Bonhams’ Goodwood Festival of Speed (FoS) sale, by nature of the venue, typically attracts historic race cars. This year, though, several of the highlights were neither all that old, nor were they race cars. The top lot of the sale was the first Mercedes-AMG One offered at public auction, and the most surprising was a Mazda RX-7 that starred in the first Fast & Furious film. One of the biggest lots of the sale wasn’t even a car but a registration plate, which in the U.K. can be quite lucrative. “JB 1” sold at the Goodwood sale for £608,600 ($821,793).
The auction achieved £10.2M in total sales, with 80 percent of the nearly 60 cars offered sold on the block. Our colleague Chris Sharpe, who was on the ground at Goodwood and provided valuable inspection notes on the auction cars’ conditions, noted that good weather, the F1 theme of the wider event, and easy access to the Bonhams tent meant that “the auction marquee was the busiest I’ve ever known by perhaps double the normal footfall.” We look at the aforementioned AMG One, the F&F RX-7, and the other most significant sales from Bonhams’ FoS sale in detail below.
Sold for £345,000 ($465,854)
Chassis no. DB41154R; Engine no. 3701128SS. Snow Shadow Grey over red leather. Older restoration, #3 condition.
Equipment: RHD. 3670cc/266 hp, four-speed, chrome wire wheels, wood-rim steering wheel, Avon tires.
Condition: One of the approximately 55 Series V specification DB4s made. Represented in present family ownership since 1984 and with three private owners from new. The engine was professionally rebuilt in 2020, roughly 350 miles ago, but the last time it was fully restored was in the mid-1980s. It has good paint, but the chrome is older and slightly polished through in places. There’s lots of delamination on the windscreen edges. The wire wheels look strong, if a little dusty. The original interior is holding up very well, though the leather is cracking. A very usable, driver-quality DB4.
Bottom line: Sold for under its estimate but, for a driver-quality car with this equipment, this is still a strong result, no doubt helped by the attentive long-term ownership and the recent engine rebuild, the exorbitant bills for which the new owner need not worry about for quite some time.
Sold for £86,250 ($116,463)
Chassis no. WBSBF92070EA85166. Black over black leather. Unrestored original, #1- condition.
Equipment: RHD. 3.0L/286 hp, six-speed, sunroof, original Blaupunk cassette player.
Condition: Purchased new in 1995 from Cheyne BMW in London by an Italian professional. Shortly after acquiring the car, the owner relocated to Singapore for work. Before departing, he drove the M3 to his hometown of Alassio in Italy where it was meticulously stored in a private garage and left untouched for nearly three decades. In 2024, it went back to London, having remained unused and preserved since its arrival in Italy. It shows just 2908 miles and is excellently preserved.
Bottom line: The E36 (1992–99) generation of the M3 is something of an underloved middle child between the raw, groundbreaking original E30 before it and the cleaner, crisper, near perfect E46 that came after. E36s are rewarding to drive and have depreciated to the point of being attainable, so there are few out there even remotely as nice as this one. Its preservation seems to have been mostly by accident, but no matter; it must be among the nicest standard E36 M3s in the world. Combined with its U.K. market configuration, this E36 is probably the most desirable one in Britain. That explains this beyond-market price, because other very good E36s don’t typically sell for half this amount.
Sold for £10,925 ($14,752)
Chassis no. SA94418L2A1004451. Multicolored paint over black. Modified original, #3+ condition.
Equipment: LHD. 1.6L/110 hp Ford Sigma engine, five-speed, black wire wheels.
Condition: Unique paint by Danish artist Kristian Hornsleth, with the multi-colored motif extending to the interior. Exhibited at the Milan Design Week in 2011. Converted from right- to left-hand drive. Appears to be in solid condition and would make a fun car. That said, does a buyer even look at this as a car, or as a piece of art?
Bottom line: It’s hard to think of a more mismatched pairing than the painfully traditional Morgan 4/4 (built, barely changed, from 1936 to 2018) with contemporary conceptual art. Or maybe that was the point.
