Euro performance icons take top dollars at Shannons

Hundreds of thousands of dollars changed hands at last night’s Shannons Sydney Spring Classic Auction, and most of it was thanks to three European performance icons.

The first, and most valuable of the three, was a 1972 Ferrari 246GT Dino, which fetched a massive $550,000. It was estimated to sell for somewhere between $400,000 and $430,000, meaning it smashed its upper estimate by $120,000.

As Ferraris go, the Dino was somewhat affordable when new, roughly matching the price of a Porsche 911S, its nearest rival.

Ferrari Performance Collection up for auction

With a 2.4-litre V6, the Dino managed 145kW, which allowed the 1080kg mass to hit 100km/h in just 5.5 seconds.

While time will likely not have been kind to its output, the engine looks immaculate. This is more than can be said about the Dino’s interior, though 45 years will take its toll on leather seats.

The second Euro to top its estimate was a 1970 Jaguar E-Type roadster, powered by a 4.2-litre straight six. Two notches shy of 183kW, the 1247kg Jag was still yet to be bestowed with 2 cylinders.

As one of the last six-powered E-Types, and a neat and tidy one at that, this big car sold for $175,000, a cool $15K more than its $140K-160K estimate.

Finally, a car many consider the predecessor to the M3, a BMW 3.0 CSL made $155,000 at auction, topping its estimate by $15,000.

With a straight-six under the hood, as suggested by the ‘3.0’ badge, the CSL was both an auditory and a visual treat.

As one of 500 RHD examples, the ‘Batmobile’ (though sans-wing) is a rarity within an already rare variant.