Museum piece
Often considered to be the original ‘hot hatch’, the golf GTI garnered a cult following in the 1980s that, to this day, continues to flourish. It’s of little surprise, then, that many owners tend to cherish, preserve, and hold onto their cars. Take this deep-black GTI from 1983, for example – it’s had just two careful owners from new, wears its original paint, and shows just 16,000 miles on the clock. The of-the-era cloth interior is particularly impressive, showing virtually zero signs of wear.
An exercise in restraint
When Audi took over Lamborghini in 1998 and set about modernising the Diablo, the scissor-doored supercar from Sant’Agata finally got the refinement and build quality to rival the spaceship-like styling. Built in 2000, this Diablo VT 6.0 is notable because it was retained by the factory as a demonstrator until 2003, after which it was sold to a French collector who’s kept it ever since. More impressive is the restraint its second owner’s shown in adding only around 4,000 miles to the clock in his 15 years of ownership.
The ‘Early’ Interceptor
Having recently spent some time drifting in the dust with Hing Yeung and his Jensen Interceptor, upon our return from California we headed straight to the Classic Driver Market in search of the muscular gentleman’s express – for research purposes, naturally! It was then that we happened on this quirky 1950s coupé, the original Jensen Interceptor. A Bristol 401 and Bentley R-type competitor in the period, the car was both cheaper and reportedly better to drive than both.
A wonderful Works racer
This pretty little Austin-Healey Sebring Sprite has a list of credentials guaranteed to prick the ears of any serious collector. A factory entry to the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1964, the prototype was unusually sold after the race to a BMC dealer in Pennsylvania. After entering a handful of local hill-climb events, said dealer retired the car – then with a mere 787 miles on the odometer – and carefully stored it. Amazingly, it’s hardly moved since. A genuine time-warp Works racer from that most golden of motorsport eras, opportunities like this don’t come up very often.
The perfect balance
Last year, Porsche bowed to the pressure of its customers and revealed that it would offer a Touring Package with the GT3 – essentially, creating a road-bred 911 for the purists, complete with more subtle styling, an automatically deploying spoiler from the Carrera, and most importantly, a six-speed manual gearbox. This stunning white 2018 example has been specified in such a way that it blends the deliberate understatement of the Touring Package with the sporting intent of the ‘regular’ GT3. We think it’s a perfect balance…
Photos: Girardo & Co, Fast Classics, JB Classic Cars, Bavaria Motors