Regardless, as a car offered for public sale it isn’t going to appeal to many Morgan enthusiasts, who tend to be as conservative in their tastes as the little company they love. That leaves art folks or fans of Kristian Hornsleth, who aren’t too likely to be buying cars at Goodwood. In the end, this price is low for a usable newer Morgan but, given the car’s limited appeal, it makes sense as just another work by a rather controversial artist. (Look up “Hornsleth Village Project,” and you’ll see what I mean.)
Sold for £32,200 ($43,480)
Chassis no. GHLS3072903. Light yellow, red, and burgundy over black. Older restoration, #3+ condition.
Equipment: LHD. Triple Weber carburetors, four-speed, electric power steering, race seat and harness, roll cage, Avon slick tires.
Condition: Built as a race car in the USA, and although “referred to as a 240Z, the body was configured as a 280Z in race trim,” according to the catalog. Won a regional SCCA title in 1976. Qualified for and raced in the 1975 and ’76 National Championships but was a DNF. Converted to Trans Am Group II specs in 1979 and raced in that series during the 1980-81 seasons and reportedly always finished in the top 10. Converted to IMSA specs in 1981 and raced there from 1982 to ’84. It has been in the UK since 2014 and was restored at a cost of over £75,000. Reportedly raced twice in the past two years. It has great paint for a race car, and the polished alloy wheels are in OK condition with some curb rash. Lovely interior for an older race car with purposeful, heavy-duty aeroquip hoses inboard. A usable historic racer.
Bottom line: This is a surprisingly low price for a handsome and proven historic competition car, and less than half Bonhams’ low presale estimate. Another, rally-prepped 240Z competition car didn’t fare any better, failing to sell at a high bid of £28,000. In what is perhaps a sign of the times, all the attention from Nissan buyers seems to have been focused on a much newer race car, as a 1995 Skyline GT-R with period Group N competition history sold for a very healthy £103,500 ($139,756), nearly three times as much as this Z-car.
Sold for £9,775 ($13,199)
Chassis no. 501526. Red over black. Visually maintained, largely original, #3 condition.
Equipment: RHD. 1558cc Twin-Cam, four-speed, black Minilite wheels, leather-wrapped steering wheel, wood shift knob, newer radio, power windows.
Condition: Sold from the estate of an engineer. Recent mechanical work with Elan specialists at Spydercars includes propshafts, chassis repairs, seals, a new starter motor, and new wheels. More work conducted in 2020 included an engine rebuild. In presentable cosmetic condition with light wear to the seats and upholstery but clear gauges. The dash doesn’t show the cracking endemic to Lotuses of this era. A solid driver that may have been sitting for a bit, but has enough reassuring mechanical work that it likely needs little to get out on the road again.
Bottom line: Introduced in 1962, the two-seat Elan was a hit that helped establish Lotus as a serious road car manufacturer. “[F]its like a Sprite, goes like a Corvette and handles like a Formula Junior,” quipped Car and Driver. Five years on, and there was a new +2 (aka Plus 2) coupe model. It was a slightly more plush but essentially very similar car. Lotus aimed it at customers who wanted a fun car that could accommodate small children, though a family friend who owned one used to joke that the only reason they made the +2 “was so you’d have a nicer place to wait for the tow truck.”
When sorted, however, these are handsome, fun, quick cars with surprisingly nice interiors. This one was the first automotive lot of the sale; perhaps nobody was in the room, or few of them were tempted by a Lotus with needs, because this price is about condition #4 (“Fair”) money for it.
Sold for £1,527,000 ($2,061,908)
Chassis no. VF9SA15C28M795079. Mocca Brown Metallic and White Coffee over Magnolia and Havana (brown) leather. Original, #2 condition.
Equipment: 7993cc/1001 hp, seven-speed semi-automatic, comfort seats.
Condition: Delivered new in Switzerland and showing 770 km (478 miles). One of 253 Veyron 16.4 Coupés built. Represented with one owner from new and still in like-new condition, with no obvious signs of age or wear. But it is an 18-year-old exotic and that means lots of (very expensive) hoses, connections, tires, etc. that need to be checked. Still, if the buyer just stores it again, maybe that won’t matter to them.
