A RARE classic car that steered Talbot Motors to survival a century ago could sell for tens of thousands of pounds at auction.
The Talbot 14/45 AQ Scout was such a popular design it saved the company from financial collapse in the 1920s.
The beautifully restored car, produced in 1930, is one of only 493 originally made. It will be offered by Hansons Auctioneers on September 16 with an estimate of £25,000-£30,000. And according to the auction experts, it offers an opportunity to own a slice of motoring history.
For the last nine years the Talbot has been cared for by Gordon Higginbotham. As well as showing it at classic car rallies, where it regularly wins awards, he has used it as a wedding car. He is finally parting with it now due to old age creeping on.
Derby man Gordon, 84, who enjoyed a 34-year career at Rolls-Royce, said: “My 1930 Talbot AQ 14/45 Scout model, registration GN 524, is a half-panelled Weymann saloon with a black and cream body colour and brown leather interior. It is now the only surviving example of this particular body and it’s in excellent condition.
“I bought it in 2013 from respected car restorer Noel Bagshaw. He acquired the car in a very tired state in 1985. Over the next 10 years Noel and his business associate Bill Barrott carried out a complete nut-and-bolt, ground-up professional restoration.
“They were in the restoration business for many years specialising in vintage and PVT Talbot and Sunbeam cars and were widely renowned for the excellence of their work. They retained standard specification on the Talbot except for an improved camshaft, close ratio gearbox, modern full-flow oil filter and clutch.
“The car has been in constant use since then and has 21,000 miles on the clock. It has performed well for me. I’ve made minor modifications to improve drivability, which can all be reversed. I fitted a fully concealed electronic ignition system which provides excellent performance. It will cruise all day at 50-55mph and has a maximum speed of 65mph. A water pump and thermostatic control system have also been fitted to give controlled temperature in all weathers including heatwaves!
“In Noel’s ownership it won many trophies and I’ve occasionally shown the car myself. For example, in 2014 it won the Grammar Trophy Pride of Ownership award at a Sunbeam, Talbot, Darraq (STD) Register rally and was named Best Turned Out Talbot 14/15 at an STD national rally in 2016.
“The Talbot Owners Club twice awarded the car the Anthony Rawlings Trophy, which is presented to the leading owner of a 14/45 or 65, bearing in mind the criteria of car use, maintenance and restoration. It’s also won multiple awards in the vintage section at Derbyshire’s Chatsworth Country Show over the years including 2022.”
A total of 1,002 Talbot 14/45 Scouts were made and, of those, 493 were the same as the example set for auction. The original Talbot Factory Ledger records the build details for the car which still has its original registration plate, GN 524.
The car was delivered on December 8, 1930 and registered in London. Unfortunately, London council records did not survive the Second World War, so the first owner is not known. However, it went on to have six owners, all in the Liverpool area, from 1939 until it was rescued by Noel Bagshaw in the mid-80s.
The car was the brainchild of Swiss-born automative engineer George Roesch (1891-1969). In 1925 he was recalled to Talbot, a company he first worked for in 1919, and tasked with masterminding a motor that would drive them back to success. It needed to be perfect, straight from the drawing board. There would be no time for experiment or testing. The challenge was to provide the refinement of a Rolls-Royce 20 hp at an affordable price.
Roesch designed a reasonably-priced, low-volume car and hoped it might save Talbot. The 14/45 was the star of London’s 1926 Motor Show. From then on, all Roesch’s Talbot cars sold well underpinning the profitability of STD.
Talbot was an automobile marque introduced in 1903 by English-French company Clément-Talbot. The founders were Charles Chetwynd-Talbot, 20th Earl of Shrewsbury, and Adolphe Clément-Bayard. After the First World War, Clément-Talbot was sold to Darracq which in 1920 amalgamated with Sunbeam, based in Wolverhampton, to form Sunbeam, Talbot, Darracq Motors (STD Motors) in 1920.
In the mid-1930s, with the collapse of STD Motors, Rootes bought the London Talbot factory and Antonio Lago bought the Paris Talbot factory. Ownership of the marque came by a series of takeovers to Peugeot, which revived use of the Talbot name from 1978 to 1994.
Steve Fulford, valuer at Hansons Auctioneers, said: “This ultra-rare Talbot is the epitome of classic car elegance, an investment piece and a remarkable piece of motoring history. It demonstrates George Roesch’s genius in the early days of car design. It’s been painstakingly restored to its former glory, which means all its new owner has to do is enjoy it – and turn heads on a summer’s day.”
The Talbot 14/45 AQ Scout will be offered in Hansons Auctioneers’ September 16 Fine Art & Collectors Auction at Bishton Hall, Staffordshire. To find out more, or to book a free valuation, email [email protected].
