Dutton's delights

It’s like walking into a dream. That’s the impression that first hits as you enter Dutton Garage on Madden Grove in the Melbourne suburb of Richmond.

Combining timeless elegance with modern airiness – and views of the cityscape – this multi-level facility is the latest to wear the Dutton name, a name synonymous with the Australian transportation industry since 1911.

Back then Jeff’s grandfather Albert built horse-drawn carriages, but it was in 1953/4 when the business became Porsche’s authorised repair agents that the Dutton name became a permanent fixture in the enthusiast market.

Jeff joined the family business in 1965, operating out of an expanded Burnley Street showroom that’s “a good one wood away from the new place,” according to Dutton himself. It was there that the Duttons took on their first dealership franchise, becoming Fiat agents.

“We did the Porsche work until 1970, but my mechanical apprenticeship was served working on Ferraris and Lancias, doing pre-delivery work for WH Lowe, who were the importers at the time.”

From 1970, Dutton was also the Citroen distributor (“real Citroens… DS, SM”) before the business was sold in 1989.

Jeff then set up on his own, operating out of Church Street and solidifying his reputation as an astute player in the classic, exotic and race car marketplaces with distributorships for Lamborghini, Lotus, Aston Martin, AC, TVR and Caterham.

In 2012, the Morgan Sachs Group, established by Gavin Fernandez and George Nakas, acquired 'Dutton Sporting Cars' and evolved the company into the diverse business it is today. They returned Dutton Garage to its Richmond roots with the latest facility.

Dutton Garage is the premier facility of what is now a multi-pronged automotive business owned by the Morgan Sachs group. With a flourishing luxury car wholesale business that exceeded 12,000 sold vehicles per year – with plans to grow that to 15,000 – the Garage is backed by a truly global organisation.

“We moved here through the Christmas period,” he says of the move.
“It’s been a work in progress, but it’s mostly functioning how we want
it.”

But it’s the candy-store dreamscape of the Madden Grove facility that showcases the exotics. Sip on a long macchiato from the in-house bar as your eyes pore over a truly eclectic collection.

“The three-floor showroom holds 150 vehicles and we sell up to 40 significant vehicles per month through the showroom,” explains Dutton. “There’s currently $40 million of stock on the floor.”

Although traditionally known as a classic-era dealer, Dutton Garage has now embraced the 1980s and early 1990s as key sources of business.

“It’s a generational thing. Guys in their 40s today grew up idolising Lamborghinis, Porsches and Ferraris of that era. They had the poster on the wall, they’ve had a good 10 years of business and now they are after realising their childhood dreams”.

Looking out through the glass walls of Jeff’s office, there’s the full range of Ferrari flat-12s lined up; Testarossa, 512TR and F512M.

They compete for space with an outlandishly-winged 25th Anniversary Lamborghini Countach and a multitude of modern BMW M cars.

Venture further into the show space and there’s some older fare, too; XK-engined Jaguars, a first-generation Porsche 911 Carrera RS and Lamborghini Miura among the standouts… and we haven’t even looked into the race preparation and restoration side of the facility, where the tub of an Arrows-Megatron Formula One car mingles with a Porsche 962 Group C Sportscar.

The mix is enticing, though sadly it’s apparent that the pre-1980s icons are returning to Europe as the trade shifts to a truly global industry.

“At one point we knew of 30 Ferrari 365 GTB/4s (known as Daytonas) in Australia. Now we believe there’s only nine left, many heading to the UK, being a right-hand drive market,” says Dutton.

As local classic supply dwindles, the new owners have looked beyond for acquisitions, setting up an office in New Zealand and having consultants on the ground in Japan.

“We’ve concentrated strongly on these markets. I’ve done four trips to NZ in as many months as well as a couple to Japan. We do still acquire vehicles through our local contacts, but we’re now truly global. We know the right people to talk to,” he adds, speaking of his decades of experience.

Sadly, the flow to the UK is a harsh reality of the modern market.

“We’d love to bring more cars in from Europe, but LCT [luxury car tax] and the lower dollar kills it. We are hearing that LCT might be reduced next year, so if the dollar grows stronger as well, we’ll look at bringing some cars back in,” he explains.

On the local front, Dutton sees ‘modern classic’ Porsches being popular.

“Important 993s [the last air-cooled 911s) such as the Turbos and RS models, the 964 RS and the like, are growing rapidly in value after spikes in Europe. But the local Porsche fraternity is tight-knit, meaning more of these are staying local,” he says.

His Porsche ties are further evidenced by the irreplaceable ex-Mark Donohue IROC 911. “That one’s not for sale,” says Dutton, nodding towards the bright orange beast that gave the legendary American driver his final race victory.

There’s also a 356 with ‘Display Only’ on its windscreen. “It’s the fourth 356 to be delivered to Australia,” Dutton beams. “I’ve owned it more than once, but it’s not going anywhere this time.”

The 356, back-dropped by a shot of Jeff sharing coffee with Wayne Gardner and Alan Jones, is a reminder of humbler beginnings, now framed within the heady excitement of the Dutton brand’s future.