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Brits & Italians head auction results
British
and Italian motorcycles were flavour of the
week at the recent Donington classic auction,
while project bikes, books and bits found a
strong audience
(April 16, 2024, by Guy 'Guido' Allen)
While the overall collectible motorcycle
and car market is a little low at the moment, the recent Donington
auction out of Melbourne (Australia) showed there is
still money out there for the right lot. Picking what that
is isn't always easy...
The low-mile,
stock and running 1975 Norton Commando MkIII above
pulled strong interest thanks to its exceptional original
condition, busting the pre-sale estimate at Au$31,000
(US$20,000, GB£16,000).
Vincent V-twins seem to be an evergreen.
This complete 1949 Series C Rapide, with non-matching
numbers and in need of an extensive refresh, sold for
Au$62,000 (US$40,000, GB£32,000).
Continuing the project bike theme, this
1956 Ariel Square Four MkII sold for a strong
Au$16,600 (US$10,700, GB£8600).
For us, the buy of the auction was this:
a 1969 Triumph
Trident T150. It was an exceptional low-mile
survivor which had been recommissioned a year or two
earlier. It went for Au$15,400 (US$9900, GB£8000).
There was plenty of interest in the
Italian gems on offer, and it was this 1971 MV
Agusta 350 Sport which got everyone's attention,
fetching an impressive Au$26,000 (US$16,700, GB£13,400).
It was given to the previous owner, a Mrs
C King of Sydney, by a grateful MV Agusta team which at
the time included Giacomo Agostini. There's no doubt the
back-story helped.
Just to prove the 350 wasn't a
stand-alone, this 1971 125
GTL-S fetched a very solid Au$16,800 (US$10,800,
GB£8700).
More mainstream Ducati models got decent
if not show-stopping results. This 1974 Ducati
750 Sport pulled Au$70,500 (US$45,300, GB£36,300)...
...while this early and exceptional 1975 Ducati 860 GT
sold for a relatively modest Au$18,000 (US$11,600,
GB£9300).
There was a smattering of interesting
Japanese motorcycles in the mix, including an early Honda
VFR750 and CBX1000 Prolink, plus a second-model Suzuki
RE5.
In need of recommissioning and very
complete, the 1972 Suzuki
GT750J above was arguably the pick and went for
Au$8800 (US$5700, GB£4500).
And now for some little surprises in the memorabilia and
parts section. There is a quiet trade out there in
low-volume motoring and motorcycle books, which sometimes
attract surprising prices. This is one – Australian
Vincent and Repco Brabham engineer Phil Irving's
autobiography. It fetched Au$520 (US$330, GB£270).
And, finally, proof that hope springs eternal with this
collection of parts said to be a near-complete
pre-1956 Manx Norton 500 engine. It fetched Au$5300
(US$3400, GB£2700).
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