Classic Cars, Motorcycles & Automobilia
Classic cars and motorcycles can include any models dating back to the development of the modern automobile at the end of the 19th century. Vintage models are often desirable due to their design as well as engineering with cars by the likes of Ferrari, Alfa Romeo and Mecedes-Benz regularly commanding high prices at auction.
In addition to the vehicles themselves, automobilia is a popular collecting area and categories include items such as petrol pumps, enamel signs and car badges. Radiator mascots, particularly the highly-recognisable designs by René Lalique in the 1920s and 30s, are particularly sought after.

The web shop window: 'The funniest car mascot on the market’
16 January 2023Thousands of items are available to buy from dealers online. Here we pick out one that caught our eye this week.

Michelin guide went supersize
08 August 2022The first Michelin guide was published in 1900 by the eponymous tyre company.

Classic cars: Why the pre-war era is seen as the golden years of motoring
20 June 2022The thirties became a period when mass production and Art Deco style combined to power cars to new heights of usage and popularity before war intervened

Fifties Mercedes-Benz takes auction pole position
20 June 2022The world record for a car sold at auction was broken last month when a 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé was hammered down for €135m (£112m) on May 5.

Classic Mercedes that became a prized possession
20 June 2022The vendor of this 1966 Mercedes W111 250 SE Auto Coupé won it in a competition.

Giulia gets away successfully
20 June 2022This exciting 1968 Alfa Romeo Giulia GTA 1300 emerged for auction at Tennants (10% buyer’s premium).

George Formby grateful for his big brake
20 June 2022Lancashire singer, comedian and actor George Formby (1904-61) performed to audiences around in the world in the 1930s-40s. Famous for his comical and occasionally double entendre-laden songs, he became Britain’s highest-paid entertainer at the time.

Car badges make a statement at auction
02 May 2022Charterhouse (25% buyer’s premium) has been holding auctions of classic cars, motorcycles and automobilia for nearly 20 years.

Heuer helps rally timing
02 May 2022Described by Bonhams (15% buyer’s premium) as “the ultimate in rally equipment from the 1960s”, a pair of stopwatches mounted on an original Heuer plate intended to be attached to the dashboard of a racing or rally car received a suitably enthusiastic response.

BP battered but still four figures
02 May 2022‘Significant damage and rust’ was spot on as a catalogue description when it came to an enamel sign sold at Cotswold Auction Company (22% buyer’s premium) on February 8. It was a mess.

Automobilia and petroliana: Pump action at auction
02 May 2022While classic, vintage and antique cars have a sizeable collecting market, the wider worlds of automobilia and petroliana also attract dedicated enthusiasts with plenty of auctions featuring a variety of lots.

Shell posters sure to create interest wherever they sell
02 May 2022The You Can Be Sure Of Shell adverts are some of the most familiar and renowned examples in British graphic design.

Herry motors on at Antikbar
02 May 2022This London Transport poster for the Motor Show that took place from October 17-26, 1935, in Olympia, west London, was designed by Heather Perry – known as Herry Perry (1897-1962). It was printed by The Dangerfield Printing Co, London.

Monaco Deco design
02 May 2022French illustrator Robert Falcucci (1900-89) was famous for his graphic works of the Art Deco era – particularly the Monaco Grand Prix posters.

Rolls-Royce ecstatic at sales figures
02 May 2022Spirit of Ecstasy has adorned the bonnet of every Rolls-Royce motor car since February 6, 1911.

Lalique mascots add a touch of glass
02 May 2022Lyon & Turnbull notes that while mascots made no functional contribution to a car, they “certainly added style, and generally have fared better over time than the cars to which they were mounted”.

Archer car mascot points way to luxury
02 May 2022Ewbank’s (24% buyer’s premium) held a dedicated Cars, Motorbikes, Scooters & Automobilia auction on December 2 in Send, Woking.

Stork flew from planes to cars
02 May 2022Top price among a selection of car mascots offered in Newcastle came for a design in honour of the French aviator George Guynemer.

