Kim Henson visited the sun-bathed 2023 Beaulieu International Autojumble… Here’s what he found…
What follows is my own personal perspective on the event. The words are my own; the photographs were taken by me and by my colleague Chris Adamson (grateful thanks Chris, for your help), as individually credited. (Copyright Kim Henson and Chris Adamson, respectively).
As I headed for this year’s Beaulieu International Autojumble, it occurred to me that it is 45 years since I first attended this event. Furthermore I never get tired of it. Of course I’m not alone and classic car enthusiasts from around the world still flock to the ‘hallowed fields’ adjacent to the National Motor Museum, to scour the stalls for automotive items of interest and/or to help complete a restoration project or to keep an ‘oldie’ on the road.
For me it is good to see people returning en masse, including, this year, quite a few more visitors from overseas, following the Pandemic years which were so awful in so many ways, including the calling-off and restricting of so many classic vehicle events.
Beaulieu International Autojumble – What it’s about…
Sometimes I attend the ‘Beaulieu’ event with a long list of parts required for a project vehicle, and, for example, at the 1979 event I found nearly all the components required to get my pre-War Austin on the road, in one hectic but enjoyable weekend.
This year too I was in search for specific items for another Austin of mine, and came armed with a list – which I always find helps me.
On other occasions I just attend, not with the intention of buying anything in particular, but of course to take photographs and make notes for my event reports, and at the same time I always find things that I didn’t know I needed until I saw them. These include car books, magazines, photographs and models, as well as components. So far I have never regretted such purchases!
The following ‘slideshow’ of my own photographs taken around the Autojumble site give an idea of its atmosphere and the scope of items offered (all photographs copyright Kim Henson)…
Of course for many people Beaulieu International Autojumble is a much looked-forward to ‘social’ event as well as being a source of spares (or indeed complete vehicles). I too enjoy the event for the chance to meet up with fellow enthusiasts and motoring writers, also helpful stallholders. Many of these people have become friends and I usually only see them once a year.
It is worth noting that over the Autojumble weekends, in addition to the multitude of stands selling everything from classic car engines to polish, books and magazines to bumpers and bodywork trims, there are always complete classic vehicles for sale. On the Saturday of the show this year the Bonhams Car auction saw many classics change hands.
Here are some of the cars that came under the hammer, as captured by Chris Adamson’s lens…
This attractive 1974 Aston Martin V8 Convertible (above) had a guide price of £60,000 to £80,000; it wasn’t sold.
An interesting rare car for a smaller outlay was this 1918 Studebaker Model SF Four Tourer (above), listed with a guide figure of between £11,000 and £14,000; it didn’t sell.
With a guide price of between £10,000 and £12,000, this tidy-looking Vanden Plas Princess 4-Litre ‘R’ saloon (above), described by the vendor as being in good condition throughout, found a new home for £5,520 including premium.
Another fascinating vehicle was this 1914 Rhodia ambulance (above), which carried a pre-auction estimate of £15,000 to £20,000. It sold for £16,675 including premium.
Originally listed with a guide price of between £100,000 and £150,000, but then offered without a reserve, this Aston Martin DB6 Mark 2 Sports Saloon (above) sold for £142,600 including premium.
From an Aston to an Austin, and this 1930 12/6 Sports Special (above) carried a guide figure of between £17,000 and £22,000. However the car went to a new owner for £18,630 including premium.
In addition to cars available to buy from the Bonhams’ Auction, over the whole weekend the Automart – this year located in a pleasant, spacious grassy area, enabled prospective buyers to view vehicles for sale by private sellers, plus the Dealermart was there for dealers to show their cars on offer.
There follows a selection of some of the cars on offer in the Automart…
This 1937 Armstrong Siddeley looked very sound and would be a wonderful vehicle when renovated. We understand that the asking price was in the region of £12,000…
The Escort XR3i was a popular hot hatch of its time, and this example looked solid and well cared for. The asking price was £8,750.
This modified (1275cc) Morris Minor 1000 Convertible promises to be a fun car to own, and was offered at £8,750.
This MG ZS 1.8 was said to have covered just 9,000 miles from new (it had been stored for 10 years) and looked superb. It carried a price tag of £4,995.
This magnificent in appearance 1938 MG VA Tourer has had an interesting history, and was said to be in excellent condition, and was offered at £39,995.
Priced at £85,000 o.n.o, this 1936 Alvis Sp 20 Cross and Ellis Tourer is a rare and desirable machine.
£12,995 o.v.n.o was being asked for this 1990 Renault 5GT Turbo…
This 1972 Porsche 914 was said never to have been welded, but has had extensive mechanical restoration work. The asking price? £19,500.
This lovely 1933 MG J2 was said to be unrestored, but resprayed in 1953. It was for sale at £22,500.
Affordable classics were on offer in numbers, and this ‘R’ registered Rover 200 caught my eye, looking resplendent in Nightfire Red and appearing to be in excellent bodywork and interior condition. It was for sale at £995.
