Supercars, film stars, forgotten racers and more
The Goodwood Festival of Speed needs little introduction.
Held on the Duke of Richmond’s estate in West Sussex, UK, this huge automotive garden party is one of the world’s biggest car events.
This year’s edition takes place from 10-13 July, and although there will be plenty of action on the hillclimb and rally stage, there will also be lots to see in the Bonhams|Cars auction, where plenty of eye-catching classic cars will cross the block on 11 July.
We’ve flicked through the catalogue and picked some of our favourites. Here they are, listed in chronological order.
The catalogue pre-sale estimates are in pound sterling (GBP); all conversions to US dollars (USD) were correct at the time of writing
1. 1928 Bentley 4½ Litre (est: £280-320,000/$378-432,000)
The four-cylinder 4½ Litre is often described as the sweet spot in Bentley’s late-1920s line-up.
It was more friendly to drive than the outgoing 3 Litre, which brought Le Mans success to the Cricklewood works, plus lighter and more agile than its six-cylinder sibling, the 6½ Litre.
This car, chassis KM3091, was sold new by Jack Barclay Ltd (now the British marque’s oldest dealership) and fitted with a close-ratio gearbox and Vanden Plas bodywork.
2. 1948 Ford F-1 ‘Woodie’ (est: £40-50,000/$54-68,000)
The Ford F-Series pick-up helped to reinvigorate post-war America, and its modern-day equivalent remains a best-seller Stateside.
This early F-1 represents where it all started. But you’ve probably already noticed that this is not a pick-up truck.
It’s a rare woodie that was converted in Cork, Ireland, when it was new.
Apparently it was built for the US consulate in Northern Ireland and used by the consul general’s bodyguards.
3. 1953 Jaguar XK120 OTS (est: £55-70,000/$74-94,000)
The Jaguar XK120’s rakish silhouette is perhaps the most recognisable of post-war sports cars.
The swooping lines were conceived for a show car that was unveiled at Earls Court in October 1948, but later refined for production due to huge demand.
The car for sale at Goodwood Festival of Speed has wire wheels and C-type camshafts, fitted by Jaguar in the 1950s.
4. 1958 Aston Martin DB MkIII (est: £140-160,000/$191-218,000)
The Aston Martin DB MkIII might not be as revered as some of its David Brown-badged successors, but there are plenty of reasons to take notice of this ’50s sports car.
Powered by a Lagonda ‘six’ designed by WO Bentley and modified by Tadek Marek, the DB MkIII was the first Aston Martin to wear the now-famous grille design.
And it was James Bond’s first Aston Martin. The British spy drives a DB MkIII in Ian Fleming’s book Goldfinger.
For those reasons and more, this restored car will surely turn heads at the 2025 Goodwood Festival of Speed this July.
5. 1961 Jaguar E-type 3.8 (est: £140-180,000/$191-245,000)
This Jaguar E-type ticks all the right boxes.
An early ‘flat-floor’ car (believed to be one of about 170 remaining in right-hand drive), it’s a dark-grey roadster with red-leather interior, and it was restored to concours condition in the mid-2010s. It has covered just 100 miles since.
It comes with a Jaguar Heritage Trust Certificate and a seven-page report that details all the work that went into restoring it.
6. 1963 Aston Martin DB4 Series V Vantage (est: £350-400,000/$476-544,000)
The Vantage-spec Aston Martin DB4 bridged the gap between the regular ‘saloon’ and the race-ready DB4GT, with its straight-six engine pushed to 266bhp.
This 1963 car is a Series V, which was the final iteration of the DB4 before the DB5.
Tempted? Bonhams|Cars reckons you’ll need £350,000-plus if you want to bag it at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed.
7. 1965 Jaguar Mk2 3.8 ‘Coombs’ (est: £47-52,000/$64-71,000)
John Coombs and his eponymous Guildford-based garage became renowned for racing Jaguar Mk2s.
On-track success led to customer requests for modifications to their road cars.
The circuit-inspired visual upgrades to this Mk2 3.8 include bonnet louvres, bucket seats and a Jaguar E-type steering wheel.
It was restored between 2020 and 2023, work which cost around £70,000.
8. 1966 MGB (est: £20-30,000/$27-41,000)
How about this MGB, ready to race and built to FIA standards?
In recent years, the current owner has spent more than £25,000 developing it and the 1850cc engine now makes more than 160bhp.
It’s also got a close-ratio gearbox, a limited-slip differential, a long-range fuel tank and more.
It’s proved its mettle, too, with wins and podium finishes in Historic Sports Car Club races.
9. 1969 Lotus Elan +2S (est: £15-20,000/$20-27,000)
The longer, more refined Lotus Elan +2S arrived in 1969 and became the first car from the British maker not available to buy in kit form.
This bright-red car was acquired by its most recent owner in 2015.
Since then, it’s been used regularly and stored in a garage.
In the past few years, it has had chassis repairs, an engine rebuild and lots of other work.
10. 1970 Aston Martin DB6 (est: £160-220,000/$218-300,000)
According to Bonhams|Cars, fewer than 50 fuel-injected Aston Martin DB6 Mk2s were built, and this is one of them.
Or should that be ‘was one of them’? As with many of these cars, this DB6’s troublesome fuel-injection system has been swapped for more reliable carburettors.
Recently, this car has been on static display overseas, so the next owner will have some work to do before it can go back on the road.
11. 1972 Datsun 240Z IMSA competition car (est: £65-85,000/$89-116,000)
US team Ger-Brock Racing built this Datsun 240Z in the mid-1970s.
At first, it was entered in Sports Car Club of America events, then was driven to victory in the 1976 Pacific Coast Road Racing Championship in California.
It was campaigned in the Trans-Am Series in 1980 and 1981. By then, the engine had reportedly been tuned to c430bhp.
This Datsun continued to contest different series well into the 1990s, when it was sold to an amateur racer in Seattle.
In 2014, the 240Z came to the UK and was restored, before making its historic motorsport debut at Donington Park in 2021.
12. 1974 Ford Escort RS 2000 (est: £40-60,000/$55-82,000)
This Ford Escort Mk1 was developed by German company Brauneiser Renntechnik and was a class-winner in its last race, which was at the Nürburgring in October 2024.
The numbers? This modified Escort’s 2.3-litre Cosworth motor is said to make around 300bhp and the whole car weighs just 890kg (1962lb).
Original parts have been used as much as possible, including the Broadspeed wheelarch extensions.
13. 1974 Porsche 911 (est: £100-140,000/$136-191,000)
Built by UK specialist Rindt Vehicle Design, this restomod Porsche 911 has covered just 1000 miles since it was completed.
The previous owner, who commissioned it, specified a car from the year she was born, plus asked for supple suspension ideal for road trips and an automatic gearbox.
Hence, this 1974 example is fitted with Porsche’s four-speed Sportomatic transmission and a few modern-day creature comforts like heated seats, air conditioning and a Kenwood stereo with Apple CarPlay.
14. 1983 Ford C100 (est: £230-300,000/$313-409,000)
After a few unsuccessful seasons, Ford cut its losses and abandoned its early-1980s Group C car, the C100 racer, but only after two Mk3 chassis had been built.
The Tony Southgate-designed prototype never realised its full potential, but the English engineer used his experience on the project to create the Le Mans-winning Jaguar XJR-9. Every cloud…
Confusingly, this car was actually constructed in 2004 using chassis 83C100-02, which was never finished in period.
Its engine, a Cosworth V8, was originally installed in the only other C100 Mk3, chassis 83C100-01, which was repurposed as the Ford Transit Supervan II.
15. 1987 MG Metro 6R4 (est: £250-300,000/$341-409,000)
During Colin McRae’s stint with the Subaru World Rally Team, he bought this MG Metro 6R4 for his personal use. Not a bad weekend car, right?
At the 1998 Colin McRae Stages, the Scottish driver even used it as the event’s course car.
But McRae wasn’t this car’s only famous owner: in the late 1980s it was part of Tom Walkinshaw’s collection.
16. 1992 Jaguar XJ220 (est: £300-350,000/$409-477,000)
This two-owner, 2700-mile Jaguar XJ220 might be one of the most original examples of the British marque’s 200mph-plus supercar.
It’s one of just 69 right-hand-drive cars and it has been looked after by the current custodian since 1998, when they bought it secondhand from specialist Don Law.
It had an engine-out service at Jaguar’s Browns Lane factory in 2000, at a cost of more than £21,000, but it hasn’t had any major work done since.
The twin-turbo V6 has not been started in around six to eight years, so the winning bidder will need to do some work before firing it up.
17. 1992 Mazda RX-7 (est: £250-350,000/$341-477,000)
Do you recognise this Mazda RX-7? It was one of the stars of 2006 film The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift.
Production company Universal Pictures commissioned Japanese firm VeilSide to fit its signature bodykit.
It perfectly encapsulates the era’s car-tuning scene.
But the next owner might be disappointed to hear that the nitrous-oxide system is just for show.
18. 1994 Dodge Viper RT-10 (est: £45-55,000/$61-75,000)
This car’s first, and so far only, owner was the reason that UK enthusiasts could get their hands on the first-generation Dodge Viper.
The vendor launched the car in Britain through their Jeep dealership in Buckinghamshire.
Mostly used for short trips to local car shows, it has just 14,303km (8887 miles) on the clock.
The Viper was looked after by the seller’s dealership until 2004, when their personal engineer took over the maintenance of this V10-engined supercar.
19. 1995 BMW M3 (est: £80-100,000/$109-136,000)
Another one-owner car, this E36-generation BMW M3 has covered just 2900 miles since it was new.
The original custodian, an Italian who bought the car in London, moved to Singapore shortly after taking delivery of the rear-wheel-drive coupé.
But before they relocated, they pointed the M3’s nose towards their hometown of Alassio and drove it 800 miles to Italy.
It stayed there until last year, when it was transported back to London.
20. c1995 Nissan Skyline GT-R (est: £100-120,000/$136-164,000)
Built for the Super Taikyu series in Japan, this Group N Skyline has been in dry storage since its final race, in 1997.
It was prepared by the Japanese marque’s performance arm, Nismo, but, in accordance with the regulations at the time, it did not compete under the Nissan name. Instead, it raced under the FK Massimo Falken banner.
It achieved a first-in-class finish in a 24-hour endurance race, and topped its class in a six-hour contest at Fuji Speedway.
The sale includes the FK Massimo team’s trophies, too.
21. 1998 AC Cobra 427 MkIII (est: £170-220,000/$231-300,000)
The AC Cobra 427’s original production run ended in 1966, after just 348 examples were built.
Such was the model’s popularity, however, that it was revived in the 1990s with a run of continuation cars, built by UK company Autokraft under the AC name.
This car, the seventh built and designed specifically for motorsport, raced in historic events across Europe in the 2000s.
In 2016, it returned to its maker and became AC’s promotional car, and appeared at Buckingham Palace for Queen Elizabeth II’s 90th-birthday celebrations.
The current owner bought it in 2020.
22. 2002 Ferrari 360 Modena (est: £50-70,000/$68-95,000)
The aluminium-bodied Ferrari 360 is one of the most usable, modern-classic Prancing Horses.
The 394bhp, 3.6-litre V8 wasn’t exactly made for pootling around town, but the relatively supple suspension and user-friendly cabin gave it an edge over its predecessors when it was new.
You could rack up miles and miles in one of these. Exactly what the previous owner has, err, not done.
This 2002 example has covered just 4500 miles since it was new. A recent service at Meridien Modena in Hampshire, UK, means it should be ready for a big road trip, though.
23. 2004 Bentley Continental GT (est: £25-35,000/$34-48,000)
This Bentley’s £25-35,000 estimate puts it firmly in brand-new hatchback territory.
But try not to be tempted by the W12-engined Continental GT if you’re in the market for an everyday city car.
You’ll be lucky to get 20mpg from the Bentley, and the running costs will likely be ruinous. Still, we can dream.
This 2002 car has covered fewer than 30,000 miles.
24. 2007 Bugatti Veyron (est: £500-800,000/$685,000-1.1m)
The last car in this slideshow is also the fastest.
The Bugatti Veyron made headlines in the early 2000s for its 250mph-plus top speed.
This two-tone example is finished in Mocha Brown and White Coffee, and it has just 770km (480 miles) on the clock.
If anything in this article has caught your eye, or you’d like to find out more about any of the lots in this Bonhams|Cars auction, click here to view the full catalogue.
The sale takes place on 11 July, as part of the 2025 Goodwood Festival of Speed.
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