Star Cars Going Under the Charterhouse Hammer

A brace of classic cars offer two very different options for owners looking to go classic car racing, rallying or just having fun in the sun when they go under the Charterhouse hammer in their auction of classic and vintage cars on Sunday 22^nd April “It is almost a David and Goliath scenario.” Commented Matthew Whitney. “Ready to do battle there is a delightful Austin 7 Ulster TT Special which is closely followed by a Healey Silverstone, the likes of which raced in all the tops events such as the famous Mille Miglia.”





Charterhouse have been conducting specialist classic car auctions for over 10 years and the market today and have firmly established themselves as one of the top firms of auctioneers who sell classic and vintage cars. Despite the recent downturn in the market for a number of items, the classic car market is currently particularly strong with Charterhouse achieving very high prices. The 1934 Austin 7 Ulster TT replica with its tiny 747cc engine was re-bodied by Rod Yates in 1994 with a very pretty boat tail aluminium body featuring a particularly fetching Brooklands exhaust, and is being offered for sale from a West Country deceased estate.


The 1951 Healey Silverstone features a 2500cc twin cam engine. It was previously owned and raced by Chris Berens who was the Association of Healey Owners Club Race Secretary, and re-bodied in 1989, which is not unusual for cars that are fiercely campaigned around the race track.
To enter a classic car or vehicle into this great auction, or for more information regarding the sale, please contact Matthew Whitney, Head of Classic Cars at Charterhouse, The Long Street Salerooms, Sherborne 01935 81227 or via email on www.charterhouse-auctions.co.uk.

Captions:

1934 Austin 7 Ulster TT replica with its tiny 747 cc engine £8,000-10,000
1951 Healey Silverstone with its powerful twin cam engine £30,000-40,000Quick Links

Highlights of the Classic Car Sale

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Charterhouse Triumph

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A 1973 Triumph TR6 is which was last on the road in 1993 has already been entered into the Charterhouse auction of classic cars on Sunday 22nd April.
“It has been entered into the auction from a deceased estate and is only a two owner car having been purchased when it was just two years old.” Commented Matthew Whitney. “It was fully restored in 1992 but has remained in the its garage since 1993 until we recently collected it from amongst the lawn and garden tools!”
This late model fuel injected TR6 with a work hardtop has already sparked interest from collectors and enthusiasts and should have no difficulty in passing its modest estimate of £3,000-5,000.
For more details of this auction or to consign a classic or vintage car, please contact Matthew Whitney, Head of Classic & Vintage Cars at Charterhouse, The Long Street Salerooms, Sherborne, Dorset on 01935 812277, or via email at mw@charterhouse-auctions.co.uk
Caption:
In amongst the garden tools, a Triumph TR6 having been garage stored for nearly 20 years, despite having been fully restored £3,000-5,000
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Triumph is Top Trump at Charterhouse Auction

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A Triumph TR3a is just one of the star cars in the Charterhouse auction of classic cars on Sunday 12th February.

“Triumph Motor Cars always evoke memories for everyone, but possibly none more so than the famous TR sports car range, and we are pleased to receive instructions to sell this beautiful original UK 1960 Triumph TR3a .”  Commented Matthew Whitney. “Despite the doom and gloom there is around at the moment, and we have just had our best ever year for selling classic and vintage cars with an impressive total of over £700,000. Many of our clients prefer to have money in motors rather than sitting in the bank earning them little interest, with buyers often buying classic cars they enjoyed in their youth or possibly cars they aspired to when they were younger.”
The Triumph TR3a entered into the Charterhouse auction has been fully restored to a high standard by its owner. It is known as a matching numbers car whereby the car still retains the original engine and gearbox as it was supplied with new over 50 years ago.  Since it has been it its current owners hands it has undergone a total restoration and is now finished in Triumph powder blue, is trimmed in blue leather, sits on chrome wire wheels, and the engine has been converted to run on unleaded fuel. Estimates at £15,000-18,000, the owner is selling as he gets more enjoyment out of restoring his cars rather than driving them.
For more details of this auction or to consign a classic or vintage car, please contact Matthew Whitney, Head of Classic & Vintage Cars at Charterhouse, The Long Street Saleroom, Sherborne, Dorset on 01935 812277, or via email at mw@charterhouse-auctions.co.uk
Caption:
Top Triumph TR3a going under the Charterhouse hammer in February £15,000-18,000
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Carefree Capri at Charterhouse

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A Ford Capri, once a common sight on our roads and now rarely seen, is one of the many classic cars entered into the Charterhouse auction at The Royal Bath & West Showground on Sunday 12th February.
“This Ford Capri has bought by the vendor in Yeovil in 1979 when it was just two years old. For many years, it was his daily driver until he took it off the road after it nearly covering  an amazing 250,000 miles!” Commented Matthew Whitney. “He then undertook a full restoration of the car using genuine Ford parts, but has hardly used the car subsequently.”
The Ford Capri was first launched in 1969, and the Capri going under the Charterhouse hammer is a Mark II 1600 GL finished in white with a black vinyl roof which was first registered in 1977 The last Capri rolled off the production line in 1986.

