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James Hull Collection auction, 21 March


quicksilver

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Remember that huge collection amassed by Dr James Hull that was bought by Jaguar Land Rover a few years ago? Seems JLR are having a clear out and Brightwells are selling some of these cars at Bicester Heritage on 21st March. Entries are still being added to the website but there's already some proper chod online including a Lada, an FSO, a Visa and not one but TWO Mk4 Zodiac estates! Dr Hull certainly had eclectic tastes.

 

Click here for the catalogue

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He bought my old Renault Fregate so maybe that will be in this sale. I expect he is a bit pissed off with Jaguar Land Rover (assuming he is still with us I know he had been very ill) as he wanted the collection to stay together. All Jaguar wanted was the rare Jags he had but he wouldn't split the collection.

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I sold him a car as well. Currently isn't in the auction although why JLR would want to keep a Renault 4 is beyond me.

 

When he bought it, he bank transferred the cash and offered an extra couple of hundred if I could deliver and said I could have a look around the collection. Not knowing anything about him I declined (I was really too busy to deliver it to middle of nowhere too) so he sent a couple of drivers.

 

Only whilst talking to them did I realise the significance and scale of the collection.  Would have loved to have seen that.

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I really like that A35 van (its neither A30 or Countryman - not a factory one, anyway...) despite it being, in all probability, bodily fucked.   

 

It reminds me of Ten Coats O'Connor who lived on a caravan site where I grew up.   He brush-painted it annually, the colour changing with whatever civil engineering firm he happened to be nicking paint from working for at the time.

 

It is exactly the sort of thing I see myself driving in my retirement....

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Ooh, some more stuff has been added since I posted. It's a shame the collection is being split up but realistically Dr Hull was extremely optimistic wanting it to be kept together - who has room for almost 550 cars in one place? Even with all the facilities available to them JLR have far too much stuff and not enough room for it so something has to go. As DW said, most of these cars have no relevance to JLR's history, are just old chod that 'normal' people aren't really interested in, and/or duplicate other things they already have. He must have had three A40 Sports as there's a yellow one at Gaydon that's being kept and two more in the auction - one is enough really.

 

I still can't quite comprehend the bizarre fact that Jaguar Land Rover own a Lada Riva though. It just seems so unlikely.

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He did originally want the collection to stay in Wales as a Welsh motor museum. He should of auctioned it all off really as he would of got far more for it than what JLR paid. Never mind I will go along to see how the Ital looks now and to try and find out what happened to my Fregate

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That's a relief - relieved to hear he wasn't some sort of freaky Shipman-esque shite hoarder.

 

"Now then, Mrs Cushion... just a teensy little jab... out of interest, as you're nodding off, just where exactly do you keep the keys and V5 for your late husband's remarkably low-mileage Triumph?"

 

:death: 

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...A chain of cosmetic teeth-whitening clinics followed by a private equity buy-out seems to have allowed him to hoover up some amazing vehicles.

With some 500+ vehicles to his name, it does sometimes beg the question as to what you can do with so many cars. I mean, there's only one of you, and only a limited time on this Earth....

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I have seen a lot of these cars 'in the metal', some are going to be projects and some are surprisingly good. My understanding is some of the collection have proved to be surprisingly useful and sought after for filming and other work so can 'earn their keep' as it were. Quite a number have gone to the apprentice schemes at Bicester too. 

 

Like the Stondon sale I doubt there will be many bargains but I'd love to be bringing the A70 pickup home.

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