The Late Robert Riding's Classic Car Collection Sells For £870,000.

Headed by a selection of Rolls-Royce and Bentley models, the fifteen were offered for sale ‘without reserve’ by H&H Classics at the Imperial War Museum, Duxford, October 19th 2022.

There was brisk bidding for the distinguished Robert Riding classic car collection of largely British marques as they crossed the auction block with H&H Classics at the Imperial War Museum in Duxford, Cambridgeshire yesterday, racking up a total of £1.1million. From that amount some £870,000 will go to benefit the RNLI and other charities in Robert Riding’s bequest.

The fifteen cars made the following hammer prices.

1924 Bentley 3 Litre Vanden Plas Tourer - £140,000

1934 Rolls-Royce Phantom II Continental Sedanca Coupe -£170,000

1956 Bentley S1 Continental - £160,000

1989 Rolls-Royce Corniche II Convertible - £82,000

1932 Rolls-Royce 20/25 Drophead Coupe - £50,000

1937 Rolls-Royce Phantom III Sports Limousine - £42,000

1926 Rolls-Royce 20 HP Landaulette - £42,000

1955 Daimler Empress DF 308 - £17,000

1991 Maserati Bi-Turbo Spyder - £10,500

1933 Daimler Fifteen Fixed Head Coupe - £7,000

1935 Lanchester Twelve Fixed Head Coupe - £7,000

1971 Vanden Plas 1300 - £5,800

1990 Mercedes-Benz 260 E- £6,200

1955 Daimler Conquest Century Drophead Coupe £3,500

1953 Lanchester 14 Saloon - £3,200

A rare number plate, 255 D, sold for £9,440

Helen Hopkins, Head of Legacies at the RNLI said: “We are incredibly grateful to the late Robert Riding Furniss for naming the RNLI as one of the beneficiaries of his estate, along with many other beneficiaries. The sale of the classic car collection will form some of the donation as the RNLI is the residuary beneficiary, so we’re very grateful to see it raise so much money.

“Six in ten lifeboat launches are only possible due to gifts in wills. Any gift left to the RNLI, large or small, makes a huge difference”

Paul Cheetham who consigned the collection for H&H Classics, says of it: “This fabulous selection is evidence of Bob Riding’s wide-ranging taste in classic cars with a bias towards Rolls-Royce and Bentley, spanning nine decades of the 20th century. They are a marvellous cross section of some of the best of the last century’s most sought after cars. And their sale will benefit one of Britain’s most beloved institutions, the RNLI.”

Colette McKay, MD of H&H Classics, commented after the sale: “We were delighted and honoured to be chosen to handle this distinguished collection, the second time in ten years that we’ve been selected to market a major bequest to the RNLI - the last time was the two Colton Ferraris which raised £10 million for the RNLI.”

Robert ‘Bob’ Furniss Riding (8th May 1940–11th May 2022)

Born in 1940 as an only child, Bob was educated at Stockport Grammar School then read natural sciences at Christ Church, Oxford. He joined William Deacon’s Bank, and had a stellar ascent through it and its subsequent iterations ending up as Group Treasurer of the Royal Bank of Scotland. He grasped the opportunity of early retirement in 1990 and moved to the Isle of Man where he had been left a house by an aunt. But Bob was far from being inactive, throwing himself into the local community and taking on the turnaround of a local private bank as its Executive Chairman.

Sailing had been a preoccupation during his time in the City, but on coming to the Isle of Man, Bob switched his energies and focus to collecting cars – principally the products of Cricklewood, Derby and Crewe, but with some maverick exceptions such as Maserati and Caterham. Daimlers and Lanchesters also featured, and he had to move to a large country house to find garaging for the ever-growing collection. His cars were regularly campaigned at rallies for the appropriate marque and were often deserved winners of various trophies.

1934 Rolls-Royce Phantom II Continental Sedanca Coupe -£170,000 (hammer)

One of just 279 Phantom II Continentals ever made and bought from Jack Barclay Ltd by the celebrated dance band leader and violinist, Bert Ambrose. Original and very stylish Sedanca Drophead Coupe coachwork by H. J. Mulliner.

The private property of renowned marque dealer Ivor Gordon (of Frank Dale & Stepson) for twenty-five years, the Sedanca Coupe also spent time as part of New Zealander Roy Southward’s collection. A past winner of the Rolls-Royce Enthusiasts’ Club’s Peter Blond Trophy whilst in Bob Riding’s care.

1937 Rolls-Royce Phantom III Sports Limousine sold for £42,000

Bodied by H.J. Mulliner as a Sports Limousine complete with a wind-up glass division and, intriguingly, separate radios for the front and rear compartments. Supplied new to City businessman Anthony Hornby who became a leading light at the stockbrokers Cazenove and one of the UK’s foremost private art collectors.

Part of two prominent Rolls-Royce collections, those of Stanley Barraclough and Bob Riding, for the past forty-four years. Subject to £88,000 worth of work between 2010 and 2012 (much of it by Phantom III specialist M.J. Pickles) and subsequently awarded ‘Car of the Show’ at Gawsworth Hall.

1956 Bentley S1 Continental Coupe - £160,000

Supplied new to Mrs. Dermot Daly of Little Compton Manor in the Cotswolds who had previously been part of the Singer Sewing machine family.

One of just 45 right-hand drive Bentley S1 Continentals bodied to its Design Number 701 by Park Ward. Resident in America for several years and notable for finishing second-in-class on the 1998 Louis Vuitton Rally of China. Much improved since joining the Bob Riding collection during 2001 with some £34,000 spent at marque specialist Frank Dale & Stepson in 2019 including the fitment of power steering.

1924 Bentley 3 Litre Vanden Plas Tourer sold for £140,000

Featured in marque books by Johnnie Green and Brian Smith this 1924 Bentley 3 Litre Vanden Plas Tourer has been the beneficiary of an engine overhaul c.1,000 miles ago by marque specialists Hofmann’s of Henley, costing over £30,000.

It has been in the custodianship of just three individuals since the late 1980s with current ownership for almost twenty-years. It is one of just 765 Bentley 3 Litres to be built on the Long Standard wheelbase and is a wonderful, imposing and unusually correct Vintage Bentley.

"It was not the means whereby the 3-Litre Bentley performed, but the manner in which it did it, that endeared the car to sportsmen who took pride in their driving. The engine was remarkably flexible, strong and reliable, the gear ratios were admirably chosen, the handling excellent and the quality unremittingly high. So,

also, was the price, but an ever-growing reputation, augmented by striking racing victories - including the Le Mans 24 hours of 1924 and 1927 - ensured its success" ('Classic Sports Cars' by Cyril Posthumus and David Hodges).