Ex-‘Beurlys’ Jaguar XJ220 tops Historics’ £5.3m April auction

Selling for a with-premium £297,000, a 1992 Jaguar XJ220 first delivered to racing driver Jean Blaton – better known as ‘Beurlys’ – headed the charts at provincial auction house Historics’ latest sale.

A healthy gross of £5.3m was matched by the impressive sell-through-by-number of 91%, proving once again the strength of the UK market for affordable classics.

As usual, Historics also offered a handful of big-ticket lots although not, this time, any DB-era Astons.

The Jaguar XJ220 sold some way under its £325k to £375k estimate, though the appetite for these ’90s supercars has not recovered from the model’s time as a controversial ‘investment’ when new. That, giant proportions, ‘golf club’ interior and humble V6 motor have meant the XJ220 never receiving the plaudits bestowed on the McLaren F1, Ferrari F40 and F50 and Bugatti EB110 – all similar cars from the same era.

The other noteworthy sale was the well-restored silver/red 1969 Mercedes-Benz 280 SL ‘Pagoda’, an automatic car that sold for £181,500 all-in. Estimate: £95k to £120k.

Historics at Ascot Racecourse, 18 April 2021 – results

Total gross cars: £5,331,335
Number of cars not sold: 15
Number of cars withdrawn: 10
Total number of cars: 169
Number sold: 154
Percentage cars sold by number: 91%
Percentage by value average low/high estimate: 81%
Percentage of cars sold below low estimate: 24%
Percentage of cars sold not met avge of estimates: 42%
Percentage of cars sold met/exceeded top estimate: 19%
Average value of cars sold: £34,619
Average year of cars offered: 1980
Percentage of cars offered at No Reserve: 29%

Photo by Historics