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5 collector cars to put in your garage this week

Whether you’re looking to tear up a special rally stage or ferry around your two-and-a-half children and prized pet in the most elegant way possible, we think this week’s selection from the Classic Driver Market should tick all the boxes…

Second wind

Following its duties as a press car, this early Quattro was drafted into action by Audi’s official UK rally team. David Sutton was the man charged with transforming the car into a full-fat rally weapon that would be used by the likes of Hannu Mikkola and John Buffum for practice and reconnaissance missions. ‘BRP 223X’ was also entered into a number of rallies including the 1983 Rothmans Circuit of Ireland, and it’s the specification and livery the car used for that very event in which it appears today. It’s difficult to underplay the significance of this ‘survivor’ Quattro. 

Race on Sunday, sell on Monday? 

Utter the words ‘Group A’ and we’d bet the first image that springs to mind is that of the whale-tailed Ford Sierra RS500 being slithered around Brands Hatch or Bathurst by the likes of Andy Rouse or Steve Soper. In race trim, 500bhp could easily be coaxed from the rear-wheel-drive saloon’s turbocharged engine. Which goes some way to explain why the RS500 was so dominant in the various Group A series – it once took 40 consecutive outright victories! This particular example from 1988 was raced all over the world by Team CMS Sweden and has just been restored to as-new specification. One flick through the photos and we’re sure you’ll agree the work looks outstanding. 

An improvement on the original? 

Everyone loves a shooting brake, particularly those that render an already very British car even more so. The Jaguar XJS is one such example. The Sussex engineering company Lynx began to convert the V12 Grand Tourer into a wagon in the early 1980s. And at the time, Motorsport magazine said that the quality was so high that the so-called Eventer ‘might well have been straight from the Jaguar factory’. High praise, indeed. This particular Eventer V12 is the 62nd of just 67 built by Lynx before 2002 and looks to be in fabulous condition. 

Less is more? 

Whatever happened to less is more? The Lamborghini Murciélago is a great case in point. Compared to the sultry and sleek original 6.3, the LP640 was comparatively frumpy, while the SV, with its huge rear wing and abundant carbon-fibre aerodynamic addenda, lost any semblance of the elegance that remained. We reckon this 2005 Murciélago Roadster is the model’s sweet spot. Though it’s without the preferable six-speed manual gearbox, the car has had just two owners from new and shows just 733 miles on the clock. 

Green machine

Much like the contemporary Alfa Romeo Giulia, Giugiaro’s original manages to make a relatively humble and utilitarian saloon look positively exotic. In addition to making a worthy case for the Make Green Again movement, this 1964 Giulia Sprint GT 1600 in Verde Muschio is notable for being an early car with its matching-numbers chassis and engine. 

Photos: International Collectables by Edward Lovett, Duncan Hamilton ROFGO, Wim Prins, Curated, Very Superior Old Cars