Broad Arrow at the 2025 Villa d’Este concours weekend: the numbers are in

A couple of post-sale deals have pushed the total recorded by Hagerty Insurance group firm Broad Arrow at its first-ever European event to over €31m, around $35.2m. The sell-through was an impressive-for-2025 77 per cent.

Top-selling entry remains the 1948 Ferrari 166 Spider Corsa (pictured, top). Cars sold after the event include the 2002 Ferrari 550 Barchetta Pininfarina (€530,000 all-in), and the 1963 Lancia Flaminia Zagato Sport 3C and 1968 Iso Grifo GL Series I, both of which are simply listed now as ‘Sold after Auction’ with no values.

The venue was terrific, British auctioneer Thomas Forrester at the top of his game, and the Broad Arrow team had ‘rolled the pitch’ effectively pre-event to manage vendors’ expectations. As a result, prices of much of the catalogue were soft – but cars were sold.

At a glance:

* Gross: €29,111,975 (€31,172,625 with after-sales at undeclared prices)
* Percentage sold by number, motor cars: 77%
* Top-selling car: 1948 Ferrari 166 Spider Corsa €7,543,750 gross, €6,500,000 net (est. €5.5m to €7.5m)
* Well sold? The leading Ferrari, an old-school car for a proper connoisseur.
* Well bought? Not a motor car but a boat. The 1981 Tullio Abbate Sea Star 20 Rothmans Cup Racing Boat and trailer had been built locally in Como and raced by Ferrari legend Gilles Villeneuve. In at a No Reserve €40k to €60k, the combo was snapped up by a local dealer for €25,000 including the 25% buyer’s premium levied on non-automobile lots.

A key takeaway is the performance of 1950s entries, a sector thought to be the ‘new pre-War’, unfancied by new-generation collectors. The results achieved by the leading 1950 Ferrari, 1949 Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 Super Sport Pinin Farina Cabriolet (€264,500), 1954 Siata 208S Motto Spider (€1,750,000), 1955 Jaguar XK 140 Ghia Coupé (€143,750, above) and 1947 Stanguellini 1100 Sport Internazionale (€287,500) prove otherwise. The homely 1949 Talbot-Lago T26 Grand Sport Coupé was a step too far, certainly at €1m+.

What undoubtedly helped the success of the auction was the passion of knowledgeable enthusiasts of all ages attending events at Villa d’Este on Saturday and Villa Erba on Sunday. And up the road was Fuoriconcorso, the ‘other lake Como concorso’ with a similar profile of exceptional cars and stylish attendees.

One can gently tease the fashionistas who flock to Lake Como in May, but they do make Villa d’Este what is, to borrow from Enzo Ferrari, “the most beautiful event in the world”. Among them are ardent, serious collectors of longstanding – get the sums right as Broad Arrow did over the weekend and the rewards are there to be had.

Other results of note. All prices gross:

* 1973 Porsche 911 Carrera RS Touring, €456,250 (above). Had been raced early in its life with a modified, 1974-style body, but was still a desirable early car in attractive Light Yellow. Sold for the right price, considering.
* 2023 Ford GT, €613,750. Keen result for a modern hypercar compared with a LaFerrari/McLaren P1. Italian market car with 53km from first owner.
* 2003 Honda NSX-R, €934,375. The one to have, an essential buy for all Senna fans and fiercely fought over.
* 1989 Ferrari F40 'Competizione', €2,312,500. Only ‘inspired’ by the original Michelotto-built cars and converted in Manchester not Modena. Looked great, though, came with a raft of spares and would make a good companion for a low-mileage original F40 in any collector’s garage.
 * 1964 Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta Lusso, Not Sold. Matching numbers, original colours and Red Book did not save the Swiss-delivered car. Blame lack of interest in the model right now and little history from 1964 to 1996, when it passed to the London Mews trade.
* 1960 Maserati 3500 GT Vignale Spyder, Not Sold. Restored around ten years ago in Germany to non-original dark grey. Prices on these are not what they used to be in 2015 – by around 50 per cent, sadly.

* 1965 Ferrari 275 GTS, €1,525,000 (above). Delivered new to Germany, another one that could have gone home unsold without realism on behalf of its British owner. Est. €1.5m to €1.8m.
* 1938 Talbot-Lago T150 C Lago Spéciale Teardrop Coupé by Figoni et Falaschi, €3,606,250. In at No Reserve to sell as the final car in the disposal of a multi-car collection.
* 1964 Aston Martin DB5, €456,250. RHD, bought be a UK specialist for restoration to original California Sage with Fawn and likely resale three years hence for +/- €950k.

Broad Arrow to conduct a classic car auction during Zoute Grand Prix Week

The firm’s next motor car sale will be at the Monterey Jet Center, California, 13-14 August 2025. A new event was announced by Alain Squindo at Villa Erba: a one-day auction coinciding with the 9-12 October 2025 Zoute Grand Prix, to be held separately from Bonhams’ existing arrangements for a sale on the Sunday.

Broad Arrow Auctions at Villa Erba, 24-25 May 2025 – results

Total gross cars: €29,111,975 (€31,172,625 with after-sales at undeclared prices)
Number of cars not sold: 16
Number of cars withdrawn: 0
Total number of cars: 71
Number sold: 55
Percentage cars sold by number: 77%
Percentage by value average low/high estimate: 51%
Percentage of cars sold below low estimate: 67%
Percentage of cars sold not met avge of estimates: 87%
Percentage of cars sold met/exceeded top estimate: 2%
Average value of cars sold: €529,309 (€566,775 with after-sales at undeclared prices)
Average year of cars offered: 1978
Percentage of cars offered at No Reserve: 39%

Photos by K500