Another car that attracted my attention was this immaculate-looking Triumph Dolomite 1850, a well-respected and rapid saloon in its time. This one was for sale at £4,750 o.v.n.o.
Priced at £16,950 this 1960 Jaguar Mark IX 3.8 litre (manual with overdrive) looked smart and came with much documentation.
A futuristic looking sports car in its time, this Lotus Eclat, priced at £9,995, was a late model with the 2.2 litre engine and a galvanised chassis.
On the Sunday the ever-popular ‘Trunk Traders’ event was held, with selling from car boots being the order of the day.
Located among the stands selling wares were displays by several car clubs, among them I noticed the Veteran Car Club, and organisations catering for Austin A30s/A35s, Morgans, Singers and Standards, all available for helping owners and of course signing up members.
A new, useful and enjoyable feature this year was ‘In Conversation With’, sponsored by Lancaster Insurance.
Hosted by Danny Hopkins, editor of Beaulieu’s Autojumble media partner ‘Practical Classics’ magazine, this comprised a series of 45 minute motoring-related chats taking place through the weekend.
Subjects covered included classic vehicle insurance, restoration of the National Motor Museum’s Sunbeam 1000hp record breaker, restoration, choosing the right tyres for your classic and building custom cars from autojumble parts (etc.). Taking part were Steph Holloway (Lancaster Insurance), Dominic Chinea (from the BBC’s ‘Repair Shop’), Ben Field (Vintage Tyres), Andy Saunders (custom enthusiast extraordinaire), Ian Stanfield and Doug Hill, Senior Engineer and Chief Engineer/Museum Manager respectively, from the National Motor Museum.
The Practical Classics team was on hand too; I feel it is good for readers of the magazine to meet and chat with the writers on the journal, which has now been operating for 43 years…
The Museum, with its wealth of exhibits and displays, was available for Autojumble attendees to explore over the weekend, as was Palace House and all the other Beaulieu attractions.
My 2023 visit
I started my wanderings among the Autojumble stalls in a semi-organised fashion, meeting people by pre-arrangement to collect spares already ordered, and/or simply to chat about old cars and commercials. I then branched out across the fields, trying to cover as much ground as the time allowed, for I never manage to see all the stalls, even over a whole weekend!
As always I was amazed by the breadth of coverage of items for sale, and I often wonder what buyers will do with some of the fascinating rare items that they buy.
For me the advertising signs of days gone by hold a strong fascination, not least because my great grandfather used to run a village garage and my great grandmother, a shop in the same village, and the enamel signs used in the early days of the last century are still (mostly) bright and retain their original colours.
Car parts wise, I noticed complete engines and gearboxes for 1920s /30s cars, drive belts and cooling system hoses for vehicles of those years (and up to about the 1980s), plus some scarce body components. Highlights for me included a complete ‘new old stock’ rear bodywork section for a Ford Fiesta Mark I, a pair of chromed rear light surrounds for a Vauxhall Viva HC saloon, and front wings for a Hillman Super Minx of the 1960s.
There were ‘new’ and used bumpers galore for some rare cars as well as popular models, plus some ‘as new’ badges, notably for Fords and BMC/British Leyland cars, but many for other makes too – Beaulieu is a great place to find such items, I have found over the years.
Last but not least in terms of photographs of this year’s event, here is a ‘slideshow’ of images taken around the Autojumble by my colleague Chris Adamson (all copyright Chris Adamson); we toured the site on different routes!
VERDICT
I felt that the show was very well attended this year, no doubt helped by the warm, sunny weather that prevailed over the whole weekend.
As always for me this year’s International Autojumble didn’t disappoint, and I managed to find the half-dozen items on my ‘wanted’ list, which included bodywork trim clips, door check straps, Imperial fasteners and car cleaning/polishing materials (the latter being significantly cheaper than available online). I agree these are not ‘exciting’ items but they will help me progress my current projects.
When talking to several traders, it was clear that there was still serious concern that many of the overseas buyers had not yet returned, following the Covid years, also the international trading complications that have arisen. That said, I was also told that many have adapted to the new conditions.
At the time of writing (3rd September 2023) dates for the 2024 Spring Autojumble and International Autojumble have not yet been confirmed, but Beaulieu tells us that they hope to confirm these dates by the end of this year. Watch this space!
Meanwhile, Simply French will take place on 10th September, followed by Simply BMW on 17th September, Simply British Classics on 24th September, Simply Tesla on 1st October and Simply Smart on 12th November. Visit www.beaulieu.co.uk for more information.
Stop Press:
Beaulieu tells us that around 25,000 people attended this year’s International Autojumble.
The ‘Best Stand Award’ was presented by Lord Montagu, Practical Classics Deputy Editor James Walshe, and Lolly Lee, who every year donates the Best Stand Award trophy in memory of her late father and autojumbler Terry Lee.
It is awarded to the stallholders ‘whose pitch truly captures the spirit of the show’, and this year went to Sam Glover and Eleanor and Philip Chubb.