Fancy a classic car? You could have one next week

12 October, 2018

 


 

Never mind waiting for inspiration to strike, mulling over the marques, or deciding on the decade.

You could short circuit the whole process by popping along to this year’s biggest and possibly most eclectic car auction in Christchurch this weekend.

Thirty cars from one collection are going under the hammer this Saturday 13 October and with so many desirable cars being offered at once the old laws of supply and demand might make some of them bargains.

The collector’s tastes were nothing if not broad. The offering includes an Auburn Speedster, a Stutz saloon from the 20s, and a pair of Wolseley 1300s.

American roadsters dominate but coupes and four-door saloons also make the grade. All the big names are there – three Lincolns, three Packards, three Cadillacs, and the odd Dodge and Buick. There’s another Jag, making three in total, two Rolls-Royce’s and a Ferrari. There’s an MGTF, a Standard 8 and a Model T Ford. The vast majority are roadworthy but a brace of Mk 1 Jags are a little forlorn.


18506407-9494912_orig.jpg

Classic or vintage? Choose your decade: Every decade from the 20s to the 80s is represented with several cars. 1920s 4; 1930s 7, 1940s 3, 1950s 4 1960s 4, 1970s 6 and 1980s 2.

The cars are on view at Castle Park Museum, Leithfield, on Thursday and Friday and the auction takes place at 2pm at 1 Detroit Place, Christchurch. For more pictures, google McVicar Classic Auction.

The actual Formula One

Seeing, in a shed in Hamilton, New Zealand, the Darracq 120 racer that Louis Wagner, also a pioneer aviator, drove to victory in the 1906 Vanderbilt Cup race felt a little like finding a Rembrandt at a garage sale.
For historical significance, I’d say this car ranks with Ray Harroun’s Marmon Wasp, the first Indianapolis 500 winner. Unlike Harroun’s Wasp, which has been lovingly cared for at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum over the years, this historically pivotal machine wound up half a world away from its home in France and, to most of the motoring world, largely forgotten. Sadly, so is the story of how the car got to Aotearoa in the first place.
More often than not, a racing car that is a few years old is regarded as obsolete and relegated to a shed somewhere. As far as racing drivers and team owners at the cutting edge of the sport are concerned, the cars are virtually worthless at that point. They can’t be driven on the street; at best they can be reconfigured for lower levels of the sport, so few people care about them until their historical significance becomes more apparent.

Dad will love this!

Subscribe or gift a subscription to NZ Classic Car magazine for one year this Father’s Day, and go into the draw to win one of two luxury car care packages worth $570 from Lovecars.
The prize: Adam’s Foam Cannon Kit includes a complete pressure-washer foam cannon setup; Michelle’s Car Wash Kit takes care of everything after the foam. It includes Autostolz Premium Auto Wash, Enhanced Ceramic Spray Wax, and loads more.
Together, you’ve got the setup to foam, wash, protect and dry your car properly – using some of NZ’s top-selling car detailing products.
A seriously good prize for anyone who loves keeping their car looking its best.