Last Valiant on block

The last Chrysler Valiant to be built in Australia rolled off the Adelaide assembly line on August 28, 1981, and was shipped to a Chrysler museum in Sydney. And that's where it's been for the past 22 years. Chrysler Valiant build number 565,338 has never been registered and has only 26km on the clock. Now the white, three-speed CM automatic is up for grabs, at the Sydney motor show on October 26. Auction house Shannons expects it to fetch between $10,000 and $20,000. The Valiant is one of about 30 rare cars on offer, among them a 1926 Rolls-Royce Phantom 1 Tourer and a 1968 Chevrolet Corvette 427 convertible.

Jag leads classics

A 1953 Jaguar XK120 driven by Stirling Moss at the opening of the first Melbourne Grand Prix fetched A$75,000 ($81,000) at a Shannons auction in Melbourne the other night. Bidders paid more than A$300,000 for 20 out of 49 classic and vintage cars on offer. A 1965 Jaguar S Type 3.4 saloon sold for A$6750 ($7345) and a 1967 Jaguar 340 saloon for A$17,500 ($19,000). A 1948 MG TC Supercharged Roadster fetched A$27,500 ($29,900). Two bargain buys were a rebuilt 1973 Moto Guzzi 250TS motorcycle for A$500 ($544) and a 1972 Benelli Motobi 250 2C motorcycle for A$800 ($870). A 2002 Moto Guzzi EV80, one of only 300 built, sold for A$25,000 ($27,000). A 1922 Ford Model T Roadster got A$11,200 ($12,100) and a 1959 DeSoto Firesweep Sedan A$23,500 ($25,500).

Lexus in big demand

Sales of the luxury all-wheel-drive Lexus RX330 have been so brisk that demand has exceeded supply. Lexus New Zealand spokesman Gary McIver said he forecast 100 sales in 12 months, when the RX330 was launched in April. "But that figure has been exceeded after only five months. The outstanding response has led to a temporary shortage but we are catching up on the backlog." McIver said sports utility vehicles now represented 13 per cent of all new vehicle sales.

One hot plate

The number plate NSW 2 goes up for grabs in Sydney tomorrow night. Auction house Bonhams & Goodman expects it to fetch between $500,000 and $800,000. The plate has been in the hands of the same Sydney family for 72 years.

Supercar on hold

British magazine Autocar reports that Volkswagen's $2 million Bugatti Veyron supercar has been put on hold and may even be cancelled. It says VW chief Bernd Pischetsrieder "has ordered a rethink" on the world's fastest production car. It may not appear until 2005. The all-wheel-drive Veyron is powered by a W16 - two narrow-angle V8s sharing a common crankshaft - engine and promises a zero to 100km/h sprint time of 3.5 seconds.

We are the world

When Charles Edward Jones stepped out of the Miami bank he had just robbed, he stuffed his handgun into his belt and dashed across the street. That's when the gun went off, blowing a hole in his trousers, and when a school lunch van knocked him and two of his teeth flying. Police matched the DNA from his teeth and the judge marched him off to jail.