First, a fairy story. About twenty-six years ago, June and Jeffery Holland were on a rally from John O’Groats to Land’s End. En route, they stopped at Peter Black’s Museum in Yorkshire and lost their hearts to a 1936 MG PB. As a museum piece, the car was in beautiful condition, but the little PB had a charming history too.

The original owner had kept the car until the 1960s, before selling it to his daughter for the princely sum of sixpence. However, the father must have regretted his hard-sell tactics, for he soldered the silver coin to the PB’s gearbox housing.

The daughter later passed the car on to the Peter Black Museum, where it drew the admiration of many visitors, including, in 1975, the Hollands. “That’s my dream car,” said Jeffery. “If it ever comes up for sale, I’m having it.” The Hollands went on with their rally, and the PB went on to star in the TV series ‘Act of Will’. 

This MGB failed to make its reserve at Bonhams & Brooks although presentable from a distance it was not good enough to realise the estimated £6,500 – 7,000 (lot 425 Bonhams & Brooks catalogue)

Jeffery Holland held fast to his dream of one day owning a PB, but it was twenty-six years later, in April 2001, when he and his wife noticed there was a PB for sale in a Cheffins auction, at Chilford Hall near Cambridge. As their Norfolk home is not that far away, the Hollands decided to drop in……and there was the very same car, still in outstanding, unrestored condition, with the silver sixpence fixed firmly to the gearbox housing. The bidding was competitive, and it seemed that the Hollands’ upper limit of £13,000 would not be enough. But at £12,500 the hammer fell (£13,125 including commission) and Jeffery could finally get into his PB and start it up; and believe me, the engine sounded great.

Don’t you wish car buying could always be like that? H&H sold a PB just four days later for more than £18,000. True, it was beautifully restored, but all the same, I think the Hollands did more than buy their dream; they bought it at a bargain price.

I wasn’t expecting much from the Cheffins sale either; in fact, I only went because it’s a mile from my house. But far from the collection of old wrecks I’d anticipated, the sale was exceptional.

Well known MGF racer on offer in the Coys auction at Autosport International in January

In addition to the PB there was a 1948 Y Type Tourer, extremely well-preserved, despite Cheffins’ downbeat description of ‘good order overall’. How many Y Tourers are still on the road? I’m surprised there wasn’t more of a song and dance about this very rare car, which would make a fantastic family entry for classic events: the look of the 1930s, with the advantages of post-war technology. Yet the car didn’t sell. Bidding went to just £6,500, and the top after-sale offer was only £7,500, against a rather pessimistic reserve of £8,000.

On a different note entirely was the Coys auction at Autosport International in January, which is predominantly for race cars. Two MGF 1.8 VVCs from the 2000 MGOC/BARC championship were on offer, both built by Moto-Build Racing.

One was the overall championship winner in 2000: a dramatic pink car with chequered flag decals and No Mercy number plate, which will be familiar to all MGOC race-goers. The car looked sleek and purposeful, although its poise was marred by damage to the n/s front wing. The second was the pale yellow MGF which entered the championship midway through last season.

Unlike the Abingdon MGF Cup, the MGOC/BARC series aims to keep build and running costs to a minimum. Given the very tight controls on modifications which this championship allows, plus the rock bottom prices which second hand race cars fetch, the MGOC/BARC series is about the most cost-effective sports car racing you’ll find. Both the MGFs at Coys had estimates of £6,000-8,000. Both attracted bids of just £5,000, from pundits who clearly understood the dangers of buying ex-racers, successful or not. 

Fabulous YT tourer, a four seater MG that would be ideal for road runs but it failed to tempt bidders at Cheffins

There were a couple of race-prepared MGs at Christie’s on 26th March and I regarded both with the greatest suspicion. First came a 1969 MGC Coupe. Now a genuine works MGC racer is a remarkable thing; but this wasn’t. The car might be fun for club events, but probably wouldn’t qualify for more prestigious championships. The 1960 MGA which followed had won its class on the 1986 Coppa d’Italia, but the car has undergone many modifications since then. Without roll bar or harness it would need updating to be eligible for racing today. I heard a trader look it over and mutter “right old bitsa”. Both cars were offered for sale with no reserve, and the hammer fell at £9,000 and £11,000 respectively.

