Hot Rod BMW Isetta, Lambo tractor, or double-decker London bus?
Headed to London for vacation next week? Well then, boy, are you in luck! Trust me, bring your checkbook, cancel your return flight, and ride back on a boat across the Atlantic with one of these fine, fine vehicles on offer at the Coys Syon Park auction on October 13. Yes, there will be a lot of elegant, beautiful, downright classy collector cars to dismissively ignore while you await these three wacky wonders to cross the block. But it’ll be worth it. At that point, all that remains is whether you’ll be taking home one or all three.
1958 BMW Isetta 300
Pre-sale estimate: £12,000-14,000 ($15,600-$18,200)
I have so many questions. At what point was this resplendent flame-motif paint job applied? Was the matching flame-decorated interior always in the gameplan, or was it later added in the interest of consistency in case the hot rod theme wasn’t quite clear enough? Are those side exhausts for real? If you did crash this Isetta and catch fire, would anyone be able to tell?
What we know for sure is that this Isetta has the “big” 297-cc engine (compared to the older 247-cc engine) and was good for 13 hp when it left the factory. Coys says this left-hand drive example is a one-owner car with only 2026 miles on the odometer, but the price estimate is way below our database’s average value range for an Isetta of $26,700 for #4-condition (Fair) examples to $81,900 for #1-condition (Concours) examples. Can’t imagine why.
1968 Lamborghini C503 Tracked Tractor
Pre-sale estimate: £9,000- £11,000 ($11,710-$14,300)
What Lamborghini collection would be complete without a tractor to pay homage to the brand’s agricultural origins? And to think, this tracked example came out just two years after the Miura shocked the world with its exotic looks and tantalizing performance. This must have been the tractor to have if you were a stinking-rich vineyard owner who wanted his tractor and supercar to come from the same manufacturer. This example hails from southwest Spain, and it has since been cleaned up with a repainted blue and ivory finish and a new leather seat. Show those Porsche tractors who’s boss.
1959 Leyland AEC Routemaster Double Deck Bus by Park Royal
Pre-sale estimate: £50,000- £60,000 ($65,000-$78,000)
An absolute icon of London that is recognizable worldwide, this double-decker bus is from the famous Routemaster’s first year of production—a rarity given that most were built in the ’60s. Coys says it’s in “very original condition” and has been well kept since its retirement from public service in 1984. Any geeky Anglophile would drool over this thing, which is complete with plaid seating surfaces and city bus route maps inside, as well as old ads on the exterior. And come on, this thing would be the undisputed victor of any Cars & Coffee. Or you could just find some friends in the UK and start your own race series to test the laws of physics.
