1954 Humber Hawk

This motor car is being sold as part of an overseas collection. It has been imported under the Bonhams temporary admission customs bond and is therefore subject to the lower rate 5% import tax if the car is to remain in the UK & purchased by a private individual. The 5% is calculated on the final selling price. For example, if the car sells for £35,000, then £1,750 is added, making the total amount payable of £36,750.

The winning bidder will receive a receipt for the final hammer value, and proof that HMRC fees are paid. If the car is subsequently exported abroad within 30 days then these fees are refundable.

Lastly, there will be a nominal administration fee of £250 for processing the NOVA application, and payable direct to the shipping company. A completed and processed NOVA will provide you formal proof that all duties & taxes are paid in UK and thus allow you to register the vehicle with the DVLA

In common with the majority of cars in this collection, this vehicle has been on static display for a number of years and there is no history available beyond that displayed in our photography section.

We have not started or driven the car so cannot vouch for its mechanical viability or functionality. It will require recommissioning prior to road use and is sold ‘as seen’.

It is available for view and inspection at our HQ near Abingdon and we will be delighted to show the car to you and/or your appointed engineer.

The Mk VI Hawk we have with us today comes with no history or provenance to speak of.

As with the other cars in this vendor’s collection, we haven’t been able to start or drive it and, consequently, our opinions are confined to the car’s cosmetic condition.

That said, we have turned the engine by hand and can state that it is not seized.

We know that it entered the vendor’s collection some time in 2012/13. We know from various old tax discs that it was in the UK from 1980 to 2011. We don’t know what it was doing, or where it was doing it, before 1980.

We also know (from a plaque in the car) that it took part in the Marden Motor Club vintage meeting at Great Tong in 2008. We don’t know if it won a rosette.

Finally, we know from the original bill of sale that it was sold new to Arthur Lewis Bennett, Esq., of New Malden, by H. Taylor & Co of Kingston Upon Thames.

Fitted with a heater, two wing mirrors and some anti-freeze as cost-option extras, the car cost £1,022 in December 1954.

It was Claret with a Fawn interior – as it is now.

At its last MoT in December 2011, the mileage was recorded as 59,868.

Today, the odometer reads 60,489 miles.

This car is good in some parts, less so in others, and a bit shabby in one or two.

Overall, we think it is a highly original and relatively sturdy and intact survivor of what was once a luxurious and sought-after model and marque.

The body work is notably straight and there are relatively few dinks, dents, creases, folds, nicks or scrapes to report.

The shut lines are pretty tight, the doors open and close with reassuring weight and precision, and the chrome, badging, lights and trim have held up quite impressively.

The paintwork isn’t too bad, either, and while it clearly isn’t in mint condition, it could certainly be worse in a car of this age.

There is some bubbling and corrosion in evidence at the intersections of the sills with the bodywork and the doors but it’s not of the galloping rot variety, by any means, and there’s no real evidence of rust to speak of elsewhere on the bodywork.

When the car arrived at The Market, the n/s/r of the boot lid was liberally spattered with some sort of tar, oil or paint that had evidently dripped onto it from above while in storage or transit.

We’ve made some attempts to clear this up, but the substance seems fairly intransigent and might well need specialist attention to get rid of it.

The wheels look to be in decent condition.

All in all, while there is no doubt some work to be done on the bodywork, there appears to a good deal of solidity and integrity to it in most areas.

Like the outside, the inside has seen better days but is far from being beyond salvation.

In keeping with the car’s exterior, everything inside sems to us to be very original and authentic.

The leather upholstery on the front bench is heavily creased and has a rip to the seat cushion on the passenger side.

The rear bench has fared rather better and is in pretty decent condition.

Although the leather door handles are a little worn on the front doors, the door cards are in good condition and probably just need to be threatened with some soapy water and a cloth. The same is broadly true of the rear doors.

The carpets are fairly good too, if slightly shabby around the edges, and the headlining seems to have survived the passing years intact.

The fabric trim around the doors looks a little moth-eaten in places and the rubber trim around the windows has cracked and/or perished here and there.

The steering wheel, dashboard and instrument panel are in pretty good condition and are an object lesson in sparse and sober simplicity.

The boot is very large, pretty clean and in decent shape. It contains a spare wheel, some tools and a few assorted odds and ends in a cardboard box.

Lifting up the mats in here (and the carpets elsewhere in the car) reveals plenty of superficial rust dust but nothing to set alarm bells ringing.

Yes, there is rust dust and a bit of flaking to be found but we haven’t seen anything that suggests a real threat to the structural integrity of the chassis. Clearly, you’ll want expert eyes to take a closer look.

The engine and engine bay appear to be clean and dry and, as far as we can tell, everything is in its right and proper place.

The car comes with an original Humber Hawk Mk VI owner’s handbook…but no service history or any record of work done (or not done).

Currently, it has neither an MoT certificate nor a V5.

If you’d like to inspect the car prior to placing a bid – something we would encourage – then please use the Contact Seller button to arrange an appointment.

We haven’t been able to start or drive the car so our understanding of it is somewhat one dimensional.

There is work to be done here, for sure, but perhaps less than there might first appear.

Underneath what we think are largely cosmetic issues is a basically honest, solid example of a low mileage Humber Hawk Mk VI.

It’s a car with the potential to repay its next owner with plenty of authentic 1950’s motoring pleasure for years to come.

Provided, of course, that the car’s engine and mechanicals prove to be in good working order.

We’re confident to offer this car for auction with an estimate of £3,000 - £5,000, plus Bonhams bond payment and £250 NOVA fee.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; to arrange an appointment please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.