ACA’s season-opener in King’s Lynn comprised 101 vehicles; a slightly smaller entry than the previous two sales so that all the cars on offer could be viewed undercover.

Highlights included a ‘stunning’ 1968 Mercedes Benz 280SL Pagoda that made £28,875, and two very fine-looking red Ford Thunderbirds. The first a ’56, made £18,900 all in, while its slightly younger sister (a ’61) made £14,175.  TR-Series Triumphs continue to do well here, with £14,490 including premium being paid for a 1956 TR2 that had recently been removed from a barn in Sussex, but far tidier than that description might imply. The car came fully recommissioned and with a fresh test, ready to show and use and was estimated at £10,750-£13,000. On a similar Triumph theme, a 1949 2000 Roadster that was renovated in 1973, has covered just 4000 miles since 1980 and made £14,280.

ACA always have a few overseas buyers and the 1948 Alvis TA14 had a few minor body and paint issues and sold to a buyer in Italy for £5145 (estimate £3250-£4500). Even more surprising was the £2500 paid for a 1988 Mercedes 190E 2.3 16v. A fair price for what appeared to be an excellent example – but a somewhat surprising purchase for a buyer in Hong Kong!

Back in the Eighties, customising/rodding was generally considered the total opposite of the classic car world. Nowadays, both sides seem a lot more tolerant of each other, and the inclusion of ‘Nykilodeon’ in this sale caused no raised eyebrows but lots of genuine interest. Nykilodeon was built from scratch in 1972 by Nick Butler, one of the hot rod movement’s leading lights, and was featured in the May 1973 issue of Custom Car. It looks like a Model T of course, but there’s nothing original ‘T’ in it, and power comes from a six-litre 360 bhp Pontiac V8. It’s unusual for an early hot rod of this quality to survive in substantially unaltered condition, but Nykilodeon remains substantially as built and now fully recommissioned and road ready, sold for £12, 012.

As expected, the Volvo 122S with what appeared to be Ruddspeed rally car kit beat its top estimate to sell for £5040. The car came with a whole host of period paperwork, all of which seemed to support it being a genuine Ruddspeed car.

Two identical MkI Granada Coupés together provided a pretty-much perfect barometer of what’s happening in the market. The first was essentially a right car in all respects and made a near top-estimate £4410 including premium.  The other had 20,000 less on the clock but was definitely worse bodywise. It sold for £2310. More significantly, there seemed considerably less showroom interest. 

Other lots that sold included a 1971 Rover P5b (£4935), 1978 MGB GT (£2415), 1991 Mercedes 300 TE4 Auto (£1627), 1968 Lancia Flavia (£4515), a 106,000 mile and historied 1985 Rolls-Royce Silver Spirit (£4515) and a what seemed a good 1967 Jaguar 240 that did well in today’s market to make £10,940.

There were also plenty of good-value cheapies; a 1955 A50 Cambridge that looked solid (even the rear wings) but needed a test and tidying inside sold for £1680, a  cosmetically challenged 1957 Standard Eight went for £975 and the massive ’62 Cadillac at £2310 was a lot of car for the cash.

And finally, there were a few ambitious restoration projects which did well. Two phone bidders did battle over a no-reserve 30 years in a barn 1938 Humber 12 which eventually raised £1125, while an extremely rough 1983 Lotus Eclat with unseized engine and box but little else in its favour raised £475 with premium.  And finally, £275 bagged someone a 1971 Morris Minor saloon that probably looked worse at first glance than it actually was.