 meant nobody noticed this Ford. However the pony car was based on the 1963-65 US Falcon Sprint. With a 260ci V8 and two-speed auto it could haul the mail. Since its arrival here two years ago it has had minor work done. Its original fixtures and fittings are there along with some books. Bloody cheap, fast and an eye-catcher I reckon.
1980 HDT VC Brock Commodore
Sold: $79,000
Burns & Co Munday collection
Slowly but surely we’re starting to see these cars properly appreciated both as early Commodores and the start of the whole Brock, HDT and HSV phenomenon. While later HSVs tend to be a little undervalued, prices for these early cars are firming. This example was in pretty good nick and seemed ready to roll. Part of the Phil Munday collection it scored plenty of interest and with just over 78,000km showing, we suspect it was good buying.
1960 Aston Martin DB4 to GT Spec
Sold: $1.023m
Bonhams Goodwood
Aston Martin reckoned it was on a winner with the DB4 and developed a lightweight competition version, the GT. With a top speed of almost 250km/h and a 0-160km/h-0 time of under 20seconds, it was impressive. This stunning recreation started life as a Series 2 DB4, was barnfound and underwent a no-expense-spared resto. While most genuine DB4 GTs are locked in museums, it’s still a lot of money for a tribute car.
Coming up:
1972 Ford Falcon Phase IV GT-HO
Where: Lloyds, Queensland
October 20, 2018
This one will attract huge interest – claiming to be one of four Phase IV Falcon GT-HOs known to exist. Three are former race-prepped cars and the other a road car. Ford, like Chrysler with the hi-po 340-powered Chargers aimed at Bathurst, was spooked by the road-going race car scare of 1972, ignited by a front page tabloid newspaper article, decrying the appearance of ‘160mph Super Cars’ on our roads. The GT-HO program was shut down, helping to make this a very rare and desirable local classic. Expect to see a big number on this.