Silverstone Auctions is celebrating its best-ever Motorcycle sale, with a sale rate of 83% and total sales of £1million. The Auction took place at a new venue for the company, Shuttleworth Aerodrome in Bedfordshire, where visitors to the sale could also view the collection of rare aircraft in the historic hangars of this working aeronautical and automotive visitor attraction.
Mark Bryan, Motorcycle Manager at Silverstone Auctions said: “It was a truly fantastic sale, our best ever, the venue attracted a large crowd which was great to see and we will definitely return for future sales. Nearly 60% of the bidding came from within the saleroom, but there was also huge interest online and over the telephone both from the UK and overseas. The interest in motorcycle collecting seems to be continuing to grow.”
The sale was significant for featuring the last four MV Agusta motorcycles from the late Alan Elderton Collection, former chairman of the Agusta Owner’s Club of Great Britain. The four bikes made just shy of £200,000.
1973 MV Agusta 750S 743cc – Sold for £85,500
Top lot in the sale was an MV Agusta 750S from the Collection of the late chairman of the MV Agusta Owner’s Club of Great Britain, Alan Elderton, which made £85,500 – well exceeding its estimate.
The totally desirable 750S: A magnificent engine, stunning frame, aggressive stance, swelling curves and a perfect tricolore colour scheme: an all-time classic. When launched the 750S was developed from the 600cc MV Agusta 4C. The engine was expanded to 743cc and fitted with four 24mm Dell’Orto carburettors generating a power output of 65bhp.
This well-known bike has featured in numerous period publications including Biker (2001), Top Gear (2000) and Moto Retro (2000) one of which contains a road test by Roland Brown. (copies were included in the sale lot).
Another top lot from the same Collection was the very rare, unrestored and original 1968 MV Agusta 600 4C. The first road-going four-cylinder from MV Agusta and undoubtedly the rarest. Introduced in 1967, only 135 examples were built with 127 recorded as being sold. This bike sold for £67,500.
1968 MV Agusta 600 4C 592cc – Sold for £67,500
The charity lot, a lipstick red 1949 Harley-Davidson WLC 750cc motorcycle donated to the cancer support charity – Look Good Feel Better – was put up for auction at No Reserve and Silverstone Auctions were delighted to see it achieve £14,625 all of which will be going to the charity.
The bike was donated to the charity by Kiehl’s which is part of the L’Oréal Group. It was on display in Kiehl’s flagship store in Regent Street, London, as part of the Kiehl’s marketing and advertising material until the store closed last year. Earlier this year the Harley was donated to the charity to auction to raise the much-needed funds to provide services to people going through cancer.
Charity Bike, a 1949 Harley-Davidson WLC 750cc – Sold for £14,625
Silverstone Auctions are now inviting entries for their next motorcycle sale which will take place at the NEC Classic Motor Show on Sunday 12th November. This promises to be another great sale with the show attracting thousands of visitors over the weekend. Anyone interested in entering a bike for sale can request a free valuation online at www.silverstoneauctions.com or contact one the motorcycle specialists on +44 (0) 1926 691 141.
More auction news can be found on our dedicated page here: Motorcycle Auction News
For more information on Silverstone Auctions head to the official website: silverstoneauctions.com/
