Highlights

Genuine garage find from deceased estate in London
100% complete, surprisingly solid and with a superb interior
Believed to be one of less than 30 left
In need of restoration, but with masses of potential

THE APPEAL

There are “barn finds”, and then there are genuine garage finds – cars that have been laid up for extremely long periods of time, hidden, undiscovered, presumed lost… Nothing beats the excitement of finding an old car thick with dust, buried away and forgotten by time.

This one certainly fits that bill. An extremely rare Vauxhall Royale saloon, it was purchased by its second owner as a used car in 1988 and kept in his garage in North-East London. When he passed away in 1995, the car stayed there in a lock-up behind his house and was only rediscovered in April 2023, when his wife died and the car was unearthed by a friend of the vendor as part of a house clearance.

Sadly, the keys and paperwork were lost at some point in the 28 years since the last owner passed on, but the car survived and was rolled out of the garage to be rescued. It’s a full restoration project and the buyer will need to apply for a V5 and get a set of keys cut to the original barrels, but it’s an astoundingly complete car. The condition of the interior seems aligned with the 21,339 recorded miles, but there is no proof. The vendor will supply a full receipt upon sale.

THE HISTORY AND PAPERWORK

First registered on August 1, 1979 – one of the very first cars with the new ‘V’ registration
Purchased by its second owner in 1988 and used until 1995 until it was laid up
Genuine garage find, stood up since April 1995
Buyer will need to apply for V5C
Will need new keys
Proof of purchase will be provided along with DVLA V62 application for a registration document
Tax, MOT and ULEZ exempt but not driveable as is – it’s a full restoration project

THE INTERIOR

Superb blue velour with no notable damage or deterioration
Very good door cards
Original carpets in apparently good order
Excellent wood-effect trim to door tops and dash – incredible condition for a car that has been laid up
Electric windows x 4
Sunroof
All electrics and gauges untested, car is sold as a non-runner
100% complete other than one interior panel missing from beneath dash

THE EXTERIOR

Aquamarine Blue Metalic
Full restoration project but with huge potential
Original Ronal by GM alloys with matching spare – all tyres will need replacing
Rust to trailing edge of both sills but otherwise appears remarkably solid underneath with good floor pans
Corrosion to bonnet, rear valance and driver’s door bottoms
All other panels remarkably good
Inner wings in excellent order with no visible rot
Good, solid strut tops
Rear boot lock missing
Boot floor appears sound

THE MECHANICS

2.8-litre straight six
Three-speed auto
Was driven into garage in 1995 and hasn’t been started since
Free-wheeling, brakes are off
Engine doesn’t appear to have seized but it will need careful inspection and rectification before a start-up is attempted. It has sat for 28 years unused.
Exhaust system appears okay

SUMMARY

Make no mistake, this is a restoration project and will require quite a bit of renovation before it can be driven – don’t expect to just jump in and drive it away. It will require transportation and the vendor is happy to quote for fairly local delivery if required.

However, it is also an extremely rare car – less than 30 Royale saloons are believed to still exist, though their numbers have just gone up by one following this one’s discovery. It deserves a loving home, one where the car can be sympathetically restored. And as a basis with which to begin, it has a huge amount going for it. Most of the panels are in good order, the sill corrosion is localised and the floors are good, the interior is excellent and it’s 100% complete and ready to live again.

A 100% genuine garage find, missing for almost three decades and now ready to be returned to its former glory – opportunities like this don’t come along very often.

Notice to bidders

This item is sold on an ‘As is Where is’ basis. The condition of this item is the opinion of the seller and may differ from your own opinion. Photos and listing descriptions are for guidance purposes only. Car & Classic do not warrant listing accuracy. Full inspection is recommended. Viewings are at the seller’s discretion. Buyer is responsible for delivery and collection of any item purchased.

A non-refundable buyer’s deposit is payable on this item, refer to FAQs and T&Cs for the applicable percentage.

All bidding, buying and offers are subject to our Terms and Conditions.