Our Picks from the Upcoming RM Sotheby's London Auction

Written by: James Duce

You may remember earlier in the year we were invited by our exclusive auction partner RM Sothebys to Cliveden House for their inaugural sale at this stately home in Berkshire. 40 of you adorned the entrance leading up to the auction and roamed around the various lots ranging from 8 litre 1930’s Bentleys to a blue carbon Bugatti Veyron Vitesse. Shockingly, four months have passed and we are now in the runup to RM’s well-reputed November sale in London. This year, the team have worked with the Kadoorie family to secure the newly opened Peninsula London as the venue. I am yet to visit, but from the photos I have seen of this 5-star hotel this is likely to be the most impressive London auction to date and we have been invited to preview the sale on Saturday 2^nd November.

I thought I would pick out some of my highlight lots from the upcoming auction, starting with a '90s Honda! Not just any old Honda though, but an NSX-R. The company only built 483 NSX-Rs, all exclusively for the Japanese domestic market, imported by the first owner to the UK in 1998. This particular car is finished in Charlotte Pearl Green which suits it really well, I’m intrigued to see what this makes when the hammer falls!

Next up is the Mercedes SL65 AMG Black Series. The team and I are huge fans of the Black Series hexalogy, but what’s special about the SL65 is it was the only BS model to have left the factory with a twin turbo V12 rather than a V8. Under 4 seconds to 60mph is impressive now, let alone back in 2006 when this car was first released. The Obsidian Black paintwork feels rather fitting and looks super understated compared to some of the more rowdy specifications we’ve seen on AMGs. Is this the ultimate V12 cruiser?

We had to mention the factory prototype Gulf Aston Martin Vantage GT2 coming up for sale, driven by the likes of Darren Turner and Stefan Mucke and entered into the 24hr race at Le Mans. This car, one of just two AMR “Works” Astons proved super competitive in period and after a comprehensive 2 year rebuild and recommissioning by the guys at Pursuit Racing it is race ready once again!

There are two matching numbers, what I would call icons from the 1970s coming up in this auction, a Porsche Carrera 2.7 RS which has been in the same ownership for over twenty years and looks so cool in black, and a Ferrari Daytona which looks fantastic in classic red over tan.

Arguably the showstopper car is this Jaguar XKSS, the first of these cars to be offered at auction in Europe. The most sought-after of all Jaguar road cars, considered a D-Type for the road. Upgraded from 3.4 to 3.8L by Jaguar in 1960, the car has been raced across the UK and even Australia. I’m really looking forward to seeing this one in person.

Lets mention the, dare I say it, one and a half McLarens in the auction, the half being the Mercedes SLR McLaren. This car is one of only 25 examples upgraded by McLaren Special Operations, making this variant three times rarer than the Stirling Moss! You can’t beat side-exit exhausts really can you? Then there’s the Senna GTR LM, just in case your standard Senna wasn’t quick enough! One of just five more powerful cars built to celebrate the 25^th anniversary of the F1 GTR’s debut victory in the 24 hours of Le Mans.

Lastly check out this non-cat, non-adjust Ferrari F40 that Jonty recently drove for a video! A smidge over 20,000kms and still just as good as the day it left Maranello. Watch the video here.

If you would like to join us for an exclusive preview of the auction at the Peninsula London on Saturday 2^nd November, please sign up here.