Rare '38 Vincent Rapide will cost you your house...maybe

Vincent Motorcycles went bankrupt nearly seven decades ago, but the little manufacturer from Stevenage still holds an almost mythical sway over the industry.

Just look at the 1938 Vincent-HRD 998cc Rapide Series-A that is expected to fetch between £240,000-£280,000 at the upcoming Bonhams auction in Staffordshire.

If your foreign currency conversion skills aren’t quite up to scratch (don’t worry, mine aren’t either), then sit down while I tell you that those figures equate to roughly $460,000-$536,000 Australian dollars. Yep, that is the price of a house...well...at least the price of a house if you live in Broadmeadows or Mt Druitt.

According to a Bonhams press release, the Rapide Series A example is “one of the rarest and most highly prized motorcycles in existence” and a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for discerning collectors”.

Rare and prized as it might be, that is a helluva lot of dough for two-wheels, an engine, and a frame. I need to buy a house before I can lose it buying a motorcycle.

But large price tags are not uncommon for Vincent models.

There are currently four Vincent motorcycles listed on bikesales.com.au. The cheapest is a 1948 Vincent HRD Rapide listed for $85,000, while the most expensive is a 1950 Vincent HRD Rapide with just 6591kms on the ODO listed for $180,000.

Those bargain prices are just child’s play though.

In 2020, a 1948 Vincent HRD Black Shadow was listed on bikesales for $250,000 and had just 1190kms on the clock.

And yes, the Black Shadow is the model that Hunter S. Thompson planned to ride in the Mint 400, as described in the iconic novel, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.

It gets better. In 2018, a 1951 Vincent Black Lightning – a bike that was once considered the fastest production motorcycle in the world – sold for a mind-boggling $929,000 USD (roughly $1.16 million AUD at the time). That price made it the most expensive motorcycle ever sold at auction to that point.

See Vincent models for sale HERE

The astronomical price of that Black Lighting perhaps owes itself to the fact that only 31 examples were ever built before production ended in 1952. There was also the famous photo of Rollie Free breaking the USA speed record at Bonneville in a bathing suit. And then there was the Richard Thomson song 1952 Vincent Black Lightning from his 1991 album Rumor and Sigh.

That record price has since been surpassed – a Harley-Davidson built in 1908 went for $935,000 USD last year – but that uber-expensive Vincent Black Lightning only added to the legend that is Vincent Motorcycles.

But lets get back to that Rapide Series A.

First produced in 1936, the Series A was the first production Vincent to receive a V-twin engine. The 998cc OHV air-cooled pushrod V-twin was capable of 45hp and an estimated top speed of 177km/h. Reporters of the time called it a “plumbers nightmare” thanks to its messy array of tubes and hoses. Back in those days, you could pick one up for less than $1000AUD – quite the contrast to today’s auction price. The Series A stayed in production until 1939 when it was replaced with the Rapide Series B.

According to Bonhams, the example for sale at the Staffordshire Auction is one of only 79 built. All owners post-1955 have been identified, and the present owner has been in possession of the bike since 2002. It was meticulously restored with “no expense spared”  between 2004 and 2017. It comes with a comprehensive history file.

Bonhams has plenty more information on its website, with the auction scheduled to be held on Sunday 21 April, starting 11am GMT. If you can find a spare halfa million behind the couch, then feel free to login online and place a bid. I can tell you that I won’t be.

Regardless of whether you think this 1938 Rapide is overpriced or not, there is no denying that the Vincent brand is incredibly special.

As Thompson wrote in his 1991 song:

Says James, “In my opinion, there’s nothing in this world

Beats a ’52 Vincent and a red-headed girl

Now Nortons and Indians and Greeveses won’t do

Ah they don’t have a soul like a Vincent ‘52”

And that probably just about sums it up. But you're still not having my money.