Simon de Burton

Articles from the archive

Lewis Hamilton-signed McLaren F1 sells for £19m

1994 McLaren F1 Sold by RM Sotheby’s, £19M This was the 14th of the 64 road-spec F1s produced and was originally delivered to the Brunei royal family in Titan Yellow.…

The next auction record-breaker? Ferrari 250 GTO raced by Salvadori and Hill is set for sale

Were we betting types, we might be tempted to place a few shillings on the likelihood of this becoming the most expensive car to be sold at auction in 2026…

Wolf in Kevlar clothing is De Tomaso’s answer to McLaren F1

De Tomaso may not have enjoyed the success of fellow Italian marques Ferrari or Maserati, but its founder Alejandro de Tomaso certainly had a knack for choosing model names –…

Bamford Mayfair watch is updated in a kaleidoscope of colour

The Bamford name has been inextricably linked with classic cars since the 1960s, which is when JCB chairman Lord (Anthony) Bamford set out on a collecting path that has since…

Queen’s Mini beach car sells for £100k

1962 Austin Mini Riviera Sold by Bonhams Cars Online, £97,650 Fiat’s doorless Jolly beach cars crop up for sale quite often. But when did you last see an example of…

Space-age Wolfrace Sonic six-wheeler goes up for auction

Say the name Wolfrace to car fans of a certain age and they will immediately think of the brand’s legendary Slot Mags, the first-ever European-made polished alloy wheels. Founded in…

Ultimate Jaguar Mark II has been given the ‘magic touch’

These days, BMW and Mercedes-Benz are the marques best known for offering souped-up four-door cars off-the-shelf through respective M and AMG tuning houses. But the former racer and Jaguar dealer…

TAG Heuer presents pièce de résistance to celebrate F1’s 75th anniversary

There are driver’s watches, there are car watches, there are motoring watches – and then there’s the Heuer Carrera. True, it wasn’t the first chronograph made specifically for automobilists, or…

What you missed at auction this month

1951 Jaguar XK120 Sold by Bonhams, £316,250 This XK120 was bought new by Lancashire cobbler Robert Lawrie whose special boot design led to him becoming the official supplier to the…

Senna’s saloon expected to fetch £250k at auction

Exactly two years ago we previewed the Bonhams sale of a Mercedes-Benz 190 E 2.3-16 that Niki Lauda drove to second place in the 1984 Nürburgring Race of Champions organised…

Lister Knobbly continuation is ready to race, for £250k

Well, who’s going to beat you?” was Stirling Moss’s disarming retort when he was asked about the Lister Knobbly’s competitiveness after his decisive victory at Silverstone in the sports car…

Precision round up

Patek Philippe If you’re serious about recording lap times, you’ll want to use a split-seconds stopwatch that can record multiple vehicles in succession. And if you’re serious about watches,…

December 2025 Issue

By Simon de Burton