Historics’ extrovert  sale offerings on November 29th spice up the auction landscape

IDIOSYNCRACY RULES OK

Variety is the spice of life for countless millions of classic car enthusiasts, the wide choice for buyers and collectors brought sharply into focus at Historics Auctioneers’ forthcoming live sale at Mercedes-Benz World, Brooklands, Surrey on Saturday, 29^th November.

Within the rich 175-strong entry of the finest classic cars there couldn’t be greater polar opposites…

On the one hand, waving the flag vigorously for exotic limousine honours is a hugely-opulent 1956 Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith ‘Perspex Top’.  This utterly unique Hooper coach-built saloon was commissioned by the flamboyant multi-millionaire Nubar Gulbenkian. Magnificent in every respect, it features stunning coachwork and a one-off perspex roof, beneath which is an interior of consummate luxury. Estimate: £200,000-£325,000

But if you like your motoring a little more on the wild side, poles apart from the Rolls-Royce in terms of character but equally sensational and enormously collectable is an eye-candy trio of early 70’s California show cars, all taken from a private collection and enticingly offered without reserve.  

These unique one-offs reek of the super-expressive USA  ‘why not’ hot rod and street rod culture of 50 years ago (incidentally beating Nike’s iconic ‘Just Do It ‘ call to arms by well over a decade).

California show cars, a vibrant reflection of such one-of-a-kind vehicles built by West Coast USA-based customizers in the 60’s and 70’s, featured famed extrovert creators such as Bob Reisner, Steve Tansy and George Barris.

The first of the sale entries, ‘Sand Draggin’, is essentially Reisner’s take on an outlandish dune buggy, believed to have been built around 1970. It was restored some 15 years ago to its original eye-popping specification that includes a monster 7.4 litre V8 delivering in the region of 670bhp and driven through an automatic gearbox. Offered at no reserve.

The second, ‘Pool Hustler’, also created around 1970, was penned by another USA custom supremo, Steve Tansy, who spent nearly 40 years re-modelling famous cars like the Batmobile, Ecto-1 used in ‘Ghostbusters’, and Black Beauty that appeared in the 2011 action movie ‘The Green Hornet’.

Atop a V8 Hemi powerhouse (currently not running) is a full size original pool table believed to be some 100 years old. A showcase of pure whimsy, ‘Pool Hustler’ features pool cues neatly tucked into the side bodywork, pool ball styled wheel caps, sunken pool balls to the front of the bodywork and a ‘V’ shaped handle as the steering wheel, with the obligatory pool ball at the centre. Offered without reserve.

Completing the trio is the 1971 ‘Sidewinder’ Trike created by the king of the show car fraternity, George Barris. A celebrated creator of Hollywood custom cars. Barris’s company, Barris Kustom Industries, is famed for designing and building the Munster Koach and Drag-U-La for ‘The Munsters’ and the 1966 Batmobile for the ‘Batman’ TV film and TV series. 

The ‘Sidewinder’ three-wheeler was effectively built around its beefy transverse (and hence the name) Buick 329 cu.in V8. Mated to an automatic gearbox, drive is via double chain and sprocket. Street presence is assured thanks to the monster magnesium rear wheels and tyres ‘borrowed’ by George Barris from a Douglas DC-6 airliner… and why not?

It is believed that this extraordinary trike, which has been signed by George Barris, was used occasionally by Steve McQueen, and on at least one occasion is said to have been demonstrated by him on the main straightaway at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Offered without reserve.

And that’s not the end of Historics’ idiosyncratic offering at this colourful sale…

Outrageous in every sense, the trio of extrovert expression rubs shoulders with a one-off British icon of extravagance, the one-and-only six-wheel, twin-Rover V8-engined Wolfrace Sonic, designed and built for the ebullient Wolfrace founder Barry Treacy in 1981 to promote his enthusiast alloy wheel of the same name.  It evidently worked as some 50,000 Sonic wheels were sold.  Offered without reserve.

Perhaps the ‘piece de resistance’ in terms of UK one-off wackiness coming to sale here is ‘The Beast’.  Built on a chassis by Paul Jameson in 1966, the enormous one-off creation features a 10 ft long bonnet – a shade less than the overall length of the original Mini – beneath which lurks a 27-litre V12 Spitfire aero engine (less propellor), driven through a custom three-speed automatic transmission.

An enterprising and adventurous engineer John Dodd, whose talents were responsible for the gearbox, acquired the ‘The Beast’, road registering the car in 1972. His original Ford Capri-styled bodywork was destroyed in a fire, following which Dodd re-bodied it as it is presented today.  The original 27-litre V12 Meteor tank engine – a victim of the fire – was replaced with the current powerplant and the vendor, who acquired the car in 2023, has recently completed a very extensive restoration to an extremely high standard.  Estimate: £75,000-£100,000.

Finally, on the same theme and with Christmas gifts on the agenda, what could be better for any young crime fighter than a driveable 1/3 scale replica of a ‘Batmobile’.  This faithful copy of the car that starred in the 1989 Batman movie was commissioned by Warner Brothers for publicity and promotional use. Barely used over the past ten years, it is powered by a petrol engine beneath a fibreglass body which presents beautifully. Estimate: £4,000-£7,000

The Historics auction commences at 0930 on Saturday 29^th November at Mercedes-Benz World, Brooklands, Surrey, preceded by two preview days.

For full details of all 175 auction entries, plus bidder registration, in hall on line and by phone, see www.historics.co.uk