One of the last surviving Horstman cars, the only make of car to be built in Bath, will be going up for sale this October at an auction in Chippenham.
PD 5555, a 1923 Horstman four-seat tourer, is one of only nine Horstman cars left in existence. It was owned and driven by the company’s founder Sidney Horstmann.
Richard Edmonds, principal auctioneer of Richard Edmonds Auctions, who is due to sell the car on Saturday 22nd October, expects it to fetch in the region of £15,000–£18,000.
“Horstman cars have a powerful mystique about them,” he said. “They were very advanced for their time, with many innovative features.
“What makes this car PD 5555 so special is that for many years it was owned and driven by its creator, Sidney Horstmann.
“I think we’re going to get a lot of interest in this car. The Horstman represents a chapter of motoring history that deserves greater recognition, and it’s an important part of Bath’s heritage.”
PD 5555 was originally sold to the treasurer of Surrey County Council, Leonard Currie. When Mr Currie died in 1936, the car was inherited by Sidney Horstmann’s nephew who had been Mr Currie’s friend and neighbour.
Upon his nephew’s death in 1949, Sidney Horstmann took the car back to Bath and drove it until his death in 1962.
The car subsequently had several owners until 2008 when it was sold to Trevor Turpin, Bath-based author of The Beauty of Bath – Horstmann: Engineering in a Georgian City.
The car has been completely overhauled and remains fully roadworthy. It is being sold with its original manual.
Horstman cars, originally spelled Horstmann but the second ‘n’ was dropped after the First World War, were built in Bath between 1913 and 1929, when the company was dissolved.
Estimates for the number of Horstman cars produced range from 1,500 to 3,000. The company was located in James Street West.
In 1904, Sidney Horstmann and his brothers had tried to develop a variable speed gearbox for motorcycles that could cope with Bath’s steep hills but failed.
Richard Edmonds Auctions is Europe’s largest auctioneer of automobilia. This three-day auction will take place at Allington, just outside Chippenham and close to the M4 junction 17.