For more details of this auction or to consign a classic or vintage car, please contact Matthew Whitney, Head of Classic & Vintage Cars at Charterhouse, The Long Street Saleroom, Sherborne, Dorset on 01935 812277, or via email at mw@charterhouse-auctions.co.uk

Caption:

1977 Ford Capri 1600 GL being sold by Charterhouse estimated at £2,800-3,200

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Clockwork Orange

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A wonderful Compagnie Industrielle du Jouet (CIJ) Alfa Romeo P2 clockwork tin plate racing car has been consigned for the next Charterhouse Classic Car, Motorcycle and Automobilia auction at the Royal Bath and West Showground Shepton Mallet, on Sunday 12 February 2012.

'This rare clockwork model from the 1920s, which has been in the client's possession for 70 years, had pride of place on her bookcase. On one of our  free home visits, I valued it as having an estimate of between £1,200 and £1,500,' commented Matthew Whitney.  'This particular P2 is in the most appealing original condition.  It has beautifully patinated and faded Rosso coachwork, faux cracked leather seats, the correct cloverleaf decals and racing numbers.  Models as original as this rarely come on to the market, and as such are highly prized by collectors.'

Also entered in the auction is a fully rebuilt 1976 Ford Capri 1600 GL, having been with the current owner since 1977, and driven for nearly 250,000 miles during that that time.  In recent years, since the restoration, it has had a more pampered life, attending the odd classic car show and used for high days and holidays. Matthew continues 'Fords manufactured in the 1970s/80s are becoming increasingly popular with enthusiasts, with prices rising accordingly.  This Capri is ideally placed for selling, as the auction is being held in conjunction with the
Footman James Ford Show and Great Western Autojumble.'

For more details of this auction or to consign a vehicle or automobilia, please contact Matthew Whitney at the Charterhouse head office on 01935 812277, or via email at mw@charterhouse-auctions.co.uk

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High Rollers!

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The Charterhouse sale includes a wide variety of cars including a 1926 Bullnose Morris, a 1927 Chrysler Imperial Tourer, a 1931 Austin 20/6 Limousine, a 1946 Humber Hawk painted in MOD staff car colours, two Morris Minor Tourers, both white, a BMW 2002 Tii sprint car and even a 1996 Mini Cooper!
Viewing for this sale is on Saturday 5th November 10am-4pm and on Sunday 6th from 10am. For full details and listings go to the Charterhouse website where the catalogue can be downloaded www.charterhouse-auctions.co.uk or contact Matthew Whitney 01935 812277

Captions:




Sprint car – a BMW 2002 Tii £4,000-5,000
Wedding car – a 1931 Austin 20/6 Limousine £13,000-15,000
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Pictures

Here are some neat pictures my wife took of the Le Mans and the rattle trap '27. You need to click on each photo to get the full effect; I think they came out wonderfully! The '65 Le Mans is wearing its "new" wheels...and I love them! I think I am completely sold on Rally I's now. I pulled these wheels from a neat '64 GTO project car that I picked up last year and proceeded to have the wheels sandblasted, then painting them with Valspar DTM epoxy primer, followed by Valspar base/clear in an Argent Silver. The center caps showed these were '66 or later Rally I wheels because they had the inner circle unpolished and painted semi gloss black. After LOTS of stripping and hours of polishing with both the die grinder and the big buffer they turned out smooth and shiny. I then chose the thin whitewall radials ( I was too cheap to order bias ply, even though they would look even better) and had them mounted. The wheels look perfect on this car!



Here is the '27, with that gaping hole between the body and frame. It is part of this car's character...stop laughing! The wife's picture of this car really turned out nice; I like the lighting and the full profile.

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Importing British Rust

That's what my colleague rather unkindly referred to my car buying habits as. And here we are again, barely 6 months after buying a Jaguar XJ-SC, yours truly is the proud owner of a 1999 Mini.

That's right, THE Mini. Not the (admittedly very nice, albeit the spoils of a treacherous asset-stripping operation) BMW imitation Mini, no sir - the real deal. It's an end-of-the-line standard Mini with the 1275cc block. It's an MPi engine, which means fuel injected, and internally it has all mod cons like driver air-bag and seatbelt pre-tensioners (as if that'll save you if you hit anything of any moment in a Mini!) a radio/cassette with actually quite decent factory speakers in the parcel shelf, alarm and engine immobiliser, a rather attractive walnut dash, "pepper pot" alloy wheels, even a rev counter!

I must confess, this was a bit of a gamble. I've never driven a Mini before, though I remember mates having them when I was at school. I even remember once being forced to sit in the back of one (thanks Pat) and surviving to tell the tale (just). Which meant it was quite cute when I took it round to Pat's house, whose wife also used to have a Mini, and now have photos of their little daughter leaping all over the inside of mine...

Anyway, I digress, never driven a Mini, knew little about them, just had a sense they'd be fun, soulful little cars and of some value for their cute looks and head-turning abilities alone. And this is a late one with about as big an engine as a Mini can have, so I figured it'll start first time in the morning, behave itself reasonably well on the motorway and be a genuinely viable second car.

So I bought the Mini. In Liverpool. (That's right, 1,000 miles from home.) And flew over to fetch it. And drove it back to the south of France. This was approximately my route.

I have rarely had so much fun. The Mini is a *fabulous* car. I am still grinning from ear to ear. It's noisy, it's bouncy, it leaks oil all over the driveway, but all is forgiven when you hear that exhaust note. Driving it through the Peak District National Park, in Derbyshire at dusk, was just amazing fun. This car is every bit as much fun as my Lotus used to be, and I sincerely mean that! That's right, the Mini has the soul of the Lotus Elan! Wonderful handling, glued to the road, gutsy 1275cc engine, just bags and bags of fun.

I'm so happy I've got this car. I've a feeling it will be a pain in the ass to maintain, but who cares?! I am loving driving it, and that's what really counts.

Another win for the old British car in my book - yeh, it might rust, but I can live with that.

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More Oldsmobile

Ouch! See that seam I just made? After all the careful work I am now just welding it shut! And the reason for covering my replacement seam (which I made specifically to reproduce the factory lead seam) is the frustration with lead. I filled the seam with lead (actually lead-free solder) three times, each time the lead seam cracking after bodywork. I also was warping the metal too much with all the heat of three rounds of solder.

It is very possible I could have left it, scored the seam and been fine. But it was driving my susceptibility to paranoia crazy. I kept imagining the flux stained innerds of the new joint rusting fast, pushing a bulge of lead up; which is exactly why I removed the seam in the first place.

The last picture shows the seam totally covered, getting the plastic filler treatment.




Here is the lower driver 1/4 that I fabricated, finally getting filler and some left over urethane high build primer. The little spot just below the emblem holes also got some filler after hammer and dolly work.



Sneek peek above! After selling the '64 Le Mans, I stumbled on this amazing "parts car" for the '64 442. It is in unbelievably excellent condition: virtually NO rust, runs perfect, and the interior is in excellent original shape. I am scared to tear this car apart as a donor for the 442 even though I need almost everything from it. It is just too nice of an original. True treasures still exist!



Here is the whole '62, slowly coming along. Why is it that a car that needs comparably little bodywork still demands so much time, so much decision making?




Passenger rear spot that I replaced sheet metal on is getting filler and blocking.




More filler on the pass. quarter. Lots of dents on this side of the car, forcing me to improve my hammer and dolly methods.




Here is the upper fender lip, showing the painstaking work of stripping without removing the fender. I remove one bolt, strip with a small wire wheel on my die grinder, then replace the bolt and move to the next spot. The plan is to keep the fender aligned.




This last picture is referred to at the end of the first picture's description. Body work is actually a painstaking project! Especially the straightening and forming, the blocking and filing.

And there is still much more to do...

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High Rollers at Charterhouse Classic Car Auction

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There is plenty of choice for collectors to buy a Rolls Royce or a Bentley as there are 10 included in the Charterhouse July auction of classic cars at Sherborne Castle on Sunday 17th July.
“We usually have a couple of Rolls Royce and Bentley motor cars in our auction, but this time there are 10 models on offer!” Commented Matthew Whitney. “There are rare and early coach built cars through to later standard production models, if you can ever call a Rolls Royce standard.”
There is a 1927 Rolls Royce park Ward Tourer at £40,000-45,000, a 1933 Rolls Royce  Hooper bodied 20/25 four light sports saloon for £30,000-35,000, a 1961 Rolls Royce Cloud II long wheel base £28,000-32,000, a 1979 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow, once owned by the Qatar Embassy, £10,000-14,000, a 1986 Bentley Mulsanne £6,000-8,000, a 1995 Bentley Continental  R £28,000-32,000, a 1956 Bentley S Type £17,000-19,000, a 1962 Bentley S2 Continental Flying Spur £65,000-70,000, a 1997 Bentley Brooklands £10,000-14,000 and totally at the other end of the scale a 1977 Bentley T2 for spares or restoration at £1,000-1,500
Viewing for this important Charterhouse classic car auction of 60 motor car and motorcycles is on Sunday 17th July from 10.00am, with the auction starting at 2.00pm. For further information concerning this sale, please contact Matthew Whitney, Head of Classic Cars, at Charterhouse 01935 812277 or log on to their website www.charterhouse-auctions.co.uk where you can see all the cars.
Captions:
A 1927 Rolls Royce Tourer £40,000-45,000
A 1962 Bentley S2 Continental Flying Spur £65,000-70,000
A 1995 Bentley Continental R £28,000-32,000
A 1961 Rolls Royce Cloud II long wheel base £28,000-32,000Quick Links

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Tel: (01935) 812277

For further information regarding this article, please contact Richard Bromell, Partner

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