It has been a huge year for classic car auctions, with records broken monthly and just about every classic machine seeing a dramatic increase in price.

Shannons looks set to see out this year’s auction euphoria with the bumper crop of seriously desirable metal for its 40th anniversary online timed auction – so here’s a quick look at some of the metal up for grabs.

Bidding commences on Tuesday, November 23 and closes a week later on November 30.

The LX SS A9X hatchback is arguably the Holy Grail of Toranas, due largely in part to Brocky’s back-to-back exploits at Bathurst in 1978 and ’79.

This is a genuine SS A9X hatch, and while the 308 isn’t the matching numbers engine, it’s still an unmolested A9X which is highly desirable. With prices of even UC hatches going north in the last 12 months, Shannons’ guiding range of AU$390,000-$420,000 isn’t too far fetched.

There’s also an A9X LX sedan in the field, along with LJ XU-1 and LC GTR replica race cars if that’s more your poison.

If you’re chasing a classic Monaro, then a matching numbers 307 HK GTS Monaro in manual is pretty hard to pass up.

The paint has been given a refresh during its life, but is still the factory colour, and while the interior is somewhat worn – originality can never be replicated. Shannons estimate a winning bid of AU$200,000-$250,000, which to us seems a tad modest.

There’s also a HQ GTS Monaro in the auction, as well as the first and last CV8 Monaros built. We’ve detailed the story on those two here, but it’ll be interesting to see if they can match their chrome-bumper forefathers for price.

There’s also a pair of beautifully restored classic Holden panel vans on the block, the first being this FJ windowless.

It has been treated to a complete restoration that sticks as true to Holden’s original formula as possible. That includes the good ol’ grey motor and column shift, along with a fresh coat of the original Surf Green colour.

FJs of any shape are rare, and this being a windowless van means Shannons expect you’ll need between AU$85,000-$95,000 to take it home.

You can’t talk Holden panel van without talking Sandman, so appropriately there’s a genuine V8 one crossing the block.

This HZ underwent a resto around 15 years ago, and in front of the Aussie four-speed manual now sits a beefier 308 instead of the original 253.

The guiding range of AU$50,000-$70,000 seems conservative for a genuine Sandman, and with no reserve to overcome it could be one of the cheaper chrome bumper lions to sell.

From the Blue Oval, the headline act is what appears to be the exact XY Falcon GTHO Phase III that set the tone for GTHO prices way back in 2007.

We also have a separate story on this historic and untouched GTHO that you can read here. The shortcut is the was bought by collector Darryl Mattingley in 2007 for AU$683,650 – a record for the time (and not accounting for inflation), with the car still only having 25,449 miles on the clock.

Shannons are estimating a final winning bid will need to be in the vicinity of AU$900,000-$1,000,000.

If you’re still after a Big Bertha for a tenth of the cost, then there’s also a pair of XA GTs, a coupe and a white sedan.

The coupe is finished in a rare hue of wild plum, with the original 351 Cleveland V8 and three-speed auto.

The sedan has only been a two-owner car and has also been subjected to a high-end restoration, meaning it’ll suit someone wanting to jump into a finished classic rather than taking on a project.

It also has a 351 Clevo and three-speed auto, and the combo of the polar white paint and white interior allegedly makes this XA GT a 1/1 example.

Both cars are tipped to fetch somewhere between AU$130,000-$160,000, however an XB GT sedan sold at Shannons earlier this year for just under $AU100,000 (before buyer’s premium).

At first you might think Shannons estimate of AU$85,000-$95,000 seems a bit full on for an XY Falcon 500 ute, but a deeper dive into this specimen reveals the justification.

The car underwent the full nine yards by the late great Neil Thompson at Ford GT specialists Grand Tourer.

The original six-pot and manual were binned in favour of a 351 V8 and C6 auto with a nine-inch, along with GT suspension throughout and disc brakes.

That coupled with a respray in the original Ultra White hue and a revamped interior means you’d struggle to build the same thing for less.

Once seen littering wreckers yards, boxy XD-XF Falcons are now well and truly in the realm of being sought after collectors’ cars.

This XD Fairmont is a V8 Ghia ESP car, packing the 5.8-litre V8 to make it one of the most desirable XD build combos.

Mileage is on the higher side at 213,000km, but with most XDs rusted into the ground and factory V8 cars being hens’ teeth, Shannons has estimated it’ll draw interest of around AU$70,000-$80,000.

If you’re after an XE ESP instead, there’s one up for grabs and Shannons estimate it should only fetch AU$40,000-$50,000 due to it being a six-cylinder auto converted into a V8 manual.

If you’re after a modern Muzzy to stand out from the sea of locally-delivered S550s trotting around, then this slightly earlier 2012 Stage 3 Roush machine is a tasty pick.

It’s been RHD-converted, and the supercharged Stage 3 Roush kit has been given a further tickle up by Herrod Performance to deliver 450rwkW from the 5.0-litre Coyote.

Shannons predict a AU$85,000-$100,000 selling price, and given a brand new Mustang GT costs nearly $70K from a dealer (which isn’t supercharged) – it’s mighty tempting!

It’s not all Holdens and Fords though – this stunning 1971 VH Valiant Charger R/T coupe is flying the Mopar flag.

The Charger has undergone a rotisserie restoration, now using a four-speed manual in place of the original three-cog unit and a period correct Hemi inline six.

Shannons estimates a winning bid of between AU$100,000-$120,000, and it is one of only three R/Ts with the optional dress-up pack, LSD diff and vitamin c orange paint.

Japanese metal has been going gangbusters both locally and overseas in the last couple of years, and spearheading that has been the Nissan Skyline GT-R range.

There’s two special GT-Rs for auction in this lot, an R32 and an R34. The R32 is a later-build 1993 V-Spec version that claims a fresh respray and appears to largely be in original condition.

Shannons estimates around AU$80,000-$100,000 will take the V-Spec home, and given a 1994 R32 GT-R sold through the auctioneer in June for AU$142,500 (before BP) – we’re fairly confident it’ll get close to triple figures.

The heaviest hitter of the GT-R family is the R34, and this 2002 M-Spec Nur is expected to draw a serious amount of money to the table.

It has just 38,000km on the clock and presents in original condition, with Shannons estimating a whopping $300,000-$350,000 needed to re-home the cult icon.

For reference, another R34 GT-R M Spec Nur sold at auction in Japan for AU$472,000 in late 2020, but that car had only 627km on the dash.

If you’re after an even rarer chrome-bumper GT-R, then Shannons also has this 1972 Nissan Skyline 2000 GT-R replica coming across the block.

It may be a replica, but with any Skylines of this vintage worth a dime and GT-Rs having been rare for decades now, it’s one of the few opportunities you’ll ever get to own a Skyline like this.

For power it uses a L28 straight-six with triple carbs bolted to a five-speed manual ‘box, and the fit and finish for a replica is arguably better than with a Nissan produced way back in 1972.

These cars are just the tip of the iceberg for the awesome machines on offer at the auction, with bidding live now and closing next week on November 30.

You can find the full field of cars up for grabs in the 40th anniversary auction by following the link here.