Cooper-Zerex that became McLaren Racing’s first sports car sells for £911k

1961 Cooper Zerex Oldsmobile ‘Transformer’

Sold by Bonhams, £911,000

As readers will know from our coverage of the historic car last month, this was originally campaigned by Roger Penske in 1962 before becoming the first sports car to be acquired by Bruce McLaren for his fledgling race team the following year. It got its ‘Transformer’ moniker as a result of the seven different engine/body configurations in which it appeared before being sold to Venezuela in 1967 – where it had remained, thought lost. Sold as an almost rolling chassis, the car represented a Herculean restoration project.

1957 BMW 507

Sold by Bonhams, £2.1m

One of only 13 507s delivered new to Venezuela, this was originally owned by a chewing gum salesman. It was acquired by its third owner in 1979 after which it remained stored in the US until 2022.

1953 MG TD Supercharged special

Sold by RM Sotheby’s, £107,500

This meticulously built, aluminium-bodied special paid tribute to the car raced at Le Mans in 1939 by Miles Collier, the American who, together with brother Sam, brought MG to the US.

1969 volkswagen beach buggy Prowler

Sold by Historics, £35,840

Values of beach buggies have been boosted by publicity around the revival of Meyers Manx, so it’s no surprise that this rebuilt Prowler by East Coast Buggies kicked sand in the face of its estimate.

1982 Porsche 911 Targa restomod

Sold by Historics, £100,800

Originality used to be all in the world of classic 911s but restomodders such as Magnus Walker and Singer Vehicle Design mean tastefully upgraded cars are often more valuable than standard ones.

2011 Aston Martin One-77

Sold by RM Sotheby’s, £1.6m

Aston’s rare One-77 was the world’s most powerful naturally aspirated road car when launched in 2008. Of the 77 made, this was 65 and had covered 1100 miles. The One-77 originally retailed at £1.1m.

1931  Pur Sang Alfa Romeo 8C

Sold by RM Sotheby’s, £550,000

The thousands of items offered from the collection of Texan kitchen cabinet tycoon Gene Ponder made it difficult to choose a favourite – but this recreation of Alfa’s 8C spider by Pur Sang is a contender.

2020 Aston Martin DB5 stunt car

Sold by Christie’s, £2.9m

The only DB5 stunt car from the latest Bond movie No Time To Die to be released into the wild wasn’t all it seemed – the bodywork was made from carbon fibre and attached to a spaceframe chassis, while power came from a BMW engine. Proceeds go to a host of charities including the Prince’s Trust.

Forthcoming sale highlights

• Bonhams, London, November 4
  Bonhams is back with another sale of ‘pioneer’ vehicles in its Golden Age of Motoring sale that’s traditionally scheduled to coincide with the celebrated London to Brighton Veteran Car Run. Highlights include a 1907 steam-powered Stanley EX, a 1904 Swift 7hp which has been in single family ownership since 1931 and a Peugeot Type 15 from 1898, complete with fitted wooden tool drawers. Not that you’ll need them.
• Mecum, Las Vegas, November 10-12
  Don’t expect any Vivas at this Mecum blockbuster but there won’t be many American cars that go unrepresented among the hundreds of lots. Moderns include a brace of waiting list-dodging Ford Bronco SUVs, while among the ‘classics’ you’ll find an insane 1939 GMC fire truck that’s been customised into a low-riding hotrod and a 1968 Ford ‘Turtleback’ drag racer known as ‘The Frantic Farmer’. Oooh-arrrrr…
• Historics, Mercedes-Benz World, Weybridge, surrey, November 26
  It’s not just cars with the three-pointed star that are eligible for this bumper sale at Mercedes-Benz World near the historic Brooklands circuit. Last year’s event featured more than 175 lots of cars and motorcycles, many offered at no reserve. Of particular interest is a right-hand drive 1976 Maserati Bora – one of only 42 made and fresh from a £150,000 restoration.
• H&H, National Motorcycle Museum, Solihull, December 7
  This annual year-end motorcycle sale has become as much a highlight of the two-wheeled auction scene as the long-standing Stafford Show events staged by Bonhams. Highlights include a vast selection of vintage scooters, a superb BSA Super Rocket café racer, estimate £7000-£9000, and a 1973 MV Augusta 750 S with 2222 miles which could make £40,0