Henry Pearman has collected quite the reputation within the classic car community by not only specializing in Jaguar E-types, but by updating several dozen of them so they perform like more modern sports cars. At the same time, Pearman has collected quite a few classic cars of various marques, several of which he’ll offer at Silverstone Auction’s The Salon Prive Sale to be held September 4 in London.
“I am delighted that we will be bringing one of the country’s most important classic car collections to auction,” Paul Campbell, Silverstone’s sales manager said in a news release. “The ‘Stradale’ Collection includes a series of iconic cars from the Daytona Spyder to the F50 and F40. Collectively they are undoubtedly some of the most desirable cars to come to market in recent years.”
Perman established his Eagle restoration and vehicle sales service in 1984 with a focus on E-type Jaguars. In 1988, he entered his 4.2 E-type in the inaugural Pirelli Classic Marathon, a 2,000-mile rally across Europe, and finished fifth overall. The following year, he won, beating the “Famous Five” of Stirling Moss, Paddy Hopkirk, Timo Makinen, Roger Clark and Ove Andersson.
In 1991, an E-type owner told Perman he’d parked his car in favor of a Nissan Skyline GTR. Perman’s response was to begin re-manufacturing E-types, but with contemporary technology so they were a pleasure to drive whether doing a long-distance tour or a daily commute in the city. According to Eagle’s website, some three dozen such Eagle E-types were produced for owners from Australia to the U.S. and from Malaysia to Argentina.
Eagle also has created the Jaguar-based Eagle Speedster and the Low Drag GT. Britain’s Octane magazine suggested the Low Drag GT may be “The Ultimate E-type.”
Perman’s personal car collection is known as the Stradale Collection, which will send some 14 cars and three motorcycles to the Silverstone sale.
Likely to be the most expensive car at the sale is a 1931 Bentley 4 1/2-Liter Blower, No. 25 of the 50 built. In 2010, the car, which is expected to fetch $3.7 to $4.2 million, did the nearly 1,900-mile Blower Bentley International Rally as part of the 80th anniversary of the 24 Hours of Le Mans race.
Another gem is a 1971 Ferrari 365 GTS/4 Daytona Spyder, one of 122 produced and this one delivered new to William Harrah, the American casino owner and car collector. The Spyder shows 3,955 miles on its odometer and is expected to fetch between $2.95 million and $3.8 million at the auction.
Also being offered are one of 349 Ferrari F50s, this one with less than 6,500 miles on its odometer; a 1968 Lamborghini Miura P400; and an Aston Martin DB6 Mk 2 Volante, just like the one used in the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton, though Pearman’s is one of only 17 equipped with a manual gearbox.
“Having chosen Salon Privé to launch our Eagle E-Type Speedster to the world back in 2009, as well as to celebrate the E-Type’s 50th anniversary in 2011, we knew the new joint venture between the UK’s finest concours event and Silverstone Auctions was the perfect opportunity to release some of the very best road cars from the collection,” Pearman said in a news release.
“It is truly a living collection, so is subject to change from time to time, and we’ve been exceptionally fortunate to have recently acquired arguably the very best Audi R8 — the ex-works and 2004 Le Mans winner — to join the growing number of competition cars within the collection.”
Salon Prive is a three-day “automotive garden party” that is part of the Chubb Insurance Concours d’Elegance.