Plea to help find stolen René Lalique car mascot
03 March 2022A dealer whose René Lalique car mascot was stolen from a fair is offering a reward for its return.

Toys & collectables: Mini drivers power into saleroom
31 January 2022Pedal cars are regular visitors to salerooms but rarer powered versions were also produced for children to use, partly for road safety training

- J.S. Fine Art Auctioneers
- Antiques, Furniture & Interiors
- 26 Jan 2023 - 10:00 AM
- Bowler & Binnie
- Antiques, Collectables & Interiors
- 27 Jan 2023 - 10:00 AM
- Laidlaw Auctioneers
- Antiques, Collectables & Home Interiors
- 27 Jan 2023 - 10:00 AM
- Cheshire Stamp Auctions
- Stamps
- 27 Jan 2023 - 11:00 AM
- Auktionshaus Oberursel
- Art & Antiques
- 28 Jan 2023
- Goldfield
- Antiques & Decorative Arts
- 28 Jan 2023

Categories
-
- Arms, Armour & Militaria
- Bank notes
- Books & Periodicals
- Cameras & Camera Equipment
- Classic Cars, Motorcycles & Automobilia
- Coins
- Collectables
- Entertainment Memorabilia
- Kitchenalia
- Maps
- Models, Toys, Dolls & Games
- Musical Instruments & Memorabilia
- Scientific Instruments
- Sporting Memorabilia & Equipment
- Stamps
- Taxidermy & Natural History
- Tools
- Wines & Spirits
- Writing Instruments
News
-
- Art finance
- Auctions
- Brexit
- Buyer's and seller's premiums
- Coronavirus
- Delivery and Shipping
- Education and Training
- Endangered Species
- Events and conferences
- Industry data
- Insurance
- Internet
- Law, crime and regulation
- Museum acquisitions
- Museum deaccessioning
- Obituaries
- Premises and Property
- Private Sales
- Recruitment
- Restoration
- TV shows
-
- 1818 Auctioneers
- Adam Partridge
- Adam's
- Addisons
- Ader
- Aguttes
- Alastair Gibson Auctions
- Alcala Subastas
- Aldridges
- Amersham Auction Rooms
- Anderson & Garland
- Andrew Smith & Son
- Anthemion
- AntikBar
- Antony Cribb
- Artcurial
- Arthur Johnson & Sons
- Aston's
- Auction Team Breker
- Auctionata
- Babuino
- Bainbridge Adam Partridge
- Baldwin's
- Bamfords
- Barbara Kirk
- Barbers
- Batemans
- BBR Auctions
- Bearnes Hampton & Littlewood
- Beaussant Lefèvre
- Bellmans
- Bentley’s
- Biddle & Webb
- Bigwood
- Bishop & Miller
- Bleasdales
- Bloomsbury Auctions
- Boldon Auction Galleries
- Bonhams
- Bonhams Skinner
- Boningtons
- Bosleys
- Bourne End Auction Rooms
- Brettells
- Brighton General Auctions
- Brightwells
- Bristol Auction Rooms
- Browns
- Bruun Rasmussen
- Burstow & Hewett
- Byrnes
- C&T
- Cambi Casa d'Aste
- Canterbury Auction Galleries
- Capes Dunn
- Catherine Southon
- Cato Crane
- Chalkwell
- Charles Miller
- Charles Ross Auctioneers
- Charterhouse
- Cheffins
- Chilcotts
- Chippenham Auction Rooms
- Chiswick Auctions
- Chorley's
- Christie's
- Clark & Simpson
- Clars Auction Gallery
- Clevedon Salerooms
- Comic Book Auctions
- Cotswold Auction Company
- Cottees
- Cowans
- Criterion
- Crow’s Auctions Gallery
- Curated Auctions
- Cuttlestones
- Czerny
- David Duggleby
- Dawsons
- Denhams
- Dominic Winter
- Dorotheum
