Classics galore | Bonhams Summer Sale to include Del Boy's 'pukka' 1957 Ariel Square Four

Auction house, Bonhams are underway with their eagerly awaited Summer Sale, with over 180 classic and modern motorcycles available throughout the June 14 – 24 event.   

• Related: Bonhams auction achieves £3 million in sales at Spring Stafford Motorcycle Sale

Included in the sale are various iconic machines from across the ages. Among the most exciting of which is a 990cc 2009 Ducati Desmosedici RR – marked as production number 1338 of just 1500 bikes ever made. 

Accordingly, it is described as “a true collector’s piece” by the auctioneers, and they have attached a price estimate of £40,000 to £50,000. 

Coming equipped with the supplied racing exhaust, this example of Italian exotica is good for 200bhp (or 188bhp in standard trim), whilst weighing a dainty 171kg thanks to a number of road bike ‘firsts’ – including forged magnesium wheels and a carbon fibre subframe that forms the bikes seat unit.   

That’s not all though and Bonhams will also be featuring a 1988 Suzuki RG500 Gamma, presented in the ‘Pepsi’ livery. This icon of the two-stroke world is said to be “ready for restoration” at 11,074 miles and is expected to fetch between £8000 to £12,000.   

Road going racers aren’t the only two wheeled goodies up for grabs, however. ‘Only Fools and Horses’ star, Sir David Jason is putting his 1957 Ariel Square Four under the hammer at the Summer Sale too, giving classic enthusiasts the chance to own not just an iconic piece of motorcycling history, but also the bike of one of British television’s most beloved sitcom characters.   

Del Boy’s Ariel has undergone a swingarm suspension conversion replacing the original plunger dampening system. A donor mainframe was used for this swap, with frame numbers carried over.

Sir David also converted the front brake during his ownership, swapping the “feeble” original set up in favour of a Grimeca 4 leading shoe configuration.    

Accompanying the Ariel is another ‘celebrity bike’ – a “wonderfully presented” 2004 Voxan ‘Black Magic’ formally owner by the late Chris Cornell, who fronted iconic nineties bands such as Soundgarden and Audioslave. This Black Magic is said to be the 14th example of the French V-Twin produced and comes complete with in-date MoT, Voxan dating certificate, and a V5C.    

If projects are more your thing and you fancy something to get stuck into, Bonhams have you covered there too. 120 plus project, spares, and memorabilia lots will be up for grabs throughout the week, with the standout item being a Triumph TRW project – comprised almost entirely of unassembled new old stock components.   

Bonhams will also be holding later Autumn auction, which will feature even more opportunities to purchase bikes of yesteryear. 

For those wanting something truly premium, the real jewel among these lots is an incredible 1936 HRD 998cc Series-A Rapide, featured at the 1936 Olympia motorcycle show as a factory display machine. It certainly isn’t cheap though and a sales estimate of £240,000 – £280,000 has been attached.