LONDON: A collection of 27 classic cars, including Ferrari, Mercedes, Porsche, Lamborghini and Aston Martin has been sold for around £20 million, making it one of the biggest sales of a private collection in British history.
John Collins bought the impressive collection of 27 cars, Aston Martin One-77 and a Ferrari 288 GTO, currently one of the fastest-appreciating classics. The vast majority of the cars have hardly been driven – with a 1982 Lamborghini LP500S having a mileage of just 500 miles.
Mr Collins was contacted about the collection, which had been hidden away in storage just outside London, and jumped at the chance to seal a deal. In total, there were four Aston Martins, 11 Ferraris, one Jaguar, four Lamborghinis, five Mercedes and two Porsches.
A number of the Ferraris are worth more than £1million, while a 1965 Jaguar E-Type has just 2,605 miles on the clock. Another model popular as a poster on the wall of children’s bedrooms is a 1991 Ferrari Testarossa which just only been driven 1,788 miles. There is also an Aston Martin DB4 Zagato Sanction II, one of just four cars ever built.
A Mercedes SL Gullwing, regarded by many as the original and most beautiful sports car ever, is also in the collection, as is a convertible version. Mr Collins, who runs Ferrari specialist Talacrest, in Ascot, Berkshire, said: ‘The owner has built up the collection over the past 20 years.
‘He decided to sell them. He didn’t want to sell them separately so a contact got in touch with me and I decided I had to have it. ‘I didn’t know the collection existed. It has to be one of the biggest ever purchases of a private collection in the UK.
‘When the warehouse doors opened and I walked inside, I thought “wow”. It was an Aladdin’s cave of cars. All of the cars are special. ‘There is a Lamborghini Countach LP500S with just 500 miles on the clock and a 1991 Testarossa which has only been driven 1,788 miles from new. ‘To someone like me, the collection is amazing.’
Despite only just doing the deal, Mr Collins has already re-sold ten of them in a week. Other cars in the collection include a silver Aston Martin DB5, like the model driven by James Bond. Also featuring is a Lamborghini Miura, a car regarded by many as the original Italian supercar.