- Doyle New York
- Dreweatts
- Duke's
- Durrants
- East Bristol Auctions
- Eastbourne Auctions
- Eldreds
- Elmwood’s
- Elstob & Elstob
- Ewbank's
- Featonby's
- Fellows
- Fieldings
- Fine Art Auction Group
- Fine Art Bourse
- Flints Auctioneers
- Fonsie Mealy
- Forum Auctions
- Frank Marshall
- Freeman's
- Gardiner Houlgate
- Gary Don
- George Kidner
- Gerrards Auction Rooms
- Gildings
- Golding Young & Mawer
- Gorringes
- Graham Budd
- Grand Auctions
- Great Western Auctions
- Greenslade Taylor Hunt
- Gros & Delettrez
- H&H Classics
- Halls Fine Art
- Hampstead Auctions
- Hannam’s
- Hansons
- Hartleys
- Henry Adams
- Henry Aldridge & Son
- Heritage Auctions
- Hermann Historica
- High Road Auctions
- Hindman
- Holloways
- Holt's
- Hôtel Drouot
- Hotlotz
- Humbert & Ellis
- Hutchinson Scott
- Jacobs & Hunt
- John Nicholson
- John Pye Auctions
- Jones & Jacob
- JS Fine Art
- Jubilee Auction Rooms
- Juliens
- Kerry Taylor
- KettererKunst
- Keys
- Kidson-Trigg
- Kinghams
- Kings Russell
- Knights Auctions
- Knowle Auction Rooms
- Koller
- Lacy Scott & Knight
- Laidlaw
- Lawrences of Bletchingley
- Lawrences of Crewkerne
- Lay’s Auctioneers
- Lempertz
- Leonard Joel
- Lindsay Burns
- Lockdales
- Locke & England
- London Auctions
- Lots Road Auctions
- Louis Taylor
- Lyon & Turnbull
- MacDougall's
- Mallams
- Mander
- Marlows of Stafford
- Martel Maides
- Maxwells
- McTear's
- Mellors & Kirk
- Michael Bowman
- Millon
- Mitchells
- Moore Allen & Innocent
- Morphets
- Morton & Eden
- Mossgreen
- Mulberry Bank Auctions
- Mullock's
- Nagel
- Nesbits
- Netherhampton Salerooms
- Nicholas Mellors
- Nigel Ward
- Noble Investments
- Noonans
- Olympia Auctions
- Omega Auctions
- Onslows
- Osenat
- Paddle8
- Parker Fine Art Auctions
- Paul Beighton Saleroom
- PBA Galleries
- Peter Francis
- Philip Serrell
- Phillips
- Piasa
- Pierre Bergé & Associes
- Piers Motley
- Plymouth Auction Rooms
- Potter & Potter
- Potteries Auctions
- Rago Auctions
- Railtons
- Reeman Dansie
- Rendells
- Richard Edmonds Auctions
- Richard Winterton
- Ritchies
- RM Sotheby’s
- Rogers Jones
- Roma Numismatics
- Roseberys
- Ross’s of Belfast
- Rowley's
- Ryedale
- Semley
- Sheffield Auction Gallery
- Sheppard’s
- Silverwoods
- Sotheby's
- Sovereign Rarities
- Special Auction Services
- Spicers
- Spink
- St Jamess Auctions
- Staceys
- Stanley Gibbons Group
- Sterling Vault Auctioneers
- StockholmsAuktionsverk
- Stride & Son
- Stroud Auctions
- Summers Place Auctions
- Swan Fine Art Auctioneers
- Swann
- Sworders
- Tajan
- Tamlyns
- Tayler and Fletcher
- Taylor's Auctions
- Tennants
- The Pedestal
- Thimbleby & Shorland
- Thomas Del Mar
- Thomas N Miller
- Thomas R Callan
- Thomas Watson
- Thomaston Place
- Thomson Roddick & Medcalf
- Thomson Roddick Scottish Auctions
- Timeline
- Toovey's
- Trevanion
- TW Gaze
- Unique Auctions
- Vectis
- Veritas
- W&H Peacock
- Wallis and Wallis
- Warren & Wignall
- Watches of Knightsbridge
- Wellers
- Wessex Auction Rooms
- Whitton & Laing
- Whittons
