Porsche 935 development car 001 sells for big bucks at auction

1976 Porsche 935

Sold by Gooding & Company, £3.2m
Chassis 935-001 is a true piece of Porsche history, being the development car for the 935 programme and the first 935 built. Campaigned during 1976, it dominated the Watkins Glen Six Hours in the hands of Rolf Stommelen and Manfred Schurti, then finished third at Dijon – helping Porsche to win the Championship for Makes. The car was later sold to racing impresario Vasek Polak, after which it was acquired by Porsche super collector Matt Drendel, from whose estate it was sold in 2012. The car was then meticulously restored in its ’76 livery.

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1965 Ford Mustang Convertible

Sold by Bonhams, £170,800
While the values of some classics are Free Fallin, this Rangoon Red convertible hit a high note – partly because it was owned by Tom Petty. The car was sold by Petty’s widow, Dana.

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2007 Ducati Desmosedici GP7

Sold by Iconic Auctioneers, £402,500
This is the most expensive Ducati sold at auction to date – mind you, it was ridden by Casey Stoner during the 2007 Moto GP championship, which he won. The bike still wore a scrutineering tag.

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1955 Austin Healey 100S

Sold by Gooding & Company, £372,800
This was one of just 50 genuine 100S cars built by Donald Healey for competition use. It was first owned by French-Brazilian Formula 1 and Le Mans racer Hermano ‘Nano’ da Silva Ramos.

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1928 Rolls-Royce Phantom I ‘Boat-tail’

Sold by RM Sotheby’s, £55,550
If you love patina and going to bed with a warm drink this Royce with Mulliner bodywork had your name all over it. It was originally owned by malted milk scion Lt Col Sir James Nockells Horlick.

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1957 Fiat-Abarth 750GT

Sold by Bonhams, £59,775
Had the Italians not decided to sting owners of large-engined cars with high taxes, this might never have been created. The well-travelled Fiat 600-based screamer was first sold to the US.

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1985 Porsche 911 Turbo

Sold by Iconic Auctioneers, £119,250
With 2024 marking 50 years since the 911 Turbo launch, this Iris Blue example was consigned at just the right time. It had been in the same ownership for 27 years and covered 67,200 miles.

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1949 Go-On II-Alfa Romeo Ice Racer

Sold by RM Sotheby’s, £98,200
This was originally built by motor sports organiser Gunnar Olsson to race on the ice, complete with Alfa Romeo 6C engine and gearbox and Jaguar SS differential, wheels and radiator. After 50-plus years in a Swedish museum, it was ‘thawed out’ and brought back to life in 2015.

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Forthcoming sale highlights

• Bonhams, Stafford, October 12-13
  Despite growing competition from rival houses which have caught on to the desirability of motorcycles, Bonhams’ Autumn Stafford Sale is the original and best. Among gems set to cross the block is a 1913 Flying Merkel V-twin that once belonged to Hollywood stuntman Bud Ekins (£150,000-£200,000), while dozens of late 20th century road and race machines from two separate, single owner collections will also be on offer.
• RM Sotheby’s, Los Angeles, October 26
  The Rudi Klein Collection – a huge hoard of cars, some bare shells, others incomplete, others all there – is a barn-find dream. Rudi Klein emigrated to the US in the 1950s and set up a European car scrapyard, which enabled him to buy many rarities at rock-bottom prices. Amid the stacks of cars to have sat in the sun since his death in 2001 is a one-off 1935 Mercedes-Benz Caracciola by Sindelfingen and the only surviving Horch 855.
• Historics Auctioneers, Brooklands, November 23
  Ancient and modern combine in this sale being held at the state-of-the-art Mercedes-Benz World, where Historics will offer a selection of cars with connections to the old Brooklands circuit that’s just a stone’s throw away. And with the three-storey M-B World offering a fully immersive automotive experience – including its own race track and skidpan – it’s probably worth a visit even if you don’t intend to bid.
• RM Sotheby’s, Indianapolis, January TBC
  The Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum at the ‘Brickyard’ has asked RM Sotheby’s to disperse a number of its cars dating from 1906-66 in this ongoing series of sales beginning in 2025. Highlights include the Mercedes-Benz W196 Streamliner driven by Stirling Moss and Juan Manuel Fangio, the Ferrari 250 LM that won Le Mans in 1965 and a 1966 Ford GT40. Check rmsothebys.com for dates.