Kombi fetches $202K at auction
Rare 1960 Volkswagen Kombi sets Australian and possibly world auction record in MelbourneA 55-year-old Volkswagen Kombi went under the hammer in Melbourne this week for a staggering $202,000, setting a new auction record in Australia – and perhaps the world – for Germany's humble hippy van.
The record price was paid by a telephone bidder after a fierce battle with several rivals at the Shannons Melbourne Late Summer Auction in Cheltenham on February 23.
Shannons said that, based on national and even international interest prior to the auction, it was quietly confident the locally-delivered 1960 Volkswagen Kombi Samba Bus in stunning, restored condition would exceed its pre-auction price guide of $120,000-$140,000 on the day.
Top examples of Volkswagen's once-humble Type 2, which was first introduced in 1950 and has attracted a cult following ever since, have routinely fetched six-figure sums at overseas auctions in recent years.
The first examples were seen in Australia in 1953 and assembled at Volkswagen’s Clayton plant in Melbourne from 1954.
This 'step-through' T2 Deluxe Microbus with period 'Golde' folding roof – widely regarded as the most collectible Kombi of all – was completed on December 13, 1960 and first delivered in Melbourne.
Fresh from a five-year restoration, the split-screen Kombi wears a two-tone period paint job in Paprika and White with contrasting tan upholstery.
Its $202K-plus sale near the end of the auction attracted a standing ovation from the large crowd in attendance and easily exceeded the next best result of $135,000 for an award-winning 1969 Falcon XW GT muscle car in unrestored condition.
It was also more than double the price paid at the auction for an unrestored 1968 Holden HK GTS Monaro 327 Coupe, which sold for $96,000.
Of the 39 classics on offer, 21 of them were presented for sale with no reserve, resulting in a clearance rate of more than 84 per cent and total sales of $1.35 million on the night.
“This is a spectacular result for our first auction of the year,” said Shannons National Auction Manager, Christophe Boribon.
“We are now looking forward with anticipation to our first similar Sydney auction of 2015 next Monday (March 2)."
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