Coys at the Royal Horticultural Halls, London SW1 Oct 2nd 2003 - Review

Coys report a significant number of cars sold at their Oct 3 Auction in London’s historic Horticultural Halls, a stone’s throw from Parliament Square. Top seller was the 1931 Invicta Low Chassis S Type which went for £238,000. The 1952 Allard J2X Historic Competition Car sold for £85,575, as did the 1959 Cooper T51 Maserati (£103,500). One of our favourites, the 1975 Alfa Romeo Montreal also sold at a top-of-estimate £6,700

The 1931 Invicta Low Chassis S Type offered by Coys had spent three decades in the custody of Lt. Colonel J.R.Buckley, a respected expert on the marque and author of a number of publications on the subject. On the night the car looked to be in superb condition, already competition-ready having covered five Mille Miglia retrospectives. The price of £238,000 was a high one but in comparison to equivalent Alfa Romeos, Bugattis and Bentleys it may well be a reasonable one.

1975 Alfa Romeo Montreal - Sold for £6,700

1931 Invica Low Chassis S-Type - Sold for £238,000

Of the two Italian cars we previewed the Alfa Montreal sold but the 1969 Ferrari 365 GT 2+2 did not. Estimated at £30,000 – 35,000 the big Ferrari attracted a lot of interest in the Hall - but clearly not enough to sell. Perhaps in dark blue or silver, it was very ‘red’; a colour which does not always suit these elegant GT cars.

A good price was achieved by the 1957 AC Ace-Bristol - £64,342. The subject of what is understood to have been a $100,000 restoration in the USA, the LHD car looked superb and just shows what a well presented example can achieve on the night.