Rare BMW 325iS to go under the hammer in Cape Town

High Street Auctions’ sale of collectible cars will take place at the Moto Village dealership in Cape Town on October 22.

Collectors have the opportunity of owning rare vehicles, starting with the home-grown and sought-after BMW 325iS presented in diamond-black paint and showing 137,100km on the clock. BMW SA recently launched homage models of the E30 325iS and 333i.

The legendary BMW two-door coupe has been restored by a panel shop, and bidding starts from R1.2m, similar to prices achieved at previous auctions of these rare, South Africa-exclusive vehicles.

American muscle cars in the auction include a pair of Ford Mustang Mach 1s from 1965 and 1969, both expected to fetch about R700,000, and a red 1967 Pontiac GTO 400 Ci with an estimated price of R1m.

Those in the market for something star-spangled can consider the 1988 C4 Chevrolet Corvette 35th Anniversary model. It’s No 1,713 of only 2,050 units produced, with the 35th anniversary cars all finished in white over a white interior and white wheels.

European collectibles on offer include a 1971 W111 Mercedes-Benz 280SE powered by a 3.5l V8 engine, of which only 5,000 units were produced, and a 1969 280SL Pagoda. These don’t pop up on the market often, and bidding starts at R1m for each, said Antony Ashley, the head of collectible car dealership Moto Village.

Among the other cars that will go under the hammer are:

• a 1935 Rolls-Royce Phantom 2 Drophead Coupe — the last time this model was made available on the open market was in the 1980s;
• a 1958 Bentley MK VI Drophead Coupe — with fewer than 200 examples produced, it was last seen on the open market 25 years ago;
• a 1938 MG “VA”; and
• a 1977 Ferrari 512 BB.

According to company director Lance Chalwin-Milton, the collectible car market has been booming around the world for the past 10 years, including the ongoing tariff-related trade turbulence. Collectible cars hold their value and are not driven by the politics and economics of the day, he added.

More information is available here.