Ford Escort RS Turbo makes £60k at auction

A frenzied bidding war resulted in a world record auction price for a 1985 Ford Escort RS Turbo Series 1 of £60,188 sold at the NEC classic motor show. The price helped Silverstone Auctions to a total of £4.4 million over the weekend.

In total, 80% of the 95 lots on offer were hammered away in the two-day auction at the NEC, Birmingham. 

Other fast Fords also proved extremely popular with the hundreds of buyers at the sale. A time warp, 13,000 miles from new 1987 Ford Sierra Cosworth RS500 sold for £90,000.

Other significant results at the sale included a UK auction record of £185,625 for a right-hand drive 1993 Ferrari 512 TR - £75,000 over its lower estimate. Another Ferrari, a last of the line 1999 Ferrari F355 F1 was hard fought over by bidders at the show, selling for £103,500.

A 1991 Jaguar XJ220, formerly a part of the Brunei Royal family car collection, sold for a premium inclusive total of £315,000, while a beautiful 1956 Porsche 356A T1 Cabriolet was successfully sold for £196,875, more than £26,000 over its lower estimate.

A pair of celebrity owned cars also found new homes. The ex-Peter Sellers 1966 Lotus Elan S2 sold for £50,625 and the 1973 Ferrari 365 GT4 2+2, once owned by boxing legend Henry Cooper, sold for £30,938.

Two luxury British classics also outperformed expectations. A 1999 Bentley Continental Sedanca Coupe Auto sold for £108,000, more than twice its lower estimate. While a beautiful 1979 Aston Martin V8 Volante made £151,875 - more than £50,000 over its lower estimate.