Significant cars, motorcycles, memorabilia and collectibles from noted Australian collector and motor museum owner, the late Peter Briggs, are set to be offered by Donington Auctions in October.

‘The Collection of the late Peter Briggs’ is a timed on-line auction that draws together vehicles from Briggs’ personal collection, and display vehicles surplus to the needs of the York Motor Museum, originally established by the Perth entrepreneur.

The auction opens on 6 October and bidding will close progressively over the weekend of 17 and 18 October.

Peter Briggs was a prominent West Australian businessman and entrepreneur, whose success in the mining industry enabled him to indulge his passion in all things automotive. He owned more than 200 cars during his lifetime.

A keen yachtsman, Briggs twice represented Australia in the Admiral’s Cup and won the Two Ton Championships in Sardinia (Italy) with his yacht ‘Hitchhiker’.

He also showed his cars at concours events around the world, winning awards at Pebble Beach, Villa d’Este and New Delhi.

Donington Auctions is a premium European-style auction house and Australia’s largest auctioneer of classic automotive items.

With more than 100 years combined market expertise as a specialist in vintage and veteran, classic and collectible cars and motorcycles, Single Owner Collections, and automotive memorabilia and ephemera, it is ideally placed to handle the collection of the late Peter Briggs.

Among the cars to be offered by Donington Auctions is a 1919 Australian Six, one of the very first Australian-made motor cars, a c1902 Clement first owned by the Governor of Victoria, a 1966 Ford Mustang Convertible, a 1950 Jaguar XK120 OTS roadster, a 1909 Holsman Highwheeler Model 9K, and the legendary c1959 Charlie West Speedcar.

There’s also a 1913 Peugeot Bebe, the first car designed by Ettore Bugatti, a 1958 Messerschmitt Kabinenroller K200, and a 1903 Oldsmobile Model R ‘Curved Dash’ runabout.

A rare factory ‘cutaway’ chassis used by Chrysler in 1925 to promote its new four-cylinder model around the world is also on offer, along with one of the oldest post-war Volkswagen Beetles in the world, from 1946.

Included in the auction too is an eclectic range of motorcycles such as a water-cooled Lewis, one of the first Australian-made motorcycles produced between 1901 and 1925, four-cylinder Nimbus and four exceptional speedway bikes.

There’s also a 1925 Coventry Eagle 350cc and an early shaft-drive FN Single from the 1900s.

Briggs’ collection also encompasses an array of memorabilia, collectibles and automobilia.  Among them is a substantial motoring and nautical book collection, and rare and valuable paintings from the golden age of motorsport, all being offered in the auction, both in Perth and at Donington Auctions’ Melbourne headquarters.

“My husband collected these vehicles over many years, and it is time for them to go to new owners who could enjoy them as much as our family has done,” Robin Briggs said of her late husband of 67 years. “For Peter, every one of these cars and motorcycles had a story, and he loved telling people about them. Many of them are significant pieces of Australian motoring history.”

The York Motor Museum in the Avon Valley, near Perth, was established by Peter Briggs and James Harwood in 1979.

Peter Briggs sold the museum to a local community organisation in 2017 and in the last decade, the museum has diversified the collection to include exhibits which were not part of the Briggs Collection.

The York Museum vehicles being offered at the auction were retained in the ownership of the family and some of them have been on display for 40 years.  The ‘Collection of the Late Peter Briggs’ auction represents an opportunity for the York Motor Museum to freshen-up its galleries and put on new displays.

The eclectic personal collection of the late automotive industry figure and racing driver, Alan Hamilton, who died earlier this year, is set to offered for sale by Donington Auctions.

Hamilton, together with his father Norman, spent three decades as Australia’s official Porsche importer – the world’s second oldest outside of Europe – in parallel with a successful racing career, culminating in victory in the 1977 Australian Sports Car Championship and a trio of Hillclimb Championships.

He was also a key part of the famous Ford 1-2 at Bathurst in 1977, finishing second with Colin Bond.

Donington’s exclusive ‘Mr Porsche Australia – Featuring the Garage & Collection of the Late Alan Hamilton’ auction featuring over 500 lots will be conducted on-line only, with bidding opening on 2 February.

The on-line auction will then be concluded over two days, 14 & 15 February.

“Alan was an important figure both in the industry here, as a racing driver and in Porsche’s history, and his amazing collection reflects that incredible life,” Donington’s Robbie Richards said.

“There are some truly unique pieces of history and provenance that only Alan had, which simply won’t be available again in this context. It’ll be an exciting auction for collectors.”

Needless to say, Porsche is heavily represented among the auction’s lots with offerings that include items unique to Hamilton, as well as exceedingly rare collectibles from the German marque.

