2017 Bonhams Paris Classic Car Sale Results

Bonhams sold an Aston Martin Ulster Sports Two Seater for €2 million as its top result at the Paris Grandes Marques du Monde 2017 classic car auction.

1935 Aston Martin Ulster Two-Seater Sports
1935 Aston Martin Ulster Two-Seater Sports © Bonhams

Two classic British cars provided the top results at the Bonhams Paris 2017 classic car sale: A 1935 Aston Martin Ulster Sports Two-Seater car sold for €2,012,500 ($2,146,331) – well above upper estimate – while a 1957 Bentley S1 Continental Cabriolet sold for €1,069,750 ($1,140,621). A 1955 Mercedes Benz 300 SL Gullwing sold for just over a million.

Top Ten Results at Bonhams Paris 2017

Bonhams held its sixth Grandes Marques du Monde sale in the Grand Palais in Paris on 9 February 2017. In addition to cars, Bonhams also sold a large number of motorcycles and automobilia in this sale.

In the automobilia sale, the top lot was the exquisite Lalique glass mascot representing ‘Victoire’ which realized €28,600. Three carburettors 40 DCZ for a Ferrari realized over 5 times their estimate of €1,500-2,000 when they achieved the incredible price of €10,250.

The top ten cars cost a bit more:

Year Car Price (€) Price ($)
1935 Aston Martin Ulster Sports Two Seater 2,012,500 2,151,765
1957 Bentley S1 Continental Cabriolet 1,069,500 1,143,509
1955 Mercedes Benz 300 SL Coupé Gullwing 1,016,666 1,087,020
1939 Maybach SW-38 Spezial Cabriolet 672,750 719,304
1923 Bugatti Type 27 Brescia Torpédo 506,000 541,015
1959 Ferrari 250 GT Coupé Series I 437,000 467,240
1977 Lancia Stratos Coupe 373,750 399,613
1955 Porsche 356 1500 Super Speedster Pre-A 368,000 393,465
1938 Mercedes Benz 320 3.2-Litre Cabriolet B 356,500 381,169
1957 Porsche 356A Speedster 339,250 362,726

Auction held in euro. Dollar conversion as per auctioneer’s first published results.

Million-Dollar Cars at Bonhams Paris 2017

All three cars with pre-auction estimates above a million dollar were sold at the Bonhams Paris 2017 sale but several other higher profile cars failed to reach the reserve margins.

1935 Aston Martin Ulster Sports Two-Seater

As expected, the top result at the Bonhams Paris 2017 auction was for the 1935 Aston Martin Ulster Sports Two-Seater that sold for €2,012,500 ($2,146,331). The pre-auction estimate was a more modest €1.6 to €1.8 million. The car was the 1935 Le Mans 24 Hours works entry where it was raced to fifth in class, and tenth overall, by Trehorne Thomas and Michael Kenyon. Only 31 Aston Martin Ulsters were ever built, of which ten were team cars. Remarkably, 28 of these cars survived.

1957 Bentley S1 Continental Cabriolet

The imposing 1957 Bentley S1 Continental Cabriolet sold for €1,069,500 ($1,140,621). The car is one of only 31 left-hand drive drophead coupés made. The Bentley had only three owners since new and the current owner had driven the car or around 14,000 miles in the past eight years.

1955 Mercedes Benz 300 SL Coupé

A beautifully restored red 1955 Mercedes Benz 300 SL Gullwing Coupé struggled to reach the reserve margin but finally was announced sold at €1,016,666 ($1,087,020). The presale estimate was €1,100,000-€1,300,000.

The 1955 Mercedes Benz 300 SL Coupé is a matching numbers Gullwing and had only five owners since new. It was restored in 2004 and won best-in-class at the 2011 Schloss Dyck Concours.

A day later, Artcurial similarly struggled to achieve a million dollar for another Gullwing (Papillon in French) and a Roadster.

Other Results at Bonhams Paris 2017

A few further interesting results at the Bonhams Paris 2017 classic car auction:

  • Several pre-War cars had good results: a 1939 Maybach SW-38 Spezial Cabriolet sold for €672,750, a 1923 Bugatti Type 27 Brescia Torpedo sold for a good €506,00 while a 1938 Mercedes Benz 320 3.2 litre Cabriolet B achieved €356,500.
  • Two Porsche 356 models had strong results. (RM Sotheby’s was the Paris auction for 911 derivatives.)
  • Several very early automobiles were offered in the sale with a 1902 Panhard & Levassor 7 HP Type A Voiturette selling for €253,600. A 1900 Benz Ideal 4 ½ HP Vis-à-Vis sold for €120,750 while the oldest car in the auction, a 1893 Benz Victoria, achieved €28,750.
1962 3.8-Litre Semi-Lightweight Competition Coupé Hardtop
© Bonhams

Some of the higher profile cars that failed to sell included:

  • 1972 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Berlinetta – bidding stopped just above €500,000. It is currently a buyer’s market for Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Berlinettas: four failed to sell at Scottsdale / Arizona 2017 and a further three were on offer at the Paris auctions. The 1969 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona Berlinetta at RM Sotheby’s Paris sale achieved a respectable €705,600 while the highest bid at Artcurial was €670,000 but the car was reported sold post-hammer for €798,600.
  • 1928 Aston Martin 1 1/2 Litre Standard Sports Model
  • 1962 Jaguar E-Type E 2.8-litre Semi-Lightweight Compétition – the real thing sold for $7.4 million at Bonhams Scottsdale 2017 but the modern creation could not reach the reserve – pre-sale estimate €250,000 – €350,000.

Bonhams next classic car auctions are Amelia Island, Florida on March 9 followed by two smaller European auctions: the Goodwood Member’s Meeting on March 19 and the Spa Classic sale on May 21 in Belgium.

More on Paris 2017: