Business 195
Audi RS5 Orders Nearly Double Expectations as 2026 Allocation Sells Out
Jeremy Clarkson to Auction Three Grand Tour Cars
Three classic cars from Jeremy Clarkson's personal collection, each featured in The Grand Tour, will be sold without reserve by Iconic Auctioneers in November.
By Charlotte Redford · 4 min read
Three classic cars from Jeremy Clarkson's personal garage, each of which appeared in episodes of The Grand Tour, will go under the hammer in November. Iconic Auctioneers is handling the sale, and all three will be offered without a reserve, meaning they will sell to the highest bidder regardless of price.
The trio spans three decades and three very different motoring traditions. The earliest is a 1978 Lincoln Continental Mark V, the American coupé Clarkson drove in The Grand Tour Presents: Lochdown, in which he, Richard Hammond and James May each piloted a different American classic across Scotland. Clarkson has said he normally does not keep cars from his programmes, but this one was added to his garage once filming finished.
The Lincoln is finished in a bright shade of blue, with a cabin trimmed to match, and remains largely original. It was fitted with a nitrous oxide system for the episode, though the set-up never actually worked. Its odometer reads 68,285 miles, or 109,894 kilometres.
Next is a 1983 Alfa Romeo GTV6, driven by Clarkson in the seventh episode of the show's third series, also filmed in Scotland. It is powered by Alfa Romeo's celebrated 2.5-litre Busso V6, an engine long admired by enthusiasts for its character and sound. Perhaps more remarkable is its mileage: just 28,315 miles, or 45,568 kilometres, a remarkably low figure for a car of its age.
The final and most special lot is a 1982 Lancia Montecarlo Spider, the car Clarkson drove in the closing episode of The Grand Tour. Filmed in Zimbabwe and Botswana, that instalment pushed the Lancia to its limits, yet the car survived the ordeal. It has since been extensively modified, gaining taillights from a Ferrari 308, quad tailpipes, Lancia Delta Integrale wheels and distinctive grilles. It wears a Lotus Blue paint scheme, and the cabin is fitted with cloth seats rather than leather.
The auction house has not attached a reserve to any of the three, a decision that adds an element of unpredictability to the sale. Even so, the cars are unlikely to change hands at the prices commanded by ordinary examples of the same models. Their association with Clarkson and with The Grand Tour, which ran for years as one of the most watched motoring programmes in the world, gives each a provenance that collectors tend to pay a premium for.
The sale also reflects a broader pattern in the classic car market, where vehicles with a documented screen or celebrity history increasingly trade as cultural artefacts rather than simply as machines. For buyers, the appeal is twofold: the chance to own a well-known car and a tangible piece of television history.
Clarkson's decision to part with the three comes after years in which he has generally avoided holding on to the vehicles used in his programmes. The Lincoln was an exception, kept after filming, while the Alfa Romeo and the Lancia now join it in heading to market. The Montecarlo Spider, in particular, is likely to draw the strongest interest, given its role in the show's final episode and the extent of its bespoke modifications.
Iconic Auctioneers will offer all three cars in November. Further details of the sale, including the exact date and venue, are expected to be confirmed by the auction house ahead of the event.
5