Headlining the vehicles of offer is the 1971 McLaren M10B that Hamilton himself raced in the early ‘70s and later re-acquired, restored and ran for his long-time driver Alfredo Costanzo, in historic racing.

The McLaren is fully restored and is being offered, alongside the ultra-rare one-of-four built 1987 Penske PC16 Indycar in the collection.

With significant Australian racing heritage is the 1957 Sabakat, a Lotus 12-based special with both unusual provenance and interesting history, while another locally-built car to be offered at auction will be a 1973 Farrell Clubman sports car, at one time raced by Hamilton’s son Travis.

An unusual Maserati 250F ‘tribute’ completes the small collection of cars, which is accompanied by a large array of automotive memorabilia and ephemera.

Porsche-related items dominate, from sets of factory blueprints for the 917, 908 and 906 racing cars, to statues, models, signage and even inscribed doorhandles from the former Hamilton dealership.

There are copious artwork and posters featuring Porsches, along with rare original factory parts catalogues, sales brochures, even bound business documentation between the dealership and German factory, along with many large mounted photographs from Hamilton’s career as a driver and entrant.

Trophies, medallions, books and slot cars related to Hamilton’s career racing Porsches and outside, racing Fords for Allan Moffat and his own F5000 exploits, are all on offer in the collection, which includes items from his many diverse motor racing interests.

Pre-bidding for the ‘Mr Porsche Australia – Featuring the Garage & Collection of the Late Alan Hamilton’ will open on-line on 2 February.

A premium European-style auction house, Donington Auctions is Australia’s largest auctioneer of classic automotive items. It boasts more than 100 years’ combined market expertise as a specialist in vintage and veteran, classic and collectible cars and motorcycles, Single Owner Collections, and automotive memorabilia and ephemera.

Two recently discovered, extremely rare microcars led a buoyant auction at Donington Auctions today, with the Peel P50 setting a new record price for a microcar in Australia. The tiny Peel — made famous when Jeremy Clarkson drove one through the BBC studios on Top Gear — captured bidders’ imaginations worldwide.

Lot 3, the 1964 Peel P50, sold at Donington Auctions’ Collector & Competition Car Auction for an eye-watering $85,000, following a frenzy of bids from Australia and overseas before being secured by a local collector.

Weighing just 59 kilograms, measuring 137 cm long and 99 cm wide, the Peel P50 is officially recognised in the Guinness Book of Records as the smallest production car ever built. Manufactured between 1962 and 1965 by the Peel Engineering Company on the Isle of Man, the P50 is one of the most distinctive and collectible microcars in the world.

Recently discovered in a Queensland garage, where they had remained untouched for more than five decades, the 1964 Peel P50 and 1962 Messerschmitt KR200 drew strong interest from collectors both in Australia and abroad.

The Peel P50 sold today is believed to be the only factory-built example in Australia. With just 49 produced and only 27 thought to survive, it represents an extraordinary find.

Donington Auctions’ Damien Duigan said:
“This result reinforces that rarity and unrestored originality remain key factors for collectors in today’s market — and that they’re willing to pay a premium for it.”

Greater capacity for auction consignments and more flexibility for concurrent auctions, are key benefits brought by Donington Auctions’ recent move into an expansive new national headquarters.

Three years in the planning, Donington’s new 1600 sq.m. facility in Dingley will enable the collector car and motorcycle community to engage with its regular, large scale classic vehicle and collectibles auctions, in a modern and professional environment.

“Our new facility gives us the capacity for much larger and more regular auctions, and provides a well-located meeting place for enthusiasts and collectors to get together,” Donington Auctions’ Cameron Sabine said.

“We are a proper ‘bricks and mortar’ operation, not just on-line, so enthusiasts can inspect the cars, motorcycles and collectibles up for auction, talk to us about them, and bid with confidence and clarity.

“Additionally, we now have the room for things like cars and coffee events and club activities … we plan to make our new headquarters a real destination for classic car and motorcycle enthusiasts.”

With over 100 years’ combined expertise, Donington Auctions is a premium European-style auction house, auctioning more automotive-related items than all its rivals combined.

In addition to its new Melbourne headquarters, Donington Auctions has an established Sydney base, located adjacent to the historic Amaroo Park racing circuit site.

As well as vintage, veteran, classic and collectable cars, motorcycles, and trucks, Donington auctions thousands of items of automotive memorabilia, garagenalia, petrolnalia, models, and automotive-related ephemera every year.

It is also a specialist in Single Owner Collections and Classic and Vintage Tractors.

Donington Auctions boasts more than 100 years’ combined market expertise and has extensive experience across all collecting categories, working with top tier dealers and global auction houses such as Christie’s, Bonhams and Sotheby’s.