A Victorian-era 1898 Peugeot Type 15 and an 1897 Daimler Twin-Cylinder 4HP Tonneau led the results at the Bonhams London Golden Age of Motoring 2022 classic car auction.
The most expensive car sold in the Bonhams Golden Age of Motoring 2022 classic car auction in London was an 1898 Peugeot Type 15 8HP Twin-Cylinder Double Phaeton that sold for a very strong £494,500. ‘The Owl,’ an 1897 Daimler Twin-Cylinder 4HP Tonneau, sold for £345,000, as the most expensive Victorian-era Daimler ever. The 1904 Napier 15hp Rear Entrance Tonneau achieved £368,000, as the most expensive veteran Napier ever.
Bonhams London Golden Age of Motoring Sale 2022
Bonhams’ annual Golden Age of Motoring Sale was on 4 November 2022 in the auction house’s New Bond Street saleroom on 4 November 2022, two days before the annual London to Brighton Veteran Car Run. Many of the cars on offer are eligible for the famous race. In 2022, Bonhams earned £2,863,531 by selling 190 lots with a sell-through rate of 88%.
Bonhams long sponsored the race but lost sponsorship recently to RM Sotheby’s which is also having a London auction in the same period. In contrast to the RM Sotheby’s auction, which in 2022 will feature five modern Ferrari supercars (288 GTO, F40, F50, Enzo, LaFerrari), no modern cars — super, hyper, or standard — will be on offer at the Bonhams sale that showcases historic names of pioneering motoring.
Top Ten Results at the Bonhams London Veteran Car Auction
The top ten results at the Bonham Golden Age of Motoring 2022 classic car auction in London were:
Victorian Era Records at Bonhams London Auction 2022
Bonhams set two Victorian-era car records at the Golden Age of Motoring Sale 2022 in London:
An ‘ahead of its time’ 1898 Peugeot Type 15 8HP Twin-Cylinder Double Phaeton led a trio of record-breaking Veteran Cars in Bonhams Golden Age Sale, selling for a staggering £494,500, surpassing its top estimate and leading the auction house’s annual celebration of the Veteran Car Run.
The fully-restored Peugeot offered advanced (for its day) 4-speed plus reverse transmission and an early form of cruise control. Subject to a specialist nut-and-bolt restoration in the 1990s, the Peugeot took part in the 100th anniversary Veteran Car Run upon completion. It had completed the journey from London to Brighton several times since and was a past winner of the associated Regent Street Concours.
A further record was set by ‘The Owl,’ an 1897 Daimler Twin-Cylinder 4HP Tonneau – the oldest example of the marque still on the road and offered from 72 years of single-family ownership – which achieved £345,000, becoming the most valuable Victorian Daimler to be sold at auction.
The other grand dame of the sale was a 1904 Napier 15hp Rear Entrance Tonneau which achieved £368,000. This supercar of the pioneer era had been found propping up a barn by its late owner in the 1950s who restored the Napier as a labor of love. Offered from more than 66 years of single-family ownership, the motor car today set an auction world record for a Veteran Napier.
Other Top Lots
The Golden Age of Motoring Sale offered a fine selection of more than 200 lots of Veteran cars and associated automobilia, with other highlights including:
- 1907 Stanley EX steam-powered motor car, sold for £140,300, exceeding its top estimate. Produced by the American Stanley brothers, the eponymous motor cars were considered the premier ‘steamers’ to own. This restored example was in previous family ownership for 87 years, passing through three generations.
- 1904 Swift 7hp Two-Seater, sold for £103,500, surpassing its top estimate. An early motor car from the former British bicycle maker which had been owned by its vendor family since 1931.
