Classic Car Buyer

It seems that the now common saying “you’re not a petrolhead if you haven’t owned an Alfa” came from Jeremy Clarkson. He was probably thinking about his GTV6 and all the good memories he’d had with it before the other side of him had had enough of th

A video shoot this week brought the chance to compare two very significant Rolls-Royces. On the left, the Silver Shadow which celebrates its 55th anniversary this year, and on the right its replacement the Silver Spirit which was unveiled 40 years ag

The future of historic vehicles has been given a huge boost with the news that the Heritage Skills Academy (HSA) has formed a new educational partnership with Brooklands Museum to grow its heritage engineering apprenticeships. The move will see HSA e

Bigger events have generally been off the agenda this year, but the organiser of the London Classic Car Show was determined to fill the void by arranging its inaugural Covid-secure Classic Car Drive In at Bicester Heritage on September 19-20. And des

Nearly 50 classics of all shapes and sizes lit up the interest of remote bidders at the latest Charterhouse auction, from a Rolls-Royce Silver Spirit to a Messerschmitt KR200, and lots in between. There was plenty of opportunity for those after a win

The recent Classic Car Drive In event at Bicester Heritage on was complemented by a busy Bonhams MPH classic car auction on September 20. The sale was certainly one for variety, with over 100 entries ranging from a 1912 Daimler 15hp Open Drive Landau

French auction house Aguttes hosted the first ever sale in the Musée de l’Aventure Peugeot on September 20, with PSA offering around 30 Peugeots and Citroëns from its collection. And before anyone gets too concerned about PSA selling off its heritage

Not quite a Golf, the Polo often took up the role of supermarket runabout and general workhorse, especially in the case of the rather popular long-hatchback (more commonly known as breadvan). It sold very well in the UK, becoming a strong rival for t

Slightly smaller but just as finely appointed as the famous Adenauer models, the W111 and top W112 models can be considered as the beginning of the S-Class as we know it. They introduced a new design language for the 1960s, with upright headlights an

When it came out in 1996, the Boxster was one of the most expensive and desirable roadsters on sale. And when the Boxster S was introduced in 2000, it was even more expensive than its closest rival, the BMW Z3M. In fact, even the TVR Chimaera, while

It’s a difficult one to name, the C140 generation of S-Class coupe, because when it was introduced in 1992 it was called the SEC, like its predecessor. Then, in 1994 it was renamed as the S-Class Coupe. Finally, in 1996 it was given the CL prefix. So

Hidden behind the fame of the Quattro, 100 and TT, the Audi A8 is a momentous car for the marque that many have forgotten. It pioneered the use of an aluminium monocoque in a volume production car, elevated interior quality so much that it remains an

Some customers pleaded with BMW to continue making the E38 7-Series, so much did they like the old one and so much did they despise the look of the new one. The traditionalists were to be even more offended when they stepped inside, faced with a very

The XK8 was unveiled at the 1996 Geneva Motor Show in a display evocative of the E-Type’s debut 35 years before, being revealed dramatically from a crate. Unlike the XJ-S before it, the XK8 very deliberately drew its inspiration from the E-Type, not

A well-known classic car dealer recently related how he’d struggled to decide on a suitable vehicle in which to make the right impression when collecting a wealthy European client from the airport. Casting around both his personal collection and the

If the usual faded glory candidates of XK8, Boxster and 996 seem a little too obvious, then our £10,000-£20,000 budget stretches to the exotic in the shape of a Maserati. Readers recoiling in horror at the thought of the boxy and fragile BiTurbo will

Moving from a modern to a classic doesn’t necessarily mean trading down in space and performance: indeed, it’s possible to make a significant jump on both counts by swapping your Bavarian 2-litre diesel for the might of a turbocharged Bentley. The re

The first fruit of a VW-owned Bentley, the Continental GT really couldn’t be more different from the older car and shares no parts with its predecessor. Which is no surprise considering the agreement between VW and BMW meant that VW had just a couple

The Bentley Arnage is a great example of a prestige car for family car money. Instead of homogenous monotony, you can get that famous badge, a V8 engine and the cachet of owning a luxury saloon that cost around £140,000 when new. The first Bentley to

The Aston Martin DB7 was a major step in transforming the fortunes of the famous but flailing Newport Pagnell marque. Styled by Keith Helfet and Ian Callum, the DB7 owed an awful lot to Jaguar, which was also owned by Ford at the time. Indeed, it was

A Porsche 911 is a natural choice for anyone looking for a prestige classic. The 996 produced from 1998 to 2003 was the first of the water-cooled models and offers the cheapest way in, while the 997 is eminently possible for under £20,000. However, 9

The R107 – and its C107 SLC coupe sibling–were launched in 1971 as replacements for the W113 ‘Pagoda roof’ model, which had been such a success in America that the R107 was even more focused on the stringent US market. To this end the monocoque shell

Designed to combine the features of a sports car with a 2+2 grand tourer, the Ferrari Mondial was always going to derided by prancing horse fanatics for being too watered-down. And yet, it’s arguably the most affordable and usable Ferrari of all. Unv

An MGB might not be the car you’re expecting to find in a section devoted to prestige classics but if you’ve not been concentrating recently then you might be astounded at the amount you can spend on one of these cars today. Perhaps the pinnacle is r

From a long-forgotten Ford press pack released in 1981 under the title ‘Ford Energy Report’ comes this photo of a Granada and Fiesta, both running on methanol as part of a trial into alternative fuels involving 150 cars operated by Ford in partnershi

Many times we’ve commented in CCB on how the likes of the MGB GT and Triumph GT6 were effectively replaced by the hot hatch, as epitomised by the Golf GTI. The Golf offered the same attributes a keen driver with a family was after: namely, sports car

Celebrity excess is nothing new, and time has documented the trend well. From trashed hotel rooms to somewhat baser vices involving illegal substances, the glitterati has an eye for a perceived good time and one which has often attracted the eyes of

Group Editor It’s funny how some classics are forever linked with a particular model: mention the Mk2 Jaguar and everyone assumes you mean the 3.8, even though the majority are the 3.4, while a Sierra is automatically a Cosworth these days, a Golf mu