Bottom line: The performance benchmark of the 2000s, the Veyron is no longer the latest and greatest thing on the road or in front of the country club, but it remains an extremely expensive car both to buy and to own. Bugatti built just 450 of all types, and they don’t come to market often. This is a very strong price for a “standard” version, with a lot of it likely down to the colors and the low mileage, and none of it accounting for any potential bills (tires, for example, are widely reported to cost over $40K for a set) that the new owner will have to pay if they want to drive it. Well past its £500,000 to £800,000 estimate.
Sold for £50,600 ($68,325)
Chassis no. 234017DN. Dark Blue over light grey leather. Recent restoration, #2+ condition.
Equipment: RHD. 3.8L/220 hp, four-speed with overdrive, wire wheels, louvered hood, racing bucket seats, E-Type woodrim steering wheel, radio.
Condition: Given mods associated with the Mark 2s raced in period by the Guildford-based Jaguar dealer John Coombs, who also modified road cars. This one may have been an original Coombs car and the Coombs dealership window stickers are a nice touch, but the history hasn’t been confirmed. Restored from 2020 to ’23 and comes with all bills as well as a JDHT Certificate. It has great paint, wheels, and chrome. The interior is in perfect condition, too. A superb presentation.
Bottom line: The Mark 2 comes from a time when Jaguar was really on top of its game, offering handsome, highly luxurious cars with race-winning drivetrains and a rewarding experience behind the wheel, whether you were going fast or casually cruising, and all at a surprisingly competitive price. They’re not a particularly common sight in the States, but Mark 2s are a favorite in the U.K. both as weekend classics and in historic touring car racing. This one’s tasteful mods, top-spec engine, and desirable overdrive gearbox brought a well-deserved price near the top of the market.
Sold for £866,200 ($1,169,630)
Chassis no. 1980427500260; Engine no. 1989807500274. Black with black cloth top over beige leather. Recent restoration, #2+ condition.
Equipment: 2996cc/240 hp, four-speed, Michelin XWX tires.
Condition: Delivered new in the U.S. Matching numbers. In present ownership since 1995. Restored in 2021 in original colors and apparently unused since. Immaculate, crisp paint finish and perfect panel fit. The chrome is slightly faded but was restored to a high standard. The interior is perfection with the best leather and carpets, while the clarity and quality of the dashboard, controls, and wood trim excel. This is a fantastic 300 SL…
Bottom line: … But it didn’t bring a fantastic price. Translated to USD, it’s #3+ money for a car that’s much better than that. 300SLs are globally desirable cars, so it’s not like they come at a discount in Britain. The seller can at least take comfort in the fact that even if this price is modest in 2025, it’s surely still way more than they paid for it 30 years ago.
Sold for £27,600 ($37,268)
Chassis no. GCATPJ62072. Black and gold over black. Competition restoration, #3+ condition.
Equipment: 2.3L/304 hp Cosworth engine with Holbay Warrior 16-valve head, ZF five-speed, Broadspeed fender extensions, BBS wheels, gold BBS wheels.
Condition: Raced since the early 1980s and most recently campaigned in the Belcar Historic Cup in Belgium. Engine has 10 hours on it. In race car condition with old paint, old stickers, nicks here and there, and an aged interior, but you don’t want a race car to be too nice, anyway.
Bottom line: It had a brief and underwhelming time in America, but the Ford Escort nameplate was a European favorite, both as an affordable economy car and as a tiny terror in saloon car racing and rally competition. The Twin Cam, RS1600, and Mexico are the best known performance variants of the first-gen Escort, but the RS2000, with its larger displacement block based on the Pinto’s 2.0-liter, had a decently successful rally career. Ford needed to build 5000 units for homologation, but most sources suggest far fewer were actually completed. This example is genuine, and given its usability and proven results as a historic racer, this was one of the bargains of the day at the equivalent of less than 40 grand.
Sold for £178,250 ($240,691)
Chassis no. DB6MK24257R; Engine no. 4004653VC. Dark Blue over tan leather. Visually maintained, largely original, #4+ condition.
Equipment: RHD. 3995cc six-cylinder with factory AE Brico fuel injection, five-speed, wire wheels, push-button radio, power windows, wood-rim steering wheel.
Condition: U.K. market car and represented as one of 46 examples fitted with optional AE Brico fuel injection from new. It is also a later DB6 Mk2 with DBS wheels and front seats. Generally poor paint and original interior with weathered trim. Little history is represented other than that it “requires recommissioning.” It is ripe for a full restoration or perhaps running repairs, depending on budget.
Bottom line: This car’s configuration is intriguing but its condition leaves a lot to be desired, and a classic Aston with needs is a tough sell these days. It last sold at auction last September for £207,000 (about $272K at the time) and doesn’t appear to have had major attention since then. It’s not likely to get more valuable any time soon, so hopefully the new owner bites the bullet and gets (or pays someone to get) it back on the road, where it deserves to be.
Sold for £911,000 ($1,230,123)
Chassis no. FD3S111461. Orange and black over black. Modified original, #2- condition.
Equipment: RHD. 1308cc/280 hp, five-speed, Veilside Fortune wide body kit, Andrew Premier Series Racing Evolution 5 wheels, Pirelli P Zero Nero tires, Blitz Nur-Spec exhaust. Has a custom interior with Veilside bucket seats, Alpine sound system, polished NOS bottle (currently not connected) custom stainless steel prop for the rear hatch to enable the sound system to be displayed.
Condition: Used in The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006). Re-worked at Veilside Co Ltd, the famous Japanese body-kit supplier, where company founder Hironao Yokomaku and his team fitted their aggressive-looking “Fortune” wide-body kit, adding over 200mm to the car’s width. It is one of only two survivors and was not used for drifting sequences in the film. It has been in UK-based ownership since 2008. It is taxed, MoT’d, and road legal. Decent paint with uneven panels being the cause. There’s surface rust on the brake dust bells. The alloy wheels are marked here and there. Superb, well-preserved interior. The huge speakers are ridiculous, but so is most of this car.
Bottom line: This wasn’t the most expensive car of the auction, but it was the star, selling for roughly triple its estimate and setting world auction records for most expensive RX-7, most expensive Mazda road car, and most expensive movie car from the F&F franchise. The price is over a million bucks more than the previous $107,500 record (acheived in 2023) for a standard FD-generation RX-7. It’s nearly a million bucks higher than the previous record for a Mazda road car, the $264,000 achieved by a Cosmo 110 Sport way back in 2014. And in dollar terms, it’s more than double the next most expensive F&F car, the much more well-known Supra from movies one and two that brought $550K back in 2021. Movie cars don’t always bring huge premiums, but they often do, and two bidders were desperate to have this one. The records it set here are likely to stand for quite a while, unless this result draws more famous F&F cars out of hiding and onto the market.
Sold for £2,456,600 ($3,317,147)
Chassis no. WMX2983631D000017. AMG Silver Arrow over black. Original, #2 condition.
Equipment: LHD. 1.6L/1049-hp turbo hybrid V-6, seven-speed automated manual, all-wheel drive, AMG Ride Control suspension, LED lighting, Parktronic with front and reversing cameras, Keyless-Go start, Motorsport specific MBUX multimedia system, AMG Performance sound system, 3-stage Electronic Stability Program (ESP), Acceleration Skid Control (ASC).
Condition: One of only 275 examples worldwide. Serviced in June 2024. Represented as having covered only 100 miles, so the general condition is as-new. That said, it has perhaps been enjoyed, as the tire surfaces are well scrubbed. An F1 car for the road, and surely incredible.
Bottom line: The Mercedes-AMG One made a lot of noise in the media when it was revealed at the 2017 International Motor Show Germany by then-Mercedes F1 driver Sir Lewis Hamilton, who aided in its development. Everything from its plug-in hybrid F1-derived engine to its active aerodynamics is cutting edge (and complex), and the AMG One has set lap records at the Nürburgring Nordschleife, the Nürburgring Grand Prix circuit, Hockenheimring, the Red Bull Ring, and Monza.
As is often the case with these ultra-exclusive and ultra-expensive hypercars, the whole production run sold out quickly. This is the first one to appear at auction, and someone paid £2,456,600 ($3,317,147) for it. So, as a collector car and with just one comparable sale to go on, that number is pretty much the market.
