15/08/2011 RM’s 26 October London sale: early entries revealed
1972 Alfa Romeo 33/3 TT: £525,000 - 575,000
RM Auctions’ Battersea sale returns this October for its fifth, consecutive year. In 2010 the event grossed £20 million and early entries - including a trio of significant Alfa Romeos - bode well for 2011.
The most exciting of these is the 1972 33/3 TT – chassis number AR11572/010 – that raced in the 1972 Le Mans 24 Hours in the hands of Nino Vaccarella and Andrea de Adamich. Complete with a freshly rebuilt, 440bhp, 3.0-litre V8, the car carries an estimate of £525,000 - £575,000. Less affluent Alfisti might be tempted by the James Young-bodied 1929 6C 1750 estimated at £100,000-130,000, or the 1939 6C 2500 Cabriolet. The latter is believed to be one of only two examples completed by Touring, and carries an estimate of £180,000-220,000.
1967 Maserati Mistral 4000 Coupé
1929 Alfa Romeo 6C 1750: £100,000-130,000
Naturally enough, no classic car auction is complete without a Ferrari (or ten), and the 1966 275 GTB is a fine example. Chassis 08255 has just 26,400km showing on the dash, and the long-nose, alloy-bodied example is expected to fetch £660,000 - £720,000. Another light alloy car in the sale is the lavishly restored 1965 Iso Grifo A3 C (£350,000 - 400,000), the last-ever A3 C produced.
1965 Iso Grifo A3 C (alloy-body): £350,000-400,000
For a similar price (£300,000-375,000), buyers could choose a Type 57 Bugatti with coachwork by Swiss/French company Gangloff. Other pre-War entries include a London-to-Brighton-eligible 1900 DeDion-Bouton Vis-à-Vis (£65,000 - 85,000) and an extremely rare 1935 Avions Voisin C25 Cimier, expected to command £270,000-320,000.
The 1958 Lister-Chevrolet was purchased by its current owner in 1969. Originally imported to the USA in 1958 by Tom Carstens, it was later crashed at the 1960 LA Times Grand Prix, resulting in a fire. Brian Lister himself was brought in to assist with the restoration and BHL 110 was returned to its former glory, with the current owner competing in many historic car races since then. The recently rebuilt Chevrolet 358 CID engine has been dyno-tested at around 660bhp, and drives through a T10 gearbox. Estimate: £475,000 - 575,000.
Another British car on offer at Battersea, this time suitable for the street, rather than the track, is a freshly restored 1964 Aston Martin DB5, estimated at £220,000-260,000.