Collection of 200 classic cars to go to auction

The haul of classic vehicles will be auctioned off on Saturday

A man from Herefordshire is set to sell his entire collection of almost 200 vintage and classic cars at an auction.

Mark Dew, who lives on Doward Farm in Whitchurch, near Ross-on-Wye, started his hobby 40 years ago and has filled up a barn and several fields on his farm with an assortment of vehicles.

His entire collection, which includes various Land Rovers and five classic Jaguars, will go under the hammer on Saturday.

Mr Dew said he was a "little bit sad" to be selling his vehicles but he hoped others would enjoy them as much as he had.

Mark Dew has been collecting vehicles as a hobby for almost 40 years

"I think if you're a collector, it's never about the money, it's about the object, the history, how and what you can then do with it," he said.

The barn-find, which includes some cars thought to be about 90 years old, will be sold off tomorrow in an auction led by Tewkesbury Auction Centre.

Speaking of his hobby, Mr Dew said he had started collecting vehicles with the aim of opening a motor museum.

"I suppose one broke down and I bought another one, then I bought another and started collecting them," he said.

"I have loads of classic cars, the idea was to open a motor museum one day, and that's how it's evolved.

Mr Dew's collection includes a vintage Jaguar 420g which has a tree growing through the bumper

Mr Dew's vehicle haul also includes a vintage Jaguar 420g, which currently has a tree growing through the bumper.

A "good" restored Jaguar 420g would be worth about £30,000 today, he told BBC Radio Hereford and Worcester.

"It's potentially a bargain as there's so very few of them, and so very few manual ones," he said of the model.

"It's all about the ergonomics of the car, it's all how they've taken over our lives and how we all own them, they're part of our history," he said.

A revised catalogue, published by the auctioneers on Friday, lists a wide spectrum of vehicles set to go under the hammer "in person only" at the site, including Ford, Porsche, Peugeot and Rolls Royce.