A quick word on the two MGA Twin-Cams which came up at Bonhams & Brooks on the 26th February, since I must admit to feeling bewildered. The 1960 Coupe soared past the estimate and fetched £10,580. Fair enough, it was a credibly, but not perfectly, restored car. Unlike the 1959 Roadster, which was as close to perfection as they come: pretty much what you’d expect from a car belonging to the Chairman of the MG Car Club’s MGA Register. The estimate was high, £21,000-23,000, but looking at the car I could see why. What I couldn’t understand is why the bidding only went to £13,500. Beats me.

Many of the Bs at auction are fairly decrepit. It’s by no means always the case, of course, that the seller is trying to offload a heap of junk. They might, for example, need to sell the car quickly, or perhaps it has come from abroad. But you do have to ask, with lower-value cars, why the owner is putting them into auction in the first place, rather than selling them through the pages of a specialist magazine.

Around half the Bs at auction don’t sell. The ones which do tend to be either top condition cars, or the bottom-end restoration projects. There’s not much demand for the middle range worn-out Bs, and the sellers’ reserves are often unrealistic.

Take the 1972 Roadster at Bonhams & Brooks on 23rd April. Very pretty from a distance, with its newly chromed bumpers and Minilite alloy wheels. At first sight, an attractive proposition. However, on closer inspection, the car revealed nasty tell-tale signs of rust coming through on the seams of the rear wing. Just a hint, so far, but suggesting impending problems. This was not the car it appeared at first glance, and the estimate of £6,500-7,500 was far from realistic. Bidding stopped at £4,800. 

The MG PB that June and Jeffery Holland first fell in love with twenty-six years ago only to find it again on sale at Cheffins’ auction, Chilford Hall, Cambridgeshire

One of the top-end Bs was a 1979 Roadster at Bonhams & Brooks on 26th February. Imported to the U.K. from Tennessee in 1993, this green, two-owner car had a major overhaul in America just before export and it has had the American pollution equipment removed. The car looked very good; but slight damage to the bootlid and its LHD configuration devalued it. The Roadster sold for £5,175.

This price was beaten at H&H on 11th April by a “1964 MGB Speedster” – a design exercise conceived by Doug Smith of M.G. Motorsport, based on a 1964 Roadster. In outstanding condition with just 1300 miles on the clock, I think the buyer can be pleased to have secured this creation for £6,300.

In my opinion, however, the one to get was the 1963 Mk I Roadster, for which Bonhams & Brooks dropped the hammer at £4,300 plus commission, on 23rd April. Finished in red with black leather interior, this car was the early, stylish pull-handle model and extensive paperwork detailed the complete service history. Underneath, it looked well-maintained and there was even a factory hardtop thrown in. The estimate was £7,000-9,000 with no reserve, and it seemed a terrible shame that the bidding fell so far short. It wasn’t a lack of serious buyers, since a 1967 MGB GT fetched £3,910: decent money, even for this superbly presented example.

At the same sale, however, was a car which I wouldn’t have taken away for free: a shabbily dismantled 1968 MGB GT Coupe with a sinister “three boxes of spares included”. How the auctioneer managed to take £1,035 for a pile of spare parts is a mystery to me. If you’re looking for a viable restoration project, a far better bet was the wire-wheeled 1969 MGB Roadster which Cheffins sold for £700 plus commission. It would need a complete body from BMH, but with skill and hard work you could end up with a wonderful car at a sensible price. If you’re the one who bought it, I’d be interested to hear how you’re getting along.

Which reminds me: I spoke to the Hollands in mid-May to ask how their new PB is going. The response was enthusiastic. After changing tyres and tubes and obvious things, such as oil and the odd hose, the car is going like a dream. Which in a way it is. “Well thank goodness for that,” said Mrs Holland. “We’ve talked about nothing but that car for years.”