- Whytes
- Wilkes & Curtis
- Wilkinson's Auctioneers
- William George & Co
- Wilson55
- Woolley & Wallis
- Wotton Auction Rooms
- Wright Marshall
-
- 1stdibs
- Advertising Standards Authority
- Antiquarian Booksellers Association
- Antique Young Guns
- Antiquities Dealers’ Association
- Art Business Conference
- Art Fund
- Art Loss Register
- Art Recovery International
- Art UK
- Arts Council England
- Assay Office
- Auction Technology Group
- BADA
- BAMF
- CADA
- CINOA
- Company of Arts Scholars
- DACS
- DEFRA
- DMG
- EBay
- Hiscox
- LAPADA
- Lot-tissimo
- National Trust
- NAVA
- Provincial Booksellers Fairs Association
- RICS
- Society of London Art Dealers
- SOFAA
- the saleroom
- Triple-A Auctioneers
-
- Affordable Art Fair
- Antiques Centres
- Antiques Dealers Fair Limited
- Antiques for Everyone Fair
- Ardingly Fair
- Art Antiques London
- Arthur Swallow Fairs
- Bath Decorative Antiques Fair
- Battersea Decorative Fair
- Bermondsey Market
- Book Fairs
- BRAFA
- British Art Fair
- Brussels Fairs
- CADA Fair
- Car Boot Fairs
- Clarion Events
- Continuity Fairs
- Cooper Events
- Fine Art Asia
- Fine Arts Paris
- Florida Fairs
- French Fairs
- Frieze
- Frieze Masters
- Galloway Antiques Fairs
- Harrogate Fairs
- Hatton Garden
- Haughton Fairs
- Hong Kong Fairs
- IACF
- Jaguar Fairs
- LAPADA Fair
- Lincolnshire Antiques and Home Show
- Masterpiece
- Miami Fairs
- Midcentury Modern
- Modern British Art Fair
- NEC Birmingham
- New York Fairs
- Newark Fair
- Newbury Antiques and Collectors Fair
- Olympia Fair
- PAD London
- Palm Beach Fairs
- Paris Biennale
- Paris Fairs
- Paris Parcours
- Paris Tableau
- Penman Fairs
- Philadelphia Fairs
- Regional Fairs
- Salon du Dessin
- Sandown Park Racecourse Fair
- Showground Fairs
- Swinderby Fair
- TEFAF
- The Open Art Fair
- Winter Antiques Show
- Works on Paper Fair
-
- Alfred Taubman
- Bendor Grosvenor
- Bill Ruprecht
- Charles Hanson
- Charlie Ross
- Cornelius Gurlitt
- David Lester
- Ed Dolman
- Eric Knowles
- François Pinault
- Ingrid Nilson
- Lennox Cato
- Lord Ashcroft
- Marco Forgione
- Mark Law
- Sheikh Saud Bin Mohammed Al-Thani
- Simon de Pury
- Sue Ede
- Tad Smith
- Tim Goodman
- Victoria Borwick
-
- Abbott and Holder
- Agnews
- Alastair Dickenson
- Blairman
- Carter Marsh
- Colnaghi
- Daniel Katz
- Fabrizio Moretti
- Ian Towning
- Johnny Van Haeften
- London Silver Vaults
- Mallett
- Mark Weiss
- Partridge Fine Art
- Petworth Antiques Dealers
- Philip Mould
- Pimlico Road Dealers
- Richard Green
- Robert Young
- Roger Keverne
- Rupert Maas
- SJ Phillips
- Wartski
-
- A Lawyer Writes
- Around the Auction Houses
- Art Market
- Auction Reports
- Bid Barometer
- Books and Works on Paper
- Dealers' Diary
- Fairs, Markets, Shops and Centres
- Features
- Front Page and News
- International (print edition)
- Interviews
- Letters to the Editor
- News in Brief
- Obituaries (print edition)
- Opinion
- Pick of the Week
- Precious Metals Prices
- Previews
- Soapbox
- Special Reports
- Then & Now