A 1971 Ferrari 365GTS/4 Daytona Spyder vied with two Rolls-Royce Silver Ghosts for top honours at Bonhams’ annual sale at the Goodwood Revival. The Daytona – one of only 25 built in European specification, though no longer with its original engine or colour – was the top seller at ￡595,500, pipping one of only four surviving 1908 Silver Ghosts which reached ￡485,500 after a protracted bidding battle.

The other Ghost was a magnificent ceremonial car ordered for the Delhi Durbar celebration of the Coronation of King George V and Queen Mary, and fetched ￡419,500. Both cars were being sold from West Coast USA ownership. 
Other highlights included a 1973 Porsche 911 Carrera RS 2.7 Lightweight at ￡221,500 (a record for a right-hand drive M471); a 1972 Ferrari Dino 246GT for a very strong ￡164,300; a 1976 Lamborghini Countach LP400 at ￡166,500 a 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing at ￡342,500 and a 1956 AC Ace-Bristol Roadster in tired, but charming condition fetching ￡141,200. A well-restored DB5 posted where these Aston Martins are now, as it sold for a market-correct ￡348,000.

Some of the competition cars did well: an Alpine A110 1600S GpIV rally car formerly the property of Armin Schwarz sold for ￡31,388, a reshelled and very correct 1965 ex-works Mini Cooper S rally car raised a strong ￡80,700, and a 1959 Lister-Chevrolet raised ￡264,167, 1958 but a very original ‘Knobbly’ Lister, the ex-Briggs Cunningham team car, failed to find a new buyer. Another ‘refer dept’ car, the much improved factory-supplied semi-Lightweight 1964 E-type, sold post-auction for an undisclosed amount. The ex-Peter Jopp/Les Leston 1959 Sunbeam Rapier rally car made a strong but expected ￡23,000.
Bonhams sold 55 of 87 cars offered for a 63% success rate, this sale following six days after its annual sale at Beaulieu Autojumble, meaning that inside a week Bonhams raised ￡7.5 million on 182 cars sold out of 227 offered.


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