The best of the best?
A veteran of two 24 Hours of Le Mans races, this ex-Works 1968 Alpine A220 is the earliest of just five examples known to remain and, of those, boasts the most extensive period competition history. Furthermore, it was the only A220 road-registered by the factory. Its list of custodians is delightfully short: the Works, Alpine’s then-chassis designer Jean-Pierre Buirette, and the current owner. Be it the Tour Auto or the Le Mans Classic, is there a more special or important French sports racing car in which to compete?
Fit for a king
There was only one reason to take your car to a tuning house in the ’80s, and that was to make it stand out. And stand out Rinspeed’s 911 Turbo did. However, in tweaking the 930’s elegant styling, we reckon it had also aged two decades before it even left Rinspeed’s factory, where it received the extrovert R69 bodywork in the early ’80s. But who are we to talk about beauty? Kitsch as they might've been, tuned 911s (or tuned anything, for that matter) were all the rage. This Pearl White example from 1980 will go under the hammer at Silverstone Auctions’ next sale on 19 May.
Viva Vitesse!
If you had any run-ins with the British constabulary in the 1980s, or was fortunate enough to witness Andy Rouse win the British Touring Car Championship in 1984, you’ll be familiar with the Rover SD1. On the back of the car’s competition endeavours, Rover introduced the ‘hotter’ Vitesse version of the 3.5-litre V8 model, of which this rare manual example is one. Dogged by build-quality and reliability issues, and widely acknowledged, perhaps unfairly, as a ‘poor man’s Aston Martin’ back in the day, we think the luxury British sports car is now a cool and affordable alternative to other cars from the same epoch.
All boxes ticked
As we’ve come to learn in the last two years, rarity and originality are the two primary value drivers for modern sports and super cars. Take this 2005 Mercedes-Benz CLK DTM AMG for example. It’s one of just 100 built, shows just 5,100 miles on its odometer, and is listed around £100,000 over its original list price. As you’d imagine, the lightweight, stripped-out special edition boasts genuine supercar-rivalling performance, to boot. Even used sparingly, this Mercedes is guaranteed to thrill and exhilarate in equal measure.
Bianco Avus over Pelle Verde
Spring has officially sprung in London this week, which certainly increased our lust for a convertible in which to make of the most of the sunshine. Incidentally, this 2002 Ferrari 550 Barchetta, in a curious colour combination of Bianco Avus over Pelle Verde, just appeared in the Classic Driver Market, and we think it actually looks sensational. One of just 42 right-hand-drive examples produced (and 448 in total), it’s covered just 2,000 miles from new and has the all-important Classiche certificate. All that’s left is for you to pull on a pastel pink shirt and some Ray Bans and head for the British Riviera — this weather won’t hang around for long!
Photos: William I’Anson / Silverstone Auctions / FS Automóveis / Curated / DD Classics
