Ultra rare classic car up for auction – you could own one of four models left in the world, and it won’t break the bank
A RARE 70-year-old deluxe ‘shooting brake’ car has emerged for sale, with an estimated value of £40,000.
The 1953 Allard P2 Safari was such a short-lived car – only 13 were made, and only four or five are thought to still exist today.
It was a hand-built luxury vehicle designed for carrying shooting parties, their rifles and any game.
The elongated estate car accommodates six people and has space for 45 cubic feet of luggage.
This particular model underwent an exhaustive restoration in the 1980s – and is now up for auction with Warwickshire-based Silverstone Auctions.
Allard was a short-lived car manufacturer founded in 1945.
It became insolvent and ceased trading in 1958, having built only 1,900 vehicles.
Post-Second World War, steel was in short supply, but there was plenty of aluminium sheeting from dismantled aircraft.
Out-of-work carpenters were now no longer needed to build bombers, so car manufacturers went back to constructing timber-framed rear sections with aluminium panels.
By 1952, when the P2 Safari was created, Britain wasn’t so cash-strapped, and it shows in the cabin with polished wood facias and door caps, full hide interiors and acres of space.
It was available with a choice of Ford, Cadillac or Chrysler V8 engines.
This particular 5.4-litre Cadillac-powered Safari was delivered new to a gentleman in Wolverhampton in January 1953, but he sold the car six months later.
The 1953 Allard P2 Safari had several long-term owners before its restoration in the 1980s.
It has formed part of a large collection and, being in generally good condition, has been used on the road.
However, it would require some further work to return it to the road again.
A spokesman for Silverstone said: “This rare, stylish and extremely useable classic will allow you to arrive in style, whether that be to the local garden fete or the Goodwood Revival.
“With internal heating, a standard fixture, adjustable steering, door-operated interior lights and an automatic reversing light, the Allard was ahead of its time in many ways.
“All of this makes it quite an important car historically, representing a moment when the black clouds of the war years were blowing away, the sun had come out, and Britain was waking up.”
The car will be sold at Silverstone Auctions on May 20.
Another car up for auction is King Charle’s old Land Rover Discovery.
Also, Hollywood icon Paul Newman’s unique Volvo is up for sale, and it costs around £22,000