Bidders race to grab Mallya’s vintage cars
This auction linked to Vijay Mallya was quite unlike the previous ones. Amid the struggle by a consortium of banks to sell off the assets of his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines, bidders last week jostled to grab the beleaguered tycoon’s collection of vintage cars.
Global liquor giant Diageocontrolled United Spirits Ltd put 30 of Mallya’s vintage cars on the block, six months after he stepped down as its chairman Among the beauties was a 1903 Humber, said to be the oldest running car in the country.The online auction, on August 25, turned out to be an action-packed marathon session, with organiser Quippo Valuers and Auctioneers letting it continue till 4 am the next day. “It just kept getting extended by blocks of 10 minutes each due to continued bidding,” said a source.
Sources said the auction was the first of its kind in the country. But United Spirits has retained the rights to cancel the sale even after successful bidding, adding to the anxiety of the highest bidders. The final decision will be announced in a day or two, said the source.
Mallya, who is embroiled in court cases over unpaid loans, is known for his love for vintage and classic cars. While he reportedly has over 100 such cars, it’s not clear if he owns all of them on paper.
In this case, the United Spirits said the cars were a part of its non-core assets. They were sold to reduce the company debt, which stood at nearly Rs 4,000 crore as on March 31, 2016. The cars are parked in Mumbai, Goa, Delhi, Bangalore and Kolkata. The 1903 Humber, an insider said, went for about Rs 1 crore, while a British-made Lanchaster apparently fetched nearly Rs 2 crore.
A Bentley Turbo R, a 2010 Rolls Royce Phantom, a vintage Rolls Royce, an emerald green Wolseley saloon vintage and a Lancia Vintage also saw aggressive bidding. Odd cars in the vintage collection like a 2012 Maruti Ritz too had buyers. “Of the 30-odd cars up for auction, there were eight cars that fell into the vintage category. All were sold,” one of the bidders told Mumbai Mirror. The bidders were mostly from the close-knit vintage and super-car circles, he said. “Most participants are known to Mallya.”
Vintage and Classic Club of India president Nitin Dossa refused to comment on the auction. Diljeet Titus, who owns over 80 collectible cars, said such an auction was unheard of. “I was out of the country and did not participate in the auction,” Titus said.
Himanshusinh Jadeja, scion of the erstwhile Gondal royalty in Saurashtra, Gujarat, whose family owns several vintage cars, said he did not participate in the auction either. “My family did sell some of these vintage cars to Mallya, but we are not expanding our collection at this point in time,” Jadeja said, adding that he received several queries about his participation in the auction.
Jadeja hoped that the successful bidders would take good care of their new possessions. “It takes a lot to maintain and preserve these beauties,” he said.
Initial fears of the cars being bid for the purpose of shipping them out of India doesn’t exist anymore, said one of the officials involved in the upkeep of the vehicles. “The bidding pattern made it clear that the cars will remain within India. Who knows they might make a return to Mallya,” an official said.
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