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I would like to add that the auction was rather unsuccessful with only about half of the cars sold. The cheaper cars did the best (a trio of Citroen DS’s for instance, of which one, a rare convertible, went to pop-star J.K. for 120.000 Euros) but most of the expensive cars went back to their former owner.
The widely advertised Bugatti fished out of Lake Maggiore fetched 220.000 Euros which go to a fund for victims of street violence. It was moving to see the parents of the lad whos murder inspired the sale of the remains of the car, which did much better than the expected 80.000 Euros.
The car was bought by Dutch Bugatti trader Jaap Braam Ruben on behalf of an American client who is going to put it, as it is, in a museum in the US.
The Lagonda M45 Le Mans replica actually did not sell. It was pushed to 112.000 Euros by shadow bidders (well below the reserve price) but my contact from Bonhams told me that no real bidders came in and the car was withdrawn which didn’t surprise me.Removing the engine from a classic car and advertising it on internet – how private can that be….
Maybe – but no explanation to Peter’s question given.
In my experience grease or even thick oil are not ideal to grease the clutch pins on a 2 Litre. On my car (which has relatively new pins) the clutch tends to stick when I use them.
I squirt in a bit of engine oil every 1000 miles or so, a small job which takes me no longer than a few minutes. I have never had trouble with oily clutch plates; even if some oil would drip on them it will be rubbed off the moment you use the clutch.
If you’re really in a hurry and the pins need immediate freeing, a bit of WD40 from a spray can is ideal. The little tube fits exactly in the pins and one brief squirt per pin does the job (and nicely blows out the dirt and frees the clutch if it had stuck). Of course that does not last very long but certainly long enough for the trip.Because the problem is apparently well-known, I don’t see the point of checking if this particular car has good hinge posts or not. Besides, such a thing is difficult to photograph. However, I will open the doors and look if they drop or not. For the benefit of the Club Secretary’s Archives, excellent photographs of the car, better than I can ever make, are readily available and can simply be downloaded from the Bonhams website.
I do not quite see the point of taking pictures to check if this car is allright or not.
I am only prepared to photograph any details of the car that would enhance the general knowledge of this type of Lagonda.I shall be at the private preview the evening before and will have ample opportunity to take pictures.
However, I am not an LG45 expert so let me know what exactly it is that you want photographed and I will see what I can do.I received the catalogue several weeks ago and alerted Bonhams who, in first instance, did not react. After several emails from me it was with great reluctance that someone from Bonhams finally contacted me and said that they would rectify it on their website (it was, of course, too late to rectify the catalogue) which they have, as I said – very inconspicuously. They obviously find it hard to admit a mistake. I then decided to share my views with you in this Forum.
Holthusen wrote a great book, sure, but it is ridiculously expensive and I don’t have it. I wish I did. But other books on Lagonda also point out the differences between a 1935 M45 Team car and a 1937 LG45 Team car. Seaton’s and Davey’s books gave me all the necessary data; this is not only the wrong body for a 1937 LG45 Team Car but it is also a poor replica.
Personally I agree with the view that there are no objections to bodyless cars being recreated as team cars (although they will never have the magic of an original), but to demolish a restorable saloon body to built some replica (which happens) I find reprehensable.
Far more interesting than this mongrel is the fabulous (and original) 1936 LG45 Drophead Coupe which will be auctioned just before it. I shall be at the auction and will report what both cars have fetched.You don’t really need a special device for this. In my experience the easiest thing is just to squirt a bit of engine oil in the pins every now and then.
It works perfectly, better than with grease actually.Bonhams have rectified the incorrect description of this car. That is to say, they made a faint attempt and could not have done it more inconspicuously. The entry for this car on their website is still as “1937 Rapide Tourer” and the completely incorrect description remains unaltered. All they have done is add a very brief note at the bottom which reads: “Lot Notice: This Lot was originally built in 1937 as a standard Lagonda LG45 with Pillarless Saloon coachwork. At some later stage it was adapted to resemble an M45 Fox & Nicholl Le Mans Team Car”.
I find it quite amazing that a reputable auction house like Bonhams, at one of the most prestigeous classic car auctions in the world, tries to hide the fact that this is a completely wrongly described car.Quite. And why does he break up his car?
Because of the unfortunate tendency to demolish saloon cars and turn them into non-original Le Mans and Team cars, the saloons are now rarer than these replicas.
This particular car does not only have a rather poorly replicated body (just look at the side cut-outs) but it is also from the wrong period and the wrong type Lagonda. The 1935 M45 Team cars had this round rear end with the fin, while a 1937 LG45 Team car would have had a long pointed tail. Another giveaway is the fact that the gear lever is in the middle, while an original team car would have had it on the right.Actually the chassis nr. is quite allright, but if you look at the identification plate on the Bonhams website you will see that it says “Type LG45 SB3” which means that it was a saloon bodied car. (Not to be confused with the “S3” on the engine which means, quite correctly, that it is a sanction 3 engine).
The 1937 Rapide is not “a bit different” but totally different (and worth a fortune). Again, this is a (not very good) replica 1935 M45 team car body, incorrect for the car which is therefore highly unoriginal and I am surprised that Bonhams prints this falsehood without blinking an eye….
P.S. I cannot afford Holthusen’s book – but this case is clear even without consulting it.I think that from the width of the shell one may safely conclude that it was meant for a Lagonda Rapier.
However, there are fewer slats at the front so it is still a different type from Colin’s radiator.
I wouldn’t venture a guess at the value – if somebody desperately needs this he would probably be prepared to pay a good sum.
Original Lagonda radiators with shell are rare – especially when you need one. It might be an idea to contact the Rapier owners club.In the left-hand photo the radiator in question is leaning against a traditional English telephone box, and fits exactly between the inner window frames.
That would tell you the width of the radiator shell – I can’t check it here (I am not in Britain) but I am pretty sure that it is not as wide as radiators for 16/80, 3.5L or 4.5L, in which case a standard Rapier radiator (which are narrower) is still the most likely option.
Rapiers were bodied by others than Lagonda – but the radiator and shell were produced in Staines and usually came with the car. However, they were then often modified to fit the new body.