H&H Classic Auctions, International Historic Motorsport Show

H&H, Europe’s largest specialist historic car auction house, is starting 2005 with a bang. It is presenting an outstanding array of cars for its first sale of the year, at the International Historic Motorsport Show, Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire on February 26th.

Entries include a ‘barn find’ 1959 Jaguar XK150S Drophead Coupe with a fascinating and unique history. The car - which bears the entirely appropriate registration plate ‘S 150’ - was bought new by Esmond Searle, a friend of Jaguar’s PR Director Bob Berry. The car was specially built for Searle, who kept it in a carpeted garage. He ran it as little as possible, but it was a matter of honour that, when he did, he would not put it back into the garage before he had driven it at 100mph.

The vendor, who is the vehicle’s second-ever owner, bought the car for £5,000 in the late 1970s - at the time, the highest price ever paid for a 150S. In the 25-plus years that the car has been in his care, it has covered just 5,000 miles, the majority of which was on the Mille Miglia. This very special Jaguar has been unused for the past seven years, and is extraordinarily original, down to the factory-fitted plastic hood and headlining. With an estimate of £30,000-40,000, it represents a rare opportunity for a Jaguar enthusiast to acquire a unique machine that requires a comparatively small investment to preserve its originality and make it a very usable and enjoyable motor car.

A very famous Jaguar - the original `CUT 7', the ex-Dick Protheroe, 1961 Jaguar E-TYPE 3.8 Fixed Head Competition Coupé - will also go under the hammer on February 26 (estimate £275,000-£325,000). `CUT 7', the fourth E-TYPE ever built, was delivered as a birthday present for Dick Protheroe's wife and prepared for racing by Dick's own very capable team. It was campaigned extremely successfully during its first racing year, 1962, achieving many firsts including wins at Silverstone, Mallory Park and Crystal Palace. The car’s FIA papers list previous owners as David Wilding, John Young, D. Bell and Colin Pearcey.

Fittingly for the International Historic Motorsport Show, ‘CUT 7’ is not the only competition car on offer at H&H. The ‘grid’ includes: the Alucraft 1989 Porsche 962 IMSA GTP Group 'C' Racecar that came 4th at Daytona in 1990 (estimate £140,000-£160,000); an ex-Denny Hulme 1966 Brabham BT11A single seat racecar (estimate £90,000-£120,000); a distinctive 1958 Cooper F2 single-seater which has been in its current ownership for 44 years (estimate £38,000-£45,000); a very fast 1937 H.R.G. 1.5 litre open sports racer, registration ‘ELF 236’ (estimate £50,000-£60,000), and a rally-spec, 1972 Ford Escort special, with five-litre TVR engine, which has had £100,000 spent on it (estimate £24,000-£28,000).

Road cars will also be out in force at Stoneleigh Park, including a 1939 Delahaye 135M Three Position Drophead Coupe. This elegant machine has undergone 5,000 hours of specialist rebuild (estimate £200,000-£250,000).

Other desirable road cars on offer include a beautiful 1971 Ferrari 365 GTB4 Daytona (estimate £45,000-£55,000), a fully restored 1955 Jaguar XK150 Drophead Coupe (estimate £40,000-£45,000), and a 1990 Aston Martin Virage Coupe with just 25,000 miles on the clock (estimate £18,000-£22,000).

The motor car sale will be preceded (on February 25th) by the automobilia auction, which features a quite outstanding selection, including no less than 4,000 models.