They are taken aback at Aaldering’s company The Gallery. They assumed that the trade press would pay attention to the barn find. But it is difficult for spokesman Carlo te Lintelo to understand that the lines at the Gallery are still red hot a day later.
The company struck a blow. Insiders in the oldtimer world know how this is possible. Nico and son Nick Aaldering were the only ones who not only wanted to buy the 230 cars, but were also prepared to pay for the buildings. For example, the Gallery was the only party that had a solution for the seller’s complex requirement that all cars had to be removed from the buildings at short notice. Spokesman Te Lintelo neither denies nor confirms the reading.
He does counteract the idea that his employer can become very wealthy in one fell swoop as a result of this find. The buildings of collector Ad Palmen (82) contain a few masterpieces, such as a Lancia Aurelia Spider (almost a million euros from an Italian seller), Mercedes 300 S roadster (700,000 euros via a German seller) and a Ferrari 365 GT 2+ 2 (also still good for a few tons).
Major maintenance required
But Palmen also bought much less rare models. Cars for which a few thousand euros to a grand or twenty are paid.
Moreover, those prices apply to cars in perfect condition. Most Palmen cars are, as Nico Aaldering put it, in neat but unrestored condition. Often they have been standing still for decades. According to journalist and classic car expert Wim Oude Weernink, a buyer must take into account major maintenance to get the engine, brake and fuel system working again. This kind of work is often impossible for the less unique models.
“For such a Lancia Aurelia you are talking about tens of thousands of euros,” says Oude Weernink, who is regarded as an international authority in the field of this Italian brand. “But then you have a car that is worth between seven tons and a million in original, unrestored condition.”
The doyen of Dutch car journalism and former chairman of the Federation for Historical Automobile and Motorcycle Clubs is one of the few people who knows more about Ad Palmen. In recent years, the collector has lived like a hermit among his collection. Oude Weernink met him in the late 1970s when he was still living at home with his mother in The Hague. He ran a business in car parts and tools. Palmen would always have remained alone. His collection is sold by order of an administrator. The collector himself is mentally incapable of taking care of it.
No rotten cars from a barn
“He was an entrepreneur, not a big entrepreneur,” Oude Weernink remembers. “He could buy those cars because the prices were much lower. He bought such an Aurelia in 1978 for 15,000 guilders. The unique thing about his collection is that it is not like the barn finds you often see: rotten cars pulled from a barn. Yes, the cars are dusty, but all complete and relatively good because he bought neat ones and stored them indoors, preserving them well. That makes them